Western Railroad Discussion > BNSF Super Bowl Special in Tehachapi

I made an impromptu visit to SoCal this weekend, and knowing from MyTeggyPC's "UP Heritage Update" that Miss Katy (UP 1988) was in West Colton, I was hoping to catch her on a train.

I also knew that the BNSF Super Bowl Special with a Pumpkin Tier 4 leader was heading west, thanks to the initial post by bnsfsd70 and the IOTD (Image of the Day) by CP_M260 later:

http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,3947754
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,3948396

I didn't think much of it, figuring I can catch this train close to home in the Bay Area, until a friend posted a heads up with a tentative schedule, which pretty much guaranteed the train was going through Tehachapi in daylight. So I abandoned my Miss Katy stakeout Sunday morning and made the 2 hour drive toward Tehachapi, confident of catching the BNSF Special.

- Rainbow near Adelanto (Hwy 395). Usually, I see a rainbow when a storm is ending. I went through heavy rains in Cajon Pass, so when I saw this, I thought the weather was going to get better (WRONG).

- Video of the chase. Locations covered are Cameron, approach to Tunnel 10 (between Marcel and Walong), Walong, and Tunnel 2. Note the grading work between Marcel and Walong for the extended siding.
 

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Thanks for the nice video and braving the weather elements to shoot it! Nice to see the area so green.

Larry

After Tunnel 2, I headed to Edison Highway to get some pacing videos. I actually paced it twice (let the train pass me, then I pass the train) so I can get the following for you guys, the passenger cars and their names. It was in this order through Tehachapi:

Santa Fe
Cajon Pass
Red River
Snoqualmie Pass
Stampede Pass
Raton Pass
Marias Pass
Stevens Pass
John S Reed
Missouri River
Lake Superior
Canyon View
Mountain View
Gerald Grinstein
Topeka
Trinchera Pass
Mt. San Antonio
William B Strong

That's all for now.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/01/16 19:10 by cchan006.

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Thanks for sharing those.  Nice videos.  At about the 1 minute mark in the first video I was thinking.  If that had been a steam loccomotive you would have seen the the steam from the whistle a few seconds before hearing it.  I hate it when video makers syncronize the sound and the video to make it look like the steam starts and the same time the sound gets to you.  Same thing when they show storms.  You see the lightning and hear the thunder immediately.  That doesn't happen where I live.

Thanks for braving that weather also.

John

Great videos, Charles. The pouring rain made for some interesting conditions on Tehachapi for the chase, really great to hear and see the rain in your video. 

Thanks for sharing,
~Ryan

Great video!

Really enjoyed the show!   Very professional and entertaining.   Not too many flicks show the wipers in action!    
And can't wait to see Tehachapi even more green...

Excellent videos........thank you.... 

Charles:

It's clear that a lot of work went into capturing that train at as many places on that less than California quality day!
Thanks so much for sharing it with all of us.

Were there suppose to be people on the train?

Regards, Jim

Well done Charles...especially if you were driving by yourself!
Tom

Concur with all the above comments, great job.  

Did the SB Special come over Raton?

How Green is thee Valley...The shot at 2:50...out of the tunnel, first vid...Amazing!!!
Looks so much like a model RR...great videos!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/02/16 08:40 by bert14.

I was wondering the same thing. It appears there a re a lot of empty coaches for such a long train.  I wonder how many people are on board 

bayview_boy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I was wondering the same thing. It appears there a
> re a lot of empty coaches for such a long train.
>  I wonder how many people are on board 

With the Super Bowl nearly a week away when these videos were taken, perhaps this was a positioning move for the equipment, with the primary use by occupants a few days from now in the future, or for transit home from the game following Sunday evening.

I agree that it is primarily a positioning move. No, it did not come west via Raton Pass.

Thanks for the comments, guys.

Tehachapi had some good action in the morning, and for all my past visits (except on Mondays), mornings have always been good.

- Two southbounds (eastbounds) on BNSF's Mojave Sub between Boron and Mojave around 10 am, a hot Z train and a 2x2 coil train.
- Two more southbounds at Mojave, both BNSF manifests. Second one departed after the Super Bowl train highballed Mojave.
- One northbound, UP stacker (IDITA) before I got to Mojave, which I caught up to at Walong.
- Next northbound, a BNSF intermodal (probably Z, with pigs), which followed the IDITA.
- BNSF Super Bowl train followed the above intermodal.
- Southbound rail train at Rowen which met the Super Bowl train.

There was a BNSF southbound (heard on the radio, not seen) after the Super Bowl train arrived into Bakersfield. That train got a wind warning from the UP Dispatcher. After I braved the snowstorm, I saw the ZLCLT approach Mojave from Hwy 14. 

I didn't document the trains because I was busy keeping my camcorder dry to make sure I got my target. I figured I post this, since people often ask about traffic levels through Tehachapi.
 

Where are  they parking this train?

Thanks for sharing, nice video w/good audio.
Like the list of car names.
Some day there will be a "Warren Buffet." The biz diner buffet.

Thanks fpr sharing. Great video.

Brian
Burlington, Iowa