Backyard railroads

Our local weekly paper - the Pulse Journal - recently had a story on a local group putting up what they hope will be the world's largest model railroad display. If they have their druthers, by the end of the calendar year we'll have the world's largest model railroad display in an old furnitue store 'bout five miles from my house. They're planning on having the display there permanently as a sort of museum/tourist attraction.

Now you may know - as I certainly know - that the overall tourism draw of the world's largest model railroad display (20,000+ square feet) is probably somewhere less than that of the largest ball of twine in Minnesota, but that doesn't seem to be slowing down the Greater Cincinnati Garden Railroad Society. Their website shows the phenomenal plans as well as opportunities for anybody to volunteer to help them out in getting things together.

Admittedly, if and when this layout ever comes into being in the fullest scale, I'll be right there waiting to get in - as will some other locals. This probably has something to do with the fact that one of my neighbors is a part of the Society. I've no clue what his name is nor much about him other than that his backyard has a model railroad tressle in it, and a couple of times a year his front yard has a sign in it telling people that his yard is open for one of the stops on the tour.

In all honesty, the site looks like they'd be a fun bunch of folks. It's a little like the physics club from The Breakfast Club.