Great Blog Post About Our Train Hobby

Ooofa!  That was rough!  As an aside, I always stop at the Cracker Barrel on the way back from the Big E show!

Jon

Reminds me of Jim Rome. Those who can't criticize those who can. Where our society is headed unfortunately.

I'm sure it never occurred to him that it is an expensive hobby that rules out 20-somethings and guys with babies at home...

Other shows that attract older crowds:  Boat Shows, R-V Shows, Gun Shows, Coin and Jewelry Shows... need I go on?  And I'm still in my 40's thank you!

Jon 

I thought it was funny for a guy just shy of 50 ...  We don't have basements around here thus model rail roading is not as visible as the right side of the country.  Shows here are few and far between.  I guess what is cool here, cause it is more rare to run into those in the hobby. When we have our train party people enjoy themselvesamend some of the group has not seen a model train layout ever.

Before computers that kid is lucky to be a stable boy. Hackneyed ideas and he don't write good either!

Pete

He likes going to train shows because being among "train nerds" makes him feel like the George Clooney in the room. 

I know my Dad said this, and his Dad probably said it as well. I fear for the future of this country. I watch 14 year old kids playing video games over the internet screaming profanities at people half way around the world they will never meet. It ingrains a certain method of dealing with adversity. When they get in the real world, after years of internet communication, all interplay among co-workers and the like is based on how snarky and clever they can be - because that's what they've lived on in school and faceless social interaction.

This writer is a product of this attitude wave.

I cannot say its a trend but I am seeing more and more younger people taking an interest in model railroading. My son and a few of his friends are even talking about building a new layout and they are in their late 20's. I predict that by their late 30's some will join the hobby big time.

There is no reason why this hobby should appeal only to tots and old farts. I predict that there will be a new generation coming into this hobby. Perhaps the number of hobbiests will shrink a bit but I am certain that the hobby will live on and perhaps some of the great layouts of today will be preserved. 

I guess I took the whole piece as an attempt at humor which I thought was cleverly done.  I enjoyed it for what it was. 

I dont think its any more expensive than other hobbies that 20-something year old guys can be into... gone shopping for car upgrades recently?

I guess I fit into the oddball group here. I'm 29, dont have a kid yet (but its on the near-term horizon), I've been out of trains for about 10 years and just got started again. I have way too many expensive hobbies.

This hobby is just like any hobby, as expensive as you want to make it... $400 to buy in with a starter set... thats about what an Xbox goes for (assuming you buy extra controllers, some games, etc...). Just like anything else, if you like it, it goes on from there. For $1000 you can be pretty well set for a while if that was all you could put into it. Lets also not forget the possibility of joining clubs, modular layouts, etc... and cutting a good chunk off the expense by eliminating the big time personal layout. There's lots of hobbies where its pretty tough to share like that.

I see this guy's point. I went to a show a couple weeks ago, and thought the same thing as I was walking in... Didn't really bother me much, but I can see what he's talking about. Certainly didnt feel like the coolest guy in the room though. Just another guy looking for some trains.  I just think its a hobby that isnt really mainstream, the thought of it isnt "cool" (although its funny how that reaction changes when people see what you can do with a couple weekends of work on a layout), and its just thought of as something people go and do in their basements. Not to mention, it requires tools, and imagination... the use of which has seemingly taken the back seat these days. I just hope sooner or later someone realizes that you cant learn everything from an iPad and people pick up some hands on hobbies again... regardless of what they may be.

Call me crazy, but I found a lot of his observations about train shows spot on.

Perhaps it'd be beneficial to our hobby if we payed a little more attention to our outward appearance? How many people get chased off by crotchety old men, or worse yet, those who don't deem bathing to be necessary?

When I was in that small child mode my biggest problem was looking my wife in the eye (with 2 children, 18 months appart) and telling her I was going to a train show. That was just not a smart move. If the need to depart was due to business, ok, but toy trains? I don't think so. Until my kids were much more independent I just could not justify time away. I can't be alone with this situation.

