Saturday, July 9, 2011

Schedule Revision: Added Layout to Sunday Morning

Registration for NC RailRun 2011 is going very well and we have actually reached capacity at some layouts.  To help meet the demand, we have made a schedule revision.

Sunday morning, the Blue Ridge & White Mountain Railroad will operate from 9AM until 1PM, making this the only railroad currently on the schedule that will be operating twice.  Our thanks to Chuck Batherson for agreeing to host a second session.

The Friday afternoon session on the Blue Ridge & White Mountain Railroad has had all of its slots filled, so those of you who still would like to operate on that railroad can now do so on Sunday morning.


Those of you who signed up for the Charleston, Roanoke & Eastern Railway on Sunday morning can now choose to either stay on that railroad or operate on the Blue Ridge & White Mountain instead.  If you would like to change your Sunday morning arrangements, please email the registrar and let us know your intentions.

All registrations can be made online at http://www.carolinasouthern.org/RailRunRegister.htm.

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Don't wait too long to register!

Registration for NC RailRun 2011 is well underway.  Don't miss your opportunity to operate on some of the finest model railroads in the Carolinas.

As slots are limited on all railroads, be sure to get your registrations in early to increase your chances of operating on the layouts you want to operate on.

If we fill up the Sunday morning slots on the scheduled railroad (Charleston, Roanoke & Eastern), we will open a second session on the Blue Ridge & White Mountain if the number of interested participants justifies it.  This decision will be made closer to the event.

Remember that your registration page is at  http://www.carolinasouthern.org/, where you can click on the NC RailRun link and sign up for the event.

We hope you will join us for Labor Day Weekend!

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Registration now open!

The Carolina Southern Division and the Operations Special Interest Group (OpSig) are proud to announce NC RailRun 2011!

NC RailRun is an event designed around operating realistically on several area model railroads.  All interested operators are welcome, from beginners to veterans.  The event gives visiting operators a chance to run on layouts that they may not usually have an opportunity to operate on.

As a participant in NC RailRun, you will choose from the layouts offered in six time slots.  Choose to participate in as few or as many operating sessions as you like.  Based on availability at each layout, we will assign crew members and coordinate with layout owners to make your experience enjoyable.

Keep in mind that these railroads have been built to represent prototypical operations.  The purpose of operating sessions is to replicate the operational practices of full-sized railroads.  Some layouts are freelanced, some are prototype based, and others are somewhere in between.

We're offering a variety or railroads in both HO and N Scale, in timeframes from up-to-the-minute modern operations to the steam-to-diesel transition era, set in locales as diverse as the Front Range of the Rockies and Coastal Maine, on lighter density branchlines to busy mainlines.  There's sure to be something for everyone at NC RailRun 2011, and a great opportunity to learn from and interract with operators from all over.



















NC RailRun 2010 on the Central Carolina Southbound.  Photo by Kevin Beck.

This year's event will be based in Salisbury, NC, with convenient access to participating layouts located to the north, south, east, and west.  Driving times to several layouts are within 30 minutes of Salisbury, with maximum drive times just over an hour.

Salisbury is a great place to visit, with local rail attractions including the North Carolina Transportation Museum and the Little Choo Choo Shop in nearby Spencer.  The NC Transportation Museum, located at the site of the Southern Railway's Spencer Shops, has on-site train rides and plenty of railroad equipment and history to explore during your visit.  The Little Choo Choo Shop is one of the largest model railroading stores in the Carolinas.

Railfans can enjoy watching trains at Salisbury, as approximately 30 Norfolk Southern trains per day pass through on the busy Washington-Atlanta mainline and the secondary route between Salisbury and Asheville. Eight Amtrak trains per day call at Salisbury as well.  Two layouts on our event schedule depict portions of these routes through Salisbury.

















NS train 135 turning west at Salisbury, NC.  Photo by Marcus Neubacher.

For those traveling along who do not want to participate in model railroading events, Salisbury is home to many historic sites, a thriving downtown area, and is within 30 minutes of several shopping malls, including the huge Concord Mills outlet mall in nearby Concord, NC.

Registration for our event opened on March 1, 2011.  We look forward to seeing you in North Carolina!