There was a very brief article in today's (06/11/09) Los Angeles Times saying the Flyaway service from LAUPT and Van Nuys was going to $7.00 ow in July. The fare from Westwood will remain the same. No mention of what will happen to the senior fare or airport employee/airline rate.
Frank in still overcast SBA
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Sounds like still a good deal for non-stop transfer service from the Downtown mass transit (and intercity rail) hub to the airport.
As I recall, LAUPT is quite convenient to the Freeway system.
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
Frank, the senior fare is gone and the employee rate will be changed. They will also be starting a fly away from Irvine, price probably around $30. For some reason the local Daily Breeze had a more complete article.
Posted by palmland (Member # 4344) on :
At $14 for two, is this still substantially cheaper than cab fare?
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Yes, it is. And I will certainly continue to use it. It is a service that truly works and works well! I've watched the ridership go from a handful of people on each trip to nearly full the last two times.
Frank in SUNNY SBA.
Vicki--We've booked yet another cruise. Vancouver to LA in 12 nights. Figure that one out!
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
Palmland- cab fare Van Nuys to LAX would be a lot more. It is about 25 miles. Fare from my house, 10 miles, is over $30.
Great cruise Frank.
This Lakers-Magic game is exciting. Exhausting too. I'd best get back to helping them out.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Miss Vickie, it's over. No NBA team has ever come back from a "must win" three in a row during the final round.
Posted by Ocala Mike (Member # 4657) on :
Yes, the series ended when "Superman" Howard missed those two free throws with about 30 seconds to go. The Magic will "call in" their game on Sunday, and be humbled by the Lakers. Nice run while it lasted.
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
Glad to see you fellows both have seen the "light". And watch out next year for my real team, the Clippers.
Posted by TBlack (Member # 181) on :
Wait a minute, how did we get so far off thread. We were talking about Frank's cruise and you guys want to talk about basketball (I guess that's what you're discussing).
I want to know why it takes 12 days to go from Vancouver to LA; and don't you have to start worrying about your weight on these excursions?
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
It takes 12 days because you stop at a lot of interesting places. I am taking a Vancouver to San Diego trip about the same time. That takes four days with one stop. With no stops it would take three days.
Yes you gain weight unless you have incredible will power.
My fault for the BB drift. But Frank's fault for the cruise drift.
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Both guilty as charged!
Tom--
We have seven port calls -- Nanaimo, Victoria, Seattle, Astoria, San Francisco (Overnight on ship), Monterey, and Catalina Island.
Self control is the key to avoiding weight gain. And not having two desserts EVERY night!
Frank in, you guessed it, overcast SBA
Posted by palmland (Member # 4344) on :
Sbalax, I have a suggestion to work off some of that good food. In Nanaimo a brisk walk will take you from the dock to the Via train station. The Malahat, a two car RDC local from Victoria to Courtenay makes a long stop there at about 12:30NB and 3:30SB.
On a small ship trip a couple years ago we were there for the day and I was ready to stretch my legs. I believe CP Ships used to call there too when they were truly a global transportation company.
That's my best effort at getting this thread back on a passenger rail topic.
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Keeping this thread on a passenger rail topic, the cruise line (Celebrity) is offering a steam train ride as one of the options out of Nanaimo. I believe it runs on an old logging line. It's pricey, though, at $120pp.
And then there are the Nanaimo bars. No, not THAT kind of bar! It's a cookie that involves graham cracker crumbs, coconut and chocolate. My great-aunt, who lived in Victoria most of her life, used to make them when we'd visit.
One of my first "cruise" adventures was on the old CPR Princess Patricia. It was essentially a ferry service but they ran it like a long distance steamer with a full on white table cloth and silver service dining room and day cabins available.
I'll check out the Malahat. Is it still running?
Frank in almost always overcast SBA. (At least in June!)
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
The Malahat still runs. I had great plans to take the Skeena to the coast, across on the ferry and the Malahat south. I still would like to do this trip, just had other things intervene.
