The reason you can't compare the times of the AFT 1.0 and this are that some folks seem to forget the mood of the country during the bicentennial. It wouldn't have bene tough to get the approval of a President then, for something like that if you showed you had a clue what you were doing. We were climbing out from underneath the shadow of 'Nam, in a reasonable recession and a very bad time for railroads, at least how the public saw things.
It was a time when a neat display train like this was needed by the American people. And those who saw it still speak fondly about it.
But these days?
Hmmm. I'm not sure...

The last two times RR started these types of plans I said "this will never happen" and I was scolded for being negative. But look back at the "Yellow Ribbon Special" and the "Greenbriar Train"...they never went anywhere. Catch a clue guys; the railroads do not give a flip about your far-fetched choo choo ideas. I do not think he has had a success in this century (20 years now).

Beyond that....you want to try and get 10 people together to decide what should be celebrated about America? You want Antifa to come over to the train and burn it down while 100 people are trapped inside? Things are different...the American flag is "offensive" to about half the country and the other half are too busy with their cell phones to look up for 10 minutes.

How about this...concentrate on helping the many dwindling railroad museums all over the country with rotting equipment and 10-12 over-worked members. When was the last time somebody actually restored a Pullman car?

T7

How does that phrase go again? "Sad, but true?" Not sure.

Jeff

For those of you old enough you'll recall that the 1970's were consumed with us American's shouting past each other as to who was to blame for a highly unpopular war, who was to blame for a highly unpopular president and precious little energy devoted to the upcoming celebration of our 200th. birthday.

Those realities were among the main motivators that kept me working hard to make AFT 1.0 a reality. The railroads were the last industry we went to for support, waiting until we had sufficient corporate backing ( GM, Kraft Foods, Atlantic Richfield, Pepsi & Prudential) to make their decision an easy yes.

Here we are today. An unpopular war, a highly unpopular president ( with roughly 55% of our fellow Americans) and a virus that is kicking our butts and killing 1,000 of us every day.

I can report that our hard work on AFT 2.0 has produced some progress towards acquiring the 10 co-sponsors needed to fund the $ 100M DBOM budget, ( AFT 1.0 cost approx. $ 60M 2020 dollars) and although we are still a long ways from the finish line I am encouraged to think that we might just get there.

We do have a good friend and believer who is quite high up in the incoming administration and there's a real chance that we will be able to garner some serious support once the new team is in place?? Hope springs eternal.

Keep the faith and whenever you find yourself dwelling on the negative , count your blessings and especially how lucky you are to be an American.

Ross Rowland

The thing that will be the most interesting is the exhibits on AFT2.0. The original train featured historic documents from the formation -- I think that for reasons already given or 'hinted at' we won't see historic documents from the 1700s released for public touring no matter what their interest. On the other hand there are plenty of later documents that take up the story of the America we celebrate ... and which, perhaps, the focus of this train might involve. What are the positive things that have made this nation great in the past century or two? In what is now a generation of dissension over encouraged multicultural 'class warfare', what are the common values that make this nation so great? I even have the keynote for the message: remember the girl with the sign that read "Bring us together again" ... as I recall, from the era of AFT1.0 and its problems.

Now, more than ever, we need a touring attraction with that message. Not one that lapses into empty patriotics on the one hand, or that indulges every guilt over privilege and prejudice that has poisoned so much of the century so far. And I suspect that one of the people who now knows how to walk the right line on this is Ross.

And, not to be cynical as I often am, a project with this message would not lack for support of all kinds necessary after the new administration is established...

For those who are not old enough to recall 1974, I recommend Theodore White's book "Breach of Faith," especially the first chapter.

Excellent point, I was thinking about exactly this the other day.

If anything, what's needed is an American Unity Train, which helps to show how we're the same, and not different.

Despite the best efforts of the curiously quiet Jim (hypertroll) Watkins .

"For those of you old enough you'll recall that the 1970's were consumed with us American's shouting past each other as to who was to blame for a highly unpopular war, who was to blame for a highly unpopular president and precious little energy devoted to the upcoming celebration of our 200th. birthday."

Was there, got the T shirt. It was both a popular and an unpopular war, that was the fight. He was both a popular and an unpopular president. But watching the 4449 pulled out of the park, restored and then running 79 mph down the SP main with that train in tow cut across all the lines. We didn't talk about the war or who was president waiting in that long line to get in as I recall. We talked about a 200 year old country and how it got there and what was supposed to be inside. And we spent more time in line with a bunch of other citizens than we ever spent looking at what was in there.

There were a whole bunch of very wise reasons why it would never work back then, too. And a bunch of "foolish" crazy people who believed it could be. From the "crazy" old man spending his own time and money pumping lubricant into an old steel hulk in a park as it rusted away to the folks who talked a skeptical city into loaning it to the companies who got on board.

To a whole new generation of young men who learned mainline steam.

I was there and watched it all. From a distance....

I'm with you, Ross, do it again! We may not agree on anything else but perhaps we can run a train together. And if arguing while we go about doing it is part of the way it gets done so be it. Unity is not so much agreeing as finding things to try together, and sticking to it till it gets done.

Timothy

You guys were so incredibly lucky to be able to see 79mph steam. The best my generation has gotten is the few times 765 was able to let loose at 60-70 out in the Midwest. Still spectacular, but man, what I would give to see one of the great 4-8-4s really stretching its legs again.

"You guys were so incredibly lucky to be able to see 79mph steam. The best my generation has gotten is the few times 765 was able to let loose at 60-70 out in the Midwest. Still spectacular, but man, what I would give to see one of the great 4-8-4s really stretching its legs again."

But that's the point. I was literally born when they were cutting up or stuffing and mounting the last of SP's steam. My reality was first generation diesel in all its variety, and even then before I could even talk much I would cry when the family Rambler station wagon was stopped at the tracks and the last of the train disappeared. I never expected to see mainline steam and it was nowhere in sight. I remember just like you talking to the older folks and saying, "I wish I'd seen that!"

A dreamer named Ross Rowland and some others changed that whole equation and nobody saw it coming. And I remember what was being said in the railfan circles when it was all beginning to be talked about. Like now. Dreaming dreams wild and big enough to be worth doing is the big thing. Find them, believe in them, argue about them, do them. Once you've got the dream the rest is just stubbornness and execution.

Some of us thought Ross was crazy then, too. Maybe he was. #4449 full out six feet from trackside is worth a lot of crazy. It was "impossible" then, too. But we saw it! It can be done again.

Timothy

I can't help but think that it is a completely different world now. 50 years ago railroads were still largely run by railroad people, cowboy railroading like running passenger trains flat-out way past track speed to make up time was still happening, and security theater and excess litigation were not yet the suffocating issues they are today. Nowadays PTC, extremely hostile PSR railroads run by business school psychopaths and bean counters, and insurance/claimed "safety issues" have put a world of hurt on the possibilities for what once was.

But I certainly hope you're right. I would love to see the 4014 actually put to work like the 3985 was (if the oil conversion hasn't made it impotent) and I would love to see mainline steam allowed over 40mph, if it ever runs again at all.

At least Ross is trying, however improbable his goal may be. What will happen if he gets the interest of the wife of the president of the bank that owns a lot of the stock in CSX and appoints some of its directors?

Yes and I'm very grateful that Ross is trying! That scenario or something similar would be fantastic, I hope it happens.

Pure curiosity here, but almost a year and a half later have any updates or information evolved from Ross’s initial planning? With just four years left before the intended event, has planning of the train itself begun?

Thanks!