03-23-2010, 10:51 PM
Sorry for the lengthy post earlier, but I'm glad it sparked some good thoughts.
I used to be part of a modular club that still makes the rounds and I was the youngest guy in the group (I'll be 35 in May). I enjoyed the camaraderie and the chance to run long trains. I also enjoyed the (mostly) free admission to the shows.
Went to the club meeting last time I was in town and the room was full but once again, I was the youngest one there. It very well could be that in 10 years time I'll visit a club meeting and see alot of guys my age. That is, as folks reach a different stage of life (kids in school, more personal time) they may become naturally more involved.
But train shows throw a wrench in those works. The last show I attended in Puyallup was a WGH on Tour show, I think...or was it a Great Train Expo...anyway, there were loads of young parents (wives too!) with kids, boys and girls. They were lined up to ride a great big radio controlled Thomas the Tank Engine. My 5 year old rode it three times.
These folks aren't at the NMRA meetings. I'm the youngest one in the room there too. These folks aren't on the layout tours - mostly gray haired men there.
The younger folks will go to a train show because it gets main stream advertising and their kids are into Thomas the Tank Engine, or the latest one from Disney, Chuggington. Dad may have had Tyco trains around the Xmas tree, or played with Uncle Bernie's Lionel at Xmas, or maybe just has a mild interest. But there's a disconnect somehow between model railroad clubs, the NMRA, and younger modelers.
I know I'm making pretty sweeping generalizations here, and there are exceptions to the rule, but somewhere along the line there's a gap in the rail and the current ain't flowing. I have great hopes for the hobby in general, but organizations and institutions that can't adapt will fade away. I'm not sure how to fix this, or even if it needs to be addressed, but it's worth noting that the young families are attending the train shows. We in the modeling 'fraternity' better have our best foot forward and a smile on our faces as we meet the next generation of modelers at these events. The same old stuff ain't gonna cut it.
Galen
I used to be part of a modular club that still makes the rounds and I was the youngest guy in the group (I'll be 35 in May). I enjoyed the camaraderie and the chance to run long trains. I also enjoyed the (mostly) free admission to the shows.
Went to the club meeting last time I was in town and the room was full but once again, I was the youngest one there. It very well could be that in 10 years time I'll visit a club meeting and see alot of guys my age. That is, as folks reach a different stage of life (kids in school, more personal time) they may become naturally more involved.
But train shows throw a wrench in those works. The last show I attended in Puyallup was a WGH on Tour show, I think...or was it a Great Train Expo...anyway, there were loads of young parents (wives too!) with kids, boys and girls. They were lined up to ride a great big radio controlled Thomas the Tank Engine. My 5 year old rode it three times.
These folks aren't at the NMRA meetings. I'm the youngest one in the room there too. These folks aren't on the layout tours - mostly gray haired men there.
The younger folks will go to a train show because it gets main stream advertising and their kids are into Thomas the Tank Engine, or the latest one from Disney, Chuggington. Dad may have had Tyco trains around the Xmas tree, or played with Uncle Bernie's Lionel at Xmas, or maybe just has a mild interest. But there's a disconnect somehow between model railroad clubs, the NMRA, and younger modelers.
I know I'm making pretty sweeping generalizations here, and there are exceptions to the rule, but somewhere along the line there's a gap in the rail and the current ain't flowing. I have great hopes for the hobby in general, but organizations and institutions that can't adapt will fade away. I'm not sure how to fix this, or even if it needs to be addressed, but it's worth noting that the young families are attending the train shows. We in the modeling 'fraternity' better have our best foot forward and a smile on our faces as we meet the next generation of modelers at these events. The same old stuff ain't gonna cut it.
Galen
I may not be a rivet counter, but I sure do like rivets!