What is that on your head???

Utah Senator Orin Hatch and (now former) Utah Senator Bob Bennett at the grand opening ceremonies of the Utah Transit Authority's Front Runner Service at the then new intermodal station on April 26, 2008.

Front Runner Train in Salt Lake City

Front Runner Train, a photo by Dornoff Photography on Flickr.

A UTA Front Runner train sits between runs at the Salt Lake City Central Station before heading north to Ogden.

Despite the gloomy weather, the picture came out well.

Utah Transit Authority NB Front Runner Train

Utah Transit Authority NB Front Runner Train
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

Ok, it has been some time since I actually posted some pictures to this blog so I will try to make up for it.

Today, we have a picture of a northbound Utah Transit Authority Front Runner train that has just left Central Station in Salt Lake and is heading toward Ogden.

The train is powered by MPI MP36 locomotive pulling a Ex-New Jersey Transit Comet I car and two Bombardier Tri-Level cars which can be found on various commuter trains from Florida to Seattle.

Would you eat at this restaurant?

Chinese Buffet in Ogden
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

In my last entry I showed I picture I took in Ogden just before getting back on the commuter train in order to return to Salt Lake City.

This picture was actually taken a little earlier in the day. After arriving in Ogden I caught a couple of buses in order to get up to the Ogden sign which crosses Washington Blvd where the street crosses the Ogden river.

After taking pictures of the Ogden River area I started heading south on Washington Blvd taking pictures. It was about an hour before I was going to eat lunch but was looking for someplace that look appetizing. Some of my favorite foods are Chinese and I like buffets because I can get the items I want.

Well, during the walk I encountered this buffet place which sits across from the LDS temple. Well it was Chinese and it was a buffet but....

If you take a close look at the picture part of the canopy is falling down and the building is in bad need of a repaint. Finally all the vegetation around the building is dead or dying.

Needless to say I kept walking...

Mighty Engine of the Past...

UP Gas Turbine on Display in Ogden
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

This photo is of a Union Pacific Gas Turbine engine that UP used sometime in the late 50's through the 60's. UP was looking for massive horsepower in order to pull its trains along its main line especially through Wyoming.

These engines only had one minor little problem. Or one big problem if you lived near the tracks as they were extremely noisy. So noisy in fact that many municipalities banned the use of the locomotives in their area (of course didn't that interfere with interstate commerce so became a federal issue?).

I took my first revenue ride on Front Runner one day then rode some buses in order to get pictures of the area. Finally I came back to Union Station before heading back to the transit center in order to ride Front Runner back to Salt Lake City.

It was a very hot and unusually humid day with temperatures reaching 95 degrees and the humidity level following close behind. While I may have lived in Charlotte for a couple of years that as several years ago and I was not used to the heat and humidity anymore. I was glad to get back on that nice cool Front Runner train.

Sometimes Pictures Surprise You

Utah Transit Authority Frontrunner Test Train
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

When I first posted this photo on Flickr, I didn't expect it to be one of the better performers. Yet in a short time it become my number one picture in the photo stream and only a couple of days ago got passed up by a picture of the inaugural Front Runner train taken at Layton.

Because the lighting was not good due to the cloud cover, I just didn't think many people would take a look at this picture but sometimes they can surprise you.

This picture was taken just north of Downtown Salt Lake City at 300 North.

Utah Senator's Orin Hatch and Bob Bennett

Utah Senator's Orin Hatch and Bob Bennett at Front Runner Ceremonies
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

Took this picture of Utah's two Senators during the grand opening ceremonies of the Utah Transit Authority's Front Runner service.

I took this from the photographers stand provided by the UTA. The platform was located on the north side of the crowd but should have been on the south side to provide better lighting.

You can see the nose of one of the UTA's new Front Runner locomotives sitting in the background.