Western Railroad Discussion > Never heard of this....new birthday party

My oldest son's birthday was last week and when my wife asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday party, he said a "Railfan party". He wanted to invite his two best friends for a day of chasing trains from Roseville (CA) toward Donner. When my wife told me this, it brought a smile to my face as I thought, great idea! So we packed up a bunch of snacks and picked up his friends on Sunday morning. Luckily we had a break in the rain and it was a beautiful sunny day. Union Pacific gave us a variety of trains including the first NS heritage unit we've seen in person: NS 8114. We had some great ATCS info so it allowed us to be in the right place at the right time. In total, we saw 7 unique trains and 3 of them in more than one place. The kids love the chase!

Ryan Wilkerson
Fair Oaks, CA

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Amtrak #6 at Newcastle and the the last two were actually taken a few minutes earlier near Loomis. We beat the train by less than a minute.

Ryan Wilkerson
Fair Oaks, CA



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/20/14 08:55 by RyanWilkerson.

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man! that's so awesome!

We got a Subway lunch and sat at the Colfax depot for this train to pass by.

Then it was time for presents. It started to rain lightly so we stayed in the truck.

I saw a west bound near Gold Run on ATCS so we decided to head a bit east to see our last train of the day. We chased it to a few locations as we headed west.

They had so much fun that one of them said they wanted to have a railfan birthday party too. His parents might kill me for starting this :-)

It was a really fun day and I realize my son is a very lucky boy to have friends that enjoy one of his interests...I'm even more lucky to have all of them enjoy my hobby!

Ryan Wilkerson
Fair Oaks, CA



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/20/14 08:56 by RyanWilkerson.

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Ryan:

Great stuff!

Regards, Jim Evans

In just a few precious years these kids will be adults with their own kids and these photos will become extraordinarily priceless! Very well done...

Lance

Your son had a GREAT idea for a 'Railfan' party! Lucky kid!

PhotoBob is standing at the mailbox waiting for his invitation.

Looks like a great day outside, without waiting for a parking spot at the Mall.

Ryan,

That is one of the neatest things I have seen! Wow!!! I certainly can relate to that feeling when the kiddos initiate a train-related activity. Great way to indoctrinate the next generation of rail enthusiasts; keep up the good work.

Chris Donhost
Vacaville, CA

The first picture (bored?) and last picture (hands over ears) remind me of my granddaughter. She never caught on to trains. #5 and 6 (with camera), not my granddaughter, but she can read me, "Grandpa, you think too much about trains!"

mapboy

FFA. Future Foamers Of America.

Ryan --

Awwww....how wonderful! You are sooo
fortunate that your son shares your hobby.
Lance is right -- cherish these moments,
because kids grown up all too fast. And,
as has been mentioned. your son is extremely
fortunate to have a friend who shares his
hobby. That is so good to hear. I can hardly
think of a better birthday party theme!!
And all of you even got to see the very first
NS heritage unit to go over Donner. What
a catch! Great photos of a never-to-be-
forgotten day. What awesome memories all
of you will have!

Beats two hours at Chucky Cheese every time.

Posted from Windows Phone OS 7

Is the young lady your son's sister or a friend? I took my daughter when she was growing up sometimes with her brothers and sometimes alone railfanning.

What a great dad you are. Sacrifice your time to take the kids out to sit by the tracks and wait for trains. I know, it must have been tough for you but you're a better man for doing it.

What a great story. My son had a slight interest in trains but it never developed. My daughter... nothing. My grandson has his room decorated with trains, some are my Lionel trains from the 50s. He's 9 years old and can identify most of the cars but hi's not real interested. My grand daughter doesn't really care. I'm planning to take them on an Amtrak trip in the summer. It'll be OK, as long as they have their phone and can play games the entire trip. What's the world coming to. At their age I was chasing train from street to street on my bicycle.

John

Way to go Ryan! I took my daughter and son numerous times on trips and chases of the late/great 844/3985 trips and the Cumbres & Toltec. My son hired out last January on the BNSF as a shop laborer in Lincoln after he graduated from the University of Nebraska the prior spring. This coming February he will start electrician training at the shop. I was a Lincoln based engineer from 1979 to 1983. Sometimes the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Kennard Britton
Bedford, TX

Excellent! My twin sons would love to do this. They are still a little young for a full day of train chasing but maybe some day soon.

You have TRAINED them well, Ryan. Super idea, and it looks like they all had a great time.

Nice post..made my day reading this.

rev66vette Wrote:
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> Nice post..made my day reading this.

And mine too. Really nice to read something like during this holiday season. The photos are priceless, and you and your family will cherish them in years to come. Thanks for sharing this wonderful family event with your friends here on TO. We are privileged that you did.

MC
Columbia, Missouri