Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan

Jared
  • 5.0 (7)
  • Non-Profit

Join Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad Executive Director Bethan Maher and Superintendent Rowdy Pierce and take a ride into the modern age of steam locomotives, cows, corn and incontinent Santas.   This is an unvarnished look at the business of tourist steam railroads like you've never heard before. 

  1. 6d ago

    Episode 20:Capitalizing on the Big Boy & The West Coast is Burning

    In this week’s episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy & Bethan, things are hot, hot, hot- and we’re not talking about Christmas beverages. Union Pacific’s Big Boy tour has wrapped up, the West Coast is burning, and Rowdy may or may not be in the midst of a mental breakdown. Just another normal week in heritage railroading. Here’s what we’re getting into: 1.) Rowdy Is Doing Great And by “great,” we mean he appears to be in the midst of a mental breakdown. We check in. 2.) What Happens After Big Boy? Union Pacific’s Big Boy tour has wrapped up, leaving a massive amount of public attention on steam locomotives and railroad history in its wake. The Roundhouse podcast recently posed an interesting question: How can heritage railroads capitalize on the publicity the Big Boy tour created? Rowdy and Bethan have answers. They do not have the same answers. 3.) In the News! This week’s news segment gets a little personal and seriously related to the next topic... 4.) Why Is the West Coast Burning? Yes, this is a railroad podcast, but Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad was built around the logging industry, and our museum preserves the history of logging railroads in the Pacific Northwest. So we’re going there....How have forestry practices and policies changed over the decades? What did forest management look like historically? How does the decline of the timber industry factor into what we’re seeing today? And what does any of this have to do with the catastrophic wildfires burning across the West? It’s complicated. So naturally, Rowdy and Bethan have opinions. 5.) FAQs & Listener Questions We wrap things up by answering some of your questions. --- ❤️ Want to support Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad? If every person who watched or listened to this podcast donated just * $2 *, it would make a huge difference. Case in point: we just paid approximately $135,000 in shipping costs to BNSF and Norfolk Southern to move our ex-Reading passenger coaches across the country. A $2 contribution for every listen would equal those very large bills. Please consider making a donation at https://wfim.org/donate Got a question or a topic you want us to cover? Send it our way. We’d love to hear from you. So grab your coffee—or whatever is getting you through the day—crank up the phonograph, and let’s go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

  2. Jul 28

    Episode 19: Foamfluencer Tea Party

    In this week's episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan, we have a special guest! Off the Rails very first guest - Hyce!  In this episode we talk:  1.) Who the heck is Hyce?  2.) SWOT Analysis of the Industry... 3.) How the internet internets and the impacts on our goofy little niche of the railroad world and our lives.  5.) In the News!  Got a question or topic you want us to cover? Send it our way—we'd love to hear from you. So grab your coffee (or whatever is getting you through the day), crank up the phonograph, and let's go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

  3. Jul 14

    Episode 18: True Crime

    In this week's episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan, we present Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad’s version of a True Crime podcast, or plea for someone else to do one.  This episode follows another bridge fire on Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad and ongoing trespassing concerns.   1.)  True Crime Here’s the timeline (with some stuff left out):  October 2024 – Mean, no-good emails start.  December 2024 – Trespassing incident / western standoff.   December 2024 – More signs, etc.   February 2025 – Manifesto  February 2025 – More emails         February 2025 – MRSR requests heightened law enforcement due to ongoing risks.           April 2025 – Trestle fire at GG-92        July 2025 – More nasty notes.         July 2025 – Harassing phone calls.         July 2025 – Boxcar Canyon Fire 1        September 2025 – Requests to elected officials and law enforcement        October 2025 – Follow-up to requests        June 2026 – Boxcar Canyon Fire 2 2.) The most recent fire at Boxcar Canyon and ongoing trespassing issues. 3.) In the News! Trains Magazine drops from 12 print editions every year to 10, the internet has feelings!  4.) Listener questions, like “do you sleep?”  Got a question or topic you want us to cover? Send it our way—we'd love to hear from you. So grab your coffee (or whatever is getting you through the day), crank up the phonograph, and let's go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

  4. Jun 30

    Episode 17: The Hangover (minus the Rule G Violations)

    In this week's episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan, we're calling this one the "Hangover Edition." Neither is actually hungover, just running on fumes after submitting our CRISI grant and getting Polson 70 back under steam. The result? A completely unscripted episode in which no one is entirely sure what was talked about... but apparently it was a lot. 1.) The final push to submit our nearly $30 million CRISI grant application and what the last few days looked like behind the scenes. At the time of filming, Bethan still hadn't submitted it. 2.) Getting Polson 70 back into service following her 1,472-day inspection and rebuild, personnel meltdowns and all.  3.) Rowdy's problematic internet presence.  4.) The Oregon Trail, favorite presidents, whether heritage railroading is a viable career, legal pads, spot plates, World War II, and a variety of other topics that production wouldn't have put on the agenda. 5.) In the News! This week's news segment covers paperwork at Railtown. Got a question or topic you want us to cover? Send it our way—we'd love to hear from you. So grab your coffee (or whatever is getting you through the day), crank up the phonograph, and let's go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

