UP 3985 Challenger and the Circus Train

[npradocp]

Fantastic video, it will be that she is still in operation tourist.???

Thanks a lot.

Greetings from Brazil.

[AJuarez764]

Pulling that long load like nobody's business! You gotta love it!!

[Fordguy6514]

pity they put a diseasel behind 3985

[TheForceOfMusic101]

@Fordguy6514 To be fair U.P. 3985 had the strength to pull the whole train by herself. But because of the distance of the trip, a Diesel was added for assistance with such a long trip. It would have been better if it there was no diesel. But Still, U.P. 3985 ROCKS!!!!!!!

[Vorahk3985]

Whoever disliked this got challenged by #3985. XD

[cayoharksen]

alguem pode dar um tiro certeiro nesse helicoptero xarope, murrinha por favor.

[bfs1888]

Rebel, i agree,,,,,,that &%#$@&% helicopter

[RebelRail96]

!@#$%^&*!!?!! helicopter

[allegheny48]

To cchan006: Thanks for the top notch video. Very well done and a pleasure to watch. I especially enjoyed the start up sequences. 3985 really put on a fine show. I have a question. Why is it that, whenever the whistle is blown, you never see any steam exhaust as with other steam locomotives? Where is the whistle located?

[bitethedevil]

Sounds just like a helicopter! LOL!!

[penncentral8885]

I wish whoever was flying that Helo had it stuck up there ass!!!!

[bask185]

cool

[puzzler19]

god damn helicopter....

[djscottdog1]

bear , that train makes the uk steam trains look gay

[operazanotaijin]

I presume the passenger cars were for those paying for the excursion. Now, did Ringling Bros. hire UP for this trip with the 3985, or what was the deal behind that if you know? Thanks!

[cchan006]

@operazanotaijin: The UP passenger cars were part of a Special that separated from the Circus Train in Denver and went on its own way. The inspiration for the 3985 came from the Trainmaster of the Circus Train. I do not know the specifics of how the deal was made between Ringling Bros. and UP Steam Crew, but I assume they all wanted to do it.

[eisenbahnfreak1995]

wow

[Cardinals525]

If they can restore a challenger, they can restore a big boy. I don't see why someone won't fund a restoration. Yes, the Big boys were hell on tracks, but whats to hurt if it ran only once?

[PereMarquette1223]

@Cardinals525 Now, I know that I am going to sound a little crazy on this but it would be a waste of money and labor to have a Big Boy run once. Don't get me wrong it would be awesome to see it done, but that's a lot your asking for if it were to only run once.

[coborn35]

@Cardinals525 You cant just run it once.

[bassboy923]

i counted 70 cars, is that alot?... im assuming?

[cchan006]

@bassboy923: That's a lot for a passenger train, although the Circus Train also has freight cars toward the back.

[nightwind928]

@bassboy923 Ringling Bros. (R B B X) routinely runs two separate units (red unit and blue unit) with about 70 cars each ( m o l ). During the winter months, one unit stays in winter quarters and refurbishes the equipment and replaces acts to change the theme of the show. The other remains out all winter and continues to play dates. The next year the other unit rotates through winterquarters so that at any given time, there is always one train on the rails.

[TheBigjrbbbr]

@nightwind928 as one unit is in winter quarters the other one comes in shortly and winters in orlando while the other is in tampa. trust me i know. i miss the train runs.

[Goins2754]

I love watching your videos. I'd love to have you make a video of a comparison of the old steam trains and diesels. I love the look of those old steam trains so much. I wish we could still run them economically.

[fasionbug]

Is the diesel in dynamic braking at @5:03 Because the 3985 seems to be working a little and I can't help but here that notorious whine of the dynamic brakes. Any thoughts?

[cchan006]

@fasionbug: I heard that, too, and it's possible the GEVO was dynamic braking. I overheard on the radio the steam crew instructing the engineer in the diesel for braking the train at a certain speed ("30 down the hill" at Terry Ranch Rd., for example).

[fasionbug]

@cchan006 Thanks you! I'm not hearing things then, lol

[fasionbug]

@Chase1609 I don't know, but however many there are, rest assured she can pull twice that or more :)

[softerimage]

Wish I had been back in the US when this was running, would love to see the 3985 running in person. Great video.

[xxxDeath9572xxx]

That chase helicopter really gets annoying doesn't it?

[1961ruud09]

That is an awesome train you catch on camera!!

