Steam & Excursion > 611 is fired up!

Came across Twitter and Facebook a little bit ago.

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...and the internet explodes.  Sure glad they did this today, and not tomorrow...

Congrats to all involved!

Tyler

I was an 11 year-old kid when they killed the old NS steam program and I was heartbroken. I never, ever, ever thought I'd see this.

welchblvd Wrote:
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> I was an 11 year-old kid when they killed the old
> NS steam program and I was heartbroken. I never,
> ever, ever thought I'd see this.

I wonder how true your story holds for bunches of people. I was 12 and heartbroken really is the best way to describe it. I believe floating around the house is still the auction flyer from Blackman (?) Auctions where everything was sold. It was largely because of the old NS program that I have an interest in trains today, including posting on here, volunteering at our local railroad (Lorain & West Virginia), and having donated to the FireUp 611 campaign. As a kid I remember watching "Going Home" where the engineer turns to the fireman and says with a thick accent "just think, they a payin us to do this" and ever since then I've wanted to get behind the throttle of a steam locomotive. After not having seen "Gome Home" for probably 15 years I found it on YouTube and still remembered almost every word from it. While I'm fairly sure I'll never take the throttle of 611 the fact that she's alive again is truly a dream come true.

Here's another one, credit to Cheri George on Facebook.

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You don't supposed they'd do it up as a non-streamlined war baby for a little while? I always thought they looked really powerful:

http://spec.lib.vt.edu/imagebase/norfolksouthern/full/ns747.jpeg

This would be the time to do it, before the nose cone and skyline casing are applied. Would require removing the casing bracing, though.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/31/15 09:26 by CPR_4000.

A totally AWESOME AWESOME day for all fans of the glory of historic railroading !!!
ATTABOY ALL of you hardworking members of the restoration crew !!!!
I am not even an N&W fan and this is EPIC GOOD NEWS for railroading in general as I see it.
A Huge CONGRATULATIONS from this California boy in the land of the ATSF, SP, UP, WP --etc.
 ---Daniel



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/31/15 09:09 by daniel3197.

CPR_4000 Wrote:
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> You don't supposed they'd do it up as a
> non-streamlined war baby for a little while?
> http://spec.lib.vt.edu/imagebase/norfolksouthern/f
> ull/ns747.jpeg
>
> Nah.

Looking at these pictures, I was thinking the same thing. Maybe down the road she could do a season that way?

Emmo213 Wrote:
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> I wonder how true your story holds for bunches of
> people. I was 12 and heartbroken really is the
> best way to describe it. I believe floating around
> the house is still the auction flyer from Blackman
> (?) Auctions where everything was sold. It was
> largely because of the old NS program that I have
> an interest in trains today, including posting on
> here, volunteering at our local railroad (Lorain &
> West Virginia), and having donated to the FireUp
> 611 campaign. As a kid I remember watching "Going
> Home" where the engineer turns to the fireman and
> says with a thick accent "just think, they a payin
> us to do this" and ever since then I've wanted to
> get behind the throttle of a steam locomotive.
> After not having seen "Gome Home" for probably 15
> years I found it on YouTube and still remembered
> almost every word from it. While I'm fairly sure
> I'll never take the throttle of 611 the fact that
> she's alive again is truly a dream come true.

Totally agree. The NS steam program cemented my love of trains and of steam especially. In some ways, this feels like an old friend coming back from the dead. I hope that's not too melodramatic?

Behold!  She awakes from her more than 20-year sleep!
And her voice is heard at last.  Behold!

Huge congratulations to the N&W 611 restoration crew!
You DID it!!   (And I am not even an N&W fan -- I just love
big main line steam.)  This. Is. Awesome!  AND it has been
\much less than one year since Wick Moorman turned that
wrench during the Streamliners at Spencer event (May 29-
June 1, 2014) and removed that very fist bolt.  wow......

This Is. Awesome!!!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/31/15 16:32 by Margaret_SP_fan.

What a glorious day in railroad preservation. 20 years after the beginning of the dark ages the queen of steam is alive again.

Made my day

hollywood
NS B Line MP 74

Self-Explanatory As I See It !!!

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Meanwhile, In Cheyenne....

Emmo213 Wrote:
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> Here's another one, credit to Cheri George on
> Facebook.

ITS ALIVE!

Congratulations to the restoration team. Great job!! I was fortunate enough to have experienced this locomotive
in her first go round in the NS steam program.

Just wipe it down and it is ready to go.

-Fred-

It wasn't the 611 but when the 1218 was running in the program I never got to see it in operation--close up. One day it ran from Montpelier, Ohio to Detroit and I got to Montpelier just after it left. There were no good roads to follow and I kept seeing smoke in the distance. To say I was frustrated is an understatement. I never did catch up with it and that was the first and last time I saw the 1218.

Well, the 611 is  fired up and tested, so hopefully it won't be too long before she's on the road.

Victor A. Baird
http://www.erstwhilepublications.com

They're doing the steam test today but I probably wouldn't expect her doing much until summer, maybe late summer. Just a hunch. They've made great process but there's still work to do. While there's more than just getting a fire in her again this is still a great step forward.

First I want to thank everyone for their hard work to make this happen. Less than a year from first turn of bolt. Pretty impressive, and has to be some kind of record. If things don't improve with freight traffic, and we end up only getting the return home run, I wonder how much VMT will lose against all the the extra money spent to get this done so soon with paid full time crews and massive outsourcing, and now with the clock ticking. It is no one's fault, and it can't be undone, and I'm sure it's better to have it ready sooner than later in case things open up later this year.
Side note, how much of the track at Spencer can be used to run 611 back and forth on?

unseenthings Wrote:
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> First I want to thank everyone for their hard work
> to make this happen. Less than a year from first
> turn of bolt. Pretty impressive, and has to be
> some kind of record. If things don't improve with
> freight traffic, and we end up only getting the
> return home run, I wonder how much VMT will lose
> against all the the extra money spent to get this
> done so soon with paid full time crews and massive
> outsourcing,

Where and how did you come up with THAT "information"? For one thing, Jerry Jacobson is DONATING his full time, paid staff, crew members doing lots of the work on 611. Now, about that "massive outsourcing",,,,,care to elaborate?

and now with the clock ticking.

Assuming you are referring to the "FRA clock", that started "ticking" when the first flue/tube was installed, so this "test fire-up" really only starts the 1472 day/15 year clock ticking. No really a big deal.

It is
> no one's fault, and it can't be undone, and I'm
> sure it's better to have it ready sooner than
> later in case things open up later this year.
> Side note, how much of the track at Spencer can be
> used to run 611 back and forth on?

All the track the streamliners operated on, right?