Re: Paul Connor, plus an Andy Payne story

I'm with you and Mik on this one. Unfortunately, most fans - myself included - go out and chase and photograph trains but never get to meet and talk with the crews. Some of the best railfan experiences I have ever had were when we would take the initiative and go talk to the guys who were running the trains.
I recall one particular crew on the Escondido Branch of the Santa Fe back in the '60s who ran a pair of back-to-back then 700 class high nose GP9s from Oceanside to Escondido every afternoon and evening, working the industries along the way. They had a gas grill set up in the short nose of the Oceanside facing unit and along about Vista, the fireman would disappear in to the second unit to get dinner ready. Watching the line ahead wasn't a problem, there was usually a fan riding who could park in the left seat and keep an eye out. By the time they got done at Escondido and switched into the other cab the steaks and beans would be ready and the westbound feed would begin! Big thick rolls filled with steak. Mmmmm. Makes me hungry.
The hogger was a former Rio Grande man who had fired for a time out of Alamosa. Made a couple of the last runs out of there to Chama firing on the San Juan. Full of wonderful stories. Wish I'd written them down!
Yes, it is the people who make railroading enjoyable.