Cruisin’ clickety-clack down the railroad track at the controls of a bug-like railcar becomes something special for the 1,200 or so members of the North American Railcar Operators Association.
They were nicknamed “speeders” when the cars were introduced to replace the hand-pumped railcars used by crews to check and fix tracks. The motorized versions were eventually replaced in many railroad operations by trucks fitted with special rail-wheel devices in the 1980s.
Now, hobbyists such as David Voeltz of Pierre, South Dakota, vice president of the railcar association, spend several weekends a year exploring the scenery on mostly abandoned or lightly used short-line railroad tracks across the country.
“We get to see a lot of scenery that the common person never gets to see,” he said. “Especially when you're riding out in the mountains.”
While Wyoming offers little track space that isn't committed to the Union Pacific and BNSF Railway, members can spend time on tracks in Idaho, Nevada, Montana, and Colorado.
Voeltz wants it clear that his group needs to be differentiated from those who post social media videos of themselves cruising abandoned tracks filled with sagebrush, sketchy bridges and old tunnels on homemade contraptions.
“They’re actually individuals who give us a bad name because they go out there without permission and ride these tracks that they’re not supposed to be on,” he said.
When his group goes out, members have a signed document with the railroad granting permission to use its tracks, along with insurance coverage. NARCOA's 2026 insurance program provides up to $10 million in railroad liability coverage for the association and its members during sanctioned excursions. Each railcar driver must meet the association’s operator-qualification requirements, and each car must pass a safety inspection before an excursion.
Voeltz said many of the cars used by the group were produced by Fairmont Railway Motors, but other companies such as Fairbanks-Morse and Kalamazoo build the little machines as well.
Jerry Geiger's railcar reaches the end of the passable track on the Leadville, Colorado and Southern RR. Elevation at this spot is over 11,000 feet. Behind the car is the active Climax Molybdenum open-pit mine. (Courtesy, Jerry Geiger) 
Jerry Geiger poses with his Fairmont Motors MT-14 railcar on the Creed branch of the old Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad at Wagon Wheel Gap located between South Fork and Creede, Colorado. (Courtesy, Jerry Geiger) 
The Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad at about 11,000 feet in an area known as the Devil's Tail Tangent. (Courtesy Photo) 
David Voeltz’s railcar reaches a crossing at Geneseo Junction, North Dakota. (Courtesy, David Voeltz) 
A railcar group on the tracks in Claremont, South Dakota. (Courtesy Photo) 
David and Mary Voeltz enjoy leading excursions and exploring other parts of the country in their railcars as part of the North American Railcar Operators Association. (Courtesy Photo)
Two- And Four-Seat Versions
The two- and four-seat railcars are typically powered by one- or two-cylinder engines. But some owners of restored versions have upgraded their capabilities.
Railcar association members need to add brake lights, and each car has to go through a safety check before participation in an excursion planned by one of the association’s chapters.
Jerry Geiger, vice president of NARCOA’s Rocky Mountain Division, who has coordinated excursions on some of Colorado’s mountain railroads, said members from all over the country show up to run on the tracks in the state. Some outings offer experiences and views at 10,000 feet or more.
He led a trip on the Leadville, Colorado & Southern Railroad in September and said even railroad employees speak about the difference between experiencing the tracks on a train versus in a railcar.
“It’s totally different than sitting 10 feet off the ground in a locomotive,” he said. “Leadville — almost every time I have people come up from different states and they always come up and say ‘This has got to be the most scenic railroad I have ever run on.’”
Each excursion is worked out with the specific railroad line and includes specific dates the group will on the line.
For some trips, the railroad will provide an escort because an actual train might be using the tracks during the same time frame.
“We’ll have to go into a siding and let the train go by us and pass,” Voeltz said of some of his region’s trips. “There’s quite a bit of coordination that goes on.”
Opportunities In The West
The railcar association’s website shows excursions this year that started in January in California with a 40-mile round trip.
The Pacific Railcar Operators hosted excursions on the Washington, Idaho & Montana Railway in a part of northern Idaho as well as the Central Montana Railroad and Mission Mountain Railroad in June.
Geiger’s Rocky Mountain group offered a 408-mile tour in June that included excursions on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad in Colorado and the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad in Colorado and New Mexico.
The Rocky Mountain chapter also offered a Denver & Rio Grande Railroad excursion in July that covered 26 round-trip miles per run on its Creede Branch. The group also ran on the Colorado Pacific Rio Grande Railroad from Alamosa over La Veta Pass, covering 182 miles.
Geiger, who lives in Pueblo, Colorado, said he got involved in the association in the 1990s when he purchased a railcar, but has always been interested in railroads. His grandfather was an engineer for the Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad and his dad shoveled coal for the railroad during his summer college breaks.
He’s done excursions in the Black Hills of South Dakota, but said he has never looked into possibilities in Wyoming. Some newer members who live in northern Colorado say they might look to see what is available in this state.
In his region, which includes North and South Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska, Voeltz said some of the participating railroads that participate are the Ringneck and Western Railroad, Dakota Missouri River Valley & Western Railroad, and Black Hills Central Railroad.
Voeltz said members can join any excursion in the country or in Canada, such as the Great Lakes Railcars two-day excursion on the Agawa Canyon Railroad out of Sault Ste. Marie, Canada.
Often are part of a trip, the railcar chapter will make donations to organizations that are on the railroad line or help with a fundraiser. They enjoy the public response to seeing a line of 15-20 cars “speeding” down the track at 20 mph or so.
Rail Enthusiasts
Voeltz said the social aspects of the group are also a big part of the excursions and railcar owners come from all walks of life — including the railroad.
“This is just primarily people who have been interested in railroads when they were young, maybe they wanted to be an engineer and didn’t have the opportunity,” he said. “By buying one of these little putt cars and joining our organization, that gives them an opportunity to be an ‘engineer’ riding up and down the tracks.”
Geiger said there are basically two types of railcars: The older versions are operated by a belt and a two-cycle engine that require a little skill and timing when putting them in reverse. The others are four-cycle cars that boast transmissions with two speeds forward and a reverse.
To get into a club involves the purchase of one of the cars, which can run from $3,000 to $10,000, depending on the model and whether it has been upgraded with features. There are enclosed models and others with windshields, roofs and canvas sides that can be opened depending on the weather.
A railcar can weigh from 500 to 1,200 pounds and requires a trailer to haul. Turning the cars around on the track typically means grabbing handles and lifting them.
However, some models feature an electric turntable-type disc that, with the flick of switch, descends from the bottom of the cart and lifts the car off the tracks and then turns it around.
Having a mechanical aptitude is helpful because the railcars require maintenance such as oil changes, plug replacement, greasing zerks, and tightening belts.
As someone who has been involved in the association for the past 20 years, Voeltz, now retired, still enjoys experiencing the thrill of the rails.
“I’ve always been kind of a railroad hobbyist, and I was the same type of guy who wanted to run trains,” he said. “This is about as close as I’m going to get to running an actual train.”
For Geiger, the opportunity to go out and experience his state’s railroads never gets old.
The weather in the high elevations can change quickly. He remembers a trip on the Leadville railroad in July where the group got to the end of the line at the Climax Molybdenum Mine, and it started snowing. Four inches covered the tracks by the time they arrived back in Leadville.
His groups have seen deer, elk, moose, and mountain lions.
“Every time I get on the motor car, it’s an ‘aha’ moment for me,” Geiger said.
Dale Killingbeck can be reached at dale@cowboystatedaily.com.
