Chesapeake & Ohio 2765: New River Masquerade (DVD)

Ex-Nickel Plate Berkshire-type locomotive 765, repainted, renumbered, and modified to resemble its former cousins, the 2-8-4s named Kanawhas by the C&O, headed up three Fall Foliage excursions through the spectacular New River Gorge in 1993 and Pentrex followed the masquerading 2765 on its trips from Huntington, West Virginia, to Hinton and back, through one of the most popular train watching spots on the continent.

Here is the thrill of steam locomotive action, with grey smoke billowing and plumes of white steam rising into the air, tracks twisting along a rocky river gorge, and scenic West Virginia mountains bathed in glorious fall colors. Engineer Rich Melvin invites us into the cab for the ride from Montgomery to Thurmond, and explains what he s doing and how the engine is performing. He has plenty to say as the locomotive pulls upgrade on wet rails, slipping its drivers again and again as it makes its way through the gorge towards Hawks Nest. Experience the echoing sounds of the steam whistle, the rumble and roar of the locomotive as it flashes past our camera, and the excitement of steam power thundering up and down the mainline again in C&O 2765, New River Masquerade!

DVD Special Feature: Chapter Menus provide instant access to program segments. Presented in Standard 4x3 Format. No region code; can be played in NTSC DVD players worldwide. Packaged in Sturdy Vinyl Clamshell Case.

Pentrex, 1 hour 30 minutes, in Color with Hi-Fi Sound and Narration. px2765
Price: 19.95 USD

Pentrex Previews are a favorite way to sample the full range of railroading adventures you can expect to find in a Pentrex DVD. Whether you're looking for steam, vintage diesels, favorite fallen flags, famous locations, or today's mainline operations, there's something for everyone in this over two hour presentation featuring excerpts from the following 46 different Pentrex DVDs:

* The Alaska Railroad
* Amtrak the Surfline Combo
* Amtrak's Northeast Corridor Combo
* BC Rail Collection
* Beaumont Hill Combo
* The Best of 1989
* The Best of the Midwest Volume 1
* The Best of the Midwest Volume 2
* The Best of the Midwest Volume 3
* Cajon 2 Combo
* Christmas Trains
* Columbia River Gorge Volume 1: BNSF's Fallbridge Subdivision
* Conrail Hot Spots East
* Conrail Hot Spots West
* Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Freight Train
* Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
* Emperor of the North (movie)
* Empire Builders to Milwaukee
* Extreme Steam 2
* Grand Canyon Railway
* Great American Circus & Show Trains
* Great Northern Railway Combo
* The Green Bay Route
* Horse Shoe Curve and Sand Patch Grade Combo
* Into the Allegheny Range Volume 1
* Mexico's Pacifico Railroad
* Montana Rail Link
* Pacific Electric and Los Angeles Streetcars Combo
* Raton Pass
* Runnin' the Highline
* Santa Fe 3751: Route of the Chiefs
* Santa Fe Combo: Across the Heartland and Countdown to Merger
* Santa Fe's Arizona Mainline
* Santa Fe's New Mexico Mainline Combo
* Southern Pacific Classic Collectors' Series Combo
* Steam Across America Combo
* Steam Over Tennessee Pass
* Sunrise/Sunset: A Day at Gibbon Junction
* The Train (movie)
* Today's Chicago Railroading
* Today's Northwestern Pacific
* Train Meets 2: Double the Action!
* Train Wrecks, Crashes & Disasters
* The Ultimate Tehachapi
* Union Pacific Classic Collectors' Series Combo
* Union Pacific's Feather River Route
* Union Pacific's Mighty Turbines

DVD Special Feature: Chapter Menus provide instant access to each preview. Full-screen (4x3) Format. No region code; can be played in any NTSC DVD player worldwide. Packaged in Sturdy Vinyl Clamshell Case.

