February 2016 Issue - Page 1 Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club s Newsletter Since April 1993 Trains at the 2016 Rose Parade Pictures and Story by Marlan Woodside The City of Glendale California s entry for the 2016 Rose Parade was entitled Getting There is Half the Fun. As you can see at right, they chose to depict a variety of transportation on their float, but prominently displayed was a steam locomotive and a depiction of the Glendale train station. These floats have their initial viewing as they travel down Orange and Colorado Boulevard in downtown Pasadena. Once they reach the intersection of Colorado and Sierra Madre, they make a left turn and go several blocks to a local area high school where the floats are on static display for several days after the 1 January parade. While parking around this area is a little crowded, one can park at the Rose Bowl and take a shuttle ride over to the viewing area and avoid the hassle of trying to find a parking spot. It is breathe taking to see this floats up close and in person. While I have never camped out over night to see the parade first hand, this has got to be the next best thing as you can stroll along the numerous streets and not feel any pressure to keep moving or elbowing your way in a crowd to get a good view. Admittedly, those floats that are animated and possibly populated with real people waving at you while they roll down the parade route, you won t see that action from this viewing point. The viewing is relaxed and it is all accomplished in a carnival/faire like atmosphere with vendors selling food and drink.
February 2016 Issue - Page 2 Multnomah Falls and the Union Pacific Railroad Pictures and Story by Marlan Woodside This past November while attending a football game in Oregon, my friends and I went about 30 miles East of Portland along the Columbia River to climb up to the top of the second highest year round waterfall in the United States, Multnomah Falls. As the water cascades down a 620 foot drop there are various trails that allow a hiker to climb a series of switch backs to the top of the falls. The water from this fall and all of those smaller falls along the highway, run into the Columbia River, which has the Union Pacific railroad running along side of the river. While no train was running by while I was at the top, of course once I returned to the bottom and we were about to drive away, a train came and I was able to catch a few shots with the falls in the background. There is a nice restaurant on the grounds that served a delicious Sunday brunch. All taken while waiting for a flight back to LA!
February 2016 Issue - Page 3 TLRC Business Meeting Stationmaster s Report by Dean Smith January 9th, 2016 at Kelcy s Restaurant 1. Superintendent: Rex Welker called the meeting to order at 10:03am. 2. Members/Guests: There were 17 members present, including 5 board members. 3. Stationmaster s Report: Rex Welker put forth a request for a motion to be made to approve the October, November and December Stationmaster reports. Of which there was only one for October, due to no meetings being conducted in November (Train Show) and December (TLRC Christmas Dinner). Ron Snyder made a motion to approve. Debra Howard seconded. Motion was passed without dissent. 4. Paymaster s Report: Rex Welker put forth a request for a motion to be made to approve the October, November and December Paymasters reports. Mike Schmitt reported that we did make slightly more money than the costs incurred to put on the November show, allowing us to cover all expenses. Marlan Woodside made note that the luncheon provided by Fedy Smith and those individuals who contributed to the bake sell greatly helped to make that happen. Dennis Keck made a motion to approve. Ron Snyder seconded. Motion was passed without dissent. 5. Committee Reports: A) Hospitality: Cathy Welker was not in attendance. Rex Welker reminded those in attendance to let the club know if anyone is experiencing any issues, such as going in for surgery, in order to facilitate hospitality sending out get well cards. 5. Committee Reports: (Continued) B) Chris Howard was not in attendance, no report was provided C) Historian: Rex Welker thanked Christine Winter for articles on the flood that went through the loop. D) Membership: Rick Passalacqua provided new rosters; however they were not current. There are some addresses that need to be updated. Also, there are some individuals that need to be confirmed if they are still members in good standing. Rick will send out via email an updated contact list when it is ready. E) Loop Editor: Marlan Woodside solicited for submissions of articles of interest for the newsletter. Anything item is appreciated. F) Facebook Site: Dean Smith had nothing new to report. Debra Howard suggested handing out flyers for the Facebook page at the next show. G) Web Site: Ravi Balasuriya was not in attendance, no report was provided. H) Promotions: Maureen Cornyn was not in attendance, no report was provided.. I) Publicity: Mike Schmitt had nothing new to report. He mentioned making sure of the dates for the shows with Parks and Recreation Department so they can be posted in the newsletter that Bob Chaparro distributes. Marlan Woodside mentioned not updating the Hitching Post Theater slide. He stated that the train show attendees when asked at the door mention the caboose and newspaper posts as the ways they are hearing about the show, no one has mentioned the movie slide. ( Stationmaster s Report continued on next page )
