NKP 765 Chicago +VIDEO added to OP 05/10+

Video added!

Glad to see you were able to catch her today.  The kids will remember that for a long long time.  The 765 and her crew are top notch!

lots of black smoke..........

Sure didn't look like "lots of black smoke" to me.

Thankyou Zett! I was unable to make it out to see it, and no lousy diesel ruining the consist

 

Nothing beats the sound of a steam locomotive whistle in the distance, its been 20 years since steam ran on that line, fantastic! Kudos  to the FWRHS and NS for making it happen!

 

On a side note your wifes comment ( I assume that was your wife) saying  "don't you have that one"?, made me laugh, I get the same thing 

The trip was only ~100 miles...there was no need for a diesel.

 

The only time we have used a diesel in the last three years has been on long moves where we have to stretch the coal! I thought we covered that...

 

There will be some long trips later in the season where there will be a diesel in the consist.

There's always got to be one...

LOL Rick. That's my mom asking if we have that one. Always interested until there's a price tag!

Overall after seeing the 765 for the first time today, I'm hoping a future excursion will be planned for the public out of Chicago so we can purchase a ride.

I loved how the engineer gave us 2 shorts on the horn as he passed.

By the time I started recording we had already been hearing the whistle for about a minute. Would have been amazing to be around 80 years ago and hear and watch steam all day long.

Yes, understood Rich, my statement was a bit "tongue in cheek." Whatever makes the trips "feasable" with 765 is O.K. by me. Its fortunate, ( asthetically speaking ) that in this instance it wasn't needed. Regardless,it sure beats a cold dead bigboy

 

 Again, can't say enough about the "765 Crew" and NS. What a turnaround from a time when it was thought the NS would never have steam on its rails again.

Got out and paced 765 yesterday (Saturday). Paired up with some buddies, driving a Ford station wagon at Nascar speeds! Anyway, we all beat 765 to Valparaiso (barely), and jumped into position. The NKP curves through town , so one can not see a train immediately. As we briefly waited, we heard 765 coming fast. Up pulled two unwitting middle-aged ladies, and I pointed down the track. They looked. Then 765 roared by, whistle blaring almost painfully and shaking the ground. As the train cleared, all the ladies could say was "Oh my God"!

Addendum: at Argos, the town where 765 wyed, spoke a bit with some elderly gents, one of whom turned out was a retired NKP engineer. He noted, "I fired that locomotive"! He described how they took coal regularly at Argos and I asked if they had a wood or concrete coaling tower. He looked at me kinda funny, and said they had a crane, and some gons spotted with coal. He said that they occaisionly handled troop trains with the 700's and they could run up to 30 cars. He further noted that nearby Grand Trunk Western limited their freights to 69 cars, as IN had a law requiring an additional brakeman on any freight with 70 cars, or more. He said the NKP put the extra brakeman on, as their trains ran 90-100 cars. Of course the GTW dumped the brakeman at the MI stateline. The retired engineer referred to "Bob" asking him if he wanted to take the throttle of one of the NS excursion engines. He repilied, "Of course"! Presume "Bob" was none other then Robert Claytor, CEO of NS. One does not see such collegiality in many industries these days.

        

While watching the video, from the sound of the whistled signal crossing, looked like the last car cut it pretty close.