A rail guide for loading railroad rails onto a rail train. The rail guide includes a guide beam disposed to depend vertically downward over each shelf in a rack on a rack car. The guide beam extends substantially the length of the rack car and is coupled to a corresponding guide beam of an adjacent car via a bridge that is configured to accommodate relative movement between the cars. A shoe is provided that is coupled to a leading end of a rail to be loaded. The shoe includes a follower that engages the guide beam to guide a rail being loaded along a path defined by the guide beam. The guide beam can provide vertical and lateral support to the leading end of the rail during loading.
