Are there any train-spotters out there?

Question

if so.......what the h**l do you get out of the hobby?

Answer 1

That's like asking what a NASCAR fan gets out of watching 43 crazed drivers whizzing around an oval circuit for hours, or bird watchers get for watching backyard birds eat seed. I'd say the thrill of watching a 8,000 HP machine rumble by, and wishing you were the engineer driving it, is probably some of it. If you don't get a thrill, too bad. Your loss. Ever stood by a train platform as a mixed freight with 4 roaring diesels thunder by at 60 mph ? Gives you quite a rush, with all that power flowing by. I've actually gotten dizzy of late, for some reason the strobe effect of the cars passing has affected my equilibrium sometimes .  Not sure what that is about, but it's interesting. I just like the powerful engines and rumbling thunder of a long freight train passing by. Now, go back to watching worms drown in a rain puddle or something...

- The Gremlin Guy -

Answer 2

For most of us, being a railfan is a hobby. But for me, I don't do it so much so anymore, as I'm getting so d**n sick and tired of those HI-TECH diesel locomotives and trains without cabooses. I suppose this is why I turn more and more towards model railroading.Miniature trains are a delightful hobby, model railroading is fun.

Answer 3

I think the person who asked this question is summed up by his name.

Answer 4

two points on answers

Answer 5

I am a tertiary-rail fan... I'm primarily a model railroader, so when I'm "train-spotting" I'm out for research.

And to those who call us a nuisance... those are "trespassers" not rail fan's !!  I always call the UP and Amtrak Public Affairs and Security folks to get clearance... then find a safe place and take my pictures / notes.  Watching freights blow thru the station at 4am...

A number of my pics have ended up on their websites.

I do it so I can represent, as accurately as possible, the CalTrain, ACE, and UP lines that I model !

Answer 6

I used to be into nascar alot, collected everything I could afford. But it has gotten to expensive as of lately.

I have always been a railfan or trainspotter as you put it. I live 2 blocks from 1 class 1 railroad and 4 miles from another.  

I enjoy the sound and the horsepower that the engines put out.

It's not every day you can see something with 6000 horsepower and shakes the ground as it goes by. And all you have to do is buy gas to drive a few miles.

I am also interested in the history of all the railways and try to learn as much as I can.

I know alot of people that are like you and do not understand what we see in a train.

I have used my vacation to follow a track from where I live to Kansas City and then followed another track home.

I also take pictures and videos to keep and put on the net for others to see.

Answer 7

Yes

ON THE WAGON IS 1

he got a notebook ,pen and an anorak for christmas

Answer 8

Train spotters are a nuisance they constantly trespass on the railway and put themselves and others in danger

Answer 9

Actually RAILFANS (the smart ones), know the dangers of the railroad and respect the fact. It is you morons that know nothing about railroads that think you can just take a stroll down the track and it's almost like you expect the train to swerve out of the way or stop for you and then the next thing you know, boom, you're dead. Anyways, "train spotting" is a hobby just like any other and it doesn't cost a dime, other than buying a scanner if you want one. Why ask this question anyways? Just like some people like muscle cars that are 500 hp, train fans love massive 4400 hp diesel locomotives that would crush that muscle car like a tin can if it ever crossed paths with it. You go watch the grass grow or watch paint dry and I'll go watch my trains...

Answer 10

no sorry people with no life

worked for a rr in the northeast of East Coast

These people are a danger

Thanks for your comments.

Answer 11

Well, let's see.  "Hobby" seems to be the noun that sums it up the best, defined as follows:

"Hobby:  An activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation."

So, what a train spotter, enthusiast, rail fan, foamer (and occasionally an historian) gets out of it is pleasure and / or relaxation.

It is basically free entertainment, outside travel expense and supplies.  It is an activity the whole family can share in, often incorporating camping , sight seeing and the aforementioned history lesson for the young.

What I would be interested in knowing is why does anyone care about the hobby of another, particularly when the said hobby is almost exclusively non-invasive into anyone else's life?  

The same cannot be said for an audiophile with a 12,000 watt stereo system in the car, which is imposed on all within earshot.  Of these folks, I would ask, "What the h**l do you get out of it, besides tinnitus and permanently impaired hearing?"

Of course it is different ballgame out there today, but I always welcomed the attention from railfans, often giving impromptu cab tours.  Doing so today will cost you your job.  And, for the most part, that's the total amount of 'thanks' any rail ever gets.  It doesn't come from the employer, and it sure as h**l doesn't come from the public, both of which benefit immensely from the toils of the railroader.

They are not rabid, either.  As a matter of fact, when a spotter is met carrying a scanner, he can tell you MORE about what's going on in a given area than the train dispatcher can.

Gremlin is right on point.  A train is the only mode of transportation (aside from the Saturn 5 rockets of the past) the shakes the ground for a long distance when under way, even showing up on seismometers.

(A side note here, Gremlin:  Equilibrium problems are common when close to moving equipment, the size and speed causing vertigo.  This is where the myth of getting sucked under a passing train originated from.  It is more than just dizziness as the affected usually fall forward, as if being drawn in.)

So I would suggest, rather than losing sleep wondering what 'they' get out of the hobby, perhaps you should take up a hobby yourself.

I would recommend train spotting.  'Lotta nice people out there...........