Ah… The Joy Of Creating!

Okay...Now that I've gotten my feet wet in several aspects of MSTS, I'm going to venture out on a limb and say that, for me, creating routes is the most rewarding facet of MSTS.That may change once I start learning to build in 3D, but for now, the pleasure of watching my own world unfold in front of my eyes holds a fascination that's hard to explain. I know RE is a pain. I know it can make you want to pull your hair out (what hair I have left)... but oh what fun when things come together!Since I'm on that limb, I'm going to go ahead and venture a bit further out on it:I think I get more personal reward creating dramatic scenery and fantasized settings for my Colorado 1880's themes more than trying to accurately replicate diesel railroading. (I can't believe I just said that.)Oh sure, my mood/inclinatons will swing and I'll return to my diesel stuff... for that's one of the joys of MSTS: Point/click - different
theme/era/locale! However, I still think I get more "Ahhhh Factor" from creating scenes such as the one below, as opposed to "work-a-day" look in my diesel routes.BTW: What you're looking at below -You're in the bottom of the former Toltec Gorge, now "Devil's Canyon". The engine has left the town of Oureka and moved down the branch of the Oureka mining district to the Dolly Parton Mine. (Company slogan: "Where Mounds of Wealth Exist!). It is now shoving a cut of empty boxcars for loading, and a flat of mine timber for bracing, up a near 5% grade to the loading area. If you'll look close at the rocky crags high above, you'll see the spindly bridge that daringly carries the mainline rails around "The Devil's Needle" (the towering rock formation) as the main dissipates altitude on its way to the town Silver Creek.Colorado silver boom narrow gauge railroading in the 1880's: Yup, I enjoy this stuff.Have fun!Andre

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RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, griffinmt, Dec-15-02, 04:21 PM, (1) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, calr, Dec-15-02, 04:38 PM, (2) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Coonskin, Dec-15-02, 04:56 PM, (3) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, geekman, Dec-15-02, 05:42 PM, (4) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, CaptFuzzy4, Dec-15-02, 08:00 PM, (5) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, griffinmt, Dec-15-02, 10:59 PM, (6) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, DRGWK36, Dec-16-02, 12:09 PM, (7) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Coonskin, Dec-16-02, 01:13 PM, (9) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, GMOF3A, Dec-16-02, 12:43 PM, (8) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Coonskin, Dec-16-02, 01:29 PM, (10) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, GMOF3A, Dec-16-02, 05:04 PM, (11) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Coonskin, Dec-16-02, 06:44 PM, (12) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Stumbl, Dec-16-02, 08:15 PM, (14) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Railfan727, Dec-16-02, 08:16 PM, (15) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, landnrailroader, Dec-16-02, 07:20 PM, (13) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Coonskin, Dec-16-02, 09:25 PM, (16) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, Matt_G, Dec-16-02, 11:48 PM, (17) RE: Ah... The Joy Of Creating!!, jonathanmlewisrgs, Dec-17-02, 02:58 AM, (18)

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Somebody get this man a valium Martyn T. Griffin
griffinmt@mindspring.com

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I looked at that mountain peak and the first thing that came to mind was the Matterhorn at Disneyland!Cal Rasmussen
Beaverton, OR
cal.rasmussen@verizon.netColumbia Gorge Route (Phase 1 track completed. Taking a TSM break!)

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Martyn said:"Somebody get this man a Valium!" LOL! Funny. Guess I'm pumped. Perhaps a calming-down IS in order. Cal said:"I looked at that mountain peak and the first thing that came to mind was the Matterhorn at Disneyland!"That's close Cal! If you'd said "Scalp Mountain" on John Allen's Gorre & Daphetid, you would have nailed it.Ain't it fun.Andre

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Hey Cal,Didn't you hear the man? you were supposed to think of Dolly Parton, not the Matterhorn.C'mon man, you ain't THAT old!!!Happy Holidays, my friend,Larry

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>I looked at that mountain peak and the first thing that came
>to mind was the Matterhorn at Disneyland!
Ahh, you too!?

CSX-The Spirit of West Virginia Coal.

