Kern Train Show Report

Took the family down to the Kern Train Show today and had fun looking at all the trains and railroads.

This was our first time at this show and only the second show I've been to (I went to the Train Expo at the Cow Palace last year).  All and all it was an enjoyable time for everyone, although I wish I would have had a little more time to shop.  Being relatively new to the hobby and the Kern show I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was pleased to find some nice club layouts and a lot of N-Scale.  In fact, as far layouts that were actually being exhibited, it seemed to be a heavy majority of n scale.  Although, there was a large HO module layout as well.  I also saw the Canfield Family Circus layout again, which was fun because my family wasn't with me the first time I'd seen it.  My wife and the kids really liked that one.

My favorite layout was a loop to loop modular layout by a gentleman and his son.  They managed to to get a 56 car train going quite smoothly, which was impressive to behold.  I didn't get their names although I did talk to the dad a little bit.  one of the elements I really liked was his scratchbuilt snow tunnel based on the sheds up at Donner Pass.  Most of the photos I took were of this layout.  I should be better about getting people's names because I would really love to credit him with on the picture I put in my gallery.  Maybe if he frequents nScale.net he'll let me know.

Mom and the kids finished their visit with a little ride on the Kern Count Live Steam 7 1/2" layout while Daddy filmed it.  FUN!  Dylan (our 2 year old son) kept echoing the horn yelling Choo-choo as he rode past Daddy.

Now, a couple of observations that I have to get out of my head.

First, the Kern County Fairgrounds were a nice venue for this show.  The train rides and concessions outside with picnic tables, trees, and shade were enjoyable and created a nice family environment.  But inside was packed tight!  It looked to me like Building 3 across the way is a little bigger than Building 2, why not do it in the Building 3?   This was the opposite of my experience at the Cow Palace which is huge and didn't quite seem filled up.  It just seemed too tight for comfort.  When I brought the subject up and asked questions about it, I got some funny responses from people, as though they saw me concern was akin to under-appreciation and ingratitude (and if the show were free, I could understand why someone would think that).  Train people are a bit funny (and I include myself with this).  On one hand we want the hobby to grow and want to share our models with others.  On the other hand we tend to be pretty nervous about letting people get too close to the layout.  Of course, this I understand.  I don't like my kids getting to close to my own layout.  But with that in mind, I make this observation regarding displays, spatial planning, and kids.

I couldn't help but wonder if the person(s) in charge of wedging things into this snug building slightly actually felt that there was a benefit to creating such narrow isles.  I could envision someone reasoning to themselves, that "if we keep the isles narrow, kids are less likely to run around and knock things over" and to some extent I understand that logic.  But there has to be a happy medium, because,  If you try and jam too much into a small space, you not only restrict people's ability to move freely, but also create a situation where kids and adults are actually are a little more likely to bump into things.  The consequence of operating in a tight space, is that dad and mom, fearing that their kid will be "that kid" who creates a catastrophe, puts a death grip on the little ones.  The problem with restraining most really young kids (with the ever present death grip) is that, eventually, the more you attempt to restrain kids, the more likely they are to wrestle and pull away.  Consequently, if a kid does break free he/she does so with all the force of their 30-40 pound bodies, plus the added momentum created by their struggle.   Anyhow, I realize there are differing thoughts on whether or not you should even have kids of that age or size there.  But, obviously you see where my feelings lie in that debate.

Second, no code Atlas 55 turnouts!.  This isn't really a major grievance; after all, there are other places I can get this.  But I had put off ordering any turnouts online figuring that some vendor would have a decent supply of trackage to rifle through.  But alas, no luck.  Guess I'll be shopping online this week.

Third observation.  Where's the weathering?  Again this is an observation that comes from the perspective of a relative newcomer to the hobby, so take it with a grain of salt.  I saw a fair amount of really good modeling at this show.  As I visited all the different setups I began to realize that many of these models were almost great modeling but were missing something.  It took me a while to put my finger on it  and figure out what was missing.  Finally, it dawned on me that the difference between most of the models that I thought were really good, and those that I think of as great came down to weathering.  But I actually saw very little weathering in general.

Weathering seems to be one of those BIG "little things".  That is, if it's there and done well you often don't notice or appreciate it quite as much as you should; but if it isn't there, you notice it, even if only sub-conciously.  Anyhow, the one model that I really liked was a prime example of this.  It was really good modeling, but there was no weathering on any of the cars.  Consequently, the realism of the scenery seemed a little undermined by the sterility of the trains.  Here's a shot of that layout, which is, in fact, a fabulous model.  

Well, that's all, I'm just being nit-picky now and am really waxing philosophical more than anything.  The reality is, that I'm no where near as skilled at this point, so you won't hear much more about that subject from me.  Ultimately, It's a very nice show and we had fun.

Doug