Like cruises. And basketball. So there!
Posted by Railroad Bob (Member # 3508) on :
quote:Originally posted by palmland: At $14 for two, is this still substantially cheaper than cab fare?
It's still a dream fare compared to the cab-- depending on the driver (there are more and less "efficient" routes to get to LAX) his fare could get up to $50-60. I've used Flyaway coming back from PR China last year; it was clean, safe and the driver was a first rate pro. <thread creep>> And yes, Ms. HopefulRailUser, that Game Four was exhausting to watch. I could see the "air go out of the building" when Fisher hit those two big three's in Reg. and the OT. Reminds me of the "Fisher Fling;" the dagger shot he did in San Antonio in '04 with 0.4 seconds remaining. He told the Times yesterday he thought these new 3's were even bigger. I still cannot figure out what the Magic mascot is. Some kind of fluffy bird type of squirrel character? And Sunday's game is NOT necessarily a "done deal." I bet Ocala Mike is not throwing in the towel just yet, nor should he and the other Magic fans here! Dwight should start making those crucial FTs. This Series might come back to Staples, guys...but I do see a Laker victory before a Game 7. I'm done. I did talk about Flyaway a little bit...
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Hey, as long as your screen name is RAILROAD Bob we'll never have a problem.
Frank in cool and dark SBA
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
Went to Staples Center today to move our Clippers season tickets up a row or so. The place is wall to wall Lakers, the outside, every support pole inside, all along the walls in the bowl.
Took the Metrorail there (note the rail reference). On weekends and off hours the fare for seniors is $.25 per leg. That means we paid a total of $1 for the round trip. Of course we drove 12 miles to get to the station. But it is still a great deal. And the Blue Line is always entertaining. There are some very interesting people in LA.
Posted by Railroad Bob (Member # 3508) on :
quote:Originally posted by sbalax: Hey, as long as your screen name is RAILROAD Bob we'll never have a problem.
Thanks for that, Frank--I guess hobos are always welcome at the Forum...still the guy with the best name is "Steam Train Maury Graham;" the erst-while late King of the Hoboes. He never missed the Nat'l Convention in Britt, Iowa-- second weekend of each August... Posted by RRRICH (Member # 1418) on :
Well, our Orlando Magic tried............ they were doing fine 1st quarter, but then L.A. got a little too much for them, I guess.
The Magic's mascot is named "Stuff the Magic Dragon." I've lived here since 1993, and I still don't know exactly what kind of "critter" he's supposed to be!
Keeping the topic about trains, I am glad we are able to freely talk about "hobos" here -- on the Model Railroader forum, discussion about hobos is not allowed!
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
When will there be an NBA championship game that does not result in the town getting trashed?
Be assured such was simply de rigueur around here during the Bulls era.
Posted by Ocala Mike (Member # 4657) on :
Gil, the Bulls were champs during the "thug" era of the NBA, and represented a "thug" town. One would have thought the Laker fans would have celebrated with more respect during this supposedly "kinder and gentler" NBA era. I've pretty much given up on basketball, football, and hockey, and have gravitated back to baseball as the only true team sport still worth watching and following. Now, about those Flyaway fares...
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Nice save, Mike!
Frank in overcast SBA within hearing range of the UP.
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
I was at LA Live on Saturday (having arrived via Metrorail). It was lovely. The next day the idiots are tearing up the trees, burning them, beating up the newspaper dispensers, looting a shoe store, etc. What on earth is wrong with them?
Posted by ehbowen (Member # 4317) on :
Houston fans circa 1994-95 knew how to behave properly after a championship...although it may have been due more to lack of experience than any other factor....
Posted by Railroad Bob (Member # 3508) on :
quote:Originally posted by HopefulRailUser: What on earth is wrong with them?
