Page 21 - September October 2014

perhaps our luck was changing. As we purchased our entrance tickets at the Curve, the funicular left, and it would be another half-hour wait for the next one, plus it had started to rain again. Suddenly we heard the squeal of flanges on track, and realising it was a train coming round the loop (we are normally blessed with Hi-Rail vehicles when we get trackside) we ran up the steps (yes your President ran!!) and as we got to the top we found two trains taking the curve.
both clinic subjects and times! Prior to travelling, it was very hard to communicate with the organising team and we ended up having to change hotels after the first night! However, the Convention venue (separate from the hotel but just across the road) was very spacious and well labelled. The clinics I did attended were interesting, educational and productive – I even managed to get to operate on the Operations Roadshow layout and Tim Warren’s Bronx Terminal layout (http://railsonwheels. com/ors/opershow.shtml and www.bronx-terminal.com).
I’m pleased to say that the pointwork that I constructed in one clinic was passed-out by Didrik Voss, and this will help towards the Civil Engineering section of my AP program. It has certainly given me the point-building bug, and at the time of writing I have already started building my next piece. This will possibly end in a Roundhouse article, but I am posting photos on Facebook as things develop if you are interested.
The train show was very enjoyable and largely un-crowded – even after they let the public in. There was a bit of disappointment regarding the absence of some of the popular manufacturers (Kadee and Rapido to mention a couple), plus the fact that many were displaying rather than selling – the NMRA, for instance, no paperwork and no supplies, even worse, no gauges! This seemed especially short-sighted seeing that the NMRA has recently released a new Clearance Gauge (see separate review). I’m glad I had the foresight to pre-order a few.
There were quite a few BR members there, but the convention was so big I did not manage to meet up with all of them, so if you were there and I did not say hello, I apologise. I was very disappointed that the National BoD appeared not to be making themselves approachable and even Charlie seemed to not want to engage in friendly conversation when we had an accidental meeting. I understand there was some form of ‘Forum’ very early on in the week, as well as a ‘meet the President’ at the same time as some interesting clinics! This alone has not encouraged me to attend another convention – at least you don’t have that problem with us! Kathy introduced me to Stephen Priest, and I received very warm welcomes from Alan Pollock (former National President) and Clark Kooning (Canadian Region President), both of whom I have met previously. Incidentally, if ever you see Clark’s name appear on the voting forms, please take the time to get a vote off for him. As well as his current role, he is very much on our side when it comes down to getting a better deal for non-mainland USA Regions. Kathy has covered the train show quite well in her blogs and postings, and there are some good videos on the Model Railroader website (including one showing yours truly operating the Operations Roadshow layout mentioned earlier) – please go and have a look at both.
Our return to Boston was more direct, and took us past Syracuse where we decided to stop over for another, largely unplanned night. This proved to be a good call, as we went to our first baseball game (right by a very busy CSX east–west line) and thoroughly enjoyed it! Back in Boston we returned the car and returned to our favourite diner for breakfast before flying home. If you’re going to Boston visit: http://southstreetdiner. com, possibly the second-best highlight of the trip overall.
I wish I had counted those coal hoppers, there were four SD40Es on the back pushing and two on the front. It took over 10 minutes to pass by me. It was not long to wait for our next encounter, a tanker train with two SD70Ace’s, and having heard my comment about the coal train Carol counted 109 tankers along with one boxcar, a gondola and a reefer as barrier vehicles. From then on, the procession was almost endless. Our luck had definitely changed; however, we had this one night with no hotel room pre-booked, having decided to wing it on the day. When we left the curve on the way to find somewhere to stay, we didn’t head back towards Altoona, instead we turned right from the car park, emerging from under the rail loop via a short tunnel. There we found the road was blocked due to a fallen tree that was in the process of being cleared away. Unlike most people around us we decided to wait to be let by, then further down the road a bridge was out and as there were no diversion signs, we had to find our way by gut feel, but we didn’t give in and turn around. How was this good luck you ask? Well we ended up by driving along Front Street in Cresson, the continued N&S luck bringing us straight past the Station Inn. Unlike what seems most of our NMRA friends, we didn’t really know of its existence before, probably because we nearly always go to the West, but we must say it was one of the best finds we have ever had in the USA. It appears that many of you know Tom’s place, and we found the owner very welcoming and the place extremely well presented and situated. It is definitely a destination for a future holiday – even my daughter Electra is up for a holiday there! Please visit www.stationinnpa. com for more info.
I had better now tell you about the convention itself, which as stated earlier was my first visit to a National Convention. First impressions were not good, as much of the information about the clinics was poor until you got there – and it kept changing,
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