Eastern Railroad Discussion > Extreme Trains Needs a Make Over

You know, I love trains, railroads and railfanning. I'm a photographer and have worked in TV news and do stills on the side. And I can say that the show is almost unwatchable for me. In fact, I think it needs a make over. Here's why --

1.) The host needs two or three chill pills. Not every stand up he shoots has to have him walking like an idiot somewhere. Slow down, hell, stop every now and then, and let us take in the scene.

2.) Last nights show bogged down when he went into this long thing on clearing snow off a spot of land where the railroad USED to go through. Yeah, he made his point about how tough it was back then about ten different times in five different ways. Didn't need to see him pretending to dig six foot of snow.

3.) Slow down on the sped up video. Using this technique once or twice is nice for an hour long show, but the editors over use it.

4.) Every once in a while, we'd like to see a train move past a camera which has been placed on a tripod level. We'd like to see most if not all of the train as time permits, at it's own speed. These wacky unlevel, hey-maybe-I-could-produce-music-videos shots are fine when used a few times through the show. But not every single time!

There is more but ths is all I can think of at the moment.


Joe H.

While I agree with most of that (maybe not as enthusiastically), my big thing about last night was the Steamtown thing again. I don't care about Steamtown. I wanted to see Chicago to Seattle, not Scranton. We went from Cascade Tunnel to Steamtown to Seattle in 5 minutes. Calm the host down a tad, tie his hands down and drop Steamtown from every episode...

Al Moran,
The SD80MACKing

yea, they tend to get way off subject on that show.........

66

Something you guys should remember, this show isn't for us. This show is set up to give the general public an idea of what railroads and trains do. This show is right in line with any other program on TLC, The History Channel, Etc. I personally am enjoying the show for what it is. I mean for gods sake, can you imagine him trying to explain what a J1.6 Relay valve was and how it works on an engine? NO,why? Because no one really gives a damn.

:-)

Stay safe out there, you might just be on EXTREME TRAINS!

-Joe

As I said in another post, this show is getting sillier each episode! I really hate the video technique. The host could use a Valium!

Ed K. OH WELL PRODUCTIONS / HORNS INC.
www.dieselairhorns.com

PS. I consider myself a rank armature, but my video technique while interacting with the train I'm shooting is, far better than their jerky fast video.

http://www.trainorders.com/avshare/detail.php?id=2637&adodb_next_page=3

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JoeyGooganelli Wrote:
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> Something you guys should remember, this show
> isn't for us. This show is set up to give the
> general public an idea of what railroads and
> trains do. This show is right in line with any
> other program on TLC, The History Channel, Etc. I
> personally am enjoying the show for what it is. I
> mean for gods sake, can you imagine him trying to
> explain what a J1.6 Relay valve was and how it
> works on an engine? NO,why? Because no one
> really gives a damn.
>
> :-)

> -Joe

I second this post. Tape it, DVR it, and just fast-forward through parts that bore you. Heck, you might actually learn something if you watch it. Nobody's an expert. If the host gets to you, turn down the volume. If you don't like the production techniques then I don't know what to say, other than this show wasn't for you. Stick to those exciting and thrilling homemade DVD's of trains passing by for hours on end. ugh

For all the comments about this show, I think we are all forgetting that each episode is already "in the can". Our suggestions, while interesting and to the point, are fruitless on two fronts--all the video for the show is completed and the producers don't really care about the "armchair railroaders" that many of us who are members of Trainorders really are. I can almost guarantee that truck enthusiasts have the same complaints about Ice Truckers and the folks in Alaska had complaints about "Tougher in Alaska"....................just relax and enjoy some of the silliness.

Marty Harrison
Knob Noster, MO

Just do what I do when I manage to see an episode (not like I make the effort but it has happened a few times), sit back with a beverage of your choice and laugh, point, call him a liar, and generally try to figure out what the point of the story really is (I think on the Acela show it was "I'm in Portland and I'm going home" since he said it about 5 times).


