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Today about noon I saw the southbound Sunset Ltd pass through Maitland, FL, and didn't know if it was #2 from yesterday 12+ hours late or a new consist coming in from Sanford for today's departure from Orlando.
According to the AMTRAK web site, the Sunset arrived into Winter Park, FL last night ONLY 3 HOURS LATE!!!!!!!!!! This must be a record of some kind!! Apparently what I saw at noon today was the train being brought down from servicing at Sanford for this afternoon's departure from Florida.
chrisg Member # 2488
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What you saw was Train 1 leaving Orlondo on time, Once this set gets to LA I will board it for a Round Trip to Orlando and back. A complete story will be on my web site a week after I get back. http://www.trainweb.org/chris
Chris
RRRICH Member # 1418
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Chris - not to belabor the point, but what I saw was NOT train 1 leaving ORL, since I saw it an hour 45 minutes BEFORE it was scheduled to leave ORL, and it was heading TOWARD Orlando, not AWAY. Sorry -- don't mean to be so picky!!!! I am sure it was Train 1 being shunted from Sanford down to Orlando for on-time boarding and departure (hopefully)
notelvis Member # 3071
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by chrisg: [b]What you saw was Train 1 leaving Orlondo on time, Once this set gets to LA I will board it for a Round Trip to Orlando and back. A complete story will be on my web site a week after I get back. http://www.trainweb.org/chris
By this time tomorrow, since you're keeping an eye on it, let us know where #1 is and how close to it's scheduled arrival it is. Ought to be interesting! ------------------ David Pressley
[This message has been edited by notelvis (edited 12-15-2004).]
chrisg Member # 2488
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5 hours at New Orleans{CSX fault} but the web site says early into LAX so lets see if padding comes into play or if later trains get later. Lets see what the UP can do. Every trip is an adventure so I can't wait!
Chris
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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Considering the extent of your travels, Mr. Guenzler, I think you already know the answer to your query set forth in the preceeding posting.
notelvis Member # 3071
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quote:Originally posted by chrisg: 5 hours at New Orleans{CSX fault} but the web site says early into LAX so lets see if padding comes into play or if later trains get later. Lets see what the UP can do. Every trip is an adventure so I can't wait!
Chris
The last time I rode the Sunset westbound from Florida we left Jacksonville 45 minutes late and actually made up 20 minutes of that......until we reached the outskirts of New Orleans where we encountered a red signal and sat.....with the city skyline in view....for one hour and fifty minutes. It was as if the dispatcher had forgotten we were coming and stepped out for lunch or something!
------------------ David Pressley
chrisg Member # 2488
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Tonight is the beginning of the adventure. Just talked to Julie who had a 1:10 PM ETA into LAX. The UP got in down to 4"20 late but it lost 4 more hours east of ELP. This is going to be fun!
Chris
Mr. Toy Member # 311
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Just wondering, timekeeping aside, is the Sunset still a good ride? Are the crews, food, sights worth the trip if time is not an issue?
RRCHINA Member # 1514
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I saw a brief note in a newspaper about five days ago about two UP freight trains colliding head on between Indio and Yuma. I have not seen any follow-up story, but this kind of accident usually ties up a RR for at least a day. Since this is the Sunset route there would no doubt have been a delay or a detour. Anyone have further info?
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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It appears Mr Guenzler's Sunset #2(17) is almost 3 hrs late as of a few moments ago. What is interesting is that the website is estimating 3'45" late into "The Pass'.
Evidently, the electrons know Murphy's Law of "if its late, it will just get later'.
Geoff Mayo Member # 153
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Mr. Toy, in my 4 experiences over the last 7 years, yes it is generally a perfectly good service.
The only complaints I've seen over the last few years are the following: - returning crews (to LA) can be grouchy (lack of sleep) - running out of food (when very late) - and, of course, timekeeping.
Perhaps I've been lucky and "only" experienced 5 hours of delay at most (6 at the penultimate station but padding reduced it to 5). The rest of the time was under an hour.
I'd still recommend the train, as long as you don't have connections or hotels paid for. There's such a transition of scenery along the whole route that there's always eomething to see. Plus, if you get to see something in daylight that you wouldn't normally see, then so much the better!
Geoff M.
notelvis Member # 3071
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quote:Originally posted by geoffm:
Perhaps I've been lucky and "only" experienced 5 hours of delay at most (6 at the penultimate station but padding reduced it to 5). The rest of the time was under an hour.
Geoff M.
This is perhaps the only time I have ever seen the term 'penultimate' used in describing train operations. I've encountered it a few times when discussing things like chord progressions in a musical composition......but I digress.
Two summers ago (July 2002) I was on the Sunset eastbound from LAX. Passengers boarding the following morning in Tucson brought reports of a UP derailment east of El Paso.
Throughout the day rumors (which no one on the train crew would confirm or deny) spread that the we would be annulled in El Paso and bussed to San Antonio. A late morning meeting (announced over the intercom) for all crew members in the lower level of the sightseer lounge only fanned the rumour flames. Would we be annulled? Would we get a rare mileage detour from El Paso to Ft. Worth via the old T&P?
