WCRA NEWS OCTOBER 2015 Squamish—North Van. Rail Excursions Oct. 10 & 11! Fundraising Gala Nov. 5 Polar Express is coming! WCRA News, Page 2 GENERAL MEETING The General Meeting of the WCRA will be held on Tuesday, September 29 at 1930 hours at Rainbow Creek Station, Willingdon at Penzance in Burnaby. Entertainment will be a vintage slideshow by Ryan Cruickshank of miscellaneous (never shown at the WCRA) railway scenes dating back to the 1950's from around the Pacific Northwest—plus, if time holds out, some never-before-seen-in-public aviation photos from 1958-1959. ON THE COVER Pretty as a postcard! The CP Ladies PGA business train heads towards Vancouver on CN tracks just west of Hope, BC in this photo by Corwin Doeksen . What could possibly beat an A-B-A set of F units hauling a 15 car train at speed on a sunny August 16, 2015! OCTOBER CALENDAR • West Coast Railway Heritage Park open daily 1000 through 1600k—Mini rail in operation daily. • October 1—Okanagn Wine and Steam tour departs • Friday, October 9—Deadline for items for the November 2015 WCRA News • Monday, October 26 to Friday, October 30—Mystery of the Magic Pumpkin at the Heritage Park, Train departs at 11AM daily. (see page 11) • Tuesday, October 27—WCRA General Meeting at Rainbow Creek Station, 1930 hours The West Coast Railway Association is an historical group dedicated to the preservation of British Columbia railway history. Membership is open to all people with an interest in railways past and present. We are a non-profit British Columbia society, registered as a Canadian charity. Membership prices are as follows, Please note that GST must be added to all fees: Senior $50 ($52.50), Individual $55 (57.75), Family $65 (68.25) E Members (electronic newsletter only) are $35 ($36.75) Senior, $40 ($42.00) individual and $50 ($52.50) family. Other categories are: - Junior Member (age 18 and under ) $ 30 ($31.50) - Sustaining Member $100 (tax receipt) plus membership type regular fee - Life Membership $700 ($735) individual life / $1,200 ($1,260) family life All memberships include the monthly newsletter, Heritage Park admission (except Special Events), mini rail rides and discounts on food and merchandise. The Association holds a monthly meeting on the last Tuesday of the month at 1930 hours in Burnaby at Rainbow Creek Station in Confederation Park. Apply through www.wcra.org or mail to WCRA, PO Box 2790 Stn. Term., Vancouver, B.C., V6B 3X2. WCRA News, Page 3 EDITORIAL A BUSY FALL AHEAD It doesn’t take long after Labour Day for things to leap into high gear. That is certainly the case for WCRA, as we prepare for a series of special events and activities that will keep us going right to the end of the year. We hope that you will find something for everyone in the family, and that you will join us: • On board the streamliner excursion train October 10 and 11 as we re-create the classic North Vancouver to Squamish excursion • At the Heritage Park October 26 through 30 for Pumpkin Train—a fun event designed for the young family set • At the Roundhouse Community Centre in Vancouver’s Yaletown on Thursday, November 5 for our second annual gala fundraiser • At the Heritage Park on any one of four weekends from end November and into December for the spectacular Polar Express event No matter which you choose, or how many, you can be assured that you will be supporting our core goal of Preserving British Columbia's Railway Heritage. Thank you for everything that you do in helping us with this cause. Don ASSOCIATION NEWS FROM THE AUGUST GENERAL MEETING Chair Bill Johnston called the meeting to order with 29 members and guests present. Jeremy Davy was the Recording Secretary. • Gord Bell reporting for Ken Tanner started off talking about the Fall Plans for the year, noting: • The November Gala in Yaletown. Improvements will be made based on what was learned last year. Tickets should be on sale soon. • Plans are under way for what will be two excursions this fall. Tickets are on sale now and posters are currently being distributed. • Polar Express is planned to run 4 weekends this year. Changes are planned to bring newness to the event this year. • Gord Bell then turned to the Heritage Park, noting we were experiencing a slower than anticipated summer, probably due to the presence of the Sea-to-Sky Gondola. Several strong events helped the operation afloat. July YTD visits were 32,448 compared to 26,046 in 2012. A fundraiser is underway to extend the platform at Mac Norris Station WCRA News, Page 4 making it easier to board consists of more than 2 coaches. • Gord Bell read the operations/collection report from Robert MacBeth … - Trevor Mills is doing a great job of getting the rolling stock up to standard and is keeping Robert very busy. - The truck swap between the 3 “F units” is complete and 6520 & 4069 now each have matching sets. Engine room cleanup is being done while the units are shopped making it easier to spot future leaks. - Operating Trainset - exterior work on 5569 is complete and unit is back on display. Decals will be applied as soon as received. 