The NMRA and you?


N

NP2626

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My guess is that if you live where there is at least a club you can be a member of, you are happy to be a member of the NMRA. My nearest club is 90 to 100 miles away. So, I am a Lone Wolf Model Railroader. The NMRA seems to lack reasons to be a member, if you are in my position. I have given the NMRA two full years of membership, plus 6 months of the Rail Pass membership.

With less than 20,000 members, it would appear to me that the amount of model railroaders who are members of the NMRA, is a fairly small percentage of the whole. Right now I am doubtful I will be a member next year, there just isn't enough "Bang" for the buck! In the 1980s, membership cost less than $20.00. Today, with membership also in the Thousand Lakes Region (TLR), we're talking close to $100.00 for membership. I don't begrudge the NMRA's cost for dues. I would believe that the organization probably uses every penny of their dues to run the organization! It's just that for what I receive for those dues is pretty slim pickings!
 
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I think the last thing NMRA did that was relevant was to publish the recommended practices for DCC. That was over 20 years ago.
 
Like you were saying, a lot depends on what region you live in as well as the density of the model railroader population. There are some regions with very active NMRA chapters and I envy anybody who lives there. Even though I live in a state with a large number of mrr's, if I want to be involved in an active NMRA group, I need to drive over an hour away from my home. I did a trial membership back in 2002-3 and determined that it just wasn't for me.
 
I was a member of the James River Division back in the late 90s. When the NMRA put out the requirement to be a member of the National in order to be a member of the local, I signed up. I didn't find any utility to being a member of national other than knowing it provided a paycheck for somebody who didn't seem to be doing to much that I could see. I dropped from it all together.
 
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I belonged to the NMRA for many years and then left the organization for several reasons.

At that time I was paying $50 in annual dues. I Requested a replacement membership card and after two requests, my requests when unanswered.

Then, I read that several staff members of the NMRA traveled to Europe to attend a "Toy Show". I can only assume the travel expenses were sponsored by membership dues.

I may again join the NMRA for the Achievement Certificate program, but will I?

Enough said.

Greg
 
Seems to be a common feeling among posts re the usefulness of belonging to the NMRA. I too belonged for many years, served as the Achievement Program Chairman of the NER for five years. But I personally was not getting anything out of being a member. So I left, haven't missed anything since.
 
I will have to agree with Ken. Where I live I am so far away from anything that the NMRA means very little to me. Years ago, a good friend, Pete Ellis was a member of the NMRA and almost talked me into joining. He has an NMRA master Builders award and had been a member for years, but he also had the ability to travel and attend many of the functions whereas I did not.

After his death, his layout was will to and moved to the Montana Museum of Railroad History where the Great Falls Model Railroad Club will connect to Pete's layout which is in the next room. http://mmrh.org/layout.html

I passed and am not interested in being a member.
 
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Just as a side comment....I believe the NMRA, since little is being done or now needed for NMRA Standards, the NMRA should focus on promoting the hobby to the younger generation to keep the hobby alive.

We all have expiration dates and we need to keep the love of railroads carried on for future generations to enjoy.

Greg
 
I thought that I should join, so I could speak about the organization from knowledge. I know now and just can not justify my continuance. The Achievement Program may very well be a good program. However, I just can't see it making me a better model Railroader! I yam what I yam, & dats what I yam! (Popeye)
 
Greg@mnrr, While I agree that the AMA should promote to younger people, the real responsibility for promoting the hobby comes down to the people involved in the hobby. The best way to promote the hobby is exposing the hobby to the public.
 
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My thought is that the NMRA is a worthwhile organization if you are fortunate enough to live in an active region, and have the time / resources to participate in the activities. I belonged for several years, on two separate occasions, and attended one National Train Show. My work schedule prevented me from any real participation, so in reality, My dues paid for my copy of the Standards Book / CD, and my subscription to the NMRA monthly magazine. Now that I'm retired and theoretically have the time, I no longer have the interest in participation.
 
Yes, the NMRA is worth the price to me. I joined in 1980 to support the hobby because of the Standards. In the ensuring years, I have been the Chief Clerk of the Central Indiana Division, MWR, NMRA, I have been the editor of the CID Rusty Spike, have put together the Standards and RPs on the NMRA website, have been Webmaster of the NMRA website and the CID website (where I just recently retired after more than 20 years) have had my layout in three layout tours and am now busy building layouts at the Madison County Historical Society here in Anderson IN.

