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model railroaders, and often by the NMRA’s Operations Special
Interest Group (OpSig).
While I’m an N scale modeler, many layouts I’ve operated on
have not been N scale. That actually doesn’t matter, because
operations have no scale. There is much to be learned and
shared by attending one of these sessions, no matter what
scale you model in. Attendees can learn by doing, and probably
make a few new friends. Most importantly you can learn tricks
to hosting an operation session yourself.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have attended a few of these
myself, including the Great Basin Getaway (held in even-num-
bered years) in and around Salt Lake City, Utah. The sessions
included about 50 attendees who operated on four different
layouts in the area, and also spent some time socializing and
talking up our hobby.
The GBG allowed participants to operate on three of the four
layouts. In addition, there was an evening where folks could
visit any of the layouts and several others in the area. Each ses-
sion lasted most of the day, with a break for lunch. There was
plenty of time to appreciate the effort each of the hosts put
into their railroads.
Here are some interesting things learned from the three lay-
outs I visited.
Salt Lake Southern
Gary Petersen’s Salt Lake Southern/Chicago & Northwestern
layout is a 26′ x 40′ HO scale layout of the SLS/CNW over South
Pass, Wyoming to the Salt Lake Valley. The single-track railroad
operates using CTC and DCC locomotives.
The long multideck mainline provides for widely-spaced non-
interfering local jobs, as well as a fleet of through trains. Gary
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