staggering in detail and the work of all four photographers blend seamlessly. The book was printed in a four-color black & white process that allows for richer blacks and a wider tonal range, versus a simple black ink halftone. That said, a few page spreads in my copy had a slight green cast that did nothing to lessen my enjoyment of the book. Interestingly, those color shifts vanished when viewed in a favorite reading chair un- der incandescent lamps. While today’s readers and fans tend to ob-
sess on pictures, those who also love great writing will find much to savor from Benson (who edited the book) and his collaborators. Topped by colorful headings such as “Resur- rection Express,” “Northern Eclectic” and “Escort Service,” Benson’s words are the heart and soul of this book, capturing the quirkiness, personal drama and high stake battles of WP’s final decade. The book closes with a moving tribute to
Ken Meeker, who embodied the WP family of employees and the fraternity of California railfans who documented the Feather River Route. While $80.00 is a hefty price for some fans, save your pennies and don’t wait. Years from now we’ll still be admiring this landmark work from the “Fab Four” of west- ern rail journalism. — ELROND LAWRENCE
Video Review
Into The Desert: BNSF's Transcon Fuller- ton to Cadiz; RailTrek Media, PO Box 414, Abington, MD 21009;
www.railtrekmedia.com; $24.95 for DVD and $29.95 for Blu-Ray. 1 hour 52 minutes
Have you ever seen a railroad photo or a video that just liter- ally jumps out at you from across the room? You know the kind I'm talking about — you’re at a slide show and someone shows a shot that takes your breath away. Or
you’re at a railroadiana show and from eight
tables away you see a big 18″×24″ color print that looks so real you feel you can reach out and touch it. Well, brothers and sisters, that’s how you’re going to feel when you watch this exceptionally well done DVD (and the Blu- Ray is even better) by RailTrek Media. I had the pleasure of viewing this DVD at
the Gaithersburg. Md., railroadiana show last fall. The Blu-Ray version of this title was playing at one of the vendor tables and it literally caught my eye from across the room. It was so good I had to walk over and shake the guy’s hand. I told him, “I’ve never, ever seen colors this crisp and a video this sharp. How did you do it?” This is not your typical run of the mill
“here’s an eastbound train going through Podunk, Iowa” type of DVD. Far from it. I know this to be true because the man who’s hand I shook turned out to be Christopher Kratzen (owner/producer of RailTrek Media). I had the pleasure of interviewing Christopher for a bit and I walked away more than impressed. His vision is to be the best railroad video company on the market, and he’s certainly off to a great start. Christopher makes a point of telling you the
“who, what, where, when and why” as you go through this most enjoyable DVD. I found that to be very refreshing. By investing in broadcast-quality equipment and taking a very well researched “documentary” type of an approach, the quality of this title is read- ily apparent and very much appreciated. Starting out in Fullerton, Calif., we are introduced to the extremely busy western end of BNSF’s former Santa Fe transconti- nental mainline. We see a variety of freights, commuter trains and even Amtrak for good measure. We then start heading east through Cali-
fornia and are treated to a series of very in- formative and easy to understand Google maps imposed on the screen. I found this to be a very nice touch and added to my enjoy- ment in a big way. The San Bernardino intermodal facility is explained in detail. This segment alone is worth the price of the DVD if you ask me. The details and informative captions abound in this title — locomotive types, where the train in question is headed, what it’s carrying, what the various signal aspects mean, the list goes on and on. Another of the most impressive parts of
this title is the pacing sequence east of San Bernardino — you couldn’t ask for clearer, crisper pacing if you tried. Very nicely done, indeed. Our tour continues east and we see Cajon
Pass in all its glory, followed by Barstow, Ash Hill, Siberia and a whole bunch more. Deserts, mountains and everything in be- tween —it’s all here for your viewing enjoy- ment. Even at a very meaty one hour and 52 minutes long, this video went by all too fast for me. The scenery is impressive, the action is fast and furious, and in the end, you finish this title going “darn, that was just really good stuff there!” I would be remiss if I didn’t stress the
point of just how crisp and how vivid the col- ors are in this title. The sharpness is impres- sive to say the least, and I really felt like I was viewing “the next generation” in railfan videos. This is not something I would say lightly, as I have hundreds and hundreds of railfan movies in my collection here. Many of them are made by excellent producers and you can tell that they are indeed a labor of love. It’s just that this title is so impressive it stands out in a rather noticeable (and very enjoyable) way.
This title is very much worth your spend-
ing the little bit of extra money to view it in Blu-Ray format, and it just might be the rea- son you ask Santa for a Blu-Ray player this holiday season. I'm not easily impressed these days but, oh man, is this title a stand- out. If there were Emmys for railfans, this bad boy would win one for sure. And great news — RailTrek Media has al-
ready produced four other titles (covering both steam and diesel) and each one war- rants your consideration. Christopher shared with me his ideas for upcoming titles, and I’m eagerly awaiting more of his body of work. I’m willing to bet you will be, too. So if you enjoy today’s modern rail scene, Southern California action, the late, great Santa Fe, or you are just curious to see what “cutting edge” railfan videos look like, this title belongs in your collection. Take home a copy today! — FRANK GARON
To have your new railroad books (except fiction), calendars, and videos considered for this column, please send review copies to RAILFAN & RAILROAD, P.O. Box 554, Andover, NJ 07821.
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