Okay, I signed up for my rail pass (6 month membership). The next meet is in Flagstaff next weekend. I looked at the pictures on line from the last meeting and couldn’t see a single woman in any of the pictures. My wife is going to attend; is she going to stick out like a woman at Augusta National?
Richard,
No, there are female model railroaders. We have several in our division. Like other members, their participation varies, but I’d hope that any division is glad to welcome members no matter what their gender.
At the National (do you mean Atlanta?), there will be women, but mostly wives travelling with their husbands. The convention will have some clinics, etc. that will cater to wives that have no interest in trains.
P.S. Oops! I see you don’t mean the NMRA Peachtree Express National Convention, which is in Atlanta.
Enemaray…Tried in for several years in the early 1970’s…didn’t care for it much. They were in their “Biffy Period”. I like trains! I wasn’t (still not) into outhouses and the space wasted on them for several years. Tried it again for a few years in the early 1990’s…still didn’t care for it. They didn’t have anything worth reading in the Bulletin and then they did away with that. While I don’t find much there for me I know others that enjoy the fellowship of the members. I didn’t care for the snobbish folks I’ve met at the Division meets. I spend my money on railroad historical societies and get a return for my dollars that way. My 2¢, Roger Huber
If you are looking for a return on investment, you are in the wrong place. The NMRA is not a business, it is a volunteer organization. You only get out of it what you put into it. If you expect to get $20 back for every $10 you put in, well, that is not going to happen.
People join the NMRA because they want to participate in the hobby, be it division meets, regional conventions, or the annual convention. It’s about meeting people, learning new skills, and comparing your efforts to others, be it on the display table or in a contest. It is about community.
If you are looking for returns that can be measured in dollar value, well, it isn’t for you.
Roger,
The NMRA Bulletin changed its name about 10 years ago to Scale Rails, although technically the Bulletin is now incorporated into Scale Rails. In any case, it’s been published monthly all along. Now it’s on slick paper and mostly in color. Lots of good stuff consistently appears. I’ve been pleased by the improvements myself, as it’s one of the main returns on your investment, if you must think of it that way.
There is an option to not receive Scale Rails, too.
Betamax has a point. It’s an association of model railroaders in service to the hobby, not a service to do your model railroading for you. However, part of the mission is to help each other to the best of our ability, so there are ways in which you can get a “return on investment.” In our division, we help with advice and even actual labor when necessary. It doesn’t take much of that to get your money’s worth when that short you can’t find gets fixed, when folks with operating layouts can go over a trackplan before you make hundred dollar mistakes, and are willing to teach you how to install a decoder by using one of your locos as a training aid for hands on experience. Maybe none of that’s needed right now, but it’s good to know it’s there, along with many other services and connections to fellow model railroaders.
It’s no longer Scale Rails. It’s now NMRA Magazine. They changed it last year or the year before.
Personally, I thought the so called “Biffy” period when Whit Towers was editor were the best years it ever had.
Enjoy
Paul
Tony Koester recently stated on a podcast that one of the biggest mistakes the NMRA made was to allow members to opt out of the magazine. A lot of people chose the cheaper membership rate because they didn’t want to spend any more than that, and in the process voluntarily made the decision to cut themselves off from the organization they are members of.
The NMRA Magazine is the main tool of communication. Sure, you can argue that the internet has replaced that, but the internet is a buffet, not a meal. Every month you don’t get the magazine you are out of the loop. You don’t know what is going on, events that are coming up, or who has earned an MMR. You also don’t get the latest news or communications from the NMRA board. If a well known member passes away, you may learn about it in the NMRA magazine.
That is what the NMRA is all about: sharing your passion with others.
Paul,
Thanks for the correction. I can’t keep up these days, but I still enjoy reading, errr, whatever they send me…[;)][:o)]
betamax,
I definitely agree with your assessment. The magazine is worth it and members will be missing out on things if they don’t receive it. I just wanted people to know that no one is going to force them to pay for it.
Well, I have read the responses to my response with interest. First, I never expected a $20 return for a $10 investment. That’s just stupid! However, I DID EXPECT to get SOMETHING worth the dues money though. I don’t think that’s too much to expect. I also never expected the NMRA or it’s members to build my railroad. Where did you come up with that comment? As a dues paying member I just felt there should be something for me and others like me who couldn’t devote their meager vacation every year and budget to the National Conventions. I attended a couple Regional events and found them to be snobbish and if one weren’t part of the clicque then you were a definite “outsider” as far as they acted. I also stand by the the fact that I never found the great comradiere touted by all the vocal members here. When building my layouts I asked for help and never received any help or offers of help. I also have to disagree with the statement that “the NMRA isn’t a business”. Is it a charity? It seems more of a business than anything else. This topic really has no answer, as IF one doesn’t love the NMRA and states their opinion the loyalists find it necessary to attack those people. Maybe that was why many of us tried it and decided not to stay. I am a modeler, have been for over 55 years and will continue to be as long as I’m alive. I just don’t see the need for or the need to participate in the NMRA. I know many non-NMRA member modelers who are every bit the “Master Model Railroader” without playing the eletist games necessary for a number. I appreciate the Standards and organization they developed many, many years ago when the hobby was in kaos during its infancy but don’t feel I should have to pay them back for the past any more than I should apologize to Yankees because my Confederate ancestors shot at them. What are the numbers for total model railroaders compared to NMRA membership? I’d be interested to see those statistics. I don’t think
It’s hard to believe these “elitist” and “snobbish clique” tags. Perhaps you are a little too uptight in everyday life.
