May 2024 Newsletter





Last fall Union Pacific announced the Big Boy Westward Bound tour from Cheyeene to Roseville making numerous whistle-stops in communities along the way as well as public display stops including Ogden on July 20-21.  Unfortunately stops in Boise and Portland were removed from the tour due to network capacity issues on the northern corridor being unable to accommodate Big Boy No. 4014 along with anticipated demand on a single track.  Additional route details and approximate times for whistlestops will be shared closer to the tour.  See https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/schedule/index.htm.

Club Business
Luncheon Date May 3rd - Bloomington Country Club at 11:30am.  The May 17th luncheon is canceled due to the Spring Social scheduled on May 18th.

CCMRRC Spring Social
Saturday, May 18, 2024
Time: 11:00 - 1:00
Place: Tim & Dana Fitch house, 2734 E Rock Land Dr, Washington

11:00-12:00 - Open Yard
Informal social hour around the Fitch's backyard with trains and other displays operating.

12:00-12:30 - All-scale track planning tool
Kevin Hansen (Rick and Cindy Hansen’s son) will present a 15-20 minute overview of an all-scale track planning software tool.

12:30-1:15 - Lunch catered by Cracker Barrel
Lunch includes Homestyle Chicken, Sirloin Steak Tips, Chicken Fried Chicken, plus sides (mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole), bottled water.  Dessert is Chocolate/Vanilla Sheet Cake.  Cost per person: $15

1:15-1:45 - President's Message
State of the Club Address (Al Thorne), Financial Report, Projects, etc.
 
1:45-2:00 - Door Prize Drawing
5-6 train-themed door prizes awarded via drawing.
 
2:00-3:00 Open Yard at Dick and Lauri Saunder's home
(2649 E. Upper Canyon Drive, Washington, UT  84780)
Informal social hour around the Saunder's backyard with trains and other displays operating.

The slide show from the Pizza Party detailing member railroads will be playing in a loop during the Open Yard and Lunch segments.  RSVP Tim Fitch (tififaf32@outlook.com) no later than May 10th if you will be joining us.  Send payment of $15 per person to Larry Schneider at 1681 Garnet Ridge Road, St. George, UT  84790 no later than May 10th.

Member Railroads
Keith Johnson recently recorded three videos of his outdoor layout shot from the train.  Click HERE and scroll down to the May 2024 Update.
 
Group Meetings
G scale: Spring Social, May 18
HO scale: Mack Smith’s Man Cave on May 29th. 
Contact David Merrill (atsgrr@gmail.com) for details.
 
Upcoming Conventions and Train Shows
Surfliner 2024 NMRA National Convention
August 4-11, 2024
Westin Hotel, Long Beach
333 East Ocean Blvd.
Long Beach, CA USA

Kanab Train Show - Date Change for 2025
Next year's show is scheduled for January 17-18, 2025. The newly-remodeled gymnasium/expo hall we’ll be using will double the floor space compared to 2024.

Modeling News and Information
The NMRA (National Model Railroad Association) announces a new partnership with Grouper.  For NMRA members age 65+ Grouper works with Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement plans to cover your NMRA membership dues, so you can focus on what you love to do.  Don’t worry about the membership cost - it’s on your health plan.  See https://www.nmra.com/grouper for more information on this exciting news.  (I received my membership reimbursement check yesterday.)

Model Railroad Track Codes

Adding diesel sound to American Flyer trains

Prototype Railroad News
Trains Magazine Interviews Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena.  The Union Pacific chief talks about the new way the railroad measures service – and what the flaws are in the industry standard for trip plan compliance.

 

Until June, All Aboard !!
Lloyd Thomson