Virtual Train Convention

 

Good evening (or morning as the case may be). I had the privilege to attend the National Model Railroad Association’s national convention last week. Due to COVID issues the event was held virtually. I cannot say enough about the experience. The crew in California did an amazing job with it. Especially considering the relatively short time they had to prepare. The clinics were very well done. Having two concurrent sessions and then breakout rooms where attendees could interact with the presenters was nothing short of brilliant on the part of the organizers. This is hands down the best Zoom event I have attended over the last year. Thank you so much to the organizers.

 

My attendance was a last minute decision as I registered the night before. My initial impression was that why pay for a few days of model railroad videos similar to what I can get for free on You Tube. Boy was I wrong. Yes, some of the layout tours were actually links to You Tube Videos. However, the various breakout rooms that were taking place throughout the week is what really made it for me. In addition to the breakout rooms associated with clinics, they had rooms dedicated to other topics like layout design or particular railroads or groups of railroads. I hopped into a few vendor sessions and learned about some great new products. After his presentation I am definitely going to need some Dwarvin lighting once I get building the layout and structures for example (check them out at: www.dwarvin.com/). The chance to interact with the NMRA president was a pleasure as well. I don’t know if they will do another virtual convention like this again but if they do, I urge to sign up.

 

For those who are not familiar with the NMRA check out their web site at www.nmra.org. The NMRA is the group that has established standards for model trains. They are why an Athearn locomotive with a Soundtraxx decoders can pull cars by Tangent or Bachmann over track made by Atlas or Micro-engineering. But the groups is so much more than either standards or national conventions. The NMRA is about comradery in the hobby. It is about meeting other model railroaders in your local area or from around the world. It is about interacting with members around the region or on your local division. It is about education and learning about model trains and how to build, paint operating them etc. It’s about having access to a growing library of videos or even getting access to materials in their hardcopy library. The growing list of manufacturers and retailers that participate in the discount program could pay for one’s membership. Like I said check them out at nmra.org and if you like what you see join. Their 9 month rail pass (trial membership) for under $20 is the best deal in model railroading.