Meet more of the Trains.com staff. Trains.com Unlimited Members can see the video in the Trains.com Video section.
Ben Lake: Welcome to Kalmbach. Want to learn more about some of the people who work at Trains.com? We thought we’d answer a few questions. First one, what is your favorite railroad? I have to go with Burlington Northern, classic Cascade Green.
Kevin Gilliam: Graham County.
Rene Schweitzer: Green Bay & Western, of course.
Tom Danneman: Montana Rail Link.
Nastassia Putz: What’s my favorite railroad? Western Maryland Scenic. What was your first model train?
KG: My first model train was an HO-scale Bachmann, Central Pacific Jupiter.
TD: My first model train? Atlas Classic RS-3.
Roger Carp: My very first model train was a Lionel O-27 set from 1956, that brought five-year-old me tremendous fun.
Lucas Iverson: For me, it was the Bachmann Gold Rush set.
RS: My first train set was a 1950s Marx set that belonged to my uncles. What’s the best part of my job? For me, it’s working with contributors to develop new content.
NP: Working with great contributors.
KG: Come for the trains, stay for the people.
LI: You get to meet some very awesome people, whether it be through interviews, collaborations, or working with them.
RC: The best part of my job is working with first-time authors and photographers. What’s your favorite pet?
NP: Lily and Waffles, she’s a Pit bull.
KG: We have Gracie right here. This is Gracie’s half half-sister, Lucy. And right here on the sofa, taking a nap, that’s Gracie’s Momma Lilly.
RS: What’s the name of my most current pet? We have three cats: Sadie, Lucy, and Ringo.
BL: My cat, Nimbus.
TD: Rory the cat.
LI: In the future, a Bernese Mountain Dog. Last time I rode a train was when I was making my way back home from Michigan. I was on the Blue Water and then the Hiawatha, and before that, I was firing for Pere Marquette steam locomotive No. 1225. Now, the question is, when was the last time you rode on a train?
KG: Amtrak from North Carolina to Connecticut.
NP: Amtrak’s Capital Limited.
TD: Amtrak’s California Zephyr, November 2021.
KG: What would I like to see in my lifetime? A cure for cancer.
RS: Something I’d like to see in my lifetime? Everyone wearing helmets when I’m out bicycling.
LI: I would really love to see steam return to Milwaukee. And you know what? We’re going to be getting that this year.
RC: Something that I would like to see in my lifetime, I’d like to see every child in the world well-fed, living safely, comfortably, and in peace. And playing with a toy train.
TD: What’s your favorite movie? Mine is A River Runs Through It.
NP: Jurassic Park.
RS: Dirty Dancing.
LI: Favorite movie for me? Empire Strikes Back. Hands down.
BL: Mine’s The Martian. But, what’s your favorite train movie?
TD: Favorite train movie? Silver Streak.
KG: The Train with Burt Lancaster. I promise you, it’s worth a watch.
RC: My favorite train movie is Holiday Affair from 1949, starring Robert Mitchum and Janet Leigh.
LI: Favorite train-related movie, The Polar Express.
RS: My favorite train movie? The Taking of Pelham 123, the original with Walter Matthau. What’s the coolest thing you’ve learned about the hobby? The research. Did you know that deciduous trees live in the North Pole?
NP: Seems like every shop has a pet.
LI: You get a chance to meet some really awesome people.
BL: Coolest thing about the hobby? JMRI
RC: The coolest thing I’ve learned about the hobby, and it’s something that continues to delight me, are the individual stories. Every hobbyist has that story of getting the first train.
KG: It’s the magic of a live steam engine and seeing the look on a kid’s face who’s never seen anything like this before.
TD: Favorite class in high school? Gym. What was your favorite class in high school?
NP: My favorite class in high school? Photography.
KG: Either Drama, which was really an introduction to Acting class, or Science because of the professor.
RS: That’s an easy one. English.
LI: Favorite class in high school? Video production.
BL: Music theory.
RC: U.S. History.
LI: What’s on my home screen of my phone? Gotta love the classics.
NP: What’s on my home screen? EBT Mikado, Millie No. 12.
RS: What’s on my home screen? Why, one of our cats, of course.
BL: Image on my home screen? Marching On Together to promotion.
NP: What job would I love to do for the railroad? Amtrak K-9 police officer.
KG: Something with a steam engine, either engineer or fireman.
RS: What job would I have on the railroad? Probably a yardmaster.
TD: Favorite job on the railroad? Signal maintainer.
RC: I want to drive the locomotive. That is my goal, that is my dream, and that is the top of my bucket list.
BL: I’d like one in the shop, in engineering.
