Unloading
the Animals from the Circus Train and the Animal Walk
The first thing rail fans want to see
when the Circus comes to town, is the RBBB Circus Train. There
are two units, Red and Blue, and either one of them is the largest
private train in the world. That is exciting to see between
venues, or coming into town, this being Anaheim, and doing some street
running down Santa Ana street.
My first sight of the Circus Train each year is at the unloading spot north of
the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, at the corner of Sunkist and
Cerritos Streets. Here, the flats, with all the circus wagons of
show paraphernalia, are ste east of Sunkist and the four animal cars
are set west of Sunkist.
I had been notified that the Animal Walk, where the animals are
unloaded from the train and walked/exercised to the Arena, about a
mile, would take place about 11:30 a.m. We arrived about 11 a.m.
and they were just putting down the 'circus loading' ramps to unload
the wagons.
Mark Eades, a videographer with the Orange County Register passed me
and said the time had been pushed up an hour and the animal walk would
be at 12:30. I quickly went to a nearby cafe and picked up cold
drinks for me and my wife, and the bus of 'Cherry Pie' workers (circus
workers who make extra money for helping with the animal walk) just
arrived with a horse trailer for the miniature horses and black
performing horses.
When you arrive at the Animal Walk, there is no mistaking who owns the
train.
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Circus Wagons and mule to pull them.
Equipment that is too large for a standard circus wagon go into open wagons.
First put down the ramp, then the first tractor pulls off wagons onto street level.
First
wagon off the flat cars and headed for the arena. I wonder how
many Animal Walks the young fellow on the right has watched.
The orange ball is for the Tigers, and the stands next to the ball are used in the cage at the performance.
Some wagons were pulled off the flats by the water truck.
The animal car attendant seemed ready for the crew to arrive and unload the animals.
With no Animal Activity yet, I took a lap around the animal cars.
The Circus Train Modelers who read my stories like side shots of the animal cars
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Animal Car No. 63002
Animal Car No. 63006
Animal Car No. 63004
Animal Car No. 63011
Four Animal Cars
The shade side of the animal cars.
History of the Unloading Process
In 1872 the P.T. Barnum Circus had grown so large that it was decided
that they would only play at large venues, and that they would travel by train. P.T. Barnum had two of his partners, William Cameron Coup and Dan Costello, come up with a system to load the circus wagons on to railroad flat cars.
Using a system of inclined planes, called runs, and crossover plates
between cars, they developed a system of ropes and pulleys, along with
a snubber post to get the wagons on and off of the flat cars. They used
horses to pull the wagons up the run and then would hitch a second team
to pull it down the run cars (flats). The off loading was much the same
as loading, but a snubber post was used to help break the wagons'
descent down the run. That system, first used in 1872, is still used
today by the RBBBC, although through more modern methods.
--Great American Circus and Show Trains. [VHS]. Pasadena, California: Pentrex. 1999.
--
Two new UP
4-axel "Ultra Low Emissions Diesel Genset Switchers," 2715 and 2720,
had brought the animal cars and flats to this location, and wait
patiently to move the empties to another location. The residence
cars are placed near Lewis St. and Katella and the performers are
bussed to the performances.
Only a few doors down is Leslie's Sandwiches where I us bought some cold drinks.
Inside Leslie's I was surprised at the large seating area.
Local news cameras began to arrive.
When the bus
with the fellows to put up the ramps and the girls who hold the rope
between the animals and the people along the walk arrived, along with
the horse trailer, I knew we would soon see some action.
The 'Cherry Pie' crew got their orders and Jennifer Becker's workers handed out activity sheets for the kids (right).
As the workers took their positions, I noticed this lady's fancy hat and learned that she is a seamstress with the circus.
A dancer in the show, from Brazil.
Another Brazilian dancer from the show
Soon the doors opened, the elephant shield were distributed, and the unloading began.
The first car held horses
The two ladies below,
Lucenir Viera de Souza and Karin Houcke, made sure the horses were well
taken care of and some of the horses went into the horse trailer.
You will see these ladies in their costumes with the animals later in this
story.