As it turned out, we were annulled and I opted to fly to Ft. Worth from El Paso rather than spend the night on a bus. The on-board crew was fabulous in the face of what would become a very long trip for the majority of the passengers. For instance, the dining car steward told us "What happens at El Paso is beyond our control. For now you're on the Sunset Limited and it's time for lunch. You won't leave hungry."
So......I would say that the Sunset is worth the effort if you have the time to spare and have not booked a same day connection at your destination.
------------------ David Pressley
[This message has been edited by notelvis (edited 12-18-2004).]
chrisg Member # 2488
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My eastbound Sunset Limited was termintated in New Orleans at 9:19 AM 12 hours and 49 minutes late. Instead of being bused I stayed two night in Big Easy. Train 1 left New Orleans on time but we got to LAX today 12/24 at 3:18 PM or 8 hours and 38 minutes late. It was a great trip and a complete story will be done early next week.
Chris
coronado Member # 2395
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I rode the Texas Eagle/Sunset from Dallas to Los Angeles last month, and ended up being 12 hours and 44 minutes late... arriving at 7:24pm instead of 6:40am.
The train crew did a great job in spite of the lateness and the dining crew churned out 3 extra meals for everyone, including free lunch and dinner for the coach passengers.
I didn't mind being late, and got to see some terrific scenery that is normally passed in the darkness including the rugged mountains between Maricopa and Yuma, as well as the huge sand dunes outside Yuma, and sunset over the Salton Sea before Indio.
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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While I'm not about "to be held to this", I'm honestly giving thought to a 2005 CHI to LAX ride on #421. Return would be #4 after a few days to "sample' some intrastate services - AMTK and MetroLink (last set foot in CA during 1991).
This would be my first "travel for the sake of travel" trip in more than 15 years. Guess Amtrak Senior Fares "make the difference" (HAHAHAHA; LOL)
Over at the "am I nuts" thread, let's wish the lady and her family "Godspeed".
Something tells me I am on a masochistic kick or simply want some "war stories" to report at the several Forums at which i participate.
TwinStarRocket Member # 2142
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On the subject of 'Am I Crazy but...', all the horror stories about the Sunset have tempted me to try the ride myself. The passengers and the crew must know by now what to expect.
Mike Smith Member # 447
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OK, if we're talking future trips on the Sunset....
Mine will start May 5, 2005.
The wife and I will travel from Austin, TX to Milwaukee, then to Pasco WA, then I have enough Amtrak points to get a deluxe sleeper from Pasco, WA to Austin, via LAX, I'll be Deluxe class on the Empire Builder, Coast Starlight, and the Sunset Limited. A three-fer!
coronado Member # 2395
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Gilbert,
On my trip from Dallas to LA mentioned above, I returned via #4, as the connection for #422 in San Antonio can be quite tenuous.
It was a great itinerary and I just booked the same trip for early February.
I've never had a problem with the outbound connection for #421 to LA in San Antonio, even with the Sunset arriving 3 or 4 hours late from Florida, just made for a late breakfast once the 421 cars were coupled to the rear of the Sunset.
chrisg Member # 2488
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If you going take 21 to train 1 you will be fine. Going east to avoid being bused El Paso to Fort Worth take 2 to San Antonio, spend a night then 22 the next day. It is the safe way to do things plus the Alamo etc. is within walking distance of the station plus serveral hotel are with walking distance for you stay at.
Chris
graynt Member # 17
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There is something I like about taking a train from one coast to the other,and I've booked the Sunset from Jax to Lax with a sleeper next summer. I ve done it three timesand we have arrived in LA pretty much on time. I love the route of the Sunset..the Fla panhandle, the nice layover in New Orleans,the ride through Louisiana,the stop in Alpine,TX and the last few hours gliding into LA. For $210 for the sleeper and three nights on the train and all those meals..I couldn't pass it up. I ll be overnighting in LA before heading up on the Coast Starlight,so Im not too concerned with timekeeping.
Last summer I took 422 from LAX to Chicago and we were bussed from El Paso to Fort Worth. I knew that was a possibility,so when it came to pass I just looked at the all night bus ride as an "adventure" I did get a $74 credit and a $100 travel voucher,so it was not all in vain.
No matter how many Amtrak trips I take,that anticipation weeks before I leave is always there. I hope I never lose that feeling!
[This message has been edited by chrisg (edited 12-30-2004).]
[This message has been edited by chrisg (edited 12-30-2004).]
Mike Smith Member # 447
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Great read, Chris.
In Houston, the Minute Maid park has the remenents of the old Union station as part of the ballpark. You can go in and check it out. The flooring is the same as I remember from 1967. The benches in the current Amtrak station came from there.
RRCHINA Member # 1514
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For additional info about the Sunset, as well as the Starlight and the Cal Zephyr, read the February 2005 issue of TRAINS.
Fred Frailey who recently gave us the story of the BNSF Transcon Route now writes about the UP. His fourteen page article RISING PHOENIX, with several photos, informs " How Union Pacific stumbled, again, is an interesting story. How it is coming back is a better one."
The effect on Amtrak must be assumed by extrapolation because the story deals with Union Pacific's operations exclusively. But when UP cannot get it's own revenue trains to move we can easily determine what happens to Amtrak's trains.
For those who do not know Mr. Frailey he is editor of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine and a long time writer about railroading.
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