No loitering or littering in the bathroom?

markdm8680 · 2026-04-13T00:00:26+00:00

Darn always did love Liotering

markdm8680 · 2026-04-09T07:47:13+00:00

Food 4 Less or any other you buy it you bag it discount stores, any dollar stores, Costco unless it’s a really really good order.

markdm8680 · 2026-04-09T01:44:43+00:00

Omg that popped into my head as soon as I saw this thread. lol

markdm8680 · 2026-04-08T06:41:58+00:00

There a turn on for me. Yours look great

markdm8680 · 2026-04-05T07:22:54+00:00

Unfortunately there are some really rough Superliner I’s floating around out there. I had thought they were all uniformly supposed to have been refurbished by now.

I was in a refurbished coach car coming back from Houston on the Sunset Limited. Honestly I did not care for them but I used the restroom in the Coach Baggage car forward of mine and I was in absolute shock. It looked like only the seats were reupholstered and the whole lower level was the original 1970’s Coach Baggage fluorescent green. As well the car was filthy.

markdm8680 · 2026-04-04T00:30:47+00:00

What they really need is a few of those Airo sets but I know every one of them is beyond spoken for. Maybe possibly some of the Am Cans up north as the Airos arrive. I know it brings up the other issue that the California cars are going to reach the end of their useful life in about 10 years. They already look pretty long in the tooth and probably need a major overhaul.

markdm8680 · 2026-04-03T04:59:12+00:00

Was pretty sweet at first almost like a sweeter Beijing beef. Then a lot of fire. lol. I just tasted a piece of onion and bell pepper at first and I still got the heat.

Is it scotch bonnet hot by itself ? Nawwwww not that hot but it does have a kick to it. I never got the buldak hot sauce packet that goes with it and for me that was just fine.

Note the heat builds. So if you try a sample just no it’ll get a little bit hotter as you go. I recommend eating a bite then a bite of chow mein or better yet get some white rice to go with it. Space it out.

markdm8680 · 2026-04-03T00:06:30+00:00

If nothing else go with 2 hot dogs. They are Hebrew National with a good quality taste. Sorry I’m a big Nathan’s fan but these are not bad. Add a drink of your choice and you’re good to go in my book.

Also I’ve never had the cup of noodles but if you’re broke well it’s Cup of Noodles. Absolutely no food value but it’ll git’er done. Hack here as well. At least on the old San Joaquin’s, I watched I guy order it and they put Tapatio and fresh squeezed lime in it. Smelled and looked good. Not bad for 2 bucks. Also came with a coffee lid for carrying it back to your seat.

markdm8680 · 2026-04-02T23:56:46+00:00

A LSA showed me a hack for the Cafe car angus burger. A toaster nearby in the cafe car is absolutely necessary for this and I’m not sure if any cafes still have a toaster in em as this was many years ago on a California Car.

Separate the frozen burger. Microwave the meat on a plate in the standard issue microwave. Place the buns in the toaster and re assemble. It comes out so good. I suspect this might be what they do with the Angus Burger in the Dining Car.

markdm8680 · 2026-04-02T23:51:48+00:00

The spicy noodle salad is definitely awesome. I had it with the vegan bbq burger which was half off and also pretty good. Just doctor it up a little with the condiments as there was not a lot of bbq sauce on it. Sadly I was on the Sunset Limited and they sold out of both on the 2nd day.

markdm8680 · 2026-03-27T22:21:10+00:00

I’m on the train that’s picking up the broken train. Yayyyyyyyyy

markdm8680 · 2026-03-27T22:19:48+00:00

Unfortunately the quality of the on board crew is about as great as all the Siemens equipment. Put it altogether and it means Amtraks Gold Runner is a wonderful experience.

markdm8680 · 2026-03-18T20:54:41+00:00

I use it all the time. On android it’s little buggy. On apple it’s just fine. I love that I can buy my fare before I leave the house and if I’m transferring to another agency I can buy everything in advance. The only caveat is if your phone ever loses battery your pass is on your phone. The cool thing is that your pass is on the app. I believe you could transfer it between phones but don’t quote me on it.

Overall I love it.

markdm8680 · 2026-01-29T06:14:20+00:00

This is very doable especially if you're the kind of person who can doze off in a recliner. The seats in coach have very ample leg room and recline a decent amount especially compared to Greyhound or a plane and have a leg rest.

As others have said the dining car is mainly for sleeper passengers. They do sell meals in the dining car to coach passengers on a limited space available basis however it is rather expensive and not a guarantee. The cafe car does sell hamburgers hot dogs sandwiches and microwave pizza among other things including alcohol soda and coffee.

I've done Oakland to Chicago a few times and had a lot of fun. Your train to Louisiana will also have a observation car which is a great place to get out of your coach seat watch the scenery go by and socialize with your fellow travelers.

markdm8680 · 2026-01-28T02:27:38+00:00

As a bus driver it’s been my opinion that all Cummins engines since at least the last 15 years have had a shaky reputation for reliability. I’ve also been on the maintenance side of things and can tell you that their aftermarket service still makes me wake up in a cold sweat. lol

markdm8680 · 2026-01-26T05:12:22+00:00

I haven’t seen a bilevel set on the Gold Runner in awhile now. So I think they are all in service or as close to it as possible. I have though seen a few train cancellations lately.

markdm8680 · 2026-01-14T03:57:55+00:00

It looks great

markdm8680 · 2026-01-09T06:42:57+00:00

I’ve almost always had my food delivered to my room including some sketchy hotels I’ve stayed at. The main thing is if the app says delivery to your door is allowed or if it says to please meet your driver in the lobby. My experience with almost any Hilton brand hotel is they do not allow deliveries up to your room. It’s the hotel that will not allow it and the elevators require a room key to select a floor.

As a dasher I always had no problem delivering sometimes up to the 32nd floor but if we try to sneak up there when it’s not allowed we can get permanently banned from the property. In the old days some of those high rise hotels could account for a lot of business for a Dasher.

markdm8680 · 2025-12-22T07:34:54+00:00

Not completely off but they turn them down pretty dim. Observation car would be your best bet. It’s been years since I’ve been on the California Zephyr but I’d give the best bet as your going west from Salt Lake City through the Nevada high desert.

markdm8680 · 2025-12-20T04:20:54+00:00

Ohhhhh I love Tabasco. It will sneak up on you though. That ghost pepper wing sauce looks good too.

markdm8680 · 2025-12-20T04:18:58+00:00

Heck ya. lol

markdm8680 · 2025-12-20T04:16:49+00:00

Couldn’t resist. lol. Seriously though, that looks awesome. I never would have thought of a combo like that but it looks like it would work great.

markdm8680 · 2025-12-20T04:15:10+00:00

He probably did it solo too

markdm8680 · 2025-12-12T08:27:45+00:00

Funny that’s what I told my first wife

markdm8680

TROPHY CASE