2009 Fall Foliage Train Excursions Report

The Lehigh Valley Railroad Historical Society, in cooperation with the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway, sponsored fall foliage train excursions over the former Lehigh Valley Railroad mainline between Shortsville, New York, and Victor, New York, on Saturday, October 10, 2009, and Sunday, October 11, 2009.  Five passenger train excursions were operated over the weekend from Shortsville to Victor and return over the Finger Lakes Railway using two diesel locomotives and five passenger coaches.  Each train ride lasted two hours and was a 24 mile round trip.

A total of 1,023 passengers rode the trains over two days – 592 on Saturday and 431 on Sunday.  One round trip was considered sold out.  Paid passenger counts for each trip were as follows:  Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 160, Sat. 12:30 p.m. - 195, Sat. 3:00 p.m. - 237, Sun. 12:30 p.m. - 221, and Sun. 3:00 p.m. - 210.  The average passenger count per train was 205.  Thank you to all of the passengers who rode our train excursions.  We appreciate your patronage!

Paid ads were placed in the Daily Messenger, the Finger Lakes Times, and the Genesee Valley Pennysaver.  Press releases were published in the Courier-Gazette, the Daily Messenger, the Democrat and Chronicle, the Finger Lakes Times, and on various Internet web sites.  The Finger Lakes Visitors Connection posted our news release on their web site.

The Society freight station museum was open to passengers during the excursions.  Sales at the gift shop were very good.  The food concession operated by the Shortsville Presbyterian Church did a brisk business before and after each of the five trips.  Thanks to P&J Lawn Care for mowing the lawn before the excursions.  Special thanks to Joe Dickson, Deb Halderman, Ross Liddiard, and Jack Tuttle for cleaning the station before the excursions.

As always, we received good service and cooperation from the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway train crew comprised of Chris Smith (Sat.); Bernie Beikirch (Sat. & Sun.); and Don Brown (Sun.).  Thanks to Deb Najarro, Judy Salone, and the FGLK on-board crew (Bianca Allen, Josie DeLyser, Ben Murnan, and Kay Oliver) for their services.

Thank you to all of the Society members who assisted with the excursions in one way or another.  Thanks to Deb Halderman for volunteering at the ticket sales table and in the gift shop.  Thanks to Bev Halderman for volunteering in the gift shop.  Thanks to Dick Coffey, Joe Dickson, Gary Lembke, Ross Liddiard, and Jack Tuttle for volunteering as parking lot attendants.  Thanks to Dave Fleenor, Dave Halderman, and Lynn Heintz for volunteering as guest conductors.  Thanks to Roger Halderman for helping out at the station.  Thanks to Sean Angelo for helping out on board the trains.  I appreciate the Society’s support of this fund-raising project.

2009 Santa Train Excursions Report

The Lehigh Valley Railroad Historical Society, in cooperation with the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway, sponsored Santa train excursions over the former New York Central “Auburn Road” railroad line between Shortsville, New York, and Canandaigua, New York, on Saturday, November 28, 2009.  Five passenger train excursions were operated from Shortsville to Canandaigua and return over the Finger Lakes Railway using two diesel locomotives and three passenger coaches.  Each train ride lasted one hour and was a 12 mile round trip.

A total of 726 paid passengers rode the trains.  Four out of five round trips were considered sold out.  Paid passenger counts for each trip were as follows:  Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 147, Sat. 11:30 a.m. - 161, Sat. 1:00 p.m. - 150, Sat. 2:30 p.m. - 152, and Sat. 4:00 p.m. - 116.  The average paid passenger count per train was 145.  Thank you to all of the passengers who rode our train excursions.  We appreciate your patronage!

Paid ads were placed in the Daily Messenger and the Genesee Valley Pennysaver.  Press releases were published in the Courier-Gazette, the Daily Messenger, the Democrat and Chronicle, and on various Internet web sites.  The Finger Lakes Visitors Connection also publicized the event on their calendar.

The Society freight station museum was open to passengers during the excursions.  Sales at the gift shop were very good.  The food concession operated by the Shortsville Presbyterian Church did a brisk business before and after each of the five trips.  Special thanks to Joe Dickson, Bev Halderman, Deb Halderman, and Jack Tuttle for cleaning and decorating the station before the excursions.  Thanks to Dan Hodge for displaying his N scale model train modules.  Thanks to the Red Jacket Madrigal Choir for entertaining the passengers on the 10:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. trips.

As always, we received good service and cooperation from the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway train crew comprised of Bernie Beikirch, Irwin Kistler, and Mark Pullen.  Thanks to Deb Najarro, Judy Salone, Adriel Douglas, and Kay Oliver for their services on board the trains.

Thank you to all of the Society members who assisted with the excursions in one way or another.  Thanks to Deb Halderman for volunteering at the ticket sales table and in the gift shop.  Thanks to Bev Halderman for volunteering in the gift shop.  Thanks to Dick Coffey, Joe Dickson, Ross Liddiard, and Jack Tuttle for volunteering as parking lot attendants.  Thanks to Dave Halderman for volunteering as a guest conductor.  Thanks to Roger Halderman for helping out at the station.  Thanks to Sean Angelo for helping out on board the trains.  Thank you as well to Sean Miller and Kristi Ward, the balloon artists, and to Jim Lockwood, who did an outstanding job as Santa Claus.  I appreciate the Society’s support of this fund-raising project.

