I thought I was watching something produced by Walt Disney or National
Geographic.
The quality is
superb.
"I
liked it so well, I then decided to watch the
children's version. I loved it just as much and it made
everyone
watching this video easy to understand the operation of a tank steam
locomotive.
"Yessiree,
I reckon Golden Rail Videos has got a real winner and deserves an
award."
Farol
Henke
Michigan
"I just wanted
to let you know
that both grandsons enjoy Rock
Trains.They
especially like it when those big rocks come out
of the side of the car.
"Kadin (age 6) was
very concerned about the cows on the tracks and glad to hear the
whistle
telling them to move :)
"Aidan
absolutely loves his Real
Tank Engines.
Usually the train videos stay at my house, but he packs that one around
with
him.
It's fast moving and the engines are numbered....he has
a thing with
numbers :)
Thanks again."
Rhonda
Kinser Hotchkiss, Colorado
"I received the new DVD (REAL TANK ENGINES) and watched it last night.
It is terrific!!
I think you have winner there. The scenes of typical operations - car spotting, coupling, etc. are really a nice touch."
John L
Maryland
A Grandmother from New Zealand:
"I had my 21-month Grandson over today (who is potty about steam trains)
and he would not move from the TV all morning. It was played through every
option and back again.
Loved it.
A little young perhaps for the
story and information. My older Grandson has yet to see it. He is 9.
Thanks for
a great product."
Cheers,
Robyn Gabriel
Auckland, New Zealand
"They arrived today. Brilliant DVD's.... .......will be
buying more from you guys. Thanks."
"Thanks
for producing superior
videos. It is most appreciated."
Ed
Oregon
"Thanks
for great and outstanding videos!"
George Virginia
"Thanks very much for a brilliant
video." (STEAM-POWER SAWMILL)
--Stephan
Denmark
Like
so many of our fans, Stephan loves to build models of railroad
operations. Although from Europe he chose to model operations as seen
in Western Oregon. You can see pictures of his creativity at his
personal
website: http://www.stephan-besier.de
We
have friends all over the world. We truly appreciate
hearing from you. Thanks
to all for sharing your feedback and your
kind words of encouragement.
(More testimonials on the pages describing the details of each show.)
To see our new DVD exploring the world of REAL TANK ENGINESclick here.
(And you can read some recent customer feedback about this new show in the left column below.)
What I appreciate about the hobby of "trains" is that there are so many ways to enjoy it. And it doesn't require a lot of money.
I've met
people who love collecting historic railroad china and artwork. Others
who love the distinctive architecture from little wayside depots and
freight houses up to huge roundhouses and classic big city stations.
Some collect locks, keys, and date nails out of old ties. And
most love taking pictures.
The
main ingredient to being a "rail fan" is enthusiasm! That's because you
can enjoy your rail fan hobby with maybe just...
a book or magazine
a still or video
camera
a little sun over
your shoulder (for better pictures), and
some tracks where
the trains are running.
Of
course, beyond these basics ...the sky's the limit ...from building
miniature models ...to teaming up to restore a steam locomotive. But it sure isn't necessary to have fun and get
away from some of life's stresses...even if just for an
hour or two.
------------------------------------------
Action
movies where the train is the star.
To
paraphrase Will Rogers:
"I never met a train I didn't like."
But
my favorite has always been steam
engines. That's why most of Golden Rail Video's
dvd are all about steam
trains. These DVD's are not just YouTube-style, random
shots of steam locomotives. Lord knows, there's an endless supply of
those to watch.
Golden
Rail's DVD's are real, in-depth, high-action documentaries.
We call them the American
Railroad Heritage Series™.
Our
fans
are always telling us that they learn something new every
time
they re-watch one of our shows. And that's what makes us happy. With every new show we want to
give you the highest value for your hard-earned dollar.
And these days,
most of us should only spend money on the very best. Anything less is
just not worthy of our money.
------------------------------------------
This one is JUST for the kids!
(well, sort of.)
This DVD features 2
Audio Tracks.
Audio Track 1 is for the kids. The narrator is "Dinky"
...a spunky little tank engine from 1884! He still lives on, but he is stuck on a track with no place to go.
