The Gandy Dancer
The Official Publication of
The Alameda County Central Railroad Society
September 2003
Labor Day Edition.
| The Gandy DancerThe Official Publication of | September 2003
Labor Day Edition. |
| Club Officers: | |
|---|---|
| President Gary Lewis |
Vice President Henry Chandler |
| Secretary Dean Lewis |
Treasurer Don Pomplun |
| HO Trainmaster Andy Herrera |
O Trainmaster George Cumming |
| Newsletter Editor Bob Johnson |
Webmaster Jim Ferreria |
| Visit the club website | |
If you have any information that would be of interest to the membership please contact Bob Johnson, so that it may be included in the next issue. The deadline for submitting information for the October issue will be Tuesday, September 23 with a goal of being mailed and uploaded to the website later that week. Members are encouraged to submit photos, announcements and other club and model railroad related material for use on the club website. Please contact Jim Ferreria with items for the website, or questions relating to the website. |
| Go to July / August 2003 Issue | Return to Gandy Dancer Index | Go to October 2003 Issue |
| General News | HO Scale News | O Scale News | Name the Railroad |
A request that our exhibit be open has been received. The O scale has declined to participate as a group. Participation in this event is strictly voluntary. Tentative hours of operation are Saturday, 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Sunday 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM.
Hours: Saturday 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM and Sunday 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Normally we close at five or six depending on the number of visitors, weather and at what time it becomes dark.
November 29 and November 30 (Thanksgiving weekend). Hours are 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
The annual club post fair BBQ had a good turnout. Everyone had a good time and there was good food and good conversation. Thanks to all of those who participated and brought in all of the goodies for everyone to enjoy. A big thank you to all of those who took part in the pre-BBQ set up, food preparation and take down of the tables and chairs afterward. Photos from the BBQ.
The September general business meeting will be held on Friday, September 5th. Big Bertha the club BBQ will be fired up for those wishing to bring your own meat for the self-service grilling session prior to the meeting.
The end of the fiscal year for the club beverage fund is in September. If you have an outstanding balance, large or small, on the bar tab sheet, please pay up by the September business meeting.
The club Constitution, in Article III, Section 3; provides for the appointment by the club President, of a nominating committee of three voting members at the September business meeting. The nominating committee reports a slate of candidates, at least one for each office, at the October business meeting. Members prior to the elections, in November can nominate additional candidates for club offices.
If you are interested in serving on the nominating committee please contact Gary Lewis and let him know of your interest. If you have suggestions for possible candidates for club office, or are interested in running for office, please contact the members of the nominating committee after the September business meeting.
The election of the HO scale trainmaster is customarily held in September. So this will be an item of business at the scale meeting.
According to the calendar posted adjacent to the dispatch panel, which shows the scheduling of Analog and DCC running for Friday evenings, the schedule for September is as follows:
Analog: |
Friday, September 12 and Friday, September 26. |
DCC: |
Friday, September 5 and Friday, September 19. |
(The letter "A", on the calendar, denotes an analog run night. The letter "D", on the calendar, denotes a DCC run night).
The following remarks are from the HO Scale Trainmaster.
Hi HO Members,
Well, looks like we all survived another fair. Even though the attendance and donations were down from years past, we did have a good turnout. I really want express my gratitude for all of you who participated in the fair. We seemed to be covered for all the shifts even when we were thought to be short handed. You all came through. Once again, a lot of good comments were made about both the O and HO sides. It shows we are one of the standout attractions at the fair
We really had a great turnout for the annual Bar-B-Q and as usual, the food wasn't near in short supply. Those of you who couldn't make it, really, really missed out.
Our Good guys show this past weekend had a good turnout. Those car enthusiasts really have an appreciation for what we, as a club, have accomplished. They are also very kind with their donations. Well, we're winding down the summer and a few shows left before the end of the year. We will go over projects at our next HO meeting.
--Andy Herrera, HO Scale Trainmaster
The following remarks are from the O Scale Trainmaster.
On Sunday, August 3, the ACCRS O Scalers held our third annual open house for Northern California O scale modelers. This event began in 2001, when the West Bay group asked if they could come and run on our large layout. Word-of-mouth resulted in a good turn out, and better the next year when we added trading tables for informal swapping. This year, over 50 modelers attended, including the Jaeckels and Dave Viale from Mariposa, Lou Cross from down Chowchilla way, and plenty of old friends from the greater Bay Area. Thanks to those members who helped setup and host the event, and particularly to Bill Oborne for providing the Barbecue.
Five Atlas roadrailers, and three 85-foot trailer train cars, are the Club's newest equipment addition. This group of modern cars makes a nice-looking train on their own. Short and fast, reminiscent of the Santa Fe's famous Super C high-speed expediter from Chicago to Los Angeles. The cars look equally good running as part of longer freights, too.
The current run of extra trailers is sold out, so the 3 TT cars will be running empty for a while. However, we have ordered Santa Fe and SP "Golden Pig" trailers from the next run being done by Atlas. A small intermodal yard will be added on the "audience" side of the current freight yard.
--George Cumming, O Scale Trainmaster
Listed below are this month's questions about railroad slogans. The answers to these questions will appear in the October issue.
