Who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim

I was just thinking about it. Before I bought Train Sim I wasnt a Railfan. Oh Sure I bought a few videos of trains, Such as one of the Big Boy and knew a few things about steam engines, but I really had no ambitions driving me to really like trains.
I was in Walmart one night and saw Train Sim sitting on the shelf and deceded to buy it just on impulse. Since then it has slowly turned me into a Railfan and educated me on the differances between Diesel engines and taught me alot more about Steam Engines.
I was just wondering if there are any stories out there like this
or am a rare to this point of view
Don Pottorff
Long Live the Steam
www.vmf323.com
www.fiero.nl

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RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, Swissie, Aug-09-03, 01:56 PM, (1) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, SVTS, Aug-09-03, 02:25 PM, (2) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, BaltoOhioRRFan, Aug-09-03, 02:35 PM, (3) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, BNSF4723, Aug-09-03, 05:00 PM, (4) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, smp11512, Aug-09-03, 05:16 PM, (5) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, Boilerbuster, Aug-09-03, 05:43 PM, (6) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, Matt Vince, Aug-09-03, 06:58 PM, (7) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, JonN, Aug-09-03, 09:18 PM, (8) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, kenya, Aug-09-03, 11:07 PM, (9) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, Boilerbuster, Aug-09-03, 11:53 PM, (10) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, kinnamon, Aug-10-03, 08:45 AM, (11) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, buzzbenz, Aug-10-03, 02:21 PM, (12) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, heffed, Aug-12-03, 06:06 AM, (13) RE: who here wasnt a Railfan before Train sim, Boilerbuster, Aug-12-03, 02:08 PM, (14)

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Hi Don,just as a variation - MSTS re-lighted a long burried interest in trains dating from the childhood days, and taught me a lot about railroading abroad. I dunno for you guys in the States, but right here at home I have the feeling that perhaps 2 in 3 boys go through some "train" phase some day, usually in the form of "when I grow up I want to be an engineer". With some of them it is just a brief period inbetween the "when I grow up I want to be a fire fighter" phase and the "when I grow up I want to be an austronaut" phase, with others it is a little more serious a love affair, usually tormenting parents with lenghty x-mas wish lists of new rolling stock for the model RR layout in the basement (which Daddy secretly runs at night, too ).Just my thoughts / observations... lets just have some fun on the high iron. CheersLukas a.k.a Swissie

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I've always had a passing interest in trains, but it wasn't till I started driving semis coast to coast that I got more interested in them, especially after learning about the Tehachapi Loop, as I use to travel across the Tehachapi's weekly.I made my first actualy railfan trip, if thats what you want to call it, to Tehachapi in October 2001, and a month later my wife bought me MSTS. I was pretty much hooked after that, and repeated trips here and there, and thanks to the helpful folks here and at trainorders.com, I know more about trains than I ever thought I would, so much so that I now railfan with a $1000 camera, and I am on my 2nd website now devoted to trains.I never thought my simming could be any better than the boxed version, until I found this site, and MLT's and 3DTS's sites. Now I have over 200 locomotives, 300 pieces of rolling stock, and about 30-40 routes, some of which I might never even finish.Chris Bogley
chrisb@tailsnrails.com
Ft. Huachuca AZ2004 Tehachapi Calanders, 250 Train photos, Tehachapi Guide, plane and semi photos and more all at www.tailsnrails.com

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i never railfaned only thing ive done with trains envolves Thomas the tank engine and some Electric trains....reason i dont rail fan.......no steam engines in my area except at the B&O RR Musuem which is where i got to look at the beasts

BaltoOhioRRFan
Projects:
WM Pass Set 1 and steam pack - 100% (waiting for permission to release)
B&O Pass Set3 - 99% (in beta)
C&O PAss Set1 and steam pack - 99% (in beta)
B&O MOW - 2%

HELP OUT THE B&O Roundhouse Restoration Fund at www.borail.org
B&O Repaint & Locomotive Works site is down! if anyone would like to be a webmaster for me please e-mail/Instant Message me!

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I've always been interested in trains all my life but when trainsim came along, it got much deeper. I learned the RR's, the loco's, the builders, and the rules and now I feel I can safely say I'm well educated in the train-arts lolLooks Like a Pony RUNS LIKE A STALLION

"I just want real reactions. I want people to laugh from the gut, be sad from the gut, or get angry from the gut." Andy Kaufman

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>I've always been interested in trains all my life but when
>trainsim came along, it got much deeper. I learned the RR's,
>the loco's, the builders, and the rules and now I feel I can
>safely say I'm well educated in the train-arts lol
Same here . Now I know what an SD70 is My website for MSTS Pic's www.msnusers.com/shanestrainsShane Palus
smp1151@sbcglobal.net

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I also failed to mention that when I was a Kid I was given a Train set for Christmas. I still have some track that I got from my uncle when he tore down his Ho scale set. I also have a few pieces of rolling stock including a few Covered hoppers and box cars. If I dig deep enuf in my old toys wich I still have many of in storage, I may find a few engines.
I also have two control units one of wich is an advanced controller for an HO set that will control several switches and up to 10 seperate engines.
However when I was in my late teens I lost interest in trains, however when I got MSTS as I mentioned above it made me interested again.
Don Pottorff
Long Live the Steam
www.vmf323.com
www.fiero.nl

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When I was younger, I was into models, always dreaming of 100mph diesels along the tracks. I lost interest in my early teens, and got into Flight Simulators, partly by a friend who's now training to be an airline pilot. One day, while flicking through FlightSim.com (great site, Nels!), I saw the first press release about MSTS, then saw the early sneak-preview screenshots, and thought 'coor, look at that, way better than FS2000'. Was hooked from then on. Only in the last 12 months did I start railfanning, having met a few other railfans. Railfanning is more than just a hobby, it's more like an adventure, going places you wouldn't necessarily go for any other reason. But I have always enjoyed travel by train.

