Rails Along the Rio Grande 2016

Rails Along the Rio Grande Comes Again to Albuquerque

Division 6 of the Rocky Mountain Region is excited about hosting another train show this year – Rails Along the Rio Grande (RARG) 2016. The show will be held on Saturday, Nov. 19, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 20, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Set up will be on Friday, Nov. 18. The venue will be a new facility, the Sid Cutter Pilots Pavilion, at the world famous Balloon Fiesta Park in Albuquerque. The cost is $5 for adults, children under 12 are free and there is lots of free parking.

The show will feature 7 operating layouts covering N, HO, HOn3, O and Lego trains as well as 20 vendors featuring a wide variety of new and used model train equipment. A list of vendors can be found at www.railsalongtheriogrande.org.

A highlight of the show will be a 20 ft. N-scale model of Disneyland with a large number of operating rides. 

Also, a special “seek and search” activity with great prizes will be available for the young folks. Two of Albuquerque’s outstanding food trucks will be on hand to satisfy your hunger including, of course, New Mexico’s famous green and red chile.

The idea for the RARG Train Shows grew out of the successful RMR Convention and Train Show held in Albuquerque in 2013. Al Hovey, general chair of the convention and show, proposed to the membership of Division 6 that we do another train show in 2014 and that we aim to make this an annual event. RARG 2014 was held at the National Guard Armory in Albuquerque in Nov. 2014. It was a very successful event with a total attendance of about 2300 people.

This motivated Al and his team to plan for RARG 2015, again to be held at the National Guard Amory in Nov. 2015. Unfortunately, only a few weeks before the show, the Guard notified us that it could no longer make the facility available for general public use. Due to the short notice, there was insufficient time to locate another venue and the show had to be cancelled. Undeterred, Al and his team began looking for another site for a possible RARG show in 2016.

Fortunately, a new state-of-the-art facility was located, the City of Albuquerque’s Sid Cutter Pilots Pavilion, and arrangements were made to host RARG 2016. The Pavilion has 12,000 sq. ft. of open space, easy access for loading and unloading, lots of natural lighting and modern audio/video equipment.

It is located at the field that hosts the International Balloon Fiesta each year in Albuquerque and has easy access off of I-25.

It takes a team to put on a train show, starting with Division 6’s superintendent – Buzz Lenander. Al and Charlie Baker have served as train show co-chairs the last two years. They are ably assisted by Sandy Savage (treasurer), Pat Hepburn (vendor registration), Marjorie Lynn (seek and search), Tim Tennant and Jim Billian (publicity), Chuck Aylward (show layout design), Mike Hadaway (computer assistance) and Jeff Wright (web site and graphic design). One of the best ways to market the train show is to distribute show flyers at a model train layout at the New Mexico State Fair and at the open house of the restoration of the Santa Fe 4-8-4 (#2926) in Albuquerque. Several folks have assisted in these efforts. These people plus others will also provide help during the show for coordinating unloading and loading and selling tickets. And, of course, an essential part of a successful show is the effort and time of our vendors and model train layout operators.

Yes, indeed, a successful train show depends on a team of capable, committed, experienced people who work well together.

Charlie Baker

RARG2016 Co-Chair