Out of curiosity, aside from Model Railroading, what other non-train-related hobbies do you have? And do they compete for your MRR time (and money)?
used to fly sport kites … now r/c choppers.
Rudy
Some of my other hobbies are useful in model railroading, some not so.
Here they are in no particular order:
radio monitoring – shortwave, VHF/UHF, CB, a little of everything, oh, and I founded a low-power FM station
woodworking
four-wheeling
camping
collecting Cold War militaria and ephermera, beer bottles, and books, not necessarily in that order
history – used to be more of a hobby, now turning into a profession (if I ever live long enough to make it out of UIUC alive)
traveling
politics – errr, let’s not talk about that here [}:)]
Oh, did I mention beer?
[:D]
Astronomy, classical music, choral singing, running, cycling, snowshoeing, gardening. None currently competes for dollars except for a few dollars for the Choral Society membership and driving up to meet the snow.
You need a telescope for the astronomy right? Cycling, you need to keep your bike tuned, buy new tires periodically, right? Gardening, you need to buy plants, soil, fertilizer, etc, right? 
My other hobbies include cycling, traveling (though I only really take a major trip every other year, I also collect souveniers and small flags of every country I visit), computers (I build and fix my own systems) and I consider myself an amateur sushi chef (just simple rolls, none of the fancy stuff yet).
When I was a kid, I also collected stamps and baseball cards.
But more than that I’m a singer/musician/songwriter with my own recording studio. I’m actually a semi-professional musician, I have my own band that performs around town and frequently get hired as a singer and/or musician for events, recording sessions, weddings, churches, etc. I play several instruments (mostly keyboards/piano, bass guitar, acoustic guitar, alto saxophone, ukulele, percussion - in that order). It’s not a cheap hobby/lifestyle; musical equipment can cost thousands of dollars…A nice bass guitar can cost just as much if not more as an elaborate DCC system PLUS a loco with a decoder and sound!
Does it compete with Model Railroading? You bet it does. It explains my on-agan, off-again absences from the hobby. But aside from my hired music gigs, I have to admit that the trains are taking up more of my time (and money) at the moment.
Hopefully I can strike a balance…
G’day, MRL. Way back when I was much younger, I played bass in a couple of bands, but these days I can’t stand the noise! But I still love my music, and have someone new to share it with - our six-month old son Harry. We put him in his Jolly Jumper, put on a CD, and dance around with him until we’re exhausted, or laughing too hard to continue - often it’s both! At the moment we’re listening to Patrizio Buanne, DEVO, Alison Krauss, Motor Ace, Something For Kate, and Throwing Muses. Architecture from the late 19th to early 20th century has always fascinated me. One of my most memorable trips as a young bloke was to Barcelona, to see the work of the famed Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi. To be honest, I was more impressed by Casa Batllo and Casa Mila than the Sagrada Familia. Hector Guimard and Charles Rennie Mackintosh are also favourites. Apart from railway books and magazines, I enjoy reading whenever I can, usually at work. My favourite fiction author at the moment is William Gibson - I’m reading his anthology “Burning Chrome” and his novel “Idoru”. I’m also very interested in 20th century history, having just finished “Tales of Sub-Lieutenant Ilyin”, by F. F. Raskolnikov. This had some personal relevance, as one of my wife’s distant relatives went to Russia and fought with the Bolsheviks in 1919. A chance comment at a family gathering revealed that one of my great-uncles served in the Australian coast artillery during WW2. Since learning that, I’ve been researching the history of these units, and visiting the battery sites to photograph the surviving structures and artifacts…which is a good excuse for a trip to the seaside and a bit of swimming and bushwalking. And having a few cold ales - I don’t mind a bit of home brew. But I reckon my main interest these days apart from railway modelling is my son. All the best, Mark.
My other hobby is computers, fixing and building. Also coin collecting.
Besides my model railroading I collect:
Postage stamps (USA and Germany and Area; Two distinct collections of each. One Mint and the other postally used.)
Beer steins (Just lidded steins; not mugs or tankards.)
Obsolete bolt action military rifles.
Miltary distinguished unit insignia.
Then there’s an interest in American and Medieval history, genealogy and membership in several lineage societies.
The financing doesn’t conflict too much. I work on one collection for a while and, when I feel I need a break, I go to another.
I still do some cycling, though by no means enough. The whole family does a lot of skiing, which will start to eat into my MR time in another month or so, assuming we don’t have another spell of Global Warming and they can at least make snow, even if we don’t get any for free. I used to play guitar in a couple of bands, but that was back in college. My daughter has just announced that she and her friends are forming a band. She’s playing my '65 Fender Jaguar. I’m glad to see it getting used again, actually.
I like to cook, too. Unfortunately, I’m caught between a daughter who still just wants spaghetti and a wife who wants health food, so most of the time I’m just doing “utility cooking” which is not very interesting. Everyone approved of the pork chops with a sherry glaze sauce last night, though.
I enjoy the outdoors so I hunt, fish and ATV with my wife as much as I can get out. I have a 78 Trans Am that I take to car shows and drag race the odd time. I collect diecast cars, mostly 1/24 scale Nascar race cars, NHRA Funny cars and Pro Stock cars, lots of Franklin Mint cars and 1/18 scale muscle cars, mostly Pontiacs and Super Stock drag cars. I’ve been looking at Nitro RC boats and I plan on picking one up over the winter.
Ham radio, R/C planes and large model ships.
Lets see I reckon cow tippin is a hobby, I reckon computer buildin and fixen, I draw alot, video games on an ole toaster with a dvd player installed with some fancy doo dads (ps2), DVD authoring, building my own large screen LCD tv with a watchman and giant magnifing glass. I reckon I have others but dont do them much anymore.
Camping/Backpacking, messing with computers, and working on my truck.
My other two hobbies are currently dormant due to time/money constraints:
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Civil War reenacting (148th Pennsylvania Volunteers!)
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Flying (I have a private pilot’s liscense).
Since the Air Force has me here at NC State working on my PhD, I have very little time. Add two young kids and a train layout, and you can see why I’ve had to whittle down to just one hobby for now. Notice which hobby won (model railroading, of course!).
High-power rocketry, computers, and XBox!
Live steam. Inch and a half scale was too expensive, but full scale steam equipment was easy to get. But then I needed a crane to move the stuff around, so got one of those! Then I needed a place to keep the steam stuff and crane, got a two bay steam locomotive engine house. So when the UP got the SP they got me too with all the steam stuff!
I’ll give you a hint…
Computer gaming and history ( mainly WWII, like to learn what they don’t like to talk about, the things that don’t make it into the history books ).
Besides model railroading I like going on long walks (san Francisco is a walker’s paradise), music (classic jazz, rock, soul, dance), traveling, collecting obscure records (stuff not available on CD), reading, etc.