Challenger Streamliner, 1954

Mention of Challenger in association with Union Pacific will result in most people thinking of the company's 4-6-6-4 steam locomotive class, but it was also the name of a passenger train fleet jointly operated by UP and the Chicago and North Western Railway (which was later replaced by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, better known as the "Milwaukee Road"). The economy service ran between Chicago, Illinois and several major cities located along the West Coast of the United States. Known as "Everybody's Limited," the trains offered full Pullman service and top-flight coach seating, and were introduced in an attempt to draw Depression-Era riders back to the rails. Food service was advertised as "three meals for under a dollar a day."

It ceased after WW2 but on 8 December 1953 the C&NW and UP formally announced that the Challenger service between Chicago and Los Angeles would return with all-streamlined equipment, and on 10 January 1954 the first lightweight trainset hit the rails. The westbound Challenger completed its run in 39 hours 30 minutes, while eastbound ran 39 hours 45 minutes. Westbound No. 107 departed Chicago at 9:00 a.m. C.S.T. and arrived in Los Angeles at 10:30 p.m. P.S.T. the next day; eastbound No. 108 left LA at 2:00 p.m. P.S.T., and arrived Chicago at 7:45 in the morning C.S.T. of the second day. In February 1955, dome coaches were added to the Challenger (along with dome lounge cars and unique [to Union Pacific] dome diners on the City of Los Angeles and City of Portland) as regular equipment for the first time on any of UP's trains.

It wasn't long lived: in a cost-cutting measure, the Challenger and the City of Los Angeles were combined and operated on the City of Los Angeles's schedule. The Challenger reappeared as a separate train (with its morning departure from Chicago) in following summers, but after 1960 it ran on the City of Los Angeles's schedule year-round.

Here the train is seen on Cajon Pass (see earlier posts) on its new first day of 10 January 1954.