Last Saturday I decided to chase train 934 as it made its way north from Dunedin towards Christchurch. At this time of year the sun sits pretty low in the sky making photographing trains difficult but it would be a good way to kill a few hours and an opportunity to get a good coffee. The best photo I got was at Merton with the sun almost directly on the nose of DXB 5108 as it rounded the curve at Merton with 934.
After happily clicking away at Merton I decided to head north to Tumai to catch 934 as it crested the Tumai bank and rounded the curve before heading beneath the overbridge. As I got near the Tumai turnoff I could see a car and two railfans, cameras at the ready at the spot I was going to stop at. I quickly decided to continue heading north to Palmerston. Unfortunately the sun was still too low so 934 was covered in shadows as it passed through Palmerston.
With my chase now a bust I started heading home and that's when I got to thinking. Why didn't I just turnoff at Tumai and park up next to the other railfans? I'm sure they got some great photos from a tried and true railfanning spot, a photo I'd now missed.
Why is it the majority of railfans don't advertise the fact we take photos of trains, we model trains, we read about trains and watch videos of trains. Are we embarrassed? Worried about what others think? Is being a railfan not socially acceptable? Or is it just me? Do other people happily share what their hobby is with others?
When I look back on the Timaru model train show, the hall was packed with people of all ages. While most of them were families I would say a large number were 'train geeks' as my kids would say.
Something to ponder the next time I'm out railfanning.
And that's about it.
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