Re: PC: PCHS and Bi-Annual Vol. 1?

[bobr@xxxxxxxxxxxx (Bob Rothrock)]

At 10:01 AM 4/8/98 -0400, Christian Axsiom <rcaxsiom -AT- maxwell.syr.edu> wrote:

> I don't want to anger any older folks out there, but I
>think at times there's a bit too much of an older slant to rail hobbies.  I
>don't think Evan should have to apologize for being young.  

Christian:

   I'm "older folks" (51) and (surprise) not angry. Your astute observations 
have their roots in something that's probably plagued humankind since we 
first crawled out of the primodial ooze, i.e., we have this maniacal need to 
hold the turf and ward off any new barbarians who would dare to scale the 
walls. I felt exactly the same kind of isolation in my 20's when I'd visit a 
hobby shop for the first time only to find the atmosphere somehow cloistered 
and self-referential...I recall driving a pretty good distance one bright 
Saturday morning in pursuit of (I hope I have this right) a Mainline Models 
kit for a Pennsy N6A caboose that was new to the market.

  When I walked into the shop, there were about 3 or 4 "old guys" (probably 
less than 51) perched on stools at the counter, filling the joint up with 
cigarette smoke. I had a sense that they were engaged in animated 
conversation until I walked in, and fell silent after that, and waited to 
hear or see what I was up to. I asked the owner about the kit, and he 
promptly told me he was sold out of them, after which one of the guys at the 
counter spun around and announced that he had "six of 'em sittin' home...how 
much do you want to pay for one?" (raucous laughter at this point from his 
cronies). Talk about instant alienation!

   But the flip side is that for all the disappointments and/or brush-offs 
from those who need to pull up the ladder behind them, this hobby has been 
blessed with some really special people who give willingly of their time and 
experience, which is what perpetuates the interest and reaffirms your 
enthusiasm. It can be an encounter with someone with a nice layout who has 
an open house, or (as so well depicted by others on this list) an encounter 
with railroad operating department personnel resulting in a cab ride, or an 
invite up into a tower. And those are the moments that make up for all the 
bad ones, and (as Willie Brown points out) they are the ones that stay with 
you always, you'll remember how the engine cab smelled and how the 
dispatcher sounded over the radio 'til you fade away.

>	I know most of you on this list are probably not Lionel fans, and some may
>not share my reading of what's going on, but I wondered what you all think.

   I model in 2-rail O scale, because the stuff is big enough for me to see 
without my glasses on, and thanks to Weaver, Intermountain, and Red Caboose, 
there are locomotives and cars available at prices lower than a lot of 
Lionel and MTH. But the sight of pre and postwar Lionel equipment running 
always gets me back to that time when I turned off the room lights and 
hunkered down on the floor to watch the headlight coming at me, which I 
suspect most of us have experienced. I still run Lionel equipment at 
Christmas, and that's what always gets the attention when kids visit...my 
neighbor's 3-month old son was fascinated for a half hour watching it go 
around the oval. 

   I've diverged rather wildly from PC-related subject material, and 
apologize to anyone who's read this only to be frustrated by the line I've 
taken here...but I came up through the pre-PC era and saw the period when 
hobby shops couldn't give away models of PC equipment because modelers 
basically felt that the PC "stole" their favorite railroad (be it PRR or 
NYC), and as I mentioned in an earlier posting, PC was (to me) really the 
last chance to experience the best of what had gone before...as an employee 
I always hoped that PC would make it, 'cause there's no turning back.

   I'm glad to see the response on this list from all ages. As mergers and 
acquisitions blur the ability to distinguish one line from another and 
(worse yet) consolidate facilities to even further minimize the potential 
for inquisitive kids to hop on a yard engine, this media is what will help 
keep the juices flowing.

bobr -AT- tridelta.com (Bob Rothrock)