The sixth annual Truckee Railroad Days will be held Saturday, September 6-Sunday, September 7, 2003 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The event includes handcar rides, model railroad exhibits, displays of rolling stock and a Wild West show in addition to many other related events.
The Feather River Rail Society, Amtrak, Union Pacific, McCloud Railway, Rail Journeys West and California Rail Tours are providing equipment for display. Rolling stock currently scheduled includes Western Pacific GP20 2001 and FP7 805-A, private cars "Plaza Santa Fe", "El Capitan" and "Royal Gorge" and a display of Amtrak Capitol equipment. Reports are that UP 951 and UP 963B (E9A and E9B) are enroute to California from Wyoming and may also be on display.
If more information is desired, please go to the Truckee Railroad Days web site or call the event hotline at: 530-546-1221.
Tickets are now available for the 17th Annual FRRS Railfan Photographer's Day, Saturday, September 20. If you enjoy vintage diesel action or are a fan of the Western Pacific, this is your event. The Portola Railroad Museum will be closed to the general public for the day to allow dedicated railfans to photograph classic WP equipment in action. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for ages 5-12 and free for children under 5.
Noted railroad photographers and authors will be on site to sign their work or just to chat including Ted Benson, Adam Clegg, Norm Holmes, Ken Rattenne, Virgil Staff and Dave Stanley. The FRRS also notes the return of Railroadiana to the event organized by Ken Meeker. Vic Neves will continue his tradition of unique night photography opportunities and after dark slide shows. Tickets are available at the gate the day of the event, or in advance with payment by check or money order to:
FRRS Railfan Day Tickets
P.O. Box 608
Portola, CA 96122
There is an item that has been circulating amongst the railfan community relating to an event that reportedly happened on the Union Pacific in Kansas. This appears to have Mr. Murphy's fingerprints all over it. Have a look.
September means the beginning of a new series of reports about railroad related sites and various museums that have been visited by the editor. The following article is the next installment of this series of reports. Background information on the SAC Museum is from the museum website. The museum does not have photos of everything in their collection on their web site, some of the links are to other websites including the U.S. Air Force Museum at Wright Patterson Air Force Base.
The Strategic Air & Space Museum is located between Omaha and Lincoln off of Interstate 80. Take exit #426 (same exit as Mahoney St. Park and the Simmons Wildlife Safari Park) and go west 1/2 mile. The museum is located on the right (north) side of the road.
The museum was established in 1959, with the arrival of the first aircraft in the collection, and was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, who envisioned a Museum that preserved historic aircraft. With the passage of time the museum grew in size and popularity and was renamed the Strategic Air Command (SAC) Museum. In 2001 the museum was again renamed to its current title the Strategic Air & Space Museum.
The museum is comprised of a large collection of air and spacecraft, the majority of which are displayed inside the 300, 000 square foot display complex that includes a glass atrium, two aircraft display hangars, a traveling exhibit area, a children's interactive gallery, a 200-seat theater, a Museum store, an aircraft restoration gallery, and a snack bar.
We visited the museum on the afternoon of July 2, 2002. Along side the Interstate an F-105D Thud is displayed on a pylon advertising the museum and the aircraft is lighted at night. After parking the car we walked toward the museum entrance. There is an interesting display of an Atlas ICBM that has been polished up and appears much as it did when in service. If anyone remembers the Mercury program from the 1950's and 1960's an Atlas was used for at least one launch. After passing the Atlas, we entered the museum through the Atrium.
The Atrium is a soaring glass-enclosed area like a giant greenhouse and encloses one of the museum's most prized assets an SR71 Blackbird. The Blackbird is display as if in flight making a banking turn to the left. This is an unusual display format for an aircraft of this size.
Branching off from the atrium are the display hangers. The larger hanger houses a number of bombers including a B-58 Hustler (this type of aircraft was seen in the movie "Fail Safe"), the first production Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, a Boeing B-47 Stratojet, a Convair B-36 with the experimental McDONNELL XF-85 "GOBLIN" Parasite jet fighter, a B-17 flying fortress (WWII) and a Douglas C-47 painted in D-Day colors. A number of other fighter aircraft round out the display in this hanger. The other smaller display hanger houses a Fairchild C-119 flying boxcar, a Mig 21 and a number of other aircraft from the Vietnam era and more modern.
On the day we visited, there was an Amphibian aircraft being worked on in the restoration bay. The paintwork and metal of the plane were gleaming under the lights of the bay. One of the hands on exhibits is a cockpit from a B-52, which visitors are welcome to have a seat and "fly" the big plane. For those more inclined to a more realistic adventure, a flight simulator for a fighter aircraft is available at an extra charge.
Museum Hours are 9:00 AM to 5:00PM (CST) Daily. Museum Admission $7.00 for adults, $6.00 for seniors, $3.00 children ages 5-12, under 5 are free. Group rates are available with advanced reservations. A snack bar is also available.
I would like to thank my tour guides, my cousin Bob Smith and his grandson Jeremy, for their assistance and company without which it would not have been possible to visit the various museums in the Omaha and Council Bluffs area.
The Strategic Air & Space Museum photo supplement.
The next installment of the museum report will cover the Trails and Rails Museum, located in Kearny, Nebraska.
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