Volume 2, Mike Bednar book?

apparently it is out!




but I can find nothing about it on-line!!
other than one ebay auction..
anyone know the publisher and where/how we can order it?
If I had the ISBN, I could try to order it through Barnes & Noble..
thanks,
Scot

Scot -

I purchased mine about 1.5 months ago from K-Val Hobbies in Kenmore, NY. I do not know if they still have some copies. However, if it can be ordered they will order it.

http://www.kvalhobbies.com

Last week I ordered a copy of Mike Bednar's first LV book from Rails N Shafts. I have not yet received it, but any day now it should arrive.

Another option is to log onto railfan.net and send Keith Bednar a message. Keith of course is Mike's brother and may be able to snag you a copy.

WNYRailfan

thanks WNY,
I bet the shop in Geneva has it, I should take a run down that way..
would you please post the ISBN number for the book?
it should be on the "copyright page" near the front..
the string of letters and numbers after "ISBN"..
thanks!
Scot

Here is the ISBN:

1-931014-01-9

Good luck finding the book.

"WNYRailfan"

another rob from the dead book by Mike.
PICK

Rob from the dead?

I guess your not a fan of Mike's, huh?

Car Floater

Rob from the Dead?????????? What the hell are you talking about. Mikes books are some of the best railroad books out. How many other books give an inside view of railroads , people? I know that alot of LV people and their families are proud to have been included in those books. Big Mike isn't getting rich $ from these books. If you don't like Mike / R&N thats your problem/loss. You never worked a day on the LV so what makes you such an expert ? If you want to be a moderator try keeping your personal feelings out about others.

I wanted to bring this topic up when some moron bashed Big Mikes book on the previous RR.net before it crashed. That person stated that it was a crummy book and prevented other books on the Valley from being published. Lucky for me I kept a copy of that post.

Anyone who knows Big Mike will agree that owning these books are like owning an origional Lehigh Valley artifact. These books were written by a true Lehigh Valley veteran. So there not your 100% Florida sunshine photo's in the book and your perfectly centered roster photo's. They are the photo's of the Valley and how Big Mike recorded it.

Big Mike shows the unique part of this book by showing faces and the people of who he worked with and mentions them in the text. I know that is hard for some Foamers to swallow to see a railroad person in their photo's.

Mike was always a people person not just the roster shots and he continues in that same fashion today. The people you see in Big Mikes books are the men that he worked along side of in his Valley career. Mike would never get upset when the brakie or the conductor would walk out in front of his shots like some people do.

Anyone that owns these books now own a piece of the Lehigh Valley

Thank You Big Mike

Oh and thanks to you Mr. Pick for rekindeling my thoughts about this topic after your sickening remark about Big Mike and his book.

CEW

Since I was born in Sept. 1980, more than four years after the creation of ConRail, I have never seen the LV. I only have the abandoned ROW and some existing track segments to look at. Mike's books are great because it gives a glimpse back at a time when the Cornell colors shown brightly and the route of the Black Diamond was as popular as ever. The LV railroad was built late (1890's) and removed early (1970's).

Quoting Mike's brother, Keith Bednar, "The LV people were first class in every way. They would give you anything you wanted and answer any questions you may have had. I was proud to be a LV man."

WNYRailfan

"Built late"??
very early actually..
the first railroad wheel turned on rails that would become the LV on the Beaver River railroad on November 5, 1836.

Robert H. Sayre and Asa Packer began their "Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill & Susquehanna Railroad" in 1852, and the name was changed to "The Lehigh Valley Railroad" on January 7, 1853.
The LV began regular operations by 1855.

The LV was 123 years old when she died..

(all info from the Archer book..)
Scot

Let's try to keep this conversation friendly?

-otto-

Otto, you didn't delete some posts on this topic, did you? I would like to hear what issues people have with Mike Bednar and his books. I have the first LV book, although I haven't read it yet. I was thinking about buying the second this weekend in Ithaca. i would like to hear the problem that some people have with this book.

I can only recall meeting Mike 3 or 4 times, but when I did, he seemed to know me better than I knew him, and talked to me like we were old friends. When you read his books and articles, they may not be perfect literature, but you can feel that this guy is a true believer, someone who loves trains and the people who run/ran them and railfans,too. I knew that he left Conrail because of the pressure, but I suspect that such a blatant railfan as Mike would not be tolerated in Norfolk Southern today!
If you haven't met Mike, it's your loss, believe me!

It amazes me that so many people can't locate his book! You can get it from the ARHS or RCT&HS websites, or from the publisher, who happens to be the guy who is Rails N' Shafts, ads for which you can find in Trains or Railroad and Railfan.

I would like to say, as others have...that the Bednar's..all of them...are some of the nicest people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. They are the first ones to help young collectors (i.e me) in any way that they can. Keith especially... Any book on the LV..regardless of personal taste in photo styles and typesets is an asset to its memory. Other railroads always seem to get significantly more attention than the LV..primarily due to size...however I have yet to see a larger one that is as unique as the LV. Keep writing Mike.


-Greg

Yes, this is getting off topic, but Big Mike has been a great connection between the railfan community and the railroad community. He shows professionalism, enthusiasm, and is a great relayer of stories.

I got to know him a bit after the R&N came to Lehighton, and he was like a father to the Lehigh Division crews. His latest book is a twin to the first, and I hope I can do the same things with my camera that he has done now for so long with his.

Micah