takes a concerted effort. Security con- cerns of the 21st century often keep the operating schedules of these trains in a near stealth vacuum of knowledge. Lately, the most frequent method of ac- quiring knowledge has come from a railfan who has seen a special move and thoughtfully shares this sighting promptly on the internet. In the not- too-distant past, considerate railroad employees and sometimes the rail- road’s public relations office provided information in advance, and on some occasions still do. However, these sources of information now seldom oc- cur and getting the word out has fallen upon the keyboards and phone lines of railfans. Staying informed will likely be the difference between seeing one first hand and seeing an image of or reading about it in a railfan publication long after it has operated. While its clear that the business train is not being operated for enjoy-


TOP: A Santa Fe Directors’ Special is at Yorba Linda in Santa Ana Canyon on the San Bernardino Sub on September 28, 1993. The train is head- ing from San Diego to Phoenix with the Santa Fe board of directors, vice presidents and department heads on board. MIDDLE: The inaugural run of the first Santa Fe Super Fleet GP60M (on train 891 from Chicago to Los Angeles) meets Super Fleet prototype FP45s on the Rail Cycle Special at San Bernardino on May 23, 1990. ABOVE: The Coast Special departs Los Angeles bound for Surf on January 26, 1987, touting the planned Santa Fe-Southern Pacific merger. Struck down by both the Justice Department and the ICC, the merger was cancelled and SP sold in 1988.


44 OCTOBER 2012 • RAILFAN.COM


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