Note in the beginning he says “Railway in Maine.” I guess Pan Am was too embarrassed by him! [:D]
I couldn’t have said it better myself. People on here like to be critical of EVERYTHING! I have been a railfan all my life and a model railroader for 20 years, and I thouroughly enjoyed the show. Yes, the guy is over the top–it is television aimed at people who know nothing about railroading and who like to be entertained. It was overall informative and showed some good stuff that is rarely seen–like how a rotary dump operates. I’m looking forward to therest of the series personally.
Ron
Okay, I was pretty blunt with my comments made during the program. Here’s the morning after notes…
What I liked:
The locale. You could make a video about using the Coke Machine at Horseshoe Curve, and it will be better than any other Coke Machine video… The aerial shots of the curve were awesome, especially since they were shot in late winter (my guess being as there weren’t many leaves on the trees).
The operational aspect. As a coal modeler, albeit from a different era, I was fascinated to see the loading and how that works. I never liked the way the model coal loads come out so uniform, but now I know why. It’s interesting how much technology has reduced so many jobs to playing what seems like a video game. It was also nice to see something about trains in the context of what service they actually provide. I thought it was a good idea to follow the coal from source to consumer. It was a good way to illustrate to the average viewer that trains do more than block your way at a crossing.
The Side Bars: I actually thought the side bar stories were well organized, and well placed. It was a tad jarring to go from Altoona to Bailey Yard, (Don’t they change wheels at Altoona, too?) but the scenes shot elsewhere tell me that there will be future episodes that offer more detail on Steamtown, Bailey Yard, and wherever else they shot stuff. I expect we’ll see some NS Pittsburgh Line sidebars in those stories. Not a bad thing.
What I didn’t like…
We’ve pretty much exhausted the topic of the host. Nothing to add there.
The fact checking… Clearly dynamic braking was condensed for the general audience, but just as we complain when Micro Trains blows it with a paint scheme, how much extra would it cost to get it right?
The speed of the video. This was irritating as much from a production value issue as it was from an accuracy issue. I was exhaust
Well I watched it last night after DVR’ing it. It was pretty interesting, but all I can really say is that the History Channel somehow got the word ‘Exciting’ mixed up with ‘Frantic.’ It will be interesting to see if the series calms down a little–right now I’m thinking Mike Rowe, only without the clever humor.
Tom
I watched about 15 minutes and turned it off. Poor quality hosting, annoying video effects, technical errors and bad quality directing / videography (sped-up replays, different trains in different shots, etc.) all added up to WHY WASTE MY TIME?
I’ll make it a point to miss the next one.
IN A NUTSHELL:
NOT A BAD SHOW. MOST IMPORTANTLY: INFORMATIVE… VID(PICTURES): NOT BAD FOR SMALL SONY HD “DISC” CAMERA’S. AUDIO: GOOD. INTERVIEWS: VERY GOOD. AS ONE WHO IS IN THE “TV BIDNESS”…PRODUCER/REPORTER-PHOTOGRAPHER IN 40th MARKET: I FOUND THE EDITING: SLOPPY. EDITOR ISN’T/WASN’T A RR PERSON. CONTINUETY WASN’T THERE. THE REPORTER?HOST STARTED OUT ON WHAT LOOKED LIKE EMD SD-70M… SHOTS OF GE’S KEPT POPPING UP ALONG WITH DIFFERENT TRAINS JUDGING BY THE CARS & OWNERS. THE RIDE IN THE HELPERS:NEAT. BUT:HERE AGAIN:SD40-2’S??? AUDIO WEAK HERE… OH AND GOD FORBID: “THE JUMP CUTS”(A TV NOOZ TERM FOR) HOW IN HELL DID HE GET FROM HERE TO THERE? ALL IN ALL THO, N.S. SHOULD BE HAPPY. DIDN’T SEE TOO MANY SAFETY VIOLATIONS. IF THIS GUY’S COMING BACK, HOPE SOMEONE TAKES HIS DRUGS AWAY…AND: EDITS A LITTLE TIGHTER COVERING HIM UP MAYBE SOMEONE WILL THINK OF USING A “SCRIPT”???. LESS BOZO MORE RAIL ROAD PICTURES. TALK ABOUT A “FOAMER”… CHALK IT UP TO THE HISTORY CHANNEL I GUESS. CURIOUS TO SEE THE “NUMBERS” FROM ARBITRON OR WHOMEVER TRACKS THEIR VIEWERS.
AND WHERE DID THIS BOZO COME FROM? THE GREAT RACE??? OR SOME OTHER CBS/FOX "REALITY??? SHOW. UGH…BUT:
YA I’LL PROBABLY WATCH THE NEXT ONE AND: GRIT MY TE
I liked the show, but Since my family is from That Area It was a lot of stuff I already knew about helpers, Horseshoe Cruve, etc. One thing that I didn’t like was how It skipped from place to place, Like It talks about Johnstown and the flood and then your in Horseshoe cruve? I doesn’t work like that, where was Cresson? Other important stops along the route? They could have spent more time in Johnstown, and Cresson, etc. Then again its a new show you learn from it.
[quote user=“davefinger”]
IN A NUTSHELL:
NOT A BAD SHOW. MOST IMPORTANTLY: INFORMATIVE… VID(PICTURES): NOT BAD FOR SMALL SONY HD “DISC” CAMERA’S. AUDIO: GOOD. INTERVIEWS: VERY GOOD. AS ONE WHO IS IN THE “TV BIDNESS”…PRODUCER/REPORTER-PHOTOGRAPHER IN 40th MARKET: I FOUND THE EDITING: SLOPPY. EDITOR ISN’T/WASN’T A RR PERSON. CONTINUETY WASN’T THERE. THE REPORTER?HOST STARTED OUT ON WHAT LOOKED LIKE EMD SD-70M… SHOTS OF GE’S KEPT POPPING UP ALONG WITH DIFFERENT TRAINS JUDGING BY THE CARS & OWNERS. THE RIDE IN THE HELPERS:NEAT. BUT:HERE AGAIN:SD40-2’S??? AUDIO WEAK HERE… OH AND GOD FORBID: “THE JUMP CUTS”(A TV NOOZ TERM FOR) HOW IN HELL DID HE GET FROM HERE TO THERE? ALL IN ALL THO, N.S. SHOULD BE HAPPY. DIDN’T SEE TOO MANY SAFETY VIOLATIONS. IF THIS GUY’S COMING BACK, HOPE SOMEONE TAKES HIS DRUGS AWAY…AND: EDITS A LITTLE TIGHTER COVERING HIM UP MAYBE SOMEONE WILL THINK OF USING A “SCRIPT”???. LESS BOZO MORE RAIL ROAD PICTURES. TALK ABOUT A “FOAMER”… CHALK IT UP TO THE HISTORY CHANNEL I GUESS. CURIOUS TO SEE THE “NUMBERS” FROM ARBITRON OR WHOMEVER TRACKS THEIR VIEWERS.
AND WHERE DID THIS BOZO COME FROM? THE GREAT RACE??? OR SOME OTHER CBS/FOX "REALITY??? SHOW. UGH…BUT:
Well, I ended up missing it, but it sounds like it lived up to my somewhat shallow expectations. I really hate the speeded up footage thing, and it’s especially unnerving for trains, because there’s no real frame of reference, like there is with people walking, etc.
I did have lunch with a good friend at work who saw the show. He’s a non-railroader, although he’s starting to get hooked, thanks to his wife’s enjoyment of scenic railroads. He thought it was very informative, and he learned quite a bit. He made note of the helper engines and was impressed by the rotary dumper. He did find the host annoying, too.
Does anyone have any info on those ROTARY COUPLERS???
Thanks
Mike
Well, if you don’t mind them beign 1:87, Sergent Engineering makes them in HO and does a neat job of illustrating the principle.
http://sergentengineering.com/
Click on Product>Rotary
Some interesting footage, and since I grew up in coal country, that aspect of the show I found interesting to see.
The host was too over-the-top for my tastes, and the videography was annoying when speeded up, but I guess I’ll still try to watch the next in the series and see if it is any better.
Uh…I feel asleep about 3/4 of the way through it…
Without, defendantly without.[V]
In spite of everything, I’ll still watch the next episode. Sure they guy’s way over the top, but if they do some cool scenes like Horsehoe in the other episodes it’ll be worth it.
Horseshoe is simply amazing. I went there with a non-train coworker and he was thoroughly amazed. I had at least some clue as to what to expect, but as we were leaving he was like “I thought we would see like one train or so”. I don’t know what’s more interesting, the ones grinding uphill with the snappers (hey, it’s former PRR…) or the ones going down with dynamics screaming and a haze of brake smoke. Sure there are other horsehshoe-shaped curves in North America…but at least around here, when you capitalize it, it means but one place- Altoona PA.
–Randy
Caps can also be used to emphasize a point. This “politically correct” B S makes me sick!![:-,]
Loved the show and I enjoyed the host! He was totally into all that made the train for that type of hauling work!! Must make a trip to Horseshoe Curve.
Did any one watch the bullet train episode afterwards?
cooltech[8D]
Yes. I had seen it before several times but it’s always enjoyable.
I liked Extreme Trains alot, because I love railroads, and model railroading, and have all my life!
I have to agree with you 100 percent.