If you have any little
engineers
dropping by the house, this is a video they are going to absolutely
love!
And, it is a show you can watch together and you'll BOTH enjoy it!
For grown ups, you can switch to the documentary
version.
This one presents
more technical details and more background information about our diminutive iron horse. Both versions share the same
full-color action sequences, including a tank engine triple-header!
------------------------------------------
Here's
what we did for our brand-new show.
We
chose the most common and
yet most over-looked type of steam engine in the world and did the
unexpected.
We
made it into one of our best shows
yet!
It's
all about...the tank
engine. Those diminutive little engines that were part of
every railroad, no matter how big or how small.
This
is a video that is so much fun to watch, you may well be
showing it to everyone you know (especially the non-railfan)!
And I promise you, you'll never
look a tank engine the same way again. (That's what happened to me!)
------------------------------------------
Golden
Rail's
long anticipated NEW DVD gives you surprise added-value.
The True-Life Adventures of
Real
Tank Engines uses 12 different
steam locomotives to tell its story. It gives
you rare action scenes and the rich historic details you've come to
expect from Golden Rail.
But,
this time it gives you something more. 2 versions of the same show on one DVD.
Below are a few preview scenes
from The True-Life Adventures of
Real
Tank Engines:
This
new steam train production turned out to be the most challenging show
we have ever undertaken. (I had no idea it would when the
idea first appeared in my head!)
If
you watched the previews above, you know that it is called The
True-Life
Adventures of Real Tank Engines.
Kids
and Trains
Right
from the start, parents have written in to us saying their kids (or
grandkids) love our videos.
This
was interesting because
we have always produced our shows with adults in mind...adults who are
serious about trains. That's why we put so much effort to tell a real
railroad story with lots of
action ...mixed with lots of history ...plus a few fascinating
techno-facts to boot.
But,
we never actually produced a show with kids in mind.
Lovin'
The Kids
When
my kids were little they loved Thomas
the Tank Engine. We sure watched a lot of
Thomas videos
together... and we all read the books, too.
Even
though we loved the garden railway, G-scale type models they used in
the videos, Thomas
and
Friends
were storybook characters. They only implied what real tank engines
looked like ...or what they did ...or how they did it. The story still
needed to be told of life as real tank engine.
Tracking
Down our Tank Engines
I have been gathering footage of tank engines for years. But, when I
heard last year that the Niles Canyon Railway (located in Sunol,
CA...just south of San Francisco) would be hosting a steam
triple-header-weekend with all tank engines, I knew this was
the final piece of the puzzle I had been waiting for.
I
also knew that the footage was going to be just way too cool to be only
for children.
So,
here was the solution:
The first ever steam train
video with two separate soundtracks...
one for kids
one for grownups.
Soundtrack
#1 is for all the little engineers you may know. They'll see real tank
engines in action.
They'll
discover the connection
between
storybook trains and real trains by having a real tank
engine tell them about things from "his point of view."
(Now,
this truly is the "Little Engine That Could").
A
Big Cast of Characters
Kids
get to see lots of different trains, too. It took
over a dozen different
steam engines to help make the story of Real Tank Enginescome
alive.
Whether
your kids like "Thomas the Train", or "The Little Engine That Could,"
this new video should quickly become a new favorite they'll want to
enjoy
again and again.
And
it's a real documentary
The second soundtrack
is for all the grownups out there who like trains,
especially steam trains. It is the same footage as the kids
version, but with different narration, the video is
transformed into (quite possibly)
the
world's first tank engine documentary.
And
there's a good reason that this is a "world's first" DVD. Nobody seems
to
think much about the old TANK ENGINES.
But,
tank engines once were
everywhere. As common a site as trucks are today.
REAL TANK ENGINES is about a lot more than just tank
engines. It's
a picture window into a real part of our steam railroading heritage.
One viewing and you'll never over-look a tank engine again.
Steam
Engines
A lot of people who like trains actually don't know as much
about steam
engines as they might like. Watching this show they'll learn a
bit about the inner workings and how steam engines were
an amazing innovation in their day. In fact, they still are.
