Producer: Pentrex
Locations: Tucson to Lordsburg
Timeframe: 1995
Length: 90 minutes
Southern Pacific’s Lordsburg District. Filmed in the spring of 1995. Last of the semaphore signal usage there. Some double track installation, along with signal upgrades.
This was a power short SP. Leased units abound. No cabooses. Not much excitement in general here. Double stacks and more double stacks…
Pentrex has a quality show. Excellent presentation. Detailed Chapter Menu. Full narration. Plenty of graphic extras. Maps at appropriate times.
The show begins at the SP yard in Tucson, Arizona. It will proceed East until the conclusion at Lordsburg, New Mexico.
The last of the vintage semaphore signals are shown in operation.
There are some sizeable bridges.
Much of the fleet needs repainting in 1995. Variety of locomotives.
SD units are the dominate road power.
There are some old structures from the steam era, still standing along the route. Check the GE on the head end.
Amtrak makes several quick appearances.
Willcox still has a Station in use by SP. Pentrex can be great at identification of trains. On screen graphics, combined with narration, decide this information.
The camera crew captures all of the major highlights.
Lordsburg provides an anti-climatic conclusion. Fairly quiet. Oddly enough, Pentrex returns to Tucson!
The Stormy
The route traverses scenic, yet relatively barren desert terrain. Sleepy, small towns. In fact, outside of the speeding freights, the show does have a sleepy feel. Most of the time, trains are the only thing moving.
Rating: 4 Stars
American Train Video Reviews 