Subject:
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Re: LEGO Train Hobby growing... comments?
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.trains
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Date:
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Thu, 24 Feb 2005 21:25:55 GMT
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Viewed:
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1636 times
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In lugnet.trains, Steven Barile wrote:
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It “feels” like the hobby is growing, there are more shows and more clubs.
I often think about growth in serveal ways, two of which are: big, more brick
intensive layouts and frequency of shows per club.
The bigger more brick intensive layouts are certainly a challange to the
established members but it raises the barrier-of-entry to new and potecial
members.
More shows a year starts to feel like your in a constant state of setting up
and tearing down...
Anyone have comments on club growth and shows? Burnout? New members? Does your
club have a set goal for the number of shows a year? And the size of the
layout at the show?
SteveB
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Interesting points, Steve.
Our layouts at shows have gotten bigger over time, mostly because the venues
have warmed up to the fact that we can cover just about any space they’ve been
willing to give us. They’ve let us expand, and we’ve been able to keep up - for
now. We used to dismantle buildings and such and create new ones to allow for
some variance in the fixed floor plans year to year, but our floor plans have
grown, and buildings are turning over less frequently. That means we can keep
the good stuff longer.
While we have the opportunity to do more shows and events, we stay with a staple
of 3-4 events per year to avoid burnout. Travel, packing, hard floors, junk
food, family schedules etc. can beat up a hobby experience, so we like the
balance we’ve acheived thus far.
We’ve had contact from some new members after seeing our layouts, and some don’t
know where to begin to contribute. We always have room for trackside elements,
landscaping, hidden features, automation and stuff like that, or they can man
the kids’ play area if they just want to play with bricks all day. There’s
certainly room for all skill levels. I myself have forced myself to progress
through sizes of projects, and others have done so with great leaps and bounds.
It’s been a good mix. We don’t have a set goal of how many new members, but
we’d like a couple a year to keep fresh input and expand the force at the shows
a bit. Setup/teardown is fun for 3-4 shows, but can get tedious with a fixed
group of members after that.
I’m seeing a steady pace of more outside interest in the hobby, not just with
members, but vendors, distributors, and rail hobbyists alike. LTCs are more and
more recognized by more diverse groups, so it can’t help but grow as others see
their own interests reflected in the hobby.
Ed
LUCNY
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | LEGO Train Hobby growing... comments?
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| It "feels" like the hobby is growing, there are more shows and more clubs. I often think about growth in serveal ways, two of which are: big, more brick intensive layouts and frequency of shows per club. The bigger more brick intensive layouts are (...) (20 years ago, 24-Feb-05, to lugnet.trains)
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