Reminder/Invitation for those in the area. This one should be a good one, focusing on the ex-Fort Worth & Denver BN line as well as BNSF's ex-ATSF "Transcon". Hope to see you there!!! Friends of the Burlington Northern Railroad 2012 Convention and Membership Meeting June 13-16 Amarillo, Texas GENERAL INFORMATION * BNSF Amarillo Yard Tour - A guided tour of the BNSF yard areas in Amarillo. * Progress Rail Tour - We'll have a guided tour of the Progress Rail has a freight car repair shop just east of Amarillo. * Panhandle Northern Railroad Tour - We'll carpool to Borger, TX to get a guided tour of the Panhandle Northern Railroad, a shortline that services a huge petro-chemical complex and interchanges with the BNSF just west of the town of Panhandle, TX. * Amarillo Railroad Museum - We'll visit the museum, their outdoor display and their large two-level HO gauge layout. For more information: www.amarillorailmuseum.com * Home Layout Tour - We'll check out Fred Theiss's double-decker layout. He's built a brand new 30x40' building for it and a small shop, so it is no small project. * Member Slide/Digital Photo/Video shows - Bring slides, digital photos, and video you'd like to share for member shows Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings. We'll provide a slide projector, computer equipment, and a screen. * Banquet - The banquet Saturday evening will be held at the Ambassador Hotel. Jason McBride, Amarillo Terminal Superintendent, will join us for dinner, then speak and answer questions afterwards. We will order off the menu and pay individually after the meal. Hotel Rooms - The convention is being held at the Ambassador Hotel in Amarillo 806-358-6161 (Toll free: 800-817-0521). Rooms are $79 per night. Refer to the FOBNR convention when making reservations directly with the hotel. For more Information Contact Dave Poplawski at 906-482-8819 or pop@mtu.edu. AGENDA All times are Central Daylight Time (CDT) and are subject to change. Wednesday, June 13 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM Registration in hotel 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM Welcome Reception at the Big Texan 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM "All Aboard" dinner at the Big Texan 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM Welcome Meeting with local railfanning information 8:30 PM - ? Member slides and videos Thursday, June 14 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM Tour of the Panhandle Northern Railroad Noon - 1:00 PM Lunch on your own 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Layout Tour - Fred Theiss 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM Tour the Amarillo Railroad Museum 5:00 PM - 7:30 PM Dinner/railfan on your own 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM Membership meeting 8:30 PM - 9:00 PM Photo show by Mike Danneman 9:00 PM - ? Member slides and videos Friday, June 15 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM BNSF yard tour 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM Lunch on your own 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Progress Rail carshop tour 3:00 PM - 6:00 PM Railfanning 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM Dinner on your own 7:30 PM - 8:30 PM Board Meeting (members welcome) 8:30 PM - ? Member slides and videos Saturday, June 16 Morning - Carpool to Canadian River Bridge Afternoon - Railfanning 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Banquet plus BNSF speaker
Wow. What a convention! A great time was had by all, and every event exceeded expectations! Amarillo may not seem like an attractive destination, but the town was very welcoming of the group, and there's really only one thing that needs to be said....Transcon! Sure, the focus was the former BN ex-Fort Worth & Denver lines but "while you're here" the ex-ATSF "Transcontinental Railroad" is a railfan's dream. A couple of highlights for me... -The trip to Borger, including a fantastic tour of the railroad's yard, and drive-thru tours of a refinery and two carbon black plants. -Amarillo Railroad Museum. They have some of the most unique rolling stock I've ever seen, headlined by the "White Train" cars that were used to carry nuclear arms. But the real treat was a ride on their Alco S-2 locomotive, and hearing the unique sound it makes! -BNSF Tour. Seeing the Amarillo turntable up close was great, and allowing us to go up into Junior Tower to see South yard from above was awesome! -Numerous slide-shows and presentations, including an outstanding collection of BN photos presented by Mike Danneman. -Railfanning. We parked near an overpass and sat in the shade while about 20 trains flew by on the Transcon in a 3 hour period. Also camped in downtown Amarillo for a bit and watched both Transcon and "FW&D" trains travel through. I strongly encourage any of you to consider attending the FOBNR Conventions, even if you aren't a die-hard BN or BNSF fan. Especially if it is near where you live I would definitely make the effort to attend. (and as it stands now, you do NOT have to be a member to attend the convention. You simply have to pay the convention registration fee and you're there!)
