FL9

The NS and KCS and UP have joined forces to establish a new high-speed freight corridor between Atlanta and Dallas via the KCS’s Meridian Speedway.  As part of this on August 28th the three railroads operated an inspection train out of Atlanta that tied up at Jackson, MS on the Speedway that evening.  Yesterday on August 29th the train operated over the KCS from Jackson to Shreveport where it left the Speedway and ran over the ex-T&P to UP’s Dallas Intermodal Terminal (DIT).  I left work at lunch and Troy Minnick and I drove east hoping to beat the special to Big Sandy and follow it back to Dallas.  With assistance from David Hawkins monitoring the train’s progress our chances looked good.  We started to follow the UP’s Dallas Sub east from Terrel, and kept a close watch on the clouds that were starting to form.  We heard an eastbound go into the hole at Grand Saline to meet a westbound, so we set up at a grade crossing close to the west end of the siding.  Within minutes we were rewarded with the shot of the UP 4088 West racing by us at 60mph through the woods.

The eastbound turned out to be a manifest train, and the dispatcher told the crew they would be going to Fada halfway between Mineola and Big Sandy to meet another westbound intermodal and the special.  With phone coordination from Steve Schmollinger who was ahead of us in Marshall that the special was about to pass through there, we skipped shooting the westbound intermodal when it met us and drove on to Big Sandy to set up.  We found a clear spot next to the ex-Cotton Belt Corsicana Sub east of the diamond over the Dallas Sub, and set up to wait as the sun went behind a cloud.  Fate was with us as the sun came out a few minutes before the special slowed to around 50mph and clattered over the diamond.

A few seconds later a better view of the whole train was available.

As the EMD 645 power plants started to accelerate the train away from the diamond with a rhythmic beat I focused on the A-B-B-A lashup of F-units, the likes of which I had not seen in many years.

Troy and I left immediately thinking we would soon overtake the train on the paralleling highway.  Wrong!  The train was passing each detector at better than 70mph, and slowly widened the gap between us.  Nothing impeded its westward progress, and by the time we were approaching Terrel again the special was ten miles ahead.  A thunderstorm now brought us a hard rain on the windshield, so we bailed off the old highway and headed down to Interstate 20.  After passing two wrecks and getting the Pilot thoroughly washed in the process, we got out of the rain just before reaching Dallas.  Since the special had to meet Amtrak #22 at Marith and then take the long way around to the DIT, we made it to Hutchins just north of the DIT about 15 minutes ahead of the train.  Troy and I found a nice open spot and the sun was now shining again in the west through a large sucker hole in the clouds.  Leslie Holt from Dallas joined us here, and soon we were rewarded with this shot as the train as it now moved compass south at around 40mph with the thunderstorm still raging in the background.

I panned to get a shot of the vintage lashup,

and then more to get just the NS 4271 leading as it passed by.

I photographed every car in the train but the most impressive one to me was the NS #24 the Delaware, a full-length dome originally built by Budd for the Santa Fe before going to Conrail and now to the NS.

Troy and I drove down to the DIT entrance in Wilmer, and seeing a fingerprint scanner I figured I was in the UP computer enough times they probably had my prints on file by now.  Sure enough it worked and the gate opened.  We drove on down to the parking spot where I told the assembled crowd I was the Norfolk Southern CEO, and I was here to see my train.  That did the trick, and I snapped this shot of the power next to a UP SD70ACe that would be taking the UP cars on to San Antonio in the morning.

The NS F-units were to be fueled and then return to Shreveport in a few hours with the two NS business cars to be handed back to the KCS.

The light was on the other side, but a nose-on view was still impressive.

I asked about photographing just the F-units, and they obligingly uncoupled them and moved to an open area to pose for this view of the now exposed 4270 and its stable mates.

The late afternoon light was perfect, so I moved in for a close-up.

One last view of this classic locomotive consist from the operating end was in order as they headed off to where the fuel truck was waiting.

Feeling like we had accomplished our goals for the afternoon, Troy and I headed back home towards Fort Worth.  By the way, if you believe everything I have said here, I have some fabulous Texas swamp land I would like to sell you also……