Reverse Running
I
love this photo of Brian
Bennett from one of Mike
Confalone’s operating
sessions. To me, this photo
speaks to the fantastic job
Mike Confalone has done
creating a model railroad in
miniature that feels like it’s a
real railroad.
Not everyone is into prototype
or proto-freelance modeling
operations. I recall the janitor
at my high school liked model railroading, and so did I. The janitor
didn’t care one iota about ops, but did he love building models! We
had a great time talking trains, leaving many fond memories.
But for me, it’s the operations side that excites me the most
about the hobby. The model building, the wiring, the benchwork
and trackwork – that’s all a means to get to the part I love the
best: running the trains realistically.
When I think back to what fascinates me most about trains, it’s
the noisy, gritty, big machines hauling tonnage.
MRH has been doing what we call our “Allagash Bash” with the
two-part railfan trip in January/February, and the new eBook
series since January – not because we think modeling 1980s
Maine in April is cool. No, we think Mike Confalone has captured
the essence of really railroading with his models in a way that
more modelers need to learn about.
Reverse Running: Stepping outside the box with a contrary view
by Joe Fugate
Really railroading!
MRH-Jun 2014
