The Passing Track
May 2009 Newsletter of the
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Sunday Train Shows at the Park
The first Sunday open house at the Railroad Park in April was relatively lightly attended, though there was excellent representation of club members for both operations and parking lot duties. The second Sunday in April was a different story. There were several times when no parking was available (both park parking lot and the fire department lots were full), and numerous more times when less than a handful of spaces were available. Additional spaces were made available this year at the Fire Department lot, yet were filled to capacity several times. As one might expect, our visitors were delighted by the construction and progress of the final layout phase.
A bigger surprise awaited the visitors on Mother’s Day, as the continued unabated effort by E. Don, Carlos Furcal, Jay Mudge, Ed Kleinman, Larry Tuttle, and Dave Spakousky resulted in trains being able to run the entire layout from Klamath Falls to Medford and return! It was quite the learning experience for the operators. With generally four freights and Amtrak running the entire layout, and two trains running the loop at Klamath Falls, there was much for the engineers on which to concentrate. Other than a few minor operator errors, and some annoying issue with startups after shorts in the DCC, the layout operated flawlessly. The two trains running the Klamath loop were run in opposite direction as the other five. This created interesting train meets at the single mainline over the bridge over the south end of the lake. The activity seemed relentless, with trains “everywhere”. Kids appreciated being able to see the trains run along the south end of the Klamath Falls peninsula at eye level, and really liked the eye-level train meets! Visitors were no less amazed by the detail scenery work being done by Larry Tuttle east of Medco. Larry has perfected modeling the invasive blackberry! More backdrop scenery keeps appearing, as well, that seems to tie the entire layout together.
People love the personal tours we give of the layout on Sunday, but this means we need a sufficient number of operators to show up on Sunday public runs. We can always use operators, docents and parking attendants. All of us learned this first day of full operation on the layout that attention is needed to the layout when running trains, and difficulties arise when one attempts to be both an engineer and a docent. We need more members to help on Sunday!
Traffic buzzes on Interstate 5 underneath the P&E overpass in Medford.
Board Elections at May General Membership Meeting
The most important topic at the May 28 General Membership Meeting is the annual election for the officers to the Board. The nominating committee canvassed the most active members of the club for interest in board positions. The following slate of members expressed interest: President, Dave Carr; Vice-President, Jay Mudge; Secretary, Jim Dougall; and Treasurer, Jerry Helinga. Tom Baldwin expressed an interest in being a member-at-large. Those who are interested in any of the board positions may contact any of the current board members to announce their candidacy, or may be added to the ballot at the May 28 meeting. Also at the meeting will be presentations and discussion on operations.
May 31 Invitation for Ops Session in Eugene
The Lane Society of Model Railroaders are inviting members of the RVMRC to a joint DCC operating session on Sunday, May 31 beginning approximately at 10 am. The Lane Society trekked to Medford last year for an operations session over the Labor Day weekend. Those needing more information regarding directions to the Lane clubhouse, carpooling, etc. please contact Dave Carr at 541-245-1648 or dcarrman@charter.net.
New Club Website
The Rogue Valley Model Railroad Club has a new website address, though the website still looks very much like the old one. Conversions to the new website are being made, so if you check from time to time, you will likely see the progression of new layout design, features, and options. Please note the change in the URL, though the old address (http://rvmrc.railfain.net) is still valid. It is now http://rvmrc.net. The change occurred as a result of the Board’s approval to make greater opportunities available for in-depth stories and photos of the Club’s various activities, particularly the continued construction of the permanent layout. In addition, the move gives the Club more production capability (hence, better and easier webmaster tools), exclusive information “rooms” accessible only by club members, and better digital access and archiving of the Passing Track. By having the site available for downloading Passing Tracks, anyone with a computer can now download hard copies with the brilliant photos that are currently reduced in appearance with regular photocopying. It is estimated that the additional number of members that will be able to read the Passing Track online, or be able to download a copy, will result in decreased printing and mailing costs to more than offset the annual fee for the new domain. While the previous domain was free, the host site was limiting the amount of space and flexibility the club will now enjoy.
Continue to watch the website for new uploads and features.
May Board Meeting Notes
The Board meeting on May 13 was called to order with four board members and three club members present. Jerry Helinga reported the club being able to work out its cash flow such that the certificates of deposit are allowed to mature. Bruce McGarvey printed new business cards for the Club. The past month’s building maintenance included routine light bulb replacement and fire extinguishers being serviced. Two new members and one former member were accepted into the club: Ron Bloom, Tim Jamin, and Chuck Stutts.
Club members are reminded that there are NO discounts at Eugene Toy and Hobby for individuals who belong to the RVMRC unless so granted by the store. ET&H has a standing offer for discounts on products to be used by the club and for the club. Please, do not expect a discount for personal use!
Electrical gremlins on the layout are being sorted out, but engines with QSI sound and Broadway Limited products appear to cause issues when the layout is re-starting after a short.
In August, the board will revisit the need to refurbish the existing modules for the fall shows.
The board authorized the expenditure of $200 for the purchase of hardware for drawers under the layout edge for use during operation sessions. The board did not accept the offer of a sign fro Andy Anderson. The sign instructs people to keep their hands off of the layout in a manner that was too strong and direct, and not in keeping with the context and atmosphere the club wishes to convey to the public. While being appreciative of Andy’s effort, the board requested that Andy return the sign for his refund.
On Saturday, May 23, the Club will hold a training operations session beginning
at 1 P.M. Be there to have some fun and to learn!
June 2008 Calendar of Events