  5. Jun 16

    Episode 16:The making of The YouTubes

    In this week’s episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan, Bethan is M.I.A., and Calvin - commonly known as "Production" steps in to talk about all things YouTube and his entry to the Chugg Life.  1.) Who is Calvin? What's he do aside from "Production" stuff?  What's his entry to the ChuggLyf been like?  2.) Behind "The YouTubes." How it got started, how it's found it's footing, and what goes into each week's episode.  3.) Polson 70 updates following the FRA's visit.  3.) In the News! Our weekly news segment talks about America 250 paint schemes. 4.) Our Frequently Asked Questions – like, why does Calvin say "brother," so much?  Got a question or topic you want us to cover? Send it our way- we’d love to hear from you.  So grab your coffee, crank up the phonograph, and let’s go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

  6. Jun 2

    Episode 15: Special Pridecast

    In this week’s episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan, Rowdy is conspicuously absent, leaving Eric in the hot seat for a special Pridecast focused on LGBTQ+ history in railroading and logging railroads, with a look at where we are today. Eric and Bethan spend some time discussing the unique "flavor" of Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad in the Year of Chugg™ (2026) and the team that has come together to make it all happen. There isn't much written about queer history in American railroading, which makes uncovering these stories all the more interesting. One great resource from across the pond is the UK's National Railway Museum: People, Pride and Progress. As part of Bethan's ongoing quest (hyperfixation) to uncover the untold stories of logging and railroad history, she dives into a few notable LGBTQ+ stories, including the Sumner Welles/Pullman Porter affair of 1940 and Portland's 1912 Scandal. For those interested in learning more, check out Peter Boag's Same-Sex Affairs: Constructing and Controlling Homosexuality in the Pacific Northwest. Fast-forwarding to the present day, Eric shares his own coming-out story and reflects on life as a gay man in the railroad world, particularly within the heritage railroad community. In the News! Our weekly news segment was almost nonexistent this week, thanks to a complete hyperfocus on history rather than current events. We do, however, discuss some exciting new gift shop merchandise. Frequently Asked Questions! This week's FAQ segment included a question about nationalizing the U.S. rail network, a topic we mostly decided to nope right out of. Got a question or topic you'd like us to cover? Send it our way, we'd love to hear from you (we think). So grab your coffee, crank up the phonograph, and let's go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

  7. May 19

    Episode 14: Playing with the Big Kids

    In this week’s episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan, Rowdy and Bethan are back to the usual shenanigans, with a bit less food-centered content than "the talent" prefers. They detail activities where they're parading around undercover, hanging out with the "Big Kids," a.k.a. freight folks.  1.) Recapping the ASLRRA Conference that was held in Minneapolis from April 12 through 14.  2.) The current state of our CRISI application. The scope of our project has increased from a mere $20 million to $29 million, and Bethan is definitely feeling the pressure.  3.) In the News! Our weekly news segment is a bit self-serving, featuring the start of our 21+ event series! Also covered, the magnificent debut of the newly restored Cheney Depot.  Check it out here: https://www.cheneydepot.com 4.) Our Frequently Asked Questions – like, what the heck is behind you guys?  Got a question or topic you want us to cover? Send it our way- we’d love to hear from you.  So grab your coffee, crank up the phonograph, and let’s go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

  8. May 5

    Episode 13: Radical Transparency

    In this week’s episode of Off the Rails with Rowdy and Bethan, they discuss the “tough stuff,” their take on radical transparency, and a recent situation regarding anonymous complaints to the FRA about Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad’s repair work on steam engine, Polson 70.  1.) Radial transparency. Why has MRSR taken this approach from the start? How does radical transparency fit into our organizational purview and how it affect us? What things can we share, and what things can’t we share?  2.) A recent situation regarding a formal complaint to the FRA regarding the condition of Polson 70’s back tubesheet knuckle. How we interact with the FRA, what our response was, what the paperwork burden is, and how we’ve “gotten to the other side.” 3.) In the News! Our weekly news segment covers the President’s budget requests for railroad activities – Amtrak, Intercity/Passenger Rail, and other railroad projects.  4.) Our Frequently Asked Questions – like, how the heck did Rowdy get his name?  Got a question or topic you want us to cover? Send it our way- we’d love to hear from you.  So grab your coffee, crank up the phonograph, and let’s go Off the Rails. Become a sponsor and help keep Off the Rails 'On the Air'! Thanks to Huffman Machining Solutions is proud to sponsor this Off the Rails podcast.  See how we can help with your next challenge at huggmanmachining.com

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About

Join Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad Executive Director Bethan Maher and Superintendent Rowdy Pierce and take a ride into the modern age of steam locomotives, cows, corn and incontinent Santas.   This is an unvarnished look at the business of tourist steam railroads like you've never heard before. 

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