 All Aboard! Thomas the Tank Engine™ Steams Into Town With Day Out With Thomas™ 2009: The Hero of the Rails Tour, Sponsored by The LEGO Group
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2009 -- It's a bird! It's a plane... it's a train! Everyone's favorite #1 engine, Thomas the Tank Engine™, welcomes friends aboard as he steams across the nation visiting more than 45 heritage railroads in the US and Canada as part of the Day Out With Thomas 2009: The Hero of the Rails Tour presented by HIT Entertainment and sponsored by The LEGO Group. This fun-filled event offers preschoolers and their families the opportunity to take a ride on a 15-ton replica of Thomas the Tank Engine, star of the Thomas & Friends™ series, on PBS KIDS® and PBS KIDS Sprout(SM), and features a variety of Thomas & Friends-themed entertainment.
Each year the tour grows, traveling to new destinations, adding new activities and welcoming new visitors. Rolling out of the station for its 14th consecutive year, the tour begins in March and is expected to welcome more than one million passengers at approximately 300 event days through December 2009.
During the Day Out With Thomas 2009: The Hero of the Rails Tour, children will be provided with a "Tour Map," that guides them through the four station stops -- the Imagination Station, the Meet & Greet with Sir Topham Hatt, the Storytelling/Video Viewing area and the gift shop. After receiving four stamps on their map, each child will receive a 3-D Thomas poster with glasses (while supplies last).
Other highlights for Day Out With Thomas 2009: The Hero of the Rails Tour include: - A meet & greet with Sir Topham Hatt™, Controller of the Railway on the Island of Sodor.
- Thomas & Friends Imagination Station: featuring LEGO DUPLO bricks, hands-on arts and crafts activities, coloring sheets, temporary tattoos and engineering certificates.
- Storytelling, video viewing and live music.
- Performances by Bob the Builder™ (select locations). In a 20-minute, sing-along performance, Bob the Builder asks for aspiring Can-Do Crew members to help him build a shed for Thomas to sleep in while he's visiting the railroad.
- A large LEGO® replica of Thomas the Tank Engine (select locations).
- Exclusive Thomas & Friends commemorative merchandise including a 2009 Day Out With Thomas passenger car.
- A variety of activities that reflect the local flavor of each stop!
Tickets are available for this event by calling toll-free 866.468.7630 or logging onto www.ticketweb.com/thomas.html. For general information or to find a Day Out With Thomas 2009: The Hero of the Rails Tour event near you, please visit www.thomasandfriends.com.
See complete tour schedule (below).
TOUR SCHEDULE
Railroad City Dates
March
Gold Coast Railroad Miami, FL March 7-8 & 14-15
Museum
Heart of Dixie RR Museum Calera, AL March 27-29 & April 3-5
Grapevine Railroad Grapevine, TX March 27-29 & April 3-5
April
West Texas Special Lubbock, TX April 10-11 & 17-19
Fillmore & Western Fillmore, CA April 17-19 & 24-26
Henry Ford Museum Dearborn, MI April 24-26 & May 1-3
Tennessee Valley Railroad Chattanooga, TN April 24-26 & May 2-3
B & O Railroad Museum Baltimore, MD April 24-26 & May 1-3
May
Heritage Park Historical Calgary, AB May 2-3 & May 9-10
Village Calgary
Medina Railroad Museum Medina, NY May 8-10 & 15-17
Cuyahoga Valley Scenic RR Peninsula, OH May 16-17 & 22-24
Heber Valley Railroad Heber City, UT May 21-25
Upper Hudson River North Creek, NY May 22-24 & 29-31
Railroad
Midland Railway Baldwin City, KS May 29-31 & June 5-7
June
Tweetsie Railroad Blowing Rock, NC June 5-14
West Coast Railway Squamish, BC June 6-7 & 13-14
Kentucky Railway Museum New Haven, KY June 6-7 & 13-14
National Railroad Museum Green Bay, WI June 10-14
Strasburg Rail Road Strasburg, PA June 13-21
Durango & Silverton RR Durango, CO June 19-21
Edaville USA Carver, MA June 20-21 & 26-29
Whitewater Valley Connersville, IN June 19-21 & 26-28
Railroad
Mt. Hood Railroad Hood River, OR June 19-22 & 26-28
July
Delaware River Railroad Phillipsburg, NJ July 3-5 & 10-12
Excursions
Montana Rail Link Billings, MT July 10-12
Northwest Railway Museum Snoqualmie, WA July 10-12 & 17-19
Conway Scenic Railroad N Conway, NH July 10-12 & 17-19
Elgin County Railway St Thomas, ON July 17-19 & 24-26
Museum
Fremont & Elkhorn Valley Fremont, NE July 17-19 & 24-26
RR
Great Smoky Mts. Railroad Bryson City, NC July 24-28 & July 30-August
2
Roaring Camp Railroads Felton, CA July 24-26 & July 31-August
2
RR Museum of New England Thomaston, CT July 31-August 2 & August
7-9
August
Tumbleweed Express Lakeville, MN August 1-2, 8-9 & 15-16
Boothbay Railway Village Boothbay, ME August 7-9 & 14-16
IL Railway Museum Union, IL August 14-16 & 22-23
Crossroads Village & Flint, MI August 14-16 & 21-23
Huckleberry RR
Edaville USA Carver, MA August 29-30 & September
4-7
September
Tennessee Central Railway Nashville, TN September 5-6 & 12-13
Lebanon Mason Monroe RR Lebanon, OH September 4-6 & 11-13
Strasburg Rail Road Strasburg, PA September 12-20
Colorado Railroad Museum Golden, CO September 12-13,19-20 &
26-27
Boone & Scenic Valley RR Boone, IA September 19-20 & 25-27
North Carolina Trans Spencer, NC September 25-27 & Oct 2-4
Museum
Oklahoma Railway Museum Oklahoma City, OK September 25-27 & Oct 2-4
October
Austin Steam Train Burnet, TX October 9-11
Tumbleweed Express Granite City, IL October 10-11 & 17-18
Texas State Railroad Rusk, TX October 16-18 & 23-25
SAM Shortline Cordele, GA October 23-25 & 30-31,
Nov. 1
November
Essex Steam Train Essex, CT November 7-8 & 14-15
Orange Empire Railway Perris, CA November 7-8, 11 & 14-15
December
Strasburg Rail Road Strasburg, PA December 4-6
  
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