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Why are trainspotters so unfriendly ?

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HMS Ark Royal

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I think the OP is spot on with this. Last September my family and I attended the LMS Steam Gala event at Barrow Hill as a belated birthday treat for my father and I. It was a brilliant day out and everyone enjoyed themselves.

Having watched 43106 run past a little too closely my youngest son and I had a our faces covered in soot / smut. Not to worry though as my wife (once a mum, always a mum etc) produced a near endless supply of wet wipes from her bag to clean our happy faces. Having noticed that two other enthusiasts had also received a liberal coating of soot they too were given wet wipes along with a friendly smile. In return she received scowls of contempt before they marched off. Now if they wanted to look like they'd just spent a shift down a coal mine that was up to them but surely there was no need to be so rude!

Once we were back in the car, my youngest daughter (aged 20) remarked that the enthusiasts her age looked like and behaved like a of bunch freaks. Sporting badly fitting jeans and wearing t-shirts with oh so not funny slogan's I'm afraid I had to agree with her. Not to mention behaving like they'd been let out of the asylum for the day.

However, what really shocked me was watching two teenage lads turning on their parent / guardian because they were going to miss the Duchess moving around the shed yard. By all accounts he'd booked (and no doubt paid for) the train tickets without having any way of finding out when certain loco's were moving. Those two lads needed a strong word or two but he was seemingly not prepared to do so and of course it was none of business.

I've often thought about attended a Diesel Gala but none of my family / friends would want to go and on the basis of the Barrow Hill gala I'm worried that I'd be surrounded by the same freaks that my daughter described.

Do the Diesel Gala on the NYMR - its all friendly here
 
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RichmondCommu

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Ooop's!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Do the Diesel Gala on the NYMR - its all friendly here

I don't doubt that it would be friendly but if there are teenage morons at one event surely they go to all events! However I've been to the NYMR railway several times in the past and it's a lovely day out :)
 

HMS Ark Royal

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--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


I don't doubt that it would be friendly but if there are teenage morons at one event surely they go to all events! However I've been to the NYMR railway several times in the past and it's a lovely day out :)

Actually, the NYMR diesel gala seems to cater more for the older person, so its more or less relaxed - not sure if this is because it is more isolated in the road system
 

Calthrop

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Time for a short story...

In May 2015 myself, and a close friend of mine (who happens to be visually impaired) attended the Diesel Gala at Swanage. We had payed to travel on the route all day, but fancied a break from it and went to a nearby field to watch the trains pass by. Upon arrival (I believe it was near Norden), I didn't particularly pay attention to the bank of spotters stood at the top of the bank, as I was busy helping my friend across the uneven surface.

Not long after we had sat down we were approached by one of these 'spotters' (who must've been in his 40s) who told us to move because "We were here first and you're ruining our shots". My Friend then explained his visual impairment and how he needed to sit closer to the lineside. The Spotter's response was that he could stay there, but i should move. So naturally, I refused.

Another spotter then came over, took a photo of us and said "I'm putting you in Wessex Rail Gen" - Like that's meant to get me quivering in my boots ;)

The first spotter then came right up close to myself and my friend and stated he was going to stay stood in front of us so that our view was obscured too. Immature?

He then ran to get his tripod, plonked it in front of us, continued to antagonise myself (It's as if he wanted me to damage his property - which I would never do, no matter how childish he was.)

We left not long afterwards after having a flurry of abuse and photographs taken and from that point onwards I tend to distance myself from that side of the community. I was absolutely disgusted by the behaviour of a group of people (some years older than myself) that clearly had no understanding of what is socially acceptable.

If one of them had come over and kindly asked us if we could move - Maybe this would've gone differently.

This what it boils down to- each hobby, whether it be rail enthusiasm, bus enthusiasm, football, music festivals, car rallys, jigsaw puzzle conventions or Kombucha brewing (google it :D ) etc will have its fair share of plonkers, just as the general population has its fair share of them. It's just that they tend to be a vocal minority and as such are noticable when the followers of a particular hobby are present en masse. Whether the person concerned has aspergers/autism or not doesn't really come in to it.

On the present-day railway scene, material found worthy of photographing by people whose particular avocation this is: is very often in the form of a "one-off", or strictly limited, event. This occasions tension on the part of railway photographers -- as tends to be the case with anyone who is in urgent quest of a commodity in short supply, where there are many factors which are liable to frustrate that quest. Such a situation is apt to cause sub-optimal behaviour on the part of the questor, especially when he sees an imminent threat to his getting the prize which he seeks.