The video
features some footage we shot even
before
there was an official Golden Rail Video company... footage of
some action so rare, I don't think it will ever happen again.
So,
there's a lot to enjoy in our new DVD. To order a copy of REAL TANK
ENGINES for your favorite engineer, click here.
On-line
Video Previews
Have you seen any of our other video previews? They are
available
at the bottom of the page.
However, if you want to get a direct sample of how different our shows
are, below is a
video clip showing
the entire "prologue" to THE
ROCK TRAINS(Two
Steam
Locomotives in
the Challenge of a Life Time.)
I must warn you. They had me do a little 30-second, Walt
Disney-type introduction...and I must confess, I'm not very good at
this. (But, it's good for a laugh...and then once past that,
you can enjoy
the whole opening chapter of THE ROCK TRAINS and see if it captures
your interest.)
Rob Simpson
______________________________
We are always thinking...
What if
"Walt Disney" ...
or "Steven Spielberg" ...
or "George Lucas" were making
railroad videos
...just for the fun of it?
It
may sound funny, but WE think about that all the time...
Wouldn't every one be way more than an average movie...?
Would watching it be almost
like an adventure?
Would the images be stunning?
Would the sound be incredible in 5.1
Surround?
The story would
spring
right
out of the action so that you wanted to watch it over and over
again ...and share it with your friends.
Well,
even though we don't have the budget of a big studio, we
are guided
by the very
same principles.
Story...action...and
sound that
adds up a rip-roaring video adventure!
And here's
one thing the big studios never seem to do...
We
guarantee
your satisfaction with every film. Does
a major studio promise
this when we buy a
ticket to a show? Not that I can ever recall.
So, by
ordering
directly from us you have the assurance that if you think
it's
a "turkey," you can send it back and get a full refund on the price of
the
DVD.
You
may think we are a bit crazy to make a guarantee like this.
But, we
are so confident you
are going to love whatever you order that we do this for
all our
on-line customers. And we trust you that you
would never betray a trust by making
copies and stealing what we do for you.
We
have always found our customers to possess a very high level of
integrity. We've even had customers call us when we
accidentally didn't process their credit card!!!
So,
I hope by now you can see that Golden Rail Video shows are not some
sort of cheap "best of a web-cam"
type of gallery of video clips. Or as someone once put it,
videos of " bunch of trains running around."
Far
from it.
Each
title is a complete documentary film. Each title
captivates all ages because
each show tells
a story.
Each DVD is like a feature film. One is like a sequel to the
other ...(or is it a "prequel" and a sequel?).
Both shows were shot along the old Santa
Fe Railway line that is now known
as The
Grand Canyon Railway.
Of course, now that The Grand Canyon Railway has suspended all steam
operations until further notice, all the scenes in these shows has
become quite rare.
.
Volume 1 is called Thunder From
the Wild West. This show tells the often ignored story of
the early days of the
Grand
Canyon National Park and the empire-building railroad that made it all
happen, the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway.
Volume 2, Thunder in
the Canyons takes us behind-the-scenes to experience a day
in the life on a major steam railroad. 128 miles every day!
We almost subtitled this one 24-hours On a Steam Railroad. And now, with the suspension of their steam operations, this DVD is the only way to get a real feel for what working on the railroad must have been like 100 years ago.
We'll be getting more on-line for you soon. We'd love to have
you
sign our email list and we'll keep you posted about our train
activities. (See above left.)
*Playback
from here requires
the Windows Media Player or equivalent. To download the free Windows
Media Player, click here.
Greetings!
Here's a picture of me
"at
the
office."
People
ask, "How do you make such great steam train videos?" What a
fun question to answer. Yep.
That's me in the picture with a big old video camera strapped under my
arm on top
of a steam locomotive in Oregon
(Sumpter
Valley Ry #19) as it
barrels down the track.
Just "another day at the office?"
Well actually, not every day is as exciting as this.
But, that sure was a great day!
And I get to relive those days when I
work those long hours of post-production to get them ready for you.
I must not be the only one who loves steam trains. I get letters
all the time saying...."Yours are the only railroad videos my family
will watch with me."
They say, "You never fully recover from your first train set."
I believe it.