I have little interest in the AP Program but do hold the Author and Association certificates and have received the Golden Spike Award just for building a layout.

Yes, it’s worth the cost. The magazine itself is worth the cost, When I fell on 'bad times' a number of years ago, I dropped the subscriptions to the several modeling and railfan magazines that I was taking, but I kept my membership in the NMRA. Why? Well. I joined to return something to the hobby that I was a part of. I felt that by supporting the NMRA, I WAS supporting the hobby.

When the bad times came and I closed my business, it was the NMRA Bulletin and the CID 'Rusty Spike' that kept me in touch with the hobby even when there wasn't the money to go to the shows and meets and nothing available to buy anything for the railroad. Some of the tips and techniques that I found in the 'Bulletin' helped keep me modeling with an occasional bottle of paint and some common household items.

Now, that said, I will invite you to make a visit to our website at: https://www.cidnmra.org/ for a look at the activities that we have including a meet photo album with pictures taken at out meets. We also have a page of club listings and photos from a number of layouts. In our case, the Central Indiana Division sends our newsletter the 'Rusty Spike' free to all NMRA members in the CID.

I find that I get a great deal of satisfaction knowing that I am contributing something to the hobby with my involvement in the NMRA. I have found a richness with my involvement that I never knew before. What has the NMRA done for the hobby lately?

DCC

Ciao
 
Wow, WJLI26, you got a Standards book/CD! I only get the NMRA magazine. As far as the Standards go, everyone on the planet now has access to them without membership. I think that is a good thing!
 
Personally, I almost joined the NMRA some time ago, pre internet days.
However a lot of friends were dropping out of it and I saw no reason to afterwards, being far away from the big centres.
I believe the NMRA has become somewhat like unions, done their good work and set up standards for our benefit but now just more or less collecting money to keep themselves going...
Again I'm not involved so this is more or less my observation rather than experience.
 
I have sent an Email to Charlie Getz, (the current President of the NMRA) explaining to him my opinion on being an NMRA member that lives where there isn't much NMRA activity. One of my reasons for joining the NMRA was the thought that I might be able to hook up with other members in my local area. However, due to peoples reluctance (and therefore the organization's reluctance to give out personal information) this is not possible! Charlie said the NMRA was looking into how to fix this for the organization, so people could gain access to information on others. He felt this might take a year or so to do.

In my own home town here, I have absolutely no idea if there are other people involved in the hobby. Many people know that this is a hobby of mine and I never hear them say: Oh, John Doe does that, also! If there are people in my home town involved in Model Railroading, it's like "Never the Train shall meet"! I have thought of running an ad in the paper to see if I could link up; but, have not done this!
 
I can relate to your situation. There is no NMRA division near me. The one that is closest is not real active either. They last had a meeting in April 2016. The closest model railroading club is 25 miles away and almost none of the 40 or so members have a home layout. They all do modules that they set up with other club members at shows and exhibits.

Willie
 
Mark,
Me and a friend took out an ad in the local paper (small town a bit bigger than Park Rapids) and we got quite the response, not just from in town but the surrounding area as well.
Might be worth your while, you never know!

BTW me and that friend only met because the post office put our train magazines in the same mail box, otherwise I'd have never known there was life out there!
 
One of the problems with the demise of the local hobby shop, it makes it hard to find other modelers.

There are a thousand threads like this over the forums.

Some of it is a self-fulfilling prophecy. I don't think there are any people active so I'm not going to be active. I don't think its relevant so I'm not going to join and try to make it relevant. Nobody will change it from outside, the only people who will change it are the members.

Full disclosure : I used to belong but quit for several reasons (the politics in the local division made devoting the time less attractive, they changed the organizational structure, I wrote a couple articles for "Scale Rail" and became really PO'd at some of their policies). However I do support them as a non-member. I conducted two switch building clinics at the last regional convention.
 
dave1905, What your saying is a sort of: "Ask not what your NMRA can do for you; but, rather, what you can do for your NMRA"?
 
I have thought about joining when finances are in a position to allow it, but that is just not feasible at the moment. The local club has a modular layout that goes to shows, but nothing permanent at the moment. I am not a member of it, either, for the same reason: finances at the moment. I think the NMRA has done some good things for the hobby, and they have my emotional, if not financial, support.

NP2626 said:
dave1905, What your saying is a sort of: "Ask not what your NMRA can do for you; but, rather, what you can do for your NMRA"?
Click to expand...

"Gentlemen, we must all hang together, or most assuredly, we shall all hang separately." Benjamin Franklin
 
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