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Fundraiser raises $10,000 for ASVRR steam engine

As the sun ascended the horizon Sept. 15 and most people were just starting their day, a group of 30 photographers had already begun their day-long locomotive photo charter hours before at the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad. The locomotive photo charter was intended as a fundraiser, hosted by Dak Dillon, a St. Louis based photographer.

Jim Miller and Pam Mountcastle from Elizabeth, Colorado, said they left the hotel around 5:30 a.m. and started the charter around 6:30 a.m. Their journey from Colorado to Kansas started Wednesday, and they were about to make a slow trip out of it visiting other places along the way.

Photographers such as Miller and Mountcastle came from all over the United States right here to Abilene for the opportunity to photograph the historical steam engine Santa Fe 3415 before it is taken out of commission. Next month the Santa Fe 3415 will be taken in for a safety inspection that the Federal Railroad Administration requires every 15 years and is estimated to take until May 2025.

"Now this is really going to be that jump start or that kick start and at the end of it this will end up being five percent of rebuilding that engine, Dillon said. "But it's at least getting that ball rolling because it's going to take you know everyone getting involved".

Dillon fundraised and donated around $10,000 from ticket sales for the charter and was donated to ASVRR which is only a portion of the money that will be needed to rebuild the engine.

"Our estimate to rebuild the steam engine is about $600,000", said Ross Boelling, president and general manager of Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad.

At noon, the Santa Fe 3415 returned to the depot. The sky started to sprinkle water as the passengers exit the train cars and disperse for their lunch break. The rain forces Dillon and other coordinators to discuss what their plan is to start the afternoon shoots.

The goal of a photo charter is to provide the attendees with opportunities to capture photographs they usually wouldn’t be able to capture on a normal passenger experience. But every participant's goal for attending the charter and how their love for trains started is unique to them.

“My goal was to capture some great video,” said Christian Scholtz, 17 year-old California based photographer. "One of the main things I post on my (Instagram) page is video, so to have some good video with some sound, whistle, the stack talk of the locomotive pull, that’s what I have come here for".

As a young boy growing up right next to the railroad tracks in San Luis Obispo, California, Scholtz said his father would take him to the train station, and that is where his love of trains started. Scholtz has turned his love for trains into more than just a hobby running an Instagram account with over 130,000 followers where he posts photos and videos of the locomotives.

After the afternoon break charter attendees gathered in the depot around 2 p.m. as the decision on when to start and if the rain is going to hold off is being decided. Closer to the 3 p.m. Dillon announced they were going to be starting outside the depot and do a few runs. Off the photographers went heading east towards Jeep Road for their afternoon.

Another California based photographer attendee, Chris Guenzler, was looking forward to capturing photos but his want to attend this event was to ride behind the Santa Fe 3415 steam engine. He has ridden 1,752,000 miles on trains breaking the one million mile mark April 27, 2007. With all of those miles Guenzler has ridden trains in all 50 states along with every province in Canada and the select few depots that offer passenger carriers in Mexico.

Guenzler reports and shares his train trips on TrainWeb.com. He started sharing his travels in 2,000 and went back and reported on each of his charters and continues to share about his experience and photos from recent charters.

The locomotive charter not only interested photographers from out of state but also in Kansas. Camdon Gilliland, resident of Wellington, Kansas, was in attendance at Friday’s charter. Gilliand said he had been around trains all his life with his great grandfather, grandfather and father all being involved in trains some way or another.

This charter being Gilliland’s fourth, he said he enjoyed when they photographed the train with the vintage cars in Enterprise. He said he had never been on a charter where they had cars and people involved.

At 8 p.m. most of the photographers pulled out their tripods for the night photography session. The rain still coming down did not stop Dillon from lighting up the depot to create a vintage scene reflecting as if Santa Fe 3415 was returning at night. Dillon decided to wrap the studio lights in trash bags to keep as much water off them as possible. The 1930s and 1940s cars parked outside the depot really gave the vintage theme for the night scene.

Rolla, Missouri, resident and train historian Jeff Schramn said he attended the photo charter because he had wanted to be able to see Santa Fe 3415 and Abilene. His father also worked for the railroad, so some of his earliest memories were of trains, Schramn said. With the goal of capturing good photos, having fun seeing a new town and the historical engine, the weather did not deter him from meeting that goal.

"Taking pictures of trains is sort of like taking pictures of birds or wildlife, you never quite know what it’s going to do and it’s always moving so you always kind of have to be ready for something", Schramn said.

Despite the rain continuing most of the day and the weather not being the ideal setting for photographing outside, the photographers still showed up and capturing photos for the charter, and ultimately for the the Santa Fe 3415.

"We are really pleased to have the group here today", Boelling said. "Just the donation itself will help us get started. Kind of a seed to get the money started".

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