In the heat of the chase -- in this instance, trying to get the best possible picture within a very limited and unrepeatable window of opportunity -- passions can rise higher than would seem to an outsider to make any sense, given the relative triviality of the goal; and photting-devotees can descend into decidedly combative / childish behaviour. A couple of times, I have witnessed scenes of conflict in this area of life, when I truly feared that blood was about to be spilt.

Am looking to understand, rather than to excuse: but I'd suggest that a fight to get a scarce prize, is a situation where normal civility is apt to come under great strain -- and that some individuals who in the heat of the moment exhibit pretty foul behaviour, as recounted in Class 466's post; may be, the great majority of the time, reasonably civilised and well-conducted members of society.
 

bramling

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On the present-day railway scene, material found worthy of photographing by people whose particular avocation this is: is very often in the form of a "one-off", or strictly limited, event. This occasions tension on the part of railway photographers -- as tends to be the case with anyone who is in urgent quest of a commodity in short supply, where there are many factors which are liable to frustrate that quest. Such a situation is apt to cause sub-optimal behaviour on the part of the questor, especially when he sees an imminent threat to his getting the prize which he seeks.

In the heat of the chase -- in this instance, trying to get the best possible picture within a very limited and unrepeatable window of opportunity -- passions can rise higher than would seem to an outsider to make any sense, given the relative triviality of the goal; and photting-devotees can descend into decidedly combative / childish behaviour. A couple of times, I have witnessed scenes of conflict in this area of life, when I truly feared that blood was about to be spilt.

Am looking to understand, rather than to excuse: but I'd suggest that a fight to get a scarce prize, is a situation where normal civility is apt to come under great strain -- and that some individuals who in the heat of the moment exhibit pretty foul behaviour, as recounted in Class 466's post; may be, the great majority of the time, reasonably civilised and well-conducted members of society.

A very well-made point.

Where demand for something exceeds supply tension often arises. Quite often see pushing and shoving, also squabbles, at my local station in the morning peak as commuters all try to secure the last seats. And seen plenty of squabbles over the last space in a car park. Can remember some pretty ugly scenes during the petrol strikes too.

Personally I've always preferred to enjoy special trains rather than photograph them - too much hassle, and I prefer to photograph everyday scenes not ones which have been artificially created.
 

RichmondCommu

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Where demand for something exceeds supply tension often arises. Quite often see pushing and shoving, also squabbles, at my local station in the morning peak as commuters all try to secure the last seats. And seen plenty of squabbles over the last space in a car park. Can remember some pretty ugly scenes during the petrol strikes too.

However at least there is some rational thinking behind all of those situations even if it's not very nice to watch. However behaving in the same way in order to take a picture is far from rational, especially given that that same picture is likely to appear in the railway press in the near furure.
 

Andyh82

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Sadly the stereotypes still exist.

I'm sure most enthusiasts find it a uphill struggle when explaining that their hobby is perfectly normal and you do it as part of an otherwise balanced life and you aren't some sort of weirdo.

Then whenever I go to a bus/rail event and half the attendees are wearing musty old unfashionable clothes, an old train uniform shirt that they've been digging out for events for 20 years, and talk in a geeky loud voice to anyone within ear shot that they know exactly what is going on with the new trains, rolling stock cascades etc, you begin to question yourself
 

DarloRich

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Didn't Fred West start out as a train spotter ?

I'm not sure but Michael Sam's was a trainspotter and killed at least one female and kidnapped another one.

i think we are getting into the realms of lunacy now! After all Adolf Hitler was a vegetarian and he ordered the killing of millions so all veggies must be bad!
 

RichmondCommu

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i think we are getting into the realms of lunacy now! After all Adolf Hitler was a vegetarian and he ordered the killing of millions so all veggies must be bad!

And????? Have you smelt their farts?

On a serious note I absolutely agree that the fact that Michael Sams likes trains is irrelevant.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Sadly the stereotypes still exist.

I'm sure most enthusiasts find it a uphill struggle when explaining that their hobby is perfectly normal and you do it as part of an otherwise balanced life and you aren't some sort of weirdo.

Then whenever I go to a bus/rail event and half the attendees are wearing musty old unfashionable clothes, an old train uniform shirt that they've been digging out for events for 20 years, and talk in a geeky loud voice to anyone within ear shot that they know exactly what is going on with the new trains, rolling stock cascades etc, you begin to question yourself

Precisely and this was my experience at Barrow Hill. Image isn't everything but it certainly makes a difference in life.
 

12CSVT

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Is he the bloke in the ancient black coat?

If it's the legendary patched up overcoat, that's Jed. I think he's has the same coat for at least 20 to 25 years, and he wears it in all weather even if it's a hot summer day.
 

Antman

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i was into trainspotting when i was 14ish but i gave it up basically cos of all the "weirdos" in their 4-s upwards that were also trainspotting.