I not
only like to tell a story of steam railroading, but really convey what
it was like to be there.
It
always amazes me.
There on location is where the story to be told emerges from the
steam and smoke. By the time I am through shooting footage, it seems as
though a script for the production has been written in the clouds of
steam..
Such is
the exhilarating energy that surrounds the iron horse.
That's
why I love going to great lengths to get shots like these...so
the story can be told with pictures as well as words.
People of all ages can share together in the Golden Rail
Video experience.
You could say, "We're bringing the generations together with all the
bells and whistles"...but that'd be kind of silly, wouldn't it?
Rob
Simpson
Producer,
CEO
"Content and story are
unbeatable.
I have all
(your videos) and none has been a disappointment.
Even my wife watches
with me.
Keep making great videos!"
--Greg,
Michigan
We pride ourselves on making the kind of
shows you
want to watch and share again and again. We even have a quality pledge
guarantee we make to you.
I am always interested in customer feedback. Feel free to send us an
email if you have any suggestions ...for a future program ...or things
you'd like to see covered.
We really like producing programs about historic railroads with a lot
of character. We work exclusively with the railroad when doing a
production to present the story and the railroad in the best possible
light. If you are part of an interesting operation, please
drop me line.
What railroad ended up creating a
national treasure we
all enjoy today?
It was the Santa Fe. In 1881 the Santa Fe
Pacific was pushing West. Even then they wanted to open up the "wild west" for sightseers.
This documentary tells the often ignored
history of the Grand
Canyon National Park and
how the Santa Fe Railway was a company with a vision that made
it all happen.
The
fascinating saga of the Grand Canyon Railway.
91 min. DVD in 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound
($24.95)
Watch
a new Video Preview.
Click on the box.
Check
out more details about the
history of the Grand
Canyon Railway by clicking
here.
Do you prefer MAIL or FAX?
To print an order
form click here.
Thunder
in the Canyons
24-hours on a
steam railroad.
The
journey to the Canyon.
A
day-in-the-life adventure you'll never forget.
Using the historic Grand Canyon Railway
operation
as a
backdrop you'll follow the steam crews as they take a steam
locomotive on a daily 128 mile journey.
104 min. DVD in 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound
($24.95)
Watch
a new Video Preview.
Click on the box.
Read
more
about this day-in-the-life
on a steam
railroad featuring the Grand Canyon Railway
by clicking here.
Do you prefer MAIL or FAX?
To print an order
form click here.
Shay:
Power Tour
Meet the Shay,
the most popular steam locomotive on North
America's rugged logging railroads.
Highly entertaining and informative. Discover the geared-locomotive
design that “won the woods.” Includes the famous
Shay Races
from Railfair Sacramento...at death-defying speeds of over 18 mph
!!! (You had to be there to understand...or the next-best
thing...Join us a SHAY: POWER TOUR.)
32 min. DVD in 5.1 Dolby
Surround Sound ($19.95)
Read
more
about the Shay
geared-locomotive by
clicking here.
Do you prefer MAIL or FAX?
To print an order
form click here.
The
Age of Steam Logging
A vintage forestry-museum
orientation film from 1965 restored.
Acquaints
viewers with the life of the early 20th century logger. Features
historic steam logging films and photographs.
Includes
a new prologue about the original production. Budget priced.
28 min. DVD in original mono sound.
($12.95)
To
add a DVD about The Age
of Steam Logging
to your SHOPPING CARTClick
here to order.
Do you prefer MAIL or FAX?
To print an order
form click here.
Return
of Stampede Pass
Our only "diesel film" was a
collaboration with our friends at Machines of Iron
A forgotten yet fascinating look at the re-opening of this famous
stretch of Northern
Pacific track at the time of the merger with the Burlington Northern and the Santa
Fe.
That means lots of mixed colors and equipment you just don't get to see
any more. The beautiful vistas of Eastern and Western
Washington
State accent the action in this new chapter of the original Northern
Pacific mainline's story.
Includes a visit to Cargill grain operations to see unloading of grain
cars.
Glad
you stopped
by...
By
clicking the link you
can learn more about these 
Shay:
Power Tour
Return
of Stampede Pass
