A speeder ride through time

On Saturday the 18th, I set out from my Main Street apartment in Colfax at 7 a.m. to the train depot for a speeder I would be riding to Hooper.

I grew up in Lamont. As a kid, I would play around the old abandoned railroad tracks outside town. So, I've always held a fascination with the railroad.

I reminisced as I walked, thinking about what it was like in college to ride the train to Chicago from the small railroad town my college was located in. I often miss the whistle of the train.

As I approached the Colfax Depot, I saw the Pacific Rail Car Operators leader Roger Farrell, who directed me to his wife, Barbara, to sign some papers with my fellow passengers Lei and John Ochs. Despite the slight chill and hint of rain, everyone was excited to set out - but not before a short safety meeting.

We would be riding in the A-Car, which Barbara said was "the Cadillac." It was big, and could sit four people plus the driver.

Owner and driver of the car Jim - I didn't catch his last name - would explain that it was a Canadian car 50-60 years old.

As we started up the grade I looked out the window, as Lei and John exclaimed how different the world around us looked from inside the small car on the tracks compared to the highway.

I agreed as Lei stated, "It's like looking at it from a different perspective."

The day was long, as the hills rolled by. There was a "honeybucket" porta potty that was carried along as we slowly made our way between stops. The clicking of the car on the tracks as it chugged along gave a steady beat that could lull you to sleep if you let it.

At one point, I found myself singing, "Train of Life," by Merle Haggard, in my head. "Train, oh let me ride. Don't leave me, train of life."

Jim would explain that back in the day before speedometers, drivers would count the number of clicks to determine just how fast they were going. The fastest we went had to be 26 mph.

I found myself thinking about how ironic it was they are called "speeders" because we often zoom so fast through life. Yet, in the car, I felt like I could see more.

Time passed by slower.

The car drivers communicated through a radio system, telling one another where the front and rear of the group was, and letting each other know if there were any problems. I was in charge of putting out the red flag at any crossings, or when we slowed down to let the others know what was happening.

There was a strong sense of community; they worked, and leisurely travelled together. It's something I believe modern society needs more of.

The day was full of rolling hills, and scenery that I realized I really never saw the same from the highway. I snapped pictures, and thought about how there was just something different about riding the rails.

We stopped in Hooper, ate lunch and looked at the historic McGregor store, preserved to show everything that had come before us, how the town had once been a thriving business, which trains would come and pick up goods from.

I thought about how much I take for granted.

Back in the time when trains were thriving, it took more to travel. If I had family in Spokane, I wanted to visit, it definitely wouldn't have happened in the hour it takes me to get there now with a car.

The day was a lot longer than I expected. A car had problems at the beginning with what I heard might've been a fuel issue, and ended up causing an extra stop.

Then a second car ended up having to be towed by the A-Car I was riding in. Jim said was not an occurrence that happens often, and that the day before the ride to Thornton had been smooth.

I didn't find myself being disappointed. If anything, it made the trip seem more real.

If it had been smooth would I have gotten the same experience? Life is full of complications. I can only imagine what life must've been like for the people who relied on the railroad for transportation.

The day started out rainy and ended with a blazing sun as we rolled back into Colfax. I thanked them for letting me ride along.

As I walked home, I thought about how amazing it is so many others lived here in a time that didn't boast the same technologies we have today.

The ride only fueled my desire to learn more about the railroad, and it's role in the area I was born in. It's definitely something I would love to do again in the future.

- Teresa Simpson is a reporter at the Whitman County Gazette. Email her at [email protected].