TCS - even pentrex or those old santa fe vids weren't as hard to watch (errors and all).

TV is wasteland. Find better things to do.......

Hey, it's free railroad videoing. I can tolerate some idiocy for the good stuff.

if its made for the general audience , then even they are annoyed with it !!! i hope History channel learns some lessons from this

Well, how much is Matt, and how much is he being directed? He may be the host, but he is not the director or producer.

The shows seems good to get a younger generations into trains ... but then, why is it on at 10 PM??

We think the show is Great,Hey it maybe over the top a bit but Gezzz its just a tv show for Entertainment.So sit back and enjoy it or turn your knob and watch RED Green....Scoobydoobydoo

Put some cars with rims and hot girls behind the guy, maybe a gold chain or two, and he'd be perfectly at home in a rap video for all the times he does the smackdown shot over the camera every episode.

I don't buy the excuses though. If Discovery can make things like Dirty Jobs be interesting with no fast cam and quirky camera angles, they can make Acela and the Fruit Express interesting. But of course, this guy ain't any Mike Rowe. So, bring in Mike and the producers of some of Discovery's shows that are actually entertaining, and you'd have something. Until then, you have a poorly produced rap video without the cars, music, bling and girls.

jch9596 Wrote:
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> 3.) Slow down on the sped up video. Using this technique once or twice is nice for an hour long show, but the editors over use it.

ABSOLUTELY! I see this technique used EVERY time a truck, train, plane, boat, cloud, wave, or ANYTHING LARGE MOVING show at a high frame rate. The effect is misleading, annoying, and UNNECESSARY! It would be nice of SOMEWHERE and editor would say NOOOOOO to the use of this effect.

Rants aside ... if you look for it, this technique is everywhere. I tried watching the reality series about the L.A. ports, but turned it off after 20 minutes because seeing fully loaded cargo ships bobble like a kids toy in a bathtub was annoying. The N.Y. Times is written at an 8th grade level? I guess video programming is edited at a preschool level.


> 4.) Every once in a while, we'd like to see a
> train move past a camera which has been placed on
> a tripod level.

Yeah ... and no goofy music soundtrack.

> These wacky unlevel, hey-maybe-I-could-produce-music-videos shots are fine when used a few times through the show. But not every single time!

I agree.

I have the Empire Builder episode on my DVR. I'm going to delete it unwatched. If I want to see FICTION, I'll watch three-year old episodes of N.C.I.S.!

* JB *

I've got a better idea... Don't like the show? Go out and shoot your own trains!

>>MC>> its healthier, too...

The show might not be for us but this forum is. So the fact that we are talking about the show whether pro or con is what the forum is all about. As some say, "if you don't like the show, stop watching it". I say if you don't like to talk about the show or discuss it, don't read or reply to the thread...

Al Moran,
The SD80MACKing

no it doesn't need a makeover. their are profesionals making the show and the host is doing a good job, he has to act like he's on speed because he has to make it look interesting and play to the non foamers. if they did a show on what foamers want, no one would watch it. who want to see foamers take pictures, watch trains or play with model trains??? that wouldn't go anywhere.

although i do get tired of the steamtown stuff.

Steamtown...the Jarassic Park of RRs!!

livesteamer Wrote:
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> For all the comments about this show, I think we
> are all forgetting that each episode is already
> "in the can". Our suggestions, while interesting
> and to the point, are fruitless on two fronts--all
> the video for the show is completed and the
> producers don't really care about the "armchair
> railroaders" that many of us who are members of
> Trainorders really are. I can almost guarantee
> that truck enthusiasts have the same complaints
> about Ice Truckers and the folks in Alaska had
> complaints about "Tougher in
> Alaska"....................just relax and enjoy
> some of the silliness.

This is excellent advice. "Just relax and enjoy some of the silliness" is advice useful for so many different situations.