CSX Tri-State Route-Building the Barboursville Yard. (Tricky stuff!!)

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Well it sure doesn't look like the real Matterhorn as I remember it. Spent a bit of time in and around Zermatt a few years ago, watching those folks with bulbous calf muscle doing some treacherous summer ice skiing along the glacier. No wonder they have filled that quaint little cemetery.Martyn T. Griffin
griffinmt@mindspring.com

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Andre - you're not alone in your enjoyment of route creating. I'm also a lot more motivated to create than to operate. Starting with the "blank" slate, seeing the terrain appear, laying out the route, and setting track makes me feel like I've got some connection to those hardy souls who did it through the rock with little more than dynamite and shovels. I'm an engineer by training, and seeing where these guys went and what they had to work with is nothing less than inspiring. I suspect that there would be few people or companies today that would be willing to commit to repeating that effort, even with modern equipment. Pretty amazing.Andy

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Andy said:"Starting with the "blank" slate, seeing the terrain appear..."Never thought of it that way, but I think that's where it comes from for me too.I used to do this all the time with model railroading, that is, I would dream up this concept/theme/locale... then I would draw scale plans of the layout illustrating the idea. But that's as far as it would get, because to take it further in model railroading would mean I'd need to:1. Tear out my existing layout.
2. Spend significant $$ buying lumber, track, etc, for the new layout.
3. Start the long laborious process of getting a moderately large model railroad layout up to the functional stage.Not so MSTS. I can dream it up, research as desired... then in one evening I can have the terrain in place, and begin exploring it for route options... even laying track and running a "construction" train thereon before bedtime. PLUS, all I need is hard drive space to have as many different concepts/themes/locales as I desire.I really like this hobby. Andre

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Hi Andre.You know..I fuss and complain about RE..and rightfully so!!...BUT...The rewards for success and the creation as a whole is grand...I really like it too!...Speaking of which..I really like what your doing...I was suprised to see you doing some of the G&D...almost Ozarky...(lol)

Paul...
www.mstsgmo.com

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Well, actually, I'm not setting out to do the G&D. I will admit that John Allen's model railroad work was quite cutting edge for his day, and when it comes to whimsical, "romanticized" modeling, John's was tops. So his work DOES (did?) influence my creative side of model railroading. It is only natural that his influence along those lines would creep into my own "fanciful" interepretive MSTS routes. But me doing the some of the G&D? Well, not really. Besides, a G&D project is well in hand by our own lovable Okrasa Ghia.For years and years, my greatest challenge in model railroading was keeping my "multiple themes/interests" personality at bay. With model railroading, to keep it as reasonable as practical, you can only model one "theme" at a time on one "layout". Hence LOTS of starts/restarts/tear-out/rebuild... or just plain indecisive inactivity... in regards to my model railroad layout.With MSTS, I can pursue whatever whim has currently charged my battery without wringing my hands over whether I should tear out my existing layout and "take a chance" on the new idea/theme. Further, I do NOT intend to "discipline" myself to making sequential, scheduled progress on ANY MSTS project. I want to keep this fun. Disciplining myself to accomplish "x" amount of work on My Dedicated Project would be a sure-fired formula to ruin this form of relaxation for me.Yup, I'll leave deadlines and the need for "I MUST make progress" to the payware creators.So, don't be surprised to see posts from me showing progress on a particular MSTS project I happen to be embracing at the time... and it's not depicting the LAST project you saw me excited about! No constraints. Have fun!Andre

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I like that concept Andre! I am adopting that outlook now..as you make alot of sense!..If it's not fun..then why do it..and if one burns themselves out (ie, me at times) what fun is it then?...no constraints! (unless it pays well!lol)..p.

