A NS 80Mac on the Louisville District after work.

[E.M. Bell]

Getting lucky after work....again! 

The fleet of Conrail Sd80Macs that NS acquired in the merger have always (for the most part) tended to stay around the old PRR in Altoona and Southfork, PA.  They are well suited for the slow speed, heavy haul coal lines and preformed well there for years.  Its been a fairly rare thing for them to stray from that are (but it does happen) and folks have flocked to PA to shoot them..  It seems that in the past 2 or 3 years, and handful of the Macs have escaped and roamed around the system for a while until they wind up back in the Altoona area. 

I have been lucky enough to shoot them several times, including leading intermodal trains on the CNO&TP.  Monday morning 03/24/15 we got word that train 167 had departed Louisville KY headed East (and South) for Chattanooga with NS 7203 leading.  While this was the first time (that I can recall anyway) that a 80Mac had lead a train over the Louisville District, I was stuck at work and figured it would be long gone before I could get out for the day.  167 left Louisville around 0730 that morning, and much to my surprise what do I hear on the radio calling signals as I left work at 1500...167!  The train had been held for a rail gang, and had sat at Joyes (Shelbyville KY) for most of the day...

This was One of those times where it pays off to always have your camera with you.  I managed to get across the river in record time and get ahead of the train. I spent the next hour or so getting a few rare shots in perfect sun before the light got bad.  With the entire 80mac fleet now back together on the NS, perhaps there will be more chances for these to roam they system in the future.  This power was certainly better than the pair of CSX motors I had shot in the same places Two days before!

You can find everything I shot  on Monday at this link, plus a lot more Louisville District action from this year.. >>>  http://www.pbase.com/kd4jsl/nsls15

03/23/15

NS 7203 was sounding good as 167 climbed out of the Salt River bottom at McBrayer, KY


The dynamics are screaming as 167 slows to duck in the hole at Talmage to meet Westbound 168.


HAY!  167 idles in the siding at East Talmage, KY


03/21/15

Saturday afternoon, NS 223 comes though the S-curves at McBrayer, KY with a pair of CSX motors.