Known to the railroads as "speeders," the motor cars have a wheelbase of about 3 feet. Ted Elzinga, of Highland, Calif., gets his speeder ready Monday morning. His car once was used to maintain the tracks for the Canadien National Railroad. Collectors have bought many of the small rail riders and fixed them up so they can travel with clubs on outings such as this. World Photo by Lou Sennick

Two dozen former railroad motor cars prepare to leave Coos Bay early Monday morning for the return trip via the rails to Eugene. The motor cars are retired equipment from various railroads that were replaced by pickup trucks with mounted flange wheels that can drive on pavement or rails.

Glen Ford, of Grass Valley, Calif., said Monday the cars were used for inspection and repairs of switches and signals along the railroads. Members of Motorcar Operators West travel to various locations via the rails on weekends, with the permission of the railroad owners. This group is escorted by the Central Oregon and Pacific Railroad that operates the line from here to Eugene. They travel the rails at an average speed of about 20 mph, but their CORP host Larry Okray said at one point they achieved a high speed of nearly 29 mph.