My, and other 'kids', favorite part - the unloading of the elephants.
About 4 elephants travel per car.
They know how to duck to get out the door and not scrape their
backs. They step down on the ramp and walk forward with their
front feet, making their backs lower, then step out with their back
feet.
Once
off the train, they stand side by side and wait for all the elephants
from that car to join them. This routine happens symultaneously from two or three rail cars.
All by verbal commands, no hooks or prods.
A palm tree nursery is adjacent to the animal car tie-up area, I wonder if the elephants appreciate the homey touch.
California State University, Fullerton's mascot was on hand to welcome his likenesses.
Overall
shot: Unloaded elephant, Red Unit of the Circus' shield on
elephants and rail car, the loading ramp, and the next elephant
prepares to walk out.
How big is an Asian Elephant? Much bigger than the largest, dualie, diesel pickup truck.
The chaff on their backs will be washed off and blow dried (with a leaf blower) before their appearance at the performanace.
With some show horses in the horse trailer, the rest stand ready to fall in behind the elephants on the walk to the arena.
The Animal Walk
begins! Red shirted staff hold a rope on each side between the
elephants and the assembled crowd. The soft pads of the
elephants' feet are so quiet, there is no noise when they pass.
Tabayara “Taba”
Maluenda, far right above, is the Exotic Animal Trainer and
Presenter. He presents the elephants, tigers, and horses in the
show. Here he makes sure his prized possessions are moved safely
to the animal tents outside the arena. The other two gentlemen on the right can be seen with the elephants at the performance as well.
The following is a video I shot of the Elephants passing through the intersection of Sunkist and Cerritos Avenues.
After viewing the video, just use the right scroll bar to move down to the next section of this report.
Needing more information about the
train, since I was not able to interview the Trainmaster this year by
my deadline, I wrote the Customer Service Department at Ringling
(customerservice@feldinc.com), and Jennifer Jo answered with this
excellent information that all those who like the Circus Train will find interesting:
THE PIE CAR –America’s true traveling diner!!
…
The Red Unit Pie Car, or dining car, boasts a custom built
kitchen and dining area to serve hot meals to circus cast and crew each
day
…
The Pie Car is located in the center of the living coaches so circus
artists and staff have access to it whether the train is moving on the
rails, or parked in a city.
…
Whenever the train is moving, the Pie Car is open 24/7 and serves as a
social center as well as a restaurant.
…
Combined, the Pie Car on the train and the Pie Car Jr., which serves
meals at the arenas, prepares approximately 109,000 meals each year.
…
On certain days, the Pie Car menu features special meals representing
the many foreign countries that the performers, staff and crew come
from.
THE TRAIN
…
The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & BaileyÆ circus train that brings
Fully ChargedÆ to each city on tour has a total of 59 cars, and has a
total length over a mile long.
…
The 59 cars on the Blue Unit Train include: 4 animal stock cars, 30
coaches for living, 2 concession storage cars, 19 flat bed equipment
cars, 1 pie car (diner), 1 generator car, 1 shop car, and 1 auxiliary
generator/shop car.
…
The state-of-the-art generator car produces enough electricity to power
the entire train, making it completely self sufficient 24/7/365.
…
Periodic water stops are scheduled during train trips to refill water
tanks for animals and people.
…
Special stops are arranged on longer trips so the animals can get out
for exercise.
Each year an average of 1000 hours is spent traveling by train from city to city. The average distance the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & BaileyÆ train travels between cities is 350 miles. The red unit train will travel an average of 16,000 miles in one year going coast to coast. The Ringling Bros. red unit train will bring Fully Charged to 78 cities on its two year tour. The train master
walks a minimum of 3 miles per day in taking care of every aspect of
the Ringling Bros. train. Each train car is
custom built for a specific purpose at Feld Entertainment Rail
Recycling Center in Palmetto, FL
…
It takes the Ringling Bros. rail recycling team 9000 man-hours to build
one train car for The Greatest Show On EarthÆ.