Pentrex, 2 hours 15 minutes, in Color and Black & White with Appropriate Hi-Fi and Stereo Sound and Narration. pxpdp2
Price: 9.95 USD

Southern California Rail Journal 2010 (DVD)

Southern California Rail Journal 2010 is the third Pentrex's Rail Journal series and it delivers more trains, more variety, longer running time, and more railroading adventure than ever! All new footage, not used in any other Pentrex show, is presented to you in the same chronological order as it was recorded so you can experience the year s activities just as if you were side-by-side with our rail journalist as he sought out the best locations and movements in this densely trafficked region.

Along your journey, you ll pay a visit to the Surfline to catch Amtrak and Coaster commuter trains as they battle Miramar Hill and other sites on the route. You ll be there in May to see former Santa Fe 3751 making her third trip from Los Angeles to San Diego and return on the following day, including the much talked about photo run-by at the Poinsettia Station. You ll also see the 3751 one week later when she pulls a short train over Metrolink s San Bernardino line to the Railroad Days Festival being held at the San Bernardino Station. Colton Crossing and the Cajon Subdivision present their own brand of heavy traffic. You can enjoy trains streaming past two of the area s last remaining wigwags, including the soon-to-be-abandoned portion of Union Pacific s Riverside Branch. Even more variety was found on Beaumont Hill, Cajon Pass, and busy Pepper Avenue in West Colton. For a fast-paced tour of great freight and passenger action throughout the year, turn to Southern California Rail Journal 2010. You won t be disappointed!

DVD Special Features: Chapter Menus provide instant access to program segments. Special Audio Feature provides the option of watching the program with or without narration. Presented in Widescreen 16x9 Format. No region code; can be played in NTSC DVD players worldwide. Packaged in Sturdy Vinyl Clamshell Case.

Pentrex, 2 hours 33 minutes, in Color with Hi-Fi Sound and Narration. pxscrj10
Price: 19.95 USD

Tough Times on the Southern Pacific DVD.

This priceless collection of archival footage documents the trauma that Mother Nature and Murphy s Law inflicted upon Southern Pacific and how the railroad coped with these setbacks. Southern Pacific s own film crews created most of this material to display its efficiency and resourcefulness in times of stress. Now you can experience these challenges, from an earthquake on the San Joaquin Division in 1952 to the Roseville Yard bomb explosions of 1973. Flood, fire, derailments, and worse here s what you ll see in Tough Times on the Southern Pacific:

Eel River Canyon. The Christmas Flood of 1964 was a deluge that wiped out entire towns along the South Fork of the Eel River and either swept away nearly 100 miles of rails or left them dangling along the cliffs like giant garlands. It took 177 days to repair what nature did in hours.

Recovery of the 8946. In 1971, a derailed train crashed down the mountainside on Donner Pass. You ll see how 3 bulldozers and a pair of locomotives hauled the damaged engine uphill and back onto the rails.

Trestle Fire on the Great Salt Lake. In 1956, a fire burned 645 feet of trestle, putting the Lucin Cutoff out of service. SP and Morrison-Knudsen cooperated in rebuilding the trestle, and SP crews laid 650 feet of new track in just one week.

Earthquake on the San Joaquin Division. In 1952, the second most severe earthquake in California s recorded history damaged tunnels and destroyed tracks. Yet 25 days later, the tunnels were daylighted or by-passed and the tracks were restored.

Flooding along the Rio Grande. In 1954, one of the worst floods in Texas history stripped away tracks and soil, trapping the Sunset Limited. But within two days, 559 men and 88 pieces of equipment were at work putting back what nature had washed away.

Explosion in Roseville Yard. In 1973, a train carrying over 7,200 bombs caught fire and soon the bombs began to explode. Shrapnel flew for miles around. The town of Antelope was destroyed. Unexploded bombs were found up to a mile away. Remarkably, no one was killed and six days later SP s yard was rebuilt enough to resume service. You ll see the explosions and the remarkable aftermath.

DVD Special Feature: Chapter Menu provides instant access to program segments. Presented in Standard Definition 4x3 Format. No region code; can be played in NTSC DVD players worldwide. Packaged in Sturdy Vinyl Clamshell Case.

Pentrex, 54 minutes, in Color with Hi-Fi Sound and Narration. pxttsp
Price: 19.95 USD