Tom & Paul’s Excellent UP Adventure

In September, Atlas joined 18 other model railroad companies as guests of the Union Pacific Railroad for what turned out to be an exhilarating and enlightening journey from Council Bluffs, Iowa to Oakland, California aboard the company’s Heritage Fleet, which featured historic dome, sleeper, lounge and dining cars.

Atlas CEO Tom Haedrich & COO Paul Graf rode aboard the unique and historic Union Pacific Heritage Fleet train on their cross-country trip with UP officials.

The trip, the first of its kind, was a UP Licensing Workshop, intended to elicit feedback from the model railroad companies on how the current licensing program with UP is working, and how it could be improved. According to Atlas CEO Thomas W. Haedrich and COO Paul Graf, who represented Atlas on the journey, it was a worthwhile and enjoyable event.

The trip took the guests on the original Transcontinental Railroad, once commonly known as the “Overland Route” during the Golden Age of rail passenger travel. Stops along the way included North Platte, Nebraska; Cheyenne and Rawlins, Wyoming; Ogden, Utah; Elko and Sparks, Nevada; and Roseville, California. Participants were given a commemorative log book explaining the historical significance of each.

“We stayed on the train the entire time, only getting out at a few stops to stretch our legs while the train was serviced,” Paul said. “The highlight was being able to ride for hours in the dome cars just enjoying the scenery and being able to chat with other manufacturers in a less frenzied setting that at a trade show. The food, which was very good, was prepared on the train. Walking through the kitchen car was like being home on a holiday!”

But serious business was at the heart of the excursion. Manufacturers were able to voice both compliments and concerns with the licensing program and learn what UP could do to further assist model railroad firms and the model railroad industry as a whole. Without giving away too much information about upcoming Atlas products, Paul said UP has not only helped Atlas with product research in the past, but has now provided previously unavailable information on two projects currently in the early planning stages.

Workshops, conducted by Union Pacific officials, focused on updates on the licensing program, the UP archives, the state of the industry, improving the program, and building business. Atlas became a licensee of Union Pacific in 2004.

Enjoying the posh and well-appointed club, lounge and dining cars of the UP Heritage Fleet train were highlights of Tom and Paul’s journey.

Paul said that Brenda Mainwaring, Director of Corporate Relations for UP, told the group that the licensing fees will now be used to fund its museum at the historic Carnegie Library in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and support all UP Heritage programs, the Heritage Fleet and its steam engines.

“It was one of the most unique and educational journeys I have ever taken,” Tom said. “You could not help but have an enjoyable time on the UP Heritage train, traveling on that historic line, with a knowledgeable group of leading model railroad manufacturers. One of the most rewarding parts of the journey was accomplished in our daily morning and afternoon sessions, where we openly discussed ways the licensing program could be built upon to assist all participants, including UP, the licensees, the public and the model railroad industry in general. While I had reservations prior to the beginning of the trip, by the end, I was satisfied that UP intends to be a responsive and responsible ‘partner’, and that our relationship with them will lead to mutually beneficial results for all involved parties.”

Thomas W. Haedrich, CEO of Atlas Model Railroad Co., Inc. and Atlas O, LLC, got some air when the Union Pacific Heritage Train stopped in for servicing, taking the opportunity to get a commemorative photo.

The Union Pacific Railroad was inaugurated in July 1866. Its famous Overland Limited began service in 1890. On May 1, 1971, Union Pacific ended more than 100 years of passenger service when Congress passed the Rail Passenger Service Act, which transferred passengers to Amtrak. One of the brochures Tom and Paul brought home depicts former President Ronald Reagan and Bob and Delores Hope as frequent passengers. The 1939 Paramount film, Union Pacific by famed director Cecil B. DeMille featured Barbara Stanwyck, Joel McCrea and Robert Preston. A poster from the film was included in the brochure.

Today, Union Pacific moves goods across 23 states and more than 33,000 miles of track, including food, coal, automobiles, lumber, steel, and building materials. The company employs 47,000 people, and operates 7,094 locomotives and 90,877 freight cars.