…
Did you know? The animal cars always ride at the front of the
train, assuring the smoothest ride, right behind the engine!
--Above Information from: customerservice@feldinc.com
ANIMAL OPEN HOUSE
Opening 90 minutes before show time, the Ringling Bros.Æ Animal Open HouseSM is FREE to all ticketholders.
At the Animal Open House, visitors
can learn about Ringling Bros. biggest stars, our Asian Elephants, and
our commitment to animal conservation through informative kiosks, audio
tours, or by asking one of our dedicated animal care team members.
--From Ringling.com
Heading from their stalls to the performance.
Remember
this orange ball being unloaded from the train? It is always in
the large tiger cage, not used in the performance.
Horses and Elephants before the performance, soon to be groomed and dressed for their part of the show.
ALL ACCESS POWER UP PRE-SHOW PARTY
Arrive an hour before show time and
step onto the arena floor to meet our performers and animals.
It’s your chance to learn skills from the stars of the show and
discover how to be CircusFitÆ. This action packed event will get
you Fully Charged and ready for the show to begin. Plus, watch one of
our incredible Asian elephants paint a masterpiece, and enter for a
chance to win your very own pachyderm painting. The fun starts an hour
before show time, and it’s free with your ticket!
--From Ringling.com
Little girls dreaming of being a dancer in the circus.
All dressed up, it was hard to tell which dancer
I had seen at the Animal Walk.
Warming up for the show.
A band travels with the show providing live music for the acts.
Plenty of souvenirs.
Lemonade!
Cotton Candy!
"Please return to your seats, the show is about to begin!"
The Grand Parade starts the show
Remember this lady with the horses at the Animal Walk?
The individual acts
I did not see zebras at the Animal Walk, but I do remember the lady escorting the horses on the walk.
Tabayara “Taba”
Maluenda
The horse acts were in all 3 rings at the same time.
I almost passed out from holding my breath
while watching this act.
Intermission - time for snacks and sourvenirs
Tabayara “Taba” Maluenda - Exotic Animal Trainer and Presenter, this time with the Tigers
My Video of one part of the Tiger Act:
After viewing the video, just use the right scroll bar to move down to the next section of this report.
If the embedded Tiger Video above does
not work, Click
Here.
Tabayara “Taba” Maluenda - Exotic Animal Trainer and Presenter, this time with the Elephants
After viewing the video, just use the right scroll bar to move down to the next section of this report.
If the embedded Elephant Video above does not work, Click Here.
Summary Video about the Circus Train
by Dallas-Ft. Worth Fox 4 - "Exclusive: Tour the Circus Train" - Published : Friday, 29 Jul 2011, 10:54 AM CDT
FOX 4 News myfoxdfw.com
DALLAS - Chip Waggoner has your ticket for an exclusive tour of the
train that transports the cast and crew of the Ringling Bros. &
Barnum & Bailey Circus.
(Contrary to what Chip says, "We got to go into a couple of cars no one
has been in," I'm proud to say I've been in both the cars he was
in. You can view my 2010 report with photos inside both the shop
car and Pie Car, at TrainWeb.org/carl )
Our son, Matthew Morrison,
37, home from his Missionary duties in Paraguay, attended the circus
with us. Here are some of his photos of the
performance.
He said a tent circus had come to his small village in Paraguay
and turned out to be only a clown and dog show. That circus was
run out of town, however, because it was discovered that the main activity of the circus personnel was to steal cars that had been driven to the performance.
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Photo Credit for the following photos: Matthew Morrison
The landing after being
Shot across the arena floor on fire!
Clowns awaiting the man shot across the arena.
For a Slide Show of all photos in this report in large format,Click Here.
If you look at the Ringling Facebook
page, you will find many nice photos including this one of the
Challenger 3985, the worlds largest operating steam locomotive pulling
the mile-long circus train needed to present Barnum's
FUNundrum!
Ringling Facebook site: http://www.facebook.com/RinglingBros
You can get this cute computer desktop train at Ringling.com that tells
you how long it will be until the train comes to a town near you:
Click Here to get this Desktop Train from Ringling.com