Any charity that wants to survive, has to run their charity like a business. That’s a fact.
If someone doesn’t want to belong to the NMRA, that’s fine with me. [:)]
[quote user=“oldline1”]
Well, I have read the responses to my response with interest. First, I never expected a $20 return for a $10 investment. That’s just stupid! However, I DID EXPECT to get SOMETHING worth the dues money though. I don’t think that’s too much to expect. I also never expected the NMRA or it’s members to build my railroad. Where did you come up with that comment? As a dues paying member I just felt there should be something for me and others like me who couldn’t devote their meager vacation every year and budget to the National Conventions. I attended a couple Regional events and found them to be snobbish and if one weren’t part of the clicque then you were a definite “outsider” as far as they acted. I also stand by the the fact that I never found the great comradiere touted by all the vocal members here. When building my layouts I asked for help and never received any help or offers of help. I also have to disagree with the statement that “the NMRA isn’t a business”. Is it a charity? It seems more of a business than anything else. This topic really has no answer, as IF one doesn’t love the NMRA and states their opinion the loyalists find it necessary to attack those people. Maybe that was why many of us tried it and decided not to stay. I am a modeler, have been for over 55 years and will continue to be as long as I’m alive. I just don’t see the need for or the need to participate in the NMRA. I know many non-NMRA member modelers who are every bit the “Master Model Railroader” without playing the eletist games necessary for a number. I appreciate the Standards and organization they developed many, many years ago when the hobby was in kaos during its infancy but don’t feel I should have to pay them back for the past any more than I should apologize to Yankees because my Confederate ancestors shot at them. What are the numbers for total model railroaders compared to NMRA membership? I’d be interested to see
In view of some of the recent comments in this thread, I’m going to restate a few of my thoughts.
Betamax suggests that the NMRA’s biggest value is in the social side of their events, yet some of the recent negative comments suggest some have had less than positive experiences at NMRA events.
Yet I am a 40 plus year, life long member and have never been to a function of any kind. I did not join for
Again I agree and share many of Sheldon’s sentiments. [:O]
Well stated, Sheldon. The NMRA is a lot of different things to a lot of different people. That’s one of it’s strengths. As you’ve noted, it’s biggest strength is simply the way it represents model railroaders as a whole. It doesn’t mean we all agree, but it does help remind us of the importance of our common, shared heritage and interest in standards, practices, and interoperability. These seem like simple or obvious things, but it really does take people to make them happen.
For people who don’t see the value, well, some people get a computer and use it for email – period. Do they need all that expense? Probably not. You can do email on your phone these days (so they tell me.) So some people really won’t benefit from any of the wide range of things being a member can help with. Certainly no one forces anyone to be a member. Fortunately, the NMRA is still way cheaper than a computer. for those who find value in membership…[swg]
One thing I learn years ago for every snobbish clique there’s many more friendlier members.I also learn by being standoffish I appeared to be unfriendly and a loner…I was neither…I was just shy and wasn’t sure how to break the ice…I ended up meeting a lot of good folks and even got to operate on 4 layouts as a guest engineer.
If I was in better health I would rejoin just to attend the monthly meetings.
Great post! [Y]
Agreed!
Larry,
That’s an important insight.I remember attending my very first NMRA event, a meet in Indianapolis in the early 1970s. I was maybe 14 or 15 and had to have my mom drive me up there from Bloomington. I knew no one and, well, was a pretty shy kid. It was clear that many folks knew each other – or so it seemed – and were chatting with their buddies. Eventually one old fellow came up and engaged in conversation to find out what I was up to – maybe because old folks worried a lot about what young folks were up in those days…[;)] So it seemed like the sort of experience that a few have related, but I think it was more about me than them.
It’s always hard to find a way into an established group. But the idea that the organization as a whole, in the main, or even quite a bit spends its time and resources trying to be cliquish doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. It’s about making connections with others in the hobby, not obstructing them. Not that we’re perfect as an organization, but I think we’re also only human. We may fail at some things , sometimes, but generally we’d like to here it from you if we do and we’d like to fix it. Because there’s little point in what we do unless we create a positive model railroading experience for each other.
I’m sure there are a few cliquish NMRA members, every organization has a few. That’s life. But I’d almost bet many of those folks perceived that way are actually desperately trying to start up a conversation like Larry and me. Many people would assume I’m a gregarious outgoing fellow who know me from my model rail activities and in some other aspects of my life (I was deeply involved in non-profit management for a