IRM Diesel Days 2026 Day 3: 8/9/26

What. A. Weekend. Today we find ourselves back at the Illinois Railway Museum once again for the third and final day of this year's Diesel Days! While both Friday and Saturday both had pretty good weather for the event, Sunday on the other hand was more of a mixed bag for the weather. While some showers and a brief storm prevented us from getting some of the trains running, that didn't stop us from having a great day at the IRM such as seeing some unique moves like a cowl unit tripleheader with Metra 614, ATSF 92, and BNSF 6976, an E-Unit quadruple header, 9911A making an appearance with the Zephyr, WCCH 1802 doing some more mainline runs, and a surprise appearance from Metra's 250 Unit on a special run to IRM to return the two Illinois Central EMUs after a month stay in Chicago, and a quick photoshoot with the 525 and the recently restored Ingersoll-Rand 91. All in all, this was another great Diesel Days at the IRM and definitely a step up from previous years, can't wait to see what next year brings! Enjoy! Trains Operating: Burlington Northern Santa Fe 9400 (Throttle Time) CB&Q 9911A with the Nebraska Zephyr CB&Q 504 with the Demonstration Freight Train CNW 411 with the Bi-Levels WCCH 1802 with the Caboose Train MTRY 200, CNW 1689, and SP 1518 (Lite Power) WCCH 1802 and CB&Q 504 with the Demonstration Freight Train AMTK 231 with the Caboose Train BN 9976 and SLRG 515 with the Coach Train WCCH 1802 and SP 1518 with the Demonstration Freight Train CB&Q 504 with the Caboose Train CNW 6847 and CNW 7009 (Lite Power) BN-3, SLRG 102, BN 9976, and SLRG 515 with the Coach Train CNW 6847 and CNW 7009 with the Demonstration Freight Train TTI 260 with the Caboose Train BN-3, SLRG 102, BN 9976, SLRG 515, CNW 6847, and CNW 7009 (Lite Power) METX 525 and METX 124 with the Illinois Central EMU special METX 614, ATSF 92, and BNSF 6976 with the Coach Train BN 5383 and UP 1848 with the Demonstration Freight Train Taken on 8-9-26