3218 is now in the Carshop and Randy & Kyle are working hard to get its cosmetic work completed in time for it to join the Fall Excursion consist. Alberta’s plumbing work is finished – 99% road ready. Henry Pickering was sidelined briefly for repair to a cracked side bearing. Brake portions from all operational coaches have been sent for recertification so they can be used on the fall excursions. Once electrical work is completed, coach Porteau will be added to the consist. • Don Evans provided a fundraising report, noting the recent launch of the Royal Hudson fundraiser as well as some other initiatives underway. • Bill Johnston provided a tours report • George Game commented on a very busy summer at the Locomotive 374 Pavilion • Jeremy Davy noted the upcoming mini rail special sites including CN Family Day September 13 and the Vancouver Train Expo in November at the PNE Forum • The calendar was reviewed from the newsletter • Ryan Cruickshank had a Show & Tell with some past promotions for both BCSME and Western Rails (1980’s), a Z scale “Rail Plane”, and a Wolverine Supply (Pittsburgh) locomotive #34 and coach made of stamped metal with wooden wheels (1960’s) • Bill Marchant provided a Trackside Report • Guests were welcomed • Entertainment was a slide show by Bob Hunter of vintage slides principally of CN on Vancouver Island (from the Wilkie collection and Bob’s own collection) WCRA TRIVIA #322 - By Ryan Cruickshank What significance is the address "11344 Edbrooke", as spoken by the Conductor (Tom Hanks) in the 2004 movie The Polar Express . (Answers on page 26) MEMBER NEWS Our condolences go out to Bonnie & George Game on the passing on of Bonnie’s mother, Christine, on August 27th. PLEASE RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP If your newsletter label says 8/31/2015 your membership has expired, if it says 05/31/2015 this is your last issue of WCRA News. WCRA News, Page 5 NEW MEMBERS We welcome to membership: • Ben & Debbie Bakk and family of Squamish; • Melanie Bedore and family of Garibaldi Highlands; • Nicola Bickerton and family of Brackendale; • Steve Bordt of Langley; • Danette Boucher and family of Squamish; • Greg & Barb Fensome and family of Abbotsford; • Colin Finlay of Dorchester, ON; • Frances Foran and family of Gibsons; • Jessamy Freese and family of Brackendale; • Terry & Stacy Grant and family of Langley; • Louisa Harrison and family of Squamish; • Andy Hutchings and family of North Vancouver; • Eva Larsson and family of Squamish; • Elizabeth MacLean and family of Port Moody; • Jason McKinnon and family of North Vancouver; • Gary Ridout and family of Delta; • Darren Roberts and family of Garibaldi Highlands; • Dana Rykova and family of Langley; • Michael Sharp and family of Brackendale; • Michael Sinclair and family of West Kelowna; • Tanya Slater and family of Brackendale; • Mark Yang and family of Langley. We welcome back to membership…. • Dan & Erin Hirai and family of Langley; • James & Shannon Morris and family of Squamish; • Rachel Richards & Trevor Hutchins and family of Squamish; • Connie Spear and family of Vancouver. (J.D.) CPR DRAKE STREET STORIES SOUGHT Did you ever work at the CPR Drake Street facilities or know anyone who did? Writer and researcher Mark Wilson (who covered WCRA well in his years with The Province) sends this note…..”I am seeking to interview Drake Street veterans who are willing to talk about their work experiences as part of a study of the industrial and commercial impacts of the facility on Vancouver. In its early days Drake Street must have represented a major source of industrial technique that would only later be overtaken by shipbuilding. Its greatest legacy gifts were developable land and, of course, the Dunsmuir Tunnel.” If you can help, please let Mark know at [email protected] or contact your editor ay 604-988-3435 and I will pass the information along. WCRA News, Page 6 SLIDE PROJECTOR SOUGHT WCRA is looking for a Kodak 35 mm Carousel slide projector for the archives. Ours has disappeared and we need a replacement—the archives holds many treasures in photographic collections, many still in 35 mm slide format. If you can help please let Bob Hunter or Bill Marchant know. (R.H.) VANCOUVER TRAIN EXPO Vancouver Train Expo 2015 - the rebranded and relocated TRAINS2015 - is being held this year at the PNE in the Forum Building, 2901 East Hastings on November 7 th & 8 th .