MNRX 501 & 504 double head the "Twins Special" out of the facility into Big Lake station for its evening round trip to Target Field. The train wasn't a sellout by any means (given its Labor Day weekend and the last days of the State Fair), but it had a good fill of passengers from all the stops.
Northstar remains underutilized and underrated as it nears its 15th birthday later this year. Things were looking good until Coronavirus changed everything.
Pre-2020, Northstar ran 5 or 6 rush-hour trips each weekday morning and evening, and three spaced-out runs on weekend days. Plus extra trips for concerts and sports games.
Now the train runs 3 times a day on weekdays and only runs on weekends to Twins and Vikings games. This train would be the only outing of the Northstar for the day with another Twins game the next day.
For you sports fans, the Twins had an abysmal performance on this day, being shut out 15-0 by Toronto.
Another odd fact, trailing unit 504 was featured in Dirty Jobs season 4 episode 5, "Locomotive Builder" when host Mike Rowe operated the locomotive at the MotivePower shops in Idaho before Northstar service commenced later that year in 2009. It's a good episode, personally.
For 15 years old, Northstar trains still look pretty snazzy, with only minor changes over the years, including the plows losing their original red and white striping, and the engine numbers are no longer digitally displayed on the nose under the red T logo.