2005 Finger Lakes Railway Tenth Anniversary Train Excursions and Open House Report

The Lehigh Valley Railroad Historical Society, in cooperation with the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway, sponsored train excursions over the former New York Central "Auburn Road" railroad line between Geneva and Cayuga on Saturday, July 30, 2005, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Finger Lakes Railway. Three passenger train excursions were operated from Geneva to Cayuga and return over the Finger Lakes Railway using two diesel locomotives and two passenger coaches. Each train ride lasted two hours and was a 26 mile round trip.

A public open house was held at the Finger Lakes Railway Offices and Shops in Geneva during the excursions. Railroad equipment was on display for visitors to view and photograph. Operation Lifesaver set up a railroad safety information booth at the open house.

A total of 292 paid passengers rode the trains. One out of the three round trips were sold out. The average paid passenger count per train was 97. Thank you to all the passengers who rode our train excursions on July 30. We appreciate your patronage!

Paid ads were placed in the Auburn Citizen, the Daily Messenger, and the Finger Lakes Times. Press releases were published in the Auburn Citizen, the Courier-Gazette, the Daily Messenger, the Democrat and Chronicle, the Finger Lakes Times, the Post-Standard, and on various Internet web sites. The FGLK 10th anniversary train excursions and open house event was listed in the Railpace Newsmagazine Calendar in the May, June, and July issues. A news article about the event appeared in the "Empire State Limited" column in the June 2005 issue of Railpace. WENY-TV Channel 36 in Elmira sent a crew to tape a news story about our excursions.

Thanks to Deb Halderman for handling all of the telephone inquiries along with mail order sales. The Finger Lakes Railway sold tickets for the excursions at their offices in Geneva from July 11 to July 29. Special thanks to the FGLK office staff (Holly, Janet, and Kathy) for their help with ticket sales.

As always, we received outstanding service and cooperation from the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway train crew comprised of Kevin Buckland, Trainmaster; Dan Smith, Engineer; Kenny Maines, Engineer; Bruce Habberfield, Conductor; Bonnie Buckland, Snack Bar; Judy Habberfield, Gift Shop; and Adam Buckland.

Thank you to all of the Society members who assisted with the excursions in one way or another. Thanks to Joe Dickson, Dave Halderman, and Roger Halderman for volunteering as parking lot attendants. Thanks to Deb Halderman for handling ticket sales at trackside. Thanks to Bill Young and Dave Fleenor for volunteering as car hosts. I appreciate the Society’s support of this fund-raising project and look forward to the fall foliage trains in October 2005.

Ken May, Excursion Coordinator

2005 Easter Bunny Train Excursions Report

The Lehigh Valley Railroad Historical Society, in cooperation with the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway, sponsored Easter Bunny train excursions over the former New York Central "Auburn Road" railroad line between Shortsville and Clifton Springs on Saturday, March 26, 2005. Five passenger train excursions were operated from Shortsville to east of Clifton Springs and return over the Finger Lakes Railway using two diesel locomotives and two passenger coaches. Each train ride lasted one hour and was a 10 mile round trip.

A total of 649 paid passengers rode the trains. Three out of the five round trips were sold out. The average paid passenger count per train was 130. Thank you to all the passengers who rode our Easter Bunny train excursions. We appreciate your patronage!Paid ads were placed in the Daily Messenger, the Democrat and Chronicle, the Finger Lakes Times, and the Genesee Valley Pennysaver. Press releases were published in the Courier-Gazette, the Daily Messenger, the Democrat and Chronicle, the Finger Lakes Times, and on various Internet web sites. R News in Rochester aired a news story by the "Getaway Guy" all day on Saturday, March 26.Thanks to Deb Halderman for handling all of the telephone inquiries along with retail and mail order sales. A total of 440 tickets were sold in advance. Tickets were sold by Country Corner in Phelps, Depot 25 Restaurant in Shortsville, Electric Train Co. in Victor, Five Seasons Gifts in Canandaigua, and Petal Pusher Florist in Manchester. Special thanks to these merchants for their help with ticket sales.The Society freight station museum was open to passengers during the excursions. Sales at the gift shop staffed by Deb and Emma Halderman were good. The food concession operated by the Shortsville Fire Dept. did a brisk business before and after each of the five trips. Thanks to George Whittaker for cleaning the station.As always, we received outstanding service and cooperation from the Finger Lakes Scenic Railway train crew comprised of Kevin Buckland, Trainmaster; Dan Smith, Engineer; Bruce Habberfield, Conductor; Bonnie Buckland, Snack Bar; Judy Habberfield, Gift Shop; and Adam Buckland; Easter Bunny. Also, thanks to Sean Miller and Kristin Ward for making the balloon animals for the kids on the train again.

Thank you to all of the Society members who assisted with the excursions in one way or another. Thanks to Joe Dickson, Bev Halderman, and Jack Tuttle for volunteering as parking lot attendants. Thanks to Dave and Roger Halderman for volunteering as boarding assistants. Thanks to Bill Young and Dave Fleenor for volunteering as car hosts. I appreciate the Society’s support of this fund-raising project and look forward to the Finger Lakes Railway Tenth Anniversary trains in July 2005.

Ken May, Excursion Coordinator

Finger Lakes Railway Railfan Day 2004

LVRRHS 2002 Santa Train Excursions: New York Central Reprise on the Finger Lakes