February 2016 Issue - Page 4 TLRC Business Meeting Stationmaster s Report (continued) by Dean Smith January 9th, 2016 at Kelcy s Restaurant 5. Committee Reports: (Continued) J) Ways and Means: Vacant. K) Tours: Marlan Woodside had nothing confirmed at this time. L) Event Coordinator: Rex Welker will be contacting the owner of the Backyard Railroad ride on train, to see if he would be interested in coming back to our upcoming shows. Rex will also follow up with the Lancaster and Northwestern G scale club to see if they will still be attending our shows for 2016. We still do not have an event coordinator at this time. Let Rex know if you are interested in filling this position. 6. Scale Chair Reports: A) N Chris Howard was not in attendance, no report was provided. B) HO Wilson James mentioned that when the club was building the new yard modules, a voluntary fund from HO TLRC members was collected to help finance that effort. After completion of that project, there was some money left over. Upon Mike Bruno leaving the club, Wilson came into possession of the funds. Currently there is about $50 in the fund. He mentioned that Marlan Woodside could use the money to help cover the cost of additional skirts for the HO layout. Marlan also wanted to know if, as new modules are built for the HO layout, if it would be the responsibility of the member or the club to provide skirting. Rex Welker said the club would provide the funds for the skirts. As for the upcoming show, Wilson would just need to know who will be there and what they will be bringing in advance. 6. Scale Chair Reports (Concluded): C) Toy Trains Doug Pickard was in attendance, but had nothing new to report. D) O Scale: Vacant. E) G Scale Rex Welker was in attendance, but had nothing new to report. F) Z Scale Marlan Woodside said that the layout is still running okay and that he will be bringing it to the shows still as a display at the greeter table. He will be making adjustments to the tunnel entrances as it was reported that equipment was getting caught upon exiting the tunnel. 7 Old Business: A) No old business to follow up on. 8) New Business: A) Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Christmas Dinner: Rex Welker reported that we had a very successful Christmas Dinner at Jakes Steak House. There was a very spirited round of gift exchanges and one mistake was made in the rules and will be corrected for next year. There seems to be debate about another venue for the Christmas Party if we will have such a large turnout again. Dennis Keck suggested The Shed, formerly the Apple Shed. More research to follow on the subject. B) Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Free Magazines at John Bell s Storage Area: Rex Welker also stated that there are still a lot of old magazines for the taking in the Club s storage at John Bell s house. If anyone is interested, just let the club know and they can have them at no cost. ( Stationmaster s Report continued on next page )
February 2016 Issue - Page 5 TLRC Business Meeting Stationmaster s Report (Continued) by Dean Smith January 9th, 2016 at Kelcy s Restaurant 8) New Business (Continued): C) Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club 2016 Train Show Schedule: Rex Welker mentioned that the new show schedule will be ironed out in the upcoming weeks. Rex will be involved in any of the interactions with Parks and Recreation Department and the establishing of dates for the interim period until an event coordinator is chosen. D) TLRC March Meeting versus GEHAM Train Show: Rex Welker also announced that we may be canceling the March meeting due to past years low attendance in March due to the Golden Empire Historical and Modeling Society (GEHAMS) model train show at the fairgrounds in Bakersfield. E) Mojave Transportation Museum (MTM) Train Crazy Saturday and the TLRC: Marlan Woodside mentioned that the MTM is inquiring if we will be supporting the Train Crazy event at the Mojave Air and Spaceport. Marlan mentioned that they are leaving the date open and taking our suggestion for it into account. As a group we are suggesting doing it in May to avoid the heat of June and July. Marlan will also follow up with attempting to get a presenter for the presentation portion of the day. F) Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Train Show Bake Sale Participation: Deb Howard thanked everyone who helped with the Bake Sale by donating baked goods. The time and effort certainly paid off by covering the Westpark rental cost. If everyone just did a little as opposed to a lot, then that would help out tremendously. 8 New Business (Concluded): G) Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Outings: Rick Passalacqua mentioned that in the past the club would go on outings. Before there was a trip to the cement plant and an accompanying tour. Maybe there would be a possibility of touring the large greenhouses out in Cummings Valley. Marlan mentioned that there is a facility in Palmdale that builds railcars that could be a place of potential interest. Debra knows that there is a company located on the grounds of the Borax mine that is contracted by Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) to repair damaged railcars. Dennis Keck suggested taking Metrolink into Los Angeles Union Station and visiting places nearby in Los Angeles. Marlan also mentioned that the Expo Line extension from Downtown LA to Santa Monica pier, as well as the expansion of the Metro Gold Line to Santa Anita will be taking place in the near future are other possibilities. The club will further explore these possibilities. H) Potential TLRC Operating Session at the GEHAMS Facility in Bakersfield: Wilson James mentioned that a member of the GE- HAMS club in Bakersfield has invited us to run with them during an operating session at their club house. If anyone is interested in running N scale or HO scale, contact him in order to start setting up a trip to operate on a Saturday at the GEHAMS facility. I) Best Looking Models Around (BLMA) Bought by the ATLAS Company: Wilson James also mentioned that the BLMA company was completely bought out by Atlas and will continue to exist under the umbrella of Atlas Model Railroad Company with plans on expansion in the future. (Stationmaster s Report continued on next page)
