Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

(The following story by John Osborne appeared on the Times-News website on November 18, 2009.)

KINGSPORT, Tenn. Hundreds of volunteer elves converged at Food City on North Eastman Road on Wednesday, transforming both sides of the stores front entry area into a bit of a North Pole for a few hours.

It was the traditional packing party for the Santa Claus Special, more commonly known as the Santa Train. The history-steeped Santa Train, which each year heralds the Christmas seasons arrival in Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee, is making its 67th annual run this Saturday.

An estimated 15 tons of gifts will be distributed from the train at 14 stops between Shelby, Ky., and downtown Kingsport.

There were two assembly lines running to get the goods packed Wednesday. One was for mixing candy and other foodstuffs to be tossed from the back of the train but only when the train is stopped by Santa and his helpers.

Volunteers working the other line had a different task: Sorting toys, books and other items for placement in gender-specific/age-specific gift bags (5,000 total) that will be distributed by Santas ground crew at each stop.

Those elves will leave the train at each stop and take the gift bags to boys and girls in the far reaches of the crowds that typically greet the train the gift bags are pre-sorted for big boy, little boy, big girl or little girl.

The ground crew also hands out items like rolls of gift wrap, rather than those items being tossed from the rear of the train as they were in years past.

The length of some of the trains stops was expanded last year in order to allow enough time for the larger number of ground crew members to make their way through the crowds distributing the gifts and those times are repeated this year.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzd3VnWW9wg&feature=related