But then maybe they thought that you were the wierdo?
 

Mutant Lemming

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i think we are getting into the realms of lunacy now! After all Adolf Hitler was a vegetarian and he ordered the killing of millions so all veggies must be bad!

We need the actual percentage figures of trainspotters who went on to be mass killers against those from the average population in order to be totally dismissive on this issue.
 

Master29

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We need the actual percentage figures of trainspotters who went on to be mass killers against those from the average population in order to be totally dismissive on this issue.

Oh really, and this goes with your first ridiculous comment. By that standard Frank Hornby must be seen as the creator for all serial killers. Why say we need to be totally sure before we can dismiss this. A typical flat earther comment.

Yes Samms was a train spotter. So what. Fred West may well have been. Hardly conclusive is it. Let`s organise mob rule against anyone who even ever so slightly likes the sight of a train seems to be the drift of your second point, and please don`t go down the road of profiling.
 

DarloRich

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Oh really, and this goes with your first ridiculous comment. By that standard Frank Hornby must be seen as the creator for all serial killers. Why say we need to be totally sure before we can dismiss this. A typical flat earther comment.

Yes Samms was a train spotter. So what. Fred West may well have been. Hardly conclusive is it. Let's organise mob rule against anyone who even ever so slightly likes the sight of a train seems to be the drift of your second point, and please don't go down the road of profiling.

i think that might have been a joke......................... :oops:
 

richw

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It is a common hobby amongst people on the Autism Spectrum. Having worked with adults with autism they have something they like to focus on be it trains, buses or something else. Some depending where they fall on the spectrum have great difficulty with dealing and speaking to unfamiliar people.
 

RichmondCommu

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It is a common hobby amongst people on the Autism Spectrum. Having worked with adults with autism they have something they like to focus on be it trains, buses or something else. Some depending where they fall on the spectrum have great difficulty with dealing and speaking to unfamiliar people.

However surely they recognise the warmth of human kindness?
 

fowler9

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I think maybe all of us fall somewhere on the Autistic spectrum. Certainly in my line of work, housing, almost everyone seems to claim to have Autistic children. Not sure if they are claiming this because they believe things will get done quicker or because their kids have actually been diagnosed as Autistic. Either way the sheer number of people claiming to have Autistic kids is troubling. I reckon some rail enthusiasts are Autistic, some are just anti social, most are just sound and you don't even notice them.
 

Harbon 1

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Everyone is on the spectrum somewhere :)

Contrary to the belief on here, I have a lot of friends and if I don't get a picture, I'll get another one another time :P

Also I embrace the banter and the view of the hobby. Me an my dad (whose fault it is :lol: ) always have a laugh about the people we see on railtours. "Characters" shall we say :lol:
 

Raul_Duke

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My 18 month old son loves a trip up to the local footbridge to wave at the trains. The drivers are very friendly, it's very very rare he doesn't get a wave back and usually a blast of the horn too.

The same can't be said of some of the "enthusiasts" who occasionally lurk on said bridge, although they are in the minority.
 

since1814

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My 18 month old son loves a trip up to the local footbridge to wave at the trains. The drivers are very friendly, it's very very rare he doesn't get a wave back and usually a blast of the horn too.

When we walked along a particular footpath than ran in sight of the line, my parents would get us to wave to the passing trains, and we'd always get a cheery "toot" back. It was many years later that I found out what "W" signs meant.
 

HMS Ark Royal

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When we walked along a particular footpath than ran in sight of the line, my parents would get us to wave to the passing trains, and we'd always get a cheery "toot" back. It was many years later that I found out what "W" signs meant.

Reminds me of a train bridge in Hull... Its almost accepted "official" procedure by drivers working that route to blow the horn when passing under it - partly because the line runs next to Appleton Primary School. If you get an older driver, they will occasionally use the horn to play christmas tunes or topical music
 

hulabaloo

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This thread has made an entertaining read and is it right to conclude then that trainspotters are worse than Hitler? :D
 

Haywain

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I did not like the earlier comment about train spotters being socially awkward people as it was put in such general terms as to include anyone with learning difficulties even though as I said earlier it does have a degree of truth to it. Someone also pointed out that the barmy army who follow the England cricket team have far more people in this bracket than train spotters.
As a rail enthusiast I have nothing against "trainspotters", but do recognise that a society that has branded those people as weird now expects to see them as normal at the same time. That just won't happen as the two things are mutually
exclusive.

The comment about cricket supporters (the barmy army) I find astonishing though. In my experience there may be one or two who are socially awkward but the majority are very sociable people who just happen to enjoy travelling and watching top level test cricket.
 
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