Amtrak Coast Starlight Meet - Horse-shoe Curve above SLO

The Starlight climbs the hills above San Luis Obispo, CA gaining elevation via this famous horse-shoe curve. Only two locomotives on the head-end, a Genesis leading an F40. This was filmed from #14 on the last weekend of May in 1996. Just above the curve #14 meets its counterpart southbound #11 waiting in the hole. Watch the crew members on #11 clowning for my camera as we pass on the main, pausing for a moment. After the highball the lounge car attendant offers a special on margaritas commemorating the final divorce of Fergie and Andrew. The soundtrack muzak is the actual Starlight muzak, not mine.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Amtrak-14
• Coast-starlight
• passenger-train
• railroad
• train
• horse-shoe-curve

[Elin48]

What kind of a camera did you use? i love the shots of distance and close up/

[MasCoRailbuff]

@Elin48 This was back in the mid 1990s, It was a Sony cam on 8mm cassette and I used a capture card to make a movie file out of it. Not comparable to today's digital, though.

[N330AA]

British announcer?

[MasCoRailbuff]

@N330AA Yup, he was the cafe attendant.

[ccolimon]

Are you sure this is Pennsylvania ?

[MasCoRailbuff]

@ccolimon er..uh..California.

[CSXCP55]

Why did both trains have to stop? At first I thought one might have been too long for the siding, but that doesn't appear to be the case.

Funny, when anyone mentions "horseshoe curve" everyone thinks it's PA. The difference is between "Horseshoe Curve" and horseshoe curve. Note the caps for the one in PA.

[N330AA]

@MasCoRailbuff well god bless those delightful brits! ;)

This was probably my favourite part of the CS when i took it this summer

[docmalthus]

Thanks for the memories! Great memories!!

[usdevildog1987]

Who the heck thought that was Pennsylvania???? This is on the Cuesta Pass about half way between Los Angeles and Oakland, California on the former Southern Pacific Coast Line. The siding where the meet too place is chorro, just passed the horseshoe curve, about mile post 258, coast subdivision. Its 2% along this section between san Luis Obispo and Santa Margarita, where the grade ends.

[HHSEAWAUSA]

One of the best 'had to have been there' train videos I have seen on YouTube! What great timing for the Coast Staright / Coast Starlight meet, with spectacular scenery to match. Too bad it was done a decade + before the use of HD video was available, but still, great work!

[CoastStarlight11]

NICE!!!!!!

[jojovonne]

@MasCoRailbuff No. I have moved on owning my own business. Amtrak was a fun job and probably would like to have stayed, but my other co-workers who are still on the rails have informed me of the triple amount of work and of course the increased backlashing of the management. Sad to see that the fun in work has gone away. Too bad management and employees can never work together.

[MasCoRailbuff]

@jojovonne JoJo, I hear what you're saying about working along with non bargaining unit types. Without a contract labor would have no benefits or decent compensation, thats a fact!. About the magicians I guess if they are working one job at a time for themselves and MGT hires them to entertain the passengers, well it's a separate craft. And if the passengers are happy then that makes your job more pleasant. You still with Amtrak?

[jojovonne]

Did you see the magician? One minute you see him, the next you don't. Back then we use to have magicians to entertain the passengers. It started quite a stir between us union employees working with none union employees. then we got to know the entertainers and it was a lot better.

[rjforgues]

Looks like you were in a sleeper at the rear? That's a rarity nowadays.

[sgtredbluered]

Nice to see from the passenger's perspective.

[penguingeneral2]

Great video! That music on the train must have gotten annoying after a while though.

[Amtrakdavis22]

Wow thats awesome. I've gone over that route befroe.I think that went before I did by the looks of the cars and the engines. Cool shots.

[kanjo007]

LOL...wow, that's great...the passengers of #11 must've been having lots of fun with the crew. I think that's the only time I've ever heard music played on Amtrak, too, and in first class for that matter. It's a shame they don't try to do things like that nowadays.