Mike Spanier

Always Buying & Selling Lionel Super O trackage

quote:

When I was in that small child mode my biggest problem was looking my wife in the eye (with 2 children, 18 months appart) and telling her I was going to a train show.

My kids went with me, riding in a backpack baby carrier when little (the carriers were quite popular at the time). We also went to flea market / antique shows, and camera shows.

The backpack had a metal frame. Once each kid was big enough, they used to push up on the frame to rasie themselves up hgher when they wanted a better look around

I have been to a few train shows since getting into the hobby back in 07 and frankly I don’t like them, for many reasons.  I would rather go to my local hobby shop and hang out there for a few hours on a Saturday afternoon during the long NY winters and talk trains with the customers going in and out.  And by the way there are more dads with younger kids patronizing this shop than the demographic described in the blog article. 

Although I agreed with some of the observations made by other posters about the parlous state of affairs of which this writers tone may be thought indicative, nevertheless I also thought it was extremely funny.  Some of his remarks were spot on but it was a humor piece that treated the hobby kindly overall. 

Those of us and I'm sure it's a majority, who like young children and encourage them to play with our trains, are passing on a very important torch which hasn't got so much to do with trains per se as it has with having the time to spend sharing our interest with a child.

Too many parents including some I know very well are too 'busy' to do much more than shove the young un in front of a TV with his or her blanky and hope they'll get along without needing to be paid attention for a while. THAT is the basic attitude whose horrible consequences are largely responsible for the perceived deterioration in the quality of family life and thus that of our society.

To tag onto Boillermakers comments, I don't think most people can understand a hobby unless they are in it or at least have a passing interest in the overall theme.  Heck, I don't understand quilting, scrapbooking or collecting NASCAR models, but each of them is presumably a great hobby with plenty of participants.  Along that same line, if you aren't into hunting or fishing it's hard to understand why someone would want to sit in a cold duck blind at dawn and try to call down birds or wade into a cold stream in the spring to fish for trout.

In short, I don't really care if people can't understand our train hobby, because in most cases, I probably can't understand theirs either.

Curt

I agree Curt, and I'm constantly amazed by how much navel gazing we do.

I don't think many other hobby participants are so self obsessed with what other people think.

I too, couldn't care less what others--particularly those who are not involved--think about this hobby.  Doesn't really bother me in the least because thing have always been that way and we'll never be able to change it.  It's that old "different strokes for different folks" thing.

I don't even care about what those in the hobby have to say when they come up with "my way is best" or "my way or the highway" lines of thinking.  It's MY hobby and it has brought me many years of enjoyment, relaxation, learning experiences, and wonderful friendships (not to mention gainful employment on several occasions).

Most of all, I enjoy being in a position to help others share their creativity and enjoyment of this great hobby, and I also enjoy sharing my personal experiences with others whenever and however I can.

There may be a better hobby out there somewhere, but if there is I sure haven't seen or heard about it yet!

quote:

Perhaps it'd be beneficial to our hobby if we payed a little more attention to our outward appearance? How many people get chased off by crotchety old men, or worse yet, those who don't deem bathing to be necessary?

My wife, a health care professional who has been to all types of train shows and other train related events, long ago observed that a large percentage of the population of folks attending train shows are not in the best physical shape (and sometimes are not in the best of mental health either). For some of these folks, walking around a train show might be the most physical exertion in their lives. Then add in the temperature of a well attended train show, and the lack of facilities to hang outer wear. The net result is that some of these unfortunate individuals might very well have left their homes all clean and smelling sweet as a rose, only to quickly become overheated and sweaty at the show.

Did we get our jollies on cropdusting in this thread yet?

Train shows out here that get decent traffic are usually filled with "insiders" -- those already in the hobby. However, what gives me hope is the WGH show as it brings in families -- new blood for the hobby.

Our chosen scale gets expensive and consumes a lot of space, so it's usually out of reach for the child-rearing age group until the kids are out of the house unless there's a local club within a reasonable (or sometimes unreasonable) driving distance. As more viable outdoor operating methods are discovered and disseminated the space issue as we can take it outside.