Guess the "sociologists" will have to answer that one...Chief Bratton (LAPD) called them "thugs and knuckleheads that only come out at night." They've got some sharp, clean pictures of the miscreants from various security cams. And GBN, though the Bulls fans probably hold the first place award for thuggishness; I think the Detroit Pistons (fans) really did up a job one year when they won, as well. Why tear up your city; destroy busses and police cars-- the poor lady that owned the sneaker shop got completely looted while she was there. Most of the "celebrants" had that tattooed, shaved head "look" but there was one white guy clearly visible in the shoe store...it was most assuredly not our beloved Frank, in his still cloudy and rainy SBA! Sorry Frank-- just adding a little comic relief in the thread. Now, back to discussion of Flyaway...
Posted by RRRICH (Member # 1418) on :
Why would they riot and tear up the town when their team WON? Here in Orlando, where the FINAL LOSING game was played by our Magic, I have not heard of any riots or mass destruction like what apparently took place in L.A.
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
Rich, because we have thugs and buffoons here. In 2000, after the Lakers won, they did much worse. The parade is today, rich people have contributed to share the cost with the Lakers since the city is nearly bankrupt. Let's see how this goes.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Somehow I doubt if the patrons at Orchestra Hall, upon learning that the Chicago Symphony has been voted best in the world (it has been in the past under Solti), are going to run up Michigan Ave trashing every business establishment along the way.
It just seems like a sports team winning a major championship is somehow justification to trash the town. As far as I'm concerned, the 2016 Olympics - take 'em elsewhere.
Posted by Railroad Bob (Member # 3508) on :
quote:Originally posted by Gilbert B Norman: Somehow I doubt if the patrons at Orchestra Hall, upon learning that the Chicago Symphony has been voted best in the world (it has been in the past under Solti), are going to run up Michigan Ave trashing every business establishment along the way.
Mr. Norman, ever heard of Esa-Pekka Salonen, and now Gustavo Dudamel? Under the tutelage of (especially) Dudamel, I think the LA Phil is going to win every award in the book, in the rarefied atmosphere of professional classical music...even 60 Minutes did a nice piece on Gustavo and his "magic" baton...forget about the Bulls and the Lakers; this is the real CHI-LA battle! Let the battles begin... And to prove it, we're going to flip over some cop cars in our exuberance! (Disclaimer: previous remark is facetious.)
Posted by Ocala Mike (Member # 4657) on :
How about a vote for the NY Philharmonic with Lorin Maazel? He hasn't got much of a jump shot, but he wields a mean baton.
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Bob--
Nope, it wasn't me. I think the last time I was anywhere near that part of town was passing through on a Blue Line train or for the closing ceremonies of the Olympics.
Frank in GLORIOUSLY SUNNY SBA
Posted by Railroad Bob (Member # 3508) on :
quote:Originally posted by Ocala Mike: How about a vote for the NY Philharmonic with Lorin Maazel? He hasn't got much of a jump shot, but he wields a mean baton.
Yes Mike- he's definitely "in the running, too." Oh well, back to watching the Lakers Victory Parade and Party at the Coliseum...95,000 in the Coli alone-- the streets looked beyond packed. Everyone seems to be behaving pretty well-- I was almost sure I saw SBA Frank somewhere along Figueroa, but it may have been someone else. Mike, congrats to your Magic-- our Lakers had their hands full, but after the Fisher 3 pointers, tough to come back from that...there's always next season. Posted by Henry Kisor (Member # 4776) on :
I'm with GBN on his memories of victory and Bulls fans. When the Bulls won their third straight NBA title, my younger son, then a reporter for the Chicago City News Bureau, spent the night bunker-hunkered at Chicago Housing Authority Police headquarters in one of the city's worst high-rise slums. The doors and windows were shored up with thick timbers against the joyful gunfire, which rivaled that in certain Middle Eastern cities after military victories. The cops did not go out to stop the gunfire -- that would have been suicide. My son finally escaped at dawn hidden in a CHA cop van.
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