Of course one of the things you have to do at
any convention is register. Being that the NRHS is a volunteer
organization, its pretty amazing how professionally and efficiently
registration gets handled year after year. Eileen Weber pictured
below, who handled my check-in today, is an old-hand at this
and breezed right through handling my needs, tickets, and
even my all access pass (so I can cover everything). Besides
tickets, getting a souvenir bag full of goodies, a convention
guide, and a name badge are also a standard part of NRHS conventions.
Veteran Registrar Eileen Weber
Registration Room
Besides tickets at registration you could also
enter a raffle for a steam locomotive cab ride, buy souvenirs,
get information on area attractions and of course catch up
with old friends.
After a trek around the hotel to get some more
pictures, it was time for some dinner; there
are many great restaurants to eat at in the station, or nearby.
And then it was time for the evening's activities.
The first was the first night of films. Each
night the NRHS is showing convention attendees a collection
from its railroad film library. Pretty interesting stuff that
you can't find on HBO, Cinemax, History Channel, or even Turner
Classic Movies.
Then, as I said earlier, you never quite know
what surprises are going to happen. Steve Barry, NRHS Member,
managing editor of Railfan
& Railroad Magazine and a longtime supporter of the NRHS
Conventions, organized an unofficial impromptu night photo
session using the hotel trolley. As is per the norm, it was
an outstanding session. We rode the trolley to several spots
on the property, set our cameras to the proper exposure, and
then Steve lit the trolley with his lumadyne flash. Here's
a couple photos from the event:
Photo session participants await departure
from the station.
Night Photo Session
Finally, of course it goes without saying that
each night, I get to return to my room and stay up writing
this and posting it for you to have to read, ASAP. Then its
off to catch a few winks before tomorrow's activities.
