Approximately 50 vintage ‘speeders’ with the North American Railcar Operators Association (NARCOA) will be stopping at the Tamaqua Railroad Station this Sunday (April 12, 2015) on their “Ride The Rails” trip from Port Clinton to Jim Thorpe and then return home in the afternoon.
Members of this unique non-profit organization will be bringing their vintage restored, self-propelled, gasoline powered rail ‘speeders’ to ride the rails between Port Clinton and Jim Thorpe. Tamaqua will be their stopover point for one hour to get off, stretch their legs, take photos of their cars in front of the Tamaqua Station, and lastly as a stop to use the portable toilets up near the cabooses.
Members of Tamaqua Historical Society and the Tamaqua Save Our Station (S.O.S.) organization expect the arrival of the speeders in Tamaqua at roughly 9:30 or 10:00 AM on Sunday for their one-hour stopover in the morning. They are also expected to stopover in Tamaqua again on their way back from Jim Thorpe to Port Clinton in the afternoon approximately 2:30 to 3:30 PM.
Due to the nature of their travel, arrival and departure times can change or vary greatly.
During the morning visit, members of the Tamaqua SOS organization will welcome the visitors to come in and view the main Concourse Visitors Center room and also visit the gift shop.

“Historically these small motorized cars were used to carry railroad workers who were responsible for maintaining the railroad right of way and making repairs,” said Dale Freudenberger, President, Tamaqua Historical Society. “They carried their tools and supplies with them on the Speeder cars and sometimes had several other cars coupled together to carry more supplies and more workers.”
The tour this weekend is a private tour for owners of these unique speeder cars and their invited guests. You can find more details about this group by going to the website for NARCOA.com.

Click HERE to watch a video about NARCOA from their website.