The presents are opened, the toys are set aside. And there’s still another week of vacation. Now what? Come out and see trains!
Bring the whole family. FUNTRAK runs trains at the Oneida County Historical Society Thursday, December 27 through Saturday, December 29.
Christmas is right around the corner as we leave November behind. This past month has been a busy one for FUNTRAK. The first weekend found club members in Syracuse with numerous other clubs running one of the largest t-trak layouts assembled in the area. The double bubble made for some very interesting running. Besides the double bubble, FUNTRAK also had its first showing of the newly constructed mountain division on the t-trak layout. As expected, this ran exceptionally well and provided even more interest and comments from spectators. The red line was set up to accommodate DCC while the remaining loops were all conventionally powered. The main red line was over five and a half scale miles long and took well over nine minutes to traverse. John Allen from Canada put a miniature camera on one of the trains and set out on a journey around the layout.
Overall, the show was a great success for all involved. The two day event allowed everyone to have a chance to run trains and acquire new equipment for their railroad kingdoms.
The next event was the following weekend in Fulton with the Oswego Valley Railroad Association sponsoring their annual holiday show. FUNTRAK again showed up this time with a new and exciting “triple bubble.” Additionally, FUNTRAK club member Greg Brockway managed to bring the new HO t-trak layout. Both layouts were big hits with the public. The next weekend found club members at Brian’s building more HO t-trak modules for future shows. These included four double modules and plans for a new regular outside corner and a new two piece inside corner. This will allow for more diversity in the HO layouts as more and more modules are constructed. The N scale one track modules are still in the works and should be completed soon. One of the newest modules for the N scale t-trak was built by Tim Brien, one of our newer members. Tim’s beautiful work can be seen here. Great work, Tim!
New specialty modules for both scales are being planned for the future. Expansion is the word of the day for FUNTRAK as new modules, concepts, and shows evolve for the club. FUNTRAK’s next endeavor is a show at the Amsterdam Riverfront Center on Saturday and Sunday, December 1 and 2, 2012 where the HO layout will again be displayed for the public’s enjoyment.
Finally, to close out the year, FUNTRAK will again be displaying the t-trak layout at the Oneida County Historical Society from December 27 through December 29. Both of these shows are open to the public and FUNTRAK welcomes all to come and enjoy the trains! So, in the holiday spirit, Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to all. See you next time and keep on training.
Brian
FUNTRAK member Gene Beirne smiles broadly as he graciously accepts the Service Person Of The Year Award from former FUNTRAK recipient John Fleming. This award is presented each year to the person or persons who have significantly contributed to FUNTRAK’s continuing success in the model railroading hobby. Gene’s tireless efforts over the past year in getting more and more recognition for FUNTRAK in the community did not go unnoticed. Thank you, Gene!
FUNTRAK runs trains with the Oswego Valley Railroad Association at their annual holiday show in Fulton, NY.
FUNTRAK shows off its newly constructed mountain division of the T-Trak layout. We were delighted to participate in one of the largest T-Trak layouts assembled in the area!
Here we are in November, National Model Railroad Month, and the schedule of events is extremely busy. Following a torrid building month in October, FUNTRAK members are now preparing to attend some of the larger shows with the new modules ready for display. First up is Syracuse where FUNTRAK will debut the new mountain module section of the N scale t-trak division. Club members worked diligently throughout October getting these modules ready to be displayed to the world. Three work sessions and numerous nights were devoted to making everything operate properly. John Fleming then worked his magic on the scenery to ensure the modules would be at least presentable for the shows. Hopefully, all goes well at Syracuse with FUNTRAK and the other participants. The planned layout will be over five scale miles around and should present an interesting layout. The main line is set to operate with DCC while the remaining loops will use conventional DC power. This arrangement will allow everyone to have a chance to see how mixed power can be applied to a layout and operated successfully.
