REVIEWS
THOSE SEXY PIG TRAINS
From the Canadian Railway Modeller Train 9 Track 3 issue comes this review from Jim Martin's TV Trains Review column. Martin qualifies the opinions presented as not being the views of one person but a panel of experienced railfans and/or modellers. A round-robin discussion following the viewing assists the writer in distilling the panel's opinions.
Now here's a title that will have the unwashed scratching their heads! Nevertheless, if words like "intermodal", "well cars", "spine cars", and "double stacks" make your blood race, then this 'pig' will have you squealing with delight! The video covers intermodal action on five different systems: CN, CP (St L&H), Conrail, Santa Fe and BNSF. Producer Jim Mumford has sought out scenic locations where he can catch the full drama of two-mile-long trains snaking their way around curves and under bridges.
The tape is extremely railfan-user-friendly. The narrator sets up the action to follow, with detailed train descriptions, then allows the trains to do their thing without any further talk-over; any additional information arrives by way of graphics. After three or four trains the cycle repeats itself. This tape is also noteworthy for showing and telling railfans how to find train watching hotspots. Mumford's camera work is top notch and he also handles editing, script and narration.
Complaints are minor. One panel member would like to see how these trains are assembled in intermodal yards. Narration by the producer sounded a bit flat at first, but we soon became accustomed to it.
If your diet allows pork on only an occasional basis, then this two-hour tape will be more than you can digest at one sitting. But there's nothing that says you can't munch on one entree (railway) at a time. We liked the video a lot more than we anticipated. As we are reluctantly dragged into the next millennium, our panel was forced to admit that there's variety and drama in watching trailers and shipping containers move by rail.
Those Sexy Pig Trains is good value to container train enthusiasts and also engaging enough to hold the attention of the rest of us. The price reflects the work that went into this production, and we consider it fair for the amount of return the producer can expect.
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