March 2010 Railhead

"2010 DUES are DUE"!! To receive the 1 month discount the 11 month total needs to be paid before March 1st.

World's Greatest Hobby show was a success as we wrap up the month of February. Various members of the club were there showing a huge crowd the layout and the various railroads that operated through the club layout. When I was talking to some spectators about the show and layout they were really impressed with all the hard work the club has done to make this layout a dream come true. Bob made these little quiz finders where the crowd young and old had to find various interests in the layout like the prison and the anvils to name a few. For a snowy day in the month of February it was a real good show

Motel reservations- Continental- Inn- 1-800-621-0318 plan to stay two to three days.

Will be held at the Doubletree-World Arena 1775 E Cheyenne Mountain Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80906. Show Hours - Setup 630 am Saturday morning. Open to early buyers 730 am, Open to public 9am to 3:30pm. Tear down to follow

Show is April 30^th and May 1^st with a setup on Thursday night. Show hours will be 10am to 4pm for both days. Tear down will be at 415pm that day.

Weekend of May 22^nd-23^rd 2010 Show hours are 10am to 4pm both days. More info will come.

If anyone who did not get a chance to ride the Royal Gorge train the club has 9 tickets to use before they expire. If anyone is interested in utilizing these tickets the cost is $49.25 each. This is the group discount price. They can only be used on a weekend. Contact Mike Peck so he can make the arrangements for you.

Beginning March 9^thand 12th 2010 are when the clinics will be starting if anyone is interested and have not filled the request sheets out yet. Give the club some feedback or let us know if you are interested. Contact the officers in charge of the club for further information

From the Superintendent, The club will be starting the new clinic schedule next month. The classes are going to be on one Tuesday and one Friday of each month. The classes will be the same as some members can make it Tuesday and others Friday. Each class will be a hands on class so be prepared to get your hands dirty. Charley Bay has been working on this and plans to have 8 sessions on scenery and yes there will be homework. When the scenery clinics are finished we will have all those who took the course display their dioramas and the club will vote on the best.

We have voted in two new members since the first of the year. Congratulations Jeff Govin and Gerry Amber. Remember we are always looking for new members.

There will be some new signup sheets hanging on the club room bulletin board for the coming shows and train trips. Please sign up so we can get a head count to see if we have enough people interested in doing these shows so we don't have to cancel at the last moment. Mike

REPORTING MARKS

A Reporting Mark, assigned by the Association of American Railroads, is a two-to-four-letter alphabetic code (ex. GATX) used to identify owners or lessees of rolling stock. At PPNG we also use reporting marks to identify owners of equipment. They are not alphabetic, but are colored dots placed on the bottom of equipment. This practice protects their owners. In the event that rolling stock or other things are left at the club, ownership can be ascertained and the units returned to their rightful owner. If a member desires to take advantage of this service, they must apply to the Station manager to have a reporting mark assigned to them. The member is then responsible for marking their equipment. If stray pieces of equipment are found, the finder may identify the owner by inquiring to the Station manager who maintains Reporting Mark Records.

This subject is covered in the "PIKES PEAK "N" GINEERS RAILROAD CLUB POLICIES AND PROCEDURES", Section VII. PERSONAL EQUIPMENT AND ROLLING STOCK as copied below:

A. Reporting Marks.

1. A color code will be used to identify each member's personal locomotive and rolling stock. The Stationmaster will assign the color code as necessary. The Stationmaster will maintain the master list of such assigned color codes for all past and present members. By ensuring that no code is issued more than once, identification problems caused by past members returning to the club are avoided.

2. The colors used are red, white, blue, yellow, green, and orange.

Members are encouraged to take advantage of this service to protect their equipment. However, it is not mandatory to do so. If you wish to utilize this service, contact me and I will assign a color code to you.

Happy railroading; Bob LaHair, Station manager.

EDITORS NOTES: Hello Pikes Peak E"N"gineers this month was a real good month as my wife Candace and I took a trip to my hometown to scope out the changes in Winter Park and also to plan a club trip to the Western Portal Moffat Tunnel where I once saw the massive Rio Grande going into the west portal of the Moffat Tunnel. It was a very joyous trip taking Amtrak the real way into the mountains where we climb to an elevation of 11,000 feet to travel through some 20+ tunnels and the final tunnel the Moffat Tunnel. Where we got off at the station and showed my wife the stomping grounds. Which I will take you all through the sights and sounds of the west portal of the Moffat sometime this summer