Western Railroad Discussion > Still Santa Fe Outta Hobart Almost Ten Years After the

The renumbered cabs and patchwork may say one thing but itz still good ole Blue and Gold Santa Fe representing at Hobart Los Angeles these days. With the busy pre-holiday season bringing record levels or rail traffic to the BNSF, former classic lease units like LTEX and NREX "rent-a-wrecks" are aiding in any way they can. Take this nice example from this past Friday when railfanning old stomping ground spots down in L.A. (technically not Vernon although 26th street is). Darn that dumb yellow concrete barrier! BNSF Security got on my butt for nabbing this picture through the fence from 26th street but politely left a minute later when they saw it was all good with espeeboy! (see follow-up image)

NREX has supplied BNSF with many former ATSF/BNSF SD45U's and NREX6417 is one of the typical units on lease with original pre-merger paint and some slight pint modifications. Can you believe that this leaser gem and the snooty 40-2 were one of the few yard jobs working the intermodal ramp tracks here at Hobart! The other power set working the west end this afternoon was the BN Green GP50 combo but I ever got pictures since they kept ducking into the packer tracks.


-Ryan aka "espeeboy"
on the ex-WP Oakland Sub MP11.2

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a BNSF security guard doing his thing came out to visit espeeboy, espeedad (in the truck) and Pinky (the truck). Turns out that since the last time I was there the contracted security at Hobart Yard have upgraded from smaller Toyota Tacomas to more attractive looking Tundras. So I nabbed this comparison shot since BNSF Security know that Tundras kick butt! BTW, Pinky is by far the sexier Tundra. Sexier even more then those two dumb red Amtrak P42's claiming to be real Toyota Tundras.

Dude had cruised on by and stopped a hundred or so feet doen the street. After about 30 seconds of backing up to my location, the guy came out (looked a lot like my L.A. Cholo hometown buddies) and asked of course what it was I wa doing. Said I was a railfan and was doing my thing on old stomping grounds. His immediate spot was, "A railfan huh? Ey, whatz a railfan?" and I gave him the quick speil about our hobby and what exactly it is that turns us on to all of that moving metal on rails. He accepted the answer, we chatted a little bit about the blue and gold pair idling in front of us (although he probably could've cared less) and then he took off. He did cite that he had to do his job and I replied about how I knew that I had to stay on the public street as I have been instructed to do so in the past by Hobart security.

Point is, the dude honestly didn't know what a railfan was? Guess he could have been fairly new on the job but have post 9/11 security measures and what not scared all of the railfans away form Hobart and other classic Los Angeles railfan spots?

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another classic looking pair was this urbanized GP30U and B23-7 cruising on back to Commerce for either the diesel facility or the other intermodal yard. Rushed the shot and got some nice rusty barbed wire in the shot - oh well...

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espeeboy Wrote:
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> another classic looking pair was this urbanized
> GP30U and B23-7 cruising on back to Commerce for
> either the diesel facility or the other intermodal
> yard. Rushed the shot and got some nice rusty
> barbed wire in the shot - oh well...


Actually Espeeboy, these units have been working the 3rd Rivera "road switcher" lately. This local origionates in Pico Rivera and usually shoves west from Pico with the following consist:

Cars to be spotted at Commerce - Locomotives - Cars to be spotted at Malabar

On one of the weekend days, they usually have power to be dropped off at Commerce Diesel. After dropping it's cars and sometimes locos at Commerce, the units hook to their Malabar cut and wait to be lined west to the old Harbor Sub to Malabar. On the rare occasion that Commerce Diesel has the nights M-PICBAR power ready and the track not blue flagged, the 3rd Rivera might pic up the road power before heading to Malabar. Usually, it goes to Malabar with just the switching power and cars. After dropping the cars, the units head to the other end of the yard, couple to any outbound cars- if there are any, it isnt unusual for them to take off light- and head back east. If equipment needs to be picked up at Commerce to take to Pico Rivera, it does so or it just heads straight to Pico. It would be my guess that your consist didn't make a pick up at Malabar, but could have picked up cars at Commerce, you can't really tell by what track its on. Lately a set of GP25s, BNSF 3113 and BNSF 3119 have been working Commerce Intermodal, but that power changes quite a bit. Although I've never been bugged by Olympic Security on 26th street next to Hobart, local police scan the area quite often due to the large amount of vehicles typically parked down the street. Also I too was fortunate to catch the NREX 6417, albiet on Cajon pass. I love the looks of a B/Y SD45..... and NREX kicks ass too.

For all my NREX homies out there,
-Dash

PS. From what Ive seen the power for the M-PICBAR usually heads to Pico Rivera light, and usually sometime after 6pm....

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I remember seeing that GP20 back in March on No. 3 heading into LA, man, when they gonna stop these stupid taggers? They're making locomotives look terrible!

BNSF doesn't have GP20's anymore. They've been off the roster for 2+ years now. What are you talking about?

David.Curlee Wrote:
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> BNSF doesn't have GP20's anymore. They've been off
> the roster for 2+ years now. What are you talking
> about?


I believe that due to the close proximity to of the "2" key to the "3" key on the keyboard, wouldn't it be a safe assumption that he could have accidently struck the "2" key typing "GP20" rather than the "3" key typing "GP30"?

-theDash

I'd glady take the 4200 HP red Tundras over tinky winky pinky, ya barney googler.


TCS - benji carbon