new design train model

   The Canadian Association of Railway Modellers (CARM) will be holding Rails to the Lakehead, its 2014 national convention in Thunder Bay, Ontario from September 30 to October 2. Please note that these dates are not on the weekend (September 30 is on a Tuesday). 
    The convention wil be held at the historic Prince Arthur Waterfront Hotel, one of the classic railway hotel in Canada. Activities include clinics, prototype tours, rail fanning and a banquet with a guest speaker. Please note the the banquet is an additional cost.
    
The list of confirmed clinics is as follows:
   

    Long time WMRC member John Longhurst has had his very first article published in the August 2014 issue of Model Railroader. John, who as been a member since the 90's, is well known in the model railroading community as the former Associate Editor for Canadian Railway Modeller, published by our own Morgan Turney.

    John has also had his byline twice in Railroad Model Craftsman, and has been a frequent contributor to the WMRC's official publication, The Lantern, and the Canadian Association of Railway Modeller's publication, The Canadian. He also has an excellent blog, titled the CP Rail Manitoba and Minnesota Subdivision. The blog is named after his own world class model railroad, but it covers a wide range of topics concerning model railroading and rail fanning in general.

    John's article is about his use of tree bark as a cheap and effective way of making realistic rock faces, which is his own unique discovery and has been used in many layout across Winnipeg since he introduced it.

     "When I was a kid, I read both Model Railroader and Railroad Model Craftsman." Said John, "I told myself: One day I want to make a model railroad good enough to be in those magazines. My dream has been fulfilled!"

    John has always been an active volunteer for the WMRC. He will always be remembered for bringing the WMRC's Great Canadian train Show over to the Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute (along with former WMRC member Ken Epp, who also happens to be John's brother-in-law) and serving as Convention Director for CARM's 2005 convention in Winnipeg, which had the largest attendance of any model railroad convention in the city since the 1983 NMRA national convention, Railway Jamboree '83.

    Besides his editing gig for CMR, John also writes a regular faith column for the Winnipeg Free Press. He also holds down a full time job as Director of Communications and Marketing for the Canadian Foodgrains Bank. Where does he find the time?

    As an extra bonus, John's article is even listed on the cover! MR bought the article from John four years ago, which comes close to, but doesn't beat the seven years WMRC Blog Editor Paul Ullrich had to wait for his own article to appear in the September 2013 issue of Trains. Please keep in mind that when submitting to these publications that they have a substantial backlog of articles to publish, and that these wait times are not all that unusual.

     WMRC members have been published all over the place recently. Along with John, Dennis Rietze has had an article about his model railroad published in Canadian Railway Modeller, and WMRC Blog Editor Paul Ullrich has had two articles published in Kalmbach's Classic Toy Trains.

     Congratulations, John! Keep up the good work!

   

   Our good friends at the Canadian Association of Railway Modellers (CARM) are holding their annual convention this year in Thunder Bay, Ontario, from September 30 to October 2. They've always put on a good show (remember the 2005 Golden Rails convention in Winnipeg in 2005?) and they need some help!

    Their looking for clinicians, and when they heard about our most recent Klinic Karnival, they contacted the Powers That Be to see if anyone was interested in conducting clinics there. Being a veteran of any past Klinic Karnival is not a requirement! Past experience in conducting a clinic is always helpful, but the desire to conduct a clinic is much more important.

    The convention is being held at the historic Prince Arthur Waterfront Hotel (which used to be a CN hotel). If you're interested, contact Wiiliam Waithe at wwsd40@hotmail.com. For more information about CARM and their upcoming convention, go to: http://www.caorm.org/

    Thunder Bay is becoming the model railroad convention capital of Canada! In May of 2015, the TLR will be holding their annual convention there as well. Instead of going across the border all the time for some model railroading fun, why not go to both conventions in Thunder Bay instead?