Calwell’s Car

A retired metformin side effects acne railroader is drawn metformin 1000 mg day to a historic relic and its appeal of slow travels over scenic routes.

STORY BY STACEY JO GEIER | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JASON DAILEY

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Chances are you have never seen one of these bright-colored, boxy little railroad cars that march along railroad tracks across the country in what looks like a caravan of yellow, orange and red Chiclets. Called “motor cars,” “speeders” or “putt-putts” by railroaders, these vehicles were once used to inspect railroads and have been adopted by hobbyists who restore them and then tour the scenic U.S. countryside from the vantage point of a short line railroad track.
Dave Calwell of Topeka is a motor car enthusiast, to say the least. He should also be labeled a railroad historian, museum cura- tor, mechanic and travel writer. All four of these unofficial titles play into his motor car hobby. A railroader at heart, he worked for Santa Fe for 34 years, retiring in 1995, and that is where his appre- ciation for the tiny yet mighty motor car began.

“THE CAR WILL RUN AT THE SAME SPEED RUNNING BACKWARDS AS FORWARDS.THERE IS NOTHING TO STEER.YOU OPERATE IT VERY MUCH LIKE A RIDING LAWN MOWER—AND IT’S A LITTLE NOISY.” –DAVE CALWELL

According to Calwell, it’s important to know the history of motor cars to appreciate the hobby. The first models were put into use in the early 1900s to peruse the miles and miles of railroad tracks crisscrossing the country and help prevent train derailments. A railroad inspector would have an assigned territory of approxi- mately 100 miles of track and would travel it back and forth on the motor car to identify any problems.