I am discovering a whole new facet of model railroading culture, i.e., the backyard patio. No, this is not garden railraoding in the traditional sense. Back in Saint Louis, or Denver, or even in Arizona if you are going to have an NMRA meeting you rent a room in a church, a Legion hall, or somewhere similar. In Las Vegas you find a member with a large patio. This appears to me to be a very novel choice. But these folks in Vegas don't think it odd at all. Is it the milder climate? A quirky result of an economy built on casinos? Whatever, it seems to work. Las Vegas does have some interesting twists on model railroading which I experienced again this past Saturday.
The Cajon Division of the NMRA held a "mini meet" in the backyard of Jim Simmons. In attendance were 47 people, a greater number than expected but we all fit on the spacious patio. As is common in Las Vegas, the backyard was enclosed by a high masonry wall. An awning completed just the day before provided shade. The entire crowd would be fed from a grill to one side of the patio. No need to dash out in search of some fast food, thanks to cooking by the very gracious wife of our host. All in all, a very comforable setting for a meeting of this size. Modelers in Las Vegas may be onto something.
The mini-meet was pretty informal. Members had been invited to bring recent projects for a show-n-tell and a few did. We even had a 9-year old tell how he kit-bashed a simple building with left-over kit parts. Personally, I like this approach much more than contests. I think it fosters group solidarity, expands our knowledge, and encourages persons to try their hand at something they have previously been intimidated about attempting. After all, if a 9-year old can kit-bash why can't you? The show-n-tell was a bit like mini-clinics and prompted a good deal of question and answers. There were more traditional clinics about dry brush techniques and using powders for weathering. Both clinics were brief. The one about powders was, in fact, only a small segment of a full hour clinic to be presented at the national NMRA convention this summer.
These mini-meets are not held in just anybody's backyard. Inside the Simmons house was an excellent HO Boston & Maine layout under construction. Jim, his son, and grandson (the 9-year old) are recreating scenes from the Connecticut River Line. In Las Vegas even very nice homes such as this have no basement. The layout is located in the intended 2-car garage. No space for the family car here. The mult-deck layout fills every corner. Each scene is separated from the ones on either side. Trains enter from one side of the scene and exit out the other. Carefully selected scratch-built and craftsman level kits do a great job of capturing the character of New England. A lot of layout is packed into this garage. Without a long duck-under and other compromises it would not have been possible to model this many scenes. Although my personal preference is for single level layouts, the multiple levels are allowing the Simmons family to create more beautifully modeled New England railroad scenes. It is little surprising that all of this complex benchwork, the many fine structures, and track laying has been accomplished in just two years. These guys are very focused! A great example of family teamwork.