Paul...
www.mstsgmo.com

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Good for you Paul!We're not payware creators... we don't HAVE to discipline ourselves to make progress. That makes it WORK. I hope you enjoy creating your GM&O as much as I do piddling with my many MSTS projects. BUT, if it gets to be "work"... do some other stuff for a while! I know you have an anxious following that's sitting by the wayside hoping to get the first segment of the GM&O ASAP... but they'll just have to be patient. This is YOUR hobby, not your vocation or sideline.I speak from the experience of what I did to my model railroading hobby. I begin to do custom model building, painting, etc, thinking it would be a great way to support my model rr habit. Before long, I was doing that instead of my own stuff... and when I DID do my own stuff, I would feel guilty because I wasn't working on my CUSTOMER'S stuff. Took the fun plum out of model rr'ing. Even after phasing out and quitting the custom business, I think it dented my modeling to where it never fully recovered.I ain't gonna' do that to MSTS. It's too much fun for me.Now, got to get offline, and then its off to Ft. Smith, AR to do a little Christmas* shopping for our church (purchasing the stuff to make our Christmas* sacks for the kiddies young and old) and make a hospital visit while there. Then it's home to the ol 'puter and who knows what MSTS project I'll work on???Have fun!Andre "Merry Christmas" Ming* Not "Xmas" shopping. Christmas is about CHRIST, not some unknown mathematical value refered to as "X".

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God Bless
Andre , wtg

"I do what my Rice Krispies tell me to do"

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>> Christmas is about CHRIST, not some unknown mathematical value refered to as "X".Amen, brother. Nice to see that someone actually had the guts to take a stand for Christ in this day and age... I'd always thought the "X" in Xmas referred to the cross, but lately I've heard something about the word "Christ" being censored out. Which theory is correct?Kind of sad how people treat God's Son these days. I've been looking for a new church home, and some of the ones I've looked at support gay/lesbian activities. How low can it get? What's happening to the church in this country???

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Andre,I could not agree with you more. For me, creating vicariously "real" routes is very interesting, intoxicating almost (which us Baptists aren't supposed to get by the usual way), and utterly addictive.There is one old Colorado route that someone might want to tackle sometime, and I cannot remember the name of it, but it left the D&RGW near Salida and wound around a mountain once or twice before going to a silver camp not far from the mainline, but considerably higher in Elevation - then another would be the Colorado Midland, gone now since 1918. Someone is working on the Moffat road from Bond to Craig I believe, and anothe is working on the Rollins pass line - what a fright that will be.Having actually run trains some during my career, the joy of creating beats running anyday of the week. That is why, I will test my routes at speeds far in excess of the legal limit.J. H. Sullivan

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Jerry said:"There is one old Colorado route that someone might want to tackle sometime, and I cannot remember the name of it, but it left the D&RGW near Salida and wound around a mountain once or twice before going to a silver camp not far from the mainline,"Let me see if I can help you with that...1. There was a branch off the north/south main just north of Salida that headed east: The Calumet Branch. Steep grades, some ore mining as I recall.2. A branch off the east/west main west out of Salida that used switchbacks up to some ore (gravel, in this case?) called The Monarch Branch.3. The west main over Marshall Pass to Gunnison?For that exact location, that's about it. Colorado Midland: DEFINITELY a good route to build "one of these days"! Especially modeling the more troublesome routing over Hagerman Pass. As for running/building routes: At this point I sure am enjoying route building. However, there are still times that it's fun to me to simply relax, run a train and enjoy the fruits of my labor. It's been a while since I've actually "operated" though. (i.e. "operated", set outs, pick-ups, etc.)Fun stuff, all of it.Intoxicating? Hm. Perhaps. Addictive? Nah... I ain't addicted. Nope. Not at all.Nice chatting with you, but I gotta' go. I've got to go build on a route... really bad.Andre

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>Colorado Midland: DEFINITELY a good route to build "one of
>these days"! Especially modeling the more troublesome
>routing over Hagerman Pass. Hmmmm, I would like to start building routes. I must say this one has really got my interest. I think I will try with 1 or 2 small fictional routes just to get comfortable and then perhaps tackle this puppy.
If anyone is interested in reading some history about the Colorado Midland I found a short history here.Here is a picture of one of the trestles on Hagarman Pass.
This is a broadview of the climb up Hagarman.

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It looks great.http://groups.msn.com/MSTSNarrowGauge

Jonathan
jonathanmlewis@msn.com

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