Following Syracuse comes Fulton the very next weekend. FUNTRAK is scheduled to bring both N scale and HO scale t-trak layouts to this show. Again, work sessions in October enabled the club to construct six new HO modules, four standard and two doubles. Greg Brockway, FUNTRAK’s resident HO guru, has been charged with getting track put down and fellow club members have committed to helping him in the scenery department. The only glitch may come in the area of space that is allocated for the layout in Fulton. FUNTRAK will fill whatever space is provided.
With Christmas right around the corner, the annual show at Oneida County Historical Society is currently in the works. Clayt Farrall is doing his usual coordinating with the administrators to confirm dates, show times, space available, and details for the show. Anticipated dates this year are Wednesday, December 26 for setting up and running through Saturday, December 29. More information will be announced as it becomes available. Pictures of some of the new modules expected to be in the previously mentioned shows are on the next page. A well deserved “Thanks for a Great Job” goes out to all the club members who donated their time and effort to making these new modules possible. It is wonderful to have such enthusiastic individuals to associate with for such a great common cause. Next year will bring new challenges, different opportunities, and even more fun for our club as we move on to our twenty first year. Come on out and support your club!
Brian
Lots to be done to get FUNTRAK modules ready for the November shows in Syracuse and Fulton.
FUNTRAK club members gather to celebrate the club’s 20 year anniversary and launch their latest addition, the HO T-Trak module.
FUNTRAK members gathered at the Family Fun Center for the annual club dinner where the new HO t-trak modules were assembled for the enjoyment of all. The new 20th Anniversary shirts were distributed and modeled by club members in attendance at the dinner. The food was excellent and plentiful as always and everyone had a great time!
Twenty Years! Seems like just yesterday when FUNTRAK was merely a thought. Now here it is all these years later and FUNTRAK has grown into a multiple scale model railroad club with portable and modular layouts to take to the numerous shows around the area. The club has grown from a handful of original members to many members all dedicated to supporting the hobby and FUNTRAK in particular. From many shows to fewer shows and back again to many shows, over these past twenty years, FUNTRAK has supported all venues of the model railroading hobby enthusiastically and consistently. The club includes many different scales as well as many different concepts. We have expanded our layouts when necessary, reduced them when needed, incorporated new concepts, equipment, and methods, introduced new ideas, and carried out all of this reliably for twenty years. FUNTRAK is respected and invited often to many shows both as a supporting club or as an independent exhibitor. The club’s reputation has spread near and wide and our presence is welcomed wherever we go. All this is because of the dedication and hard work of the members of FUNTRAK. Without them, none of these things would be possible.
Each year FUNTRAK recognizes those special individuals who have gone above and beyond in their efforts to support FUNTRAK and the model railroading hobby. The “Service Person of the Year” award is presented at the annual FUNTRAK dinner each October. In addition to the award, t-shirts will be distributed to those club members who ordered them. These shirts are a testament to the longevity of the club. FUNTRAK is looking forward to designing and displaying twenty-five year anniversary shirts.
Building on past success, FUNTRAK expects to broaden our horizons, find new ways to attract new members, expand our presence in the hobby, develop more modules, concepts, and hardware, and generally grow with the technology and equipment being made today. The future is bright for FUNTRAK based on past performance. Some of the most recent developments in new concepts are presented this month with the HO t-trak layout being the newest addition to FUNTRAK’s roster of layouts. Also new is the concept of creating the “double bubble” using the tees and crossovers with the N scale t-trak. These ideas create more interest and move away from the simple oval idea usually seen at train shows. Diversity of this kind sparks interest in what others have done to make the hobby more interesting and involved.
The Internet has helped promote model railroading by providing faster communications and easy access to videos via YouTube and other available websites. FUNTRAK has taken advantage of these opportunities by posting updates on our website and sharing videos for the public to view on YouTube. What will the next twenty years bring? Hopefully, more camaraderie, members, and excitement for those involved in this great hobby of model railroading!
Until next issue, keep training!
Brian
