Penn State Altoona student turns lifelong love of trains into YouTube channel

ALTOONA, Pa. — Kian Woods said he was always a curious kid who loved playing with mechanical and kinetic style toys. His family went to the local library often where he would spend hours playing at a wooden train table. However, this was not just a phase — as he grew older, he said, he discarded his own wooden train toys for motorized Trackmaster toy trains, which then, in turn, were discarded for model trains. 

When the Connecticut native began looking into colleges, he said he knew he wanted to pursue a railroading degree. During a college fair held at his high school, he came across information about Penn State Altoona and its Rail Transportation Engineering program. Woods said he was immediately sold.

He is now in his second year and a member of the college’s student chapter of the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA). The group facilitates connections among engineering students, railroad industry professionals and Penn State alumni. The chapter hosts seminars and guest speakers, field trips and conferences.

If you think that would be enough of the "#TrainLife" for Woods, you’d be wrong. His love for trains doesn't stop at just his college degree, he said. He also frequently goes out to “railfan,” a term used to describe watching or recording trains.

He’s the guy you see standing on a bridge or overpass, camera equipment in hand, both patiently and eagerly awaiting a train to roll through on the tracks beneath, he explained. He’s the guy who frequently takes road trips in his Mazda 3 named Pablo just to see trains pass by — Boston, New York City, Florida, California, Montreal, and Panama among his destinations.

He’s also the guy who created a YouTube channel dedicated to — well, trains, of course.

“I always knew I wanted to make a train-related YouTube channel, but I didn’t have the motivation until I found one that made videos I really liked," Woods said. "That gave me the kick I needed to give it a try.”

Woods created "SAS Railfan" in 2022. He described it as “a railfanning YouTube channel by a railfan with a short attention span."

He said he had a specific vision in mind for SAS, mainly that it "would not be boring."

“A problem I've always had with the average train video is that people just upload raw, unedited material, literally just a train going past," he said. "That's why I make my videos engaging and fun to watch.”

His said his videos include compilations, Q&As; various shenanigans; many, many, many names of trains; and even one where he takes his dog, Finn, railfanning.

“I knew there was an open market for train videos that are much more enjoyable to watch through humor and editing," he said. "Not many channels were making that kind of content.”

Woods said he uses music, graphics, voice-over, sound effects and animation to make videos he feels are engaging and entertaining.

“I've gotten many comments and messages saying that people really enjoy the content and want more like it," he said. "That kind of feedback is what motivates me to keep making videos and keep improving their quality.”