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LAST EDITED ON Aug-09-03 AT 09:18 PM (EDT)

I had an interest in trains when I was young, but it slipped into dormancy when I was about 12. The Railfan in me was re-awakened when I got MSTS back in 2001.Jonathan Nikiforovs.
Milepost 180, CP Belleville Sub.Repainter for Yonder Locomotive Works.

"A crictic is a man who creates nothing and thereby feels qualified to judge the work of creative men. There is logic in this; he is unbiased - he hates all creative people equally." - Lazarus Long

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Don I was wondering. If you have any locos and what are they. I have
200 HO scale cars 75 locos I think but sense train sim thay have been
packed in boxs for 2 years. Because the house we are in is to small
to make a lay out me and my dad always build no small then a 4x8 lay out that is stanted when we move in a mounth or two we will rebuild
the train lay out. I have plans for repainting a PRR gg1 and ten passenger cars if I can find none painted loco and cars to paint.
I am going to make the same sceme for train sim to. When I can buy the
stuff to do that type of work or is there a paint thing for free that
I have not found. I am a train sim and model railroader fan

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LAST EDITED ON Aug-10-03 AT 00:04 AM (EDT)

The Last engine that I had was a Yellow and blue Santa Fe GP7 as far as I can remember but I cant find them anymore. May have been thrown out as they were at my Grandparents house and my grandfather is one who likes to throw things away that he thinks should be thrown out. And what he deems to be thorwn out usally has some value to it and he keeps stuff that is absoulute junk.
The only real Collection of anything that I have now is my huge Collection of 1/64th scale Tractors from John Deere and Case International. and I also have two of the Precision 2 Series Tractors a Case International STX 450 and a John Deere 8400Don Pottorff
Long Live the Steam
www.vmf323.com
www.fiero.nl

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This is a question many people ask me in connection with my garden railroad, so I decided to write my "railroad biography" to answer it. See link:http://homepage.mac.com/lkinnamon/About%20the%20Americus%20Central.htmlLee

Lee Kinnamon

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For me...I believe i was born with trains in my blood I have ALWAYS been a train nut - more specifically, an AmGeek!
I still have very faint memories of being a VERY small child and waiting on the platform with my dad in the wee hours of the morning to catch the train to Chicago, and the blue lights in the room of my very first trip on a sleeping car.I remember my very first HO trainset, must have got it when i was like 5. I also remember it passing away not too much later - i think i may have hooked the tracks into the AC connection on the power pack rather than the DC. It was a small, Conrail freight set.It wouldn't be until i was 10 that i got my first Amtrak set. That set, 3 Model Power cars and an F7 loco, eventually evolved into what is now a collection of over 20 Amtrak locos and 100 Amtrak cars. Unfortunately - all laying on shelves, as they have been for 5 years. Never got the chance to build a layout in the basement of my current house.Nah, when i was a teen, i was often in the basement working on the scratchbuilt frame to an F40 (years before Walthers came out with theirs). I ran trains on the layout at my parents house frequently. I was a HUGE train nut, and everyone knew it After getting a job, i often would take a trip to Chicago just to get my train fix!No layout was really frustrating - until MSTS came out. Then i could re-direct my bottled "train angst" into trains at home again!Now, i work on MSTS frequently! Through my father, i have become friends with private railcar owners. My wife has even worked on one of their trips!So, no, MSTS didn't get me into trains! I have always and will always be a major Train Nut, and a certifiable AmGeek!!------ BUZZ ------

-- Power For You --

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"Before I bought Train Sim I wasnt a Railfan. Oh Sure I bought a few videos of trains, Such as one of the Big Boy and knew a few things about steam engines, but I really had no ambitions driving me to really like trains.I hate to break it to you Don, but only a rail fan would buy train videos. Personally, I've always been a train fan. As corny as it may sound, my parents assure me that one of my first words was "train".I'm the only train fan in my family, yet several members of my family work for the railroad. I am unable to pursue a rail career due to health issues. It's a bit ironic. Of all the people in my family, the one person who really wants to drive trains, can't. Yeah, I know I could get a desk job or something with the railroad, but where's the fun in that?-Jeff

Union Pacific is my drug.

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I guess you could be right here Jeff. Thinking about that from time to time I would visit Rail Road Modeling stores, But I would never have enuf money to buy anything. I would go to Don's Hobbies in Greeley Colorado, And i would just brouse there basement for a while. they had every Engine immaginable down there. There is also a really big store on Colorado Bd in Denver that I would go and brouse for a while when I could. If I ever start up my own Ho railroad again I would buy Two engines at first, the Daylight and the Big Boy.Don Pottorff
Long Live the Steam
www.vmf323.com
www.fiero.nl

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