Hi, intro and requests....

[Ex CalicoMiner]

Hi there everyone, I've been lurking this forum for the past week on several occasions thanks to Google...I've been searching for several things related to the Calico Mine Ride, Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland, and the Locomotive that is used @ Castle Park in Riverside. I've also noticed that a few old threads that Google directed me to brought up conversations of people who have been/(still may be?) working on layouts from Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland/Disneyland Railroad, so I may be in good company here since I've been toying with doing some On30 layouts of Mine Ride and Ghost Town Calico Railroad, and Nature's Wonderland has started to interest me as well.

I'm an ex Miner from Calico Mine Ride, worked 06-07 and loved it @ Mine Ride, left for other reasons. Anyways, I've been in contact with a couple of my shift leaders/coworkers I worked with and have been talking about trying to find some more pictures of Mine Ride. I have a very large archive already, but recently I heard Train 6 has been repainted from yellow to red, and I've yet to see any photos surface. Also, though I've met Bud myself, I never got to ask him about his park he had in Riverside. I heard Castle Park houses a locomotive that is either 1) similar to the Calico Mine Ride locos (steel cabbed side tank porter, Train 4 5 & 6 style), but painted black. Or 2) a locomotive that has some importance to me as it was used in Jungle Island @ Knott's. If anyone here has any information or photos they're willing to share I'd be very greatful.

Also, Mine Train Through Nature's Wonderland is starting to interest me. I have seen *some* pictures, but not a whole lot. My old shift lead for Mine Ride had also worked Mine Train @ DLR, and I was very interested in seeing pictures and differences between Mine Ride and Mine Train. I'm sort of playing with the idea of doing a layout of that, just to have it since it seems very interesting and exciting, knowing that there was another Mine Ride out there, even though I never got to experience it.

I am really sorry if this is in the wrong place, or is a lot of stuff to put into one thread, but since Google has been redirecting me here more than anywhere in my searches, I figure that some folks here may be able to help me out. And if it is in the wrong thread, feel free to move it, I figured that this has more to do with other themeparks than being "off topic" but I could be way off base here.

Thanks to anyone who can help!

[glowman]

Hi Ex CalicoMiner -

How great to hear from someone who is interested in Knott's Calico Mine Ride. I wish you or someone could start a movement to encourage Cedar Faire to consider a big celebration next year to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of this great ride. Walt Disney watched it closely and I understand Walter Knott could be seen walking the steel beams as it was being built---much to the horror and concern of Bud Hurlbut, the designer, bullder, and operator of this ride. I do hope that Knott's will some time before the 50th Anniversary spend some time and money to refurbish this ride that seems to suffer from lack of attention. Anyway, Bud Hurlbut did build the train at Castle Park in his Buena Park shop, although it does not run on batteries as do the trains at Knott's. The small train at CP is the one that ran around the Lagoon when that are was still there. That might be the train that you thought was at the Island across the street. Last time I saw it in Riverside, it had the same paint job that it had at the Lagoon. I admire your interest in Bud's rides as well as the Disneyland Mine Train. Bud is still building trains and MGRs.
His small trains can be seen at the Santa Ana Zoo and are converted to battery operation. Bud also built the train at Calico Ghost Town many years ago. Tony Baxter, Disney Imagineering, has been an admirer of Bud Hurlbut for many years and was responsible for the Knott's Calico Mine Ride winning top honors a few years ago. It is interesting that you mention the DL Mine Ride as there is a Disneyland Club - the oldest Club, I think, called The Order of the Red Handkerchief - Mine Trains International. The group was originally founded by original operators of the attraction. In later years, because of decreasing members, they expanded to accept members who worked in Adventureland and Frontierland. Today members include Tony Baxter, Dick Nunis, and Ron Dominquez. Your post is so timely as we just had our annual banquet this past Saturday, November 7th at the Holiday Inn near Disneyland. Tony was there along with about 50 others. I am sure you will be interested in a large coffee table book that will be coming out around March 2010 by Chris Merritt. Chris has an incredible collection of photos and he is a great admirer of Bud Hurlbut. The authors of The "E" Ticket magazine wrote a nice article on Bud and his Mine and Log rides at Knott's. Although they have stopped publishing the magazine, you might still be able to get copies of Issue Number 35. I am not sure if their website is still active, but you might try contacting Jack Janzen, The "E" Ticket,
P.O. Box 1299, Fallbrook, CA 92088. Man, you really got me started. Thanks for your interest in Bud Hurlbut and his incredible life.

[Ex CalicoMiner]

^ Hey thanks! I have talked to some friends about a refurb for Mine Ride for the 50th, but I've yet to hear anything back (doesn't work as well if you don't work at the park anymore). There was talk back in '06 to possibly get the bubbling mud back in pot room, but it never occurred due to my shift leader (who was spearheading it) leaving. When I left in 07, Mine Ride wasn't in the best of shapes.

Speaking of Bud, I got to meet him once when I worked @ Mine Ride thanks to my shift leaders. I also knew Jim Mayfield as I worked with him a few times @ Mine Ride. I've heard talks of Bud's "Train 8" as we called it: A mine train with modernized operations...hydraulic brakes, digital speedometer, very nice if what I heard was true. Heard it was painted Train 6 yellow, but it was a saddle tank style, not side tank. If that thing is real, then that's awesome. I've considered making my own loco someday, just to drive around my backyard (think bigger than G Scale outdoor). There used to be a group of Knott's Miners that had a group but I fell out of the Knott's crowd long ago and mainly just stay in the railroad group, with a niche interest in Bud's Trains and D&RG Equipment, though Disney's mine trains and current roster of steam locos prove interesting as well. Maybe there's more folks here on Mice Chat who have the same interest.

[Ranger Rick]

Here is a tread with some train 6 pictures from the day it can out.

THE J.W.Buchanan

Let me know if there is any thing else I can do.

[Ex CalicoMiner]

Hm, that's an interesting paintscheme for The Beast. I like it because it invokes some of the "vintage" Mine Train styles, but still is modern...they're really outdoing themselves when it comes to the "Calico Mining Co." on the sides. Red roof is off the wall, but looks cool. I do miss the detailing on the sand and steam domes, it looks so plain without anything there. I wish they'd give Train 4 a workover, she's starting to get pretty nasty looking...lots of primer on the cab sides...

The possibility behind the "J.W. Buchanan" name may be patriotic and nothing more. When Perilous Plunge got its two new boats, one was named "Freedom" and the other was named "Liberty" though Liberty was changed to "Betsy" to honor one of the shift leaders who worked Perilous, Windjammer, and Xcelerator. Not sure if those names stuck, but the operating crew of Perilous held those names in regard while I was there in 2006. I wouldn't be surprised if each train got named something patriotic. The USMC paintjob may be the work of one of the shop guys...they're the ones who get to choose the paintschemes if I remember correctly.

Thank you RangerRick for those fantastic photos.

Any model railroaders on here? I'm sure someone's thought about doing a scale of DLRR or Nature's Wonderland.