Western Railroad Discussion > SP Tunnel Motors Working in Eastern Colorado

On Sunday, 8/30/2015,  I was driving home from the Sporting KC game in Denver along I-70 and managed to shoot this trio of ex-SP SD45T-2 "Tunnel Motors" on an eastbound KYLE manifest.  Here, it was working the elevator in the tiny eastern Colorado town of Stratton along what had once been the route of the Rocky Mountain Rocket.  I didn't have time to chase it, given the fact that I still had to drive across all of Kansas, but I sure was happy to be able to see them, and hear those three 20-cylinder SD's plying their trade in 2015.

Thanks for looking,
- Jeff Carlson



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/15 15:10 by bnsfsd70.

---

---

---

That's awesome in that you shots of them and they look as though they are well cared for...

Thanks for posting.

Jan Austin
Chico, CA
J.G. Austin Photography

locogimp Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> That's awesome in that you shots of them and they
> look as though they are well cared for...

Indeed, they look and sound great!  Heck, they're a whole lot cleaner than they were in their SP days.

> Thanks for posting.

Not a problem!
- Jeff Carlson

VERY NICE.....!!

For those of you who were wondering what this trio of 20-cylinder EMD's sounds like, I've got you covered!  

Enjoy!  They sound as good as they look.

- Jeff Carlson

You must be a registered subscriber to watch videos. Join Today!

Nice capture Jeff, thanks for sharing.  Love the number boards on the 9345!  Yeah, it's good to see them still working, albeit for another railroad.

Kent in CArmel Valley

DynamicBrake Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Nice capture Jeff, thanks for sharing.  Love the
> number boards on the 9345!  Yeah, it's good to
> see them still working, albeit for another
> railroad.
>
> Kent in CArmel Valley

Yeah, not a problem.  Those numberboards certainly weren't looking too hot, but that's a minor sacrifice I'm willing to make to shoot a consist like this in 2015.

- Jeff Carlson

Great catch & photos.

Ronda Thomas

I'm jealous!  I'll probably never make it out there to get these but man they sure are neat!

Andy

AndyBrown Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'm jealous!  I'll probably never make it out
> there to get these but man they sure are neat!
>
> Andy

Yeah, it's a cool operation that runs on the Rock's mainline, just like "The Iowa," and given their 30mph top speed, you don't have any problem chasing them. Honestly, the toughest part of shooting them is GETTING there, but once you do, I-70/US24 closely follows the line, so it's easy to do if you've got the time.

- Jeff Carlson

For any SP Fan, they still sound like they can climb the loop even today, nice video Jeff!

That's a great sound we've come to miss. They look good too. Thanks to the short lines that keep these going.
Brian Stevens

Nice catch.
JB

Great pics and video! It's always neat to see (and hear) some old workhorses still earning their keep.

I guess catching the tunnel motors was a consolation prize after yet another SKC loss. It's been an ugly few weeks starting with the ass-whooping against my Quakes!

John

In May of this year someone posted four T2's all in SP paint on this line. 9345,9330,9282 and 9342. Are those still around too? O noticed 3098 in G&W paint. What was its former number?
Nice pixs and sound .
Vic

Yeah, that was Luke Lohrmeyer. He'd know better than I, as I only pass through there once or twice a year.

- Jeff Carlson

VicNeves Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> In May of this year someone posted four T2's all
> in SP paint on this line. 9345,9330,9282 and 9342.
> Are those still around too? O noticed 3098 in G&W
> paint. What was its former number?
> Nice pixs and sound .
> Vic

Posted from iPhone



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/01/15 19:55 by bnsfsd70.

jmf1910 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Great pics and video! It's always neat to see (and
> hear) some old workhorses still earning their
> keep.

Thanks, they were fun to shoot!

> I guess catching the tunnel motors was a
> consolation prize after yet another SKC loss. It's
> been an ugly few weeks starting with the
> ass-whooping against my Quakes!
>
> John

Ugh, indeed. We were at that San Jose game as well, and it was ridiculous. Columbus was acceptable, and this was just frustrating. Our midfield can't get healthy soon enough.

- Jeff Carlson

Posted from iPhone