February 2016 Issue - Page 6 TLRC Business Meeting Stationmaster s Report (Concluded) by Dean Smith January 9th, 2016 at Kelcy s Restaurant 9. Upcoming Events: A) February 13 th Monthly Meeting 10:00 am at Kelcy s Restaurant. B) March 5 th Orange Empire Railway Museum (OERM) Swap Meet OREM is located at 2201 South "A" Street, Perris, CA 92572-3020, Saturday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Admission $15 for the general public and price includes admission to the swap meet as well as the museum and all of the train and trolley rides. C) March 12 th Monthly Meeting 10:00 am at Kelcy s Restaurant. NOTE, this meeting may be canceled due to TLRC members participating in the GEHAM Train Show D) March 12 th and 13 th Golden Empire Historical & Modeling Society Kern County Fairgrounds, 1142 South "P" Street, Bakersfield, CA 93307-3950, Saturday 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Sunday. Admission $7 per person, Kids ages 12 and under admitted free when accompanied by a paying adult. E) April 9 th and 10 th Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Spring Show, West Park Activity Center, 410 W D St, Tehachapi, CA 93015, Saturday 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Sunday 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Note: there will be no Business meeting in April.. 10. Superintendent: Rex Welker asked for a motion to adjourn. Dennis Keck made a motion to adjourn. Ron Snyder seconded the motion. The meeting adjourned at 10:41am. Passenger Train at the Tehachapi Depot? Picture and Story by Marlan Woodside Apologies for the sideways posting of this picture, making it smaller would have rendered the picture meaningless. I lamented my Sunday 31 January failure to have a camera to take a picture of the BNSF NFL Super Bowl special as it headed to the Bay Arena, this was all I could catch on its return trip on 9 February as it made its way back East. What a site to see of this 18 car passenger train. Mike Schmitt emailed the TLRC members a link to watch a video made of the 31 January run.
From the desk of the Paymaster Mike Schmitt, the following reports are provided for your review February 2016 Issue - Page 7 TLRC FINANCIAL REPORTS You are reading a special edition of the Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club newsletter. (You didn t want to read our financials anyway, did you?) We hope you enjoy reading about our activities and hope your interest in our club has been ignited such that you might consider joining in the fun with us! We are a non-profit organization that fosters the interests of our members in the hobby of railroading and modeling of railroads as well as seeking out railroad adventures to further our understanding and love of trains. We put on an occasional show or two as well over at West Park in Tehachapi and meet the second Saturday of each month at Kelcy s Restaurant (across the street from the Depot) in Tehachapi. Stop on by we d love to have you join us. To learn more, visit our website, send us an email or contact one of our board members or any member of the club! All this information is displayed on page 8 of this newsletter.
TLRC OFFICERS Superintendent Rex Welker 661-256-2147 Dispatcher Mario Terrazas 661-816-6314 Stationmaster Dean Smith 805-760-1035 Paymaster Mike Schmitt 661-821-5271 1st. Inspector Wilson James 661-823-1665 2nd. Inspector Marlan Woodside 760-373-4765 ADMINISTRATORS/CHAIRPERSONS Activities: Scale Chairs: Hospitality Cathy Welker N Chris Howard Conductor Chris Howard HO Wilson James Historian Rex Welker Toy Trains Doug Pickard Membership Rick Passalacqua G John Bell Loop Editor Marlan Woodside Z Marlan Woodside Facebook and Web Site Conductor Dean Smith and Ravi Balasuriya Promotions Maureen Cornyn Publicity Mike Schmitt TLRC Email Address: Ways & Means Vacant tlrc_club@hotmail.com Tours Marlan Woodside Event Coordinator Wilson James Facebook Address: Search for Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Website Address: tlrc.club February 2016 Issue - Page 8 Loop Editor s Corner Another year has already started and here it is February already! The TLRC had a great year last year and everyone I hope survived the holidays and are ready to make this year just as productive for the club. From the minutes of our January meeting you can get a sense that some activities are overlapping and we may need to postpone a meeting or two to take them all in. The GEHAMS Bakersfield show in March and then our first train show of the year in April are such examples. Look for notices about the status of our general membership meetings. Wilson James and I are going to be headed down to the Orange Empire Railway Museum Swap meet on 5 March, I have two more seats if any one wants to tag along. More events must be coordinated and announcements made, so keep me posted (like that BNSF NFL Super Bowl Special Passenger Train) and we will see if we can get more group activities going this year. Be safe out there and Happy Training! Marlan Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Monthly Newsletter of the Tehachapi Loop Railroad Club Post Office Box 876 Tehachapi, CA 93581 Table of Contents Trains at Rose Parade...Page 01 Multnomah Falls & UP...Page 02 Stationmaster Report (SR)..Page 03 SR Report...Page 04 SR Report...Page 05 SR Report & BNSF Train...Page 06 Paymaster Report...Page 07 Officers & Contacts...Page 08 Next Meeting Date: 13 February 2016 @ 10am Location: Kelcy s Restaurant 110 West Tehachapi Boulevard Tehachapi, CA