curios about clubs and starting one up

[Paul3]

I'm a 23-year member of my club, a club that is 78 years old.  We've seen it all.

My advice is to either be a full-on By-Laws, Rules & Regulations kind of club like mine (with officers, elections, committees, "Robert's Rules of Order", etc.), or go for the Round Robin type where everyone meets at a different member's house, and that member sets the rules for his layout.  Going halfway invites trouble.

Be careful of the people you bring into the club.  You're trusting them with your models, perhaps thousands of dollars worth.  One wrong guy can destroy a club because the good members leave.  No one wants to hang out with people they can't stand or trust.

Make it difficult, but not impossible, to change the rules/by-laws.  You don't want to be changing them constantly, but you don't want to stifle change.  Our By-Law changes require a week's posted notice before the next monthy business meeting where it is simply read out loud, not voted on.  The next monthly business meeting after that is when we vote on it, and it takes a 2/3rds majority to pass it.  So it's hard (and slow), but not impossible to change our By-Laws.

Make sure all the rules apply to everyone equally.  Sometimes you get folks who think the