1989 NRHS Special Excursion

A teenager at the time, the 1989 C&G excursion was a wonderful railfan experience for me, my father, and our close railroad buddy Gordon Payne. The day was chock-full of great shortline action, but I am certain my favorite moment came in the afternoon when the conductor called up to the engineer on the radio, asking him to "find a nice spot to stop for a good photo run-by." Having spent much of the day in the cab, I knew our man at the throttle was well seasoned in the right-hand seat. Still, the look I saw on his face made it clear to me that he had no idea what the conductor was talking about. "Photo run-by?" he asked, quizzically. Having myself been trackside for many a run-by, I explained the concept to him. We soon found a suitable stretch of right-of-way, adjacent to a large cotton field, and we pulled to a stop. All of our NRHS members detrained and began working their way into the field to find a good spot for pictures. "What do I do know?" he asked me, still in a bit a disbelief that anyone would go to this much trouble for a picture of his oddball CF7. "It's okay," I said. "I'll walk you through it." Everyone in the clear, we made a reverse move until the train was in a curve and out of sight. "Now give a good blast on the horn and pull forward as fast as you can." He chuckled, and I knew why. Even by 1989, after years of track stabilization, the Columbus & Greenville was still a 10-15 mph railroad -- our cab swaying back and forth like a man on a wobbly horse. There would be no high speed run-bys this day! Still, he gave a long blast, notched open the throttle, and we moved ahead -- toward a cadre of giddy railfans strewn across a field of cotton. We rumbled by them, at a brisk 15 mph, shutters snapping all the way along. After a bit we had passed the field and reentered the woods, and I realized we were not slowing down. Then it dawned on me. "Okay," I said. "Better stop now, so we can go back and pick them all up." This being a new gig, the thought had not occurred to him. I wondered if we would have rolled all the way into Columbus, had I not spoken up! So backwards we went again, this time to pick up our friends and their happy cameras. While not the kind of high-speed blitz to make the pages of a Lucius Beebe album, still, the beloved Delta Route did her best to please the crowd.

As for me, I was instantly grateful for many years of riding excursion trains with my father, and the resulting wisdom about what makes for a good photo run-by. I suppose every dog has his day.