[Rocketboy1950]

Great to watch, love the 8 beats to a rotation. Something you don't get to see much of and something that I'll never see in Australia. I have to drive thousands of miles just to see full size US machines. Most of our locos are US powered but built smaller to suit local conditions.

[pwalpar]

good video

[mydmband]

GREAT video, great catch! Hate the helicopter!!

[Monheit1]

I hav a working model of the "Big Boy" engine. Has all the sounds on board. But this is a hoot seeing it work full scale.

[virginiatruckee]

Nice shots, you have a very stead hand for panning, a nice slow zoom, far better than most videos on Youtube. Good job.

Coaststarlight11, me and NarodnieMstiteli were all in Verdi seeing this come through, Coaststarlight11 gets the award for chasing it from Truckee to Lovelock, I think. I was in Salt Lake City a few days later and saw the train sitting in the yard.

But this indeed was the Greatest Show on Earth! Thanks for posting what is probably the best youtube video of it. I'm subscribing

[Rocketboy1950]

@virginiatruckee Aint that a fact, so much shaky rubbish gets posted and you have to wade through it to get to good stuff like this.

[jch301965]

Did they use the diesel strictly for its braking ability or for actual HP too? Or was it for the signaling system?

[cchan006]

@jch301965: No cab signals required on the Greeley Sub, but 3985 can run on the lead in such territory, for example between Laramie, WY and North Platte, NE, so 7369 wasn't needed for that. It definitely helped in the braking, and sounded like it helped the 3985 at speed, but the initial tractive effort from standstill was all 3985, based on the video and from my eyewitnessing.

[northersteame]

@jch301965 I don't know if they kept this during the rebuild but back when 3985 was in service it had cab signals and was CTC compatible.

[CoastStarlight11]

I shot this very same Circus Train when it went over Donner Pass and the Nevada desert a few weeks before you shot this vid however, UP 3985 was not leading when I shot it.

Amazing stuff right here

[AndreiTupolev]

What a maginificent sight once that irritating little helicopter was out of the way.

Does it really take that many cars to transport Barnum & Bailey's Circus about?

[cchan006]

@AndreiTupolev: Yeah, it really does take that many cars, and they have two trains running simultaneously, the Red Unit, and this one, the Blue Unit.

[sgtredbluered]

I love to see Old Glory on the tender and the diesel UP locos.

[gameover340]

awesome video, what ever happen to the big boy engine

[cchan006]

@gameover340: Eight of the Big Boys are preserved in static display around the country.

[Amtrakdavis22]

Your travels amaze me. That is an awesome train and I'm glad to see you caught it!

[cchan006]

@Amtrakdavis22: Let's hope Railfair in Sacramento happens, then you might catch some action in your back yard.

[joshmeister4449]

@cchan006 i heard if there is another railfair, engines like 4449, 3985 and sps 700 wont be allowed to go because of the EPA and that bullshit

[DDA40X6936]

Why must yhese clowns in the helicoptors ruin for everyone.

[cchan006]

@DDA40X6936: Would have been nice if they brought a more historic helicopter like Bell 47G (seen in M*A*S*H), which existed when Challengers roamed the rails. The photographers might have liked it, and I wouldn't have minded the noise.

[guitar446]

great vid and very historic and true power out 3985

[SkipW]

As always, Some more Quality footage from cchan & man you sure do get around !

[4223037]

Any video with UP Challenger in the title gets a automatic thumbs up and fav. :)

[seabulls69]

That's a keeper!!

[generationll]

Great video.How long was the trip form Wyoming to Denver?

[cchan006]

@generationll: departed Cheyenne before 6 AM, and arrived in Denver just before 10:30 AM, so about 4.5 hours.

[pdxsteam]

Great shots! Finally, 3985 gets to pull a load that makes us remember why she's called the Challenger :)

[dieselburner]

Great consist! Steam and diesel used to pull the behemoth circus train. Love it!

[cevin11]

Thank you for taking the time to catch this awesome piece of machinery.

[sgtredbluered]

What did they do, take the passenger cars from Laramie, to California, hook up the circus train, then haul both back to DEN, drop off the circus train, then head back to Laramie with the passenger cars.? *****

[TheStormchaser09]

AWESOME Video... 5 out of 5 stars!!!

[Satsc2]

You are one of the best railroading fans.  You have traveled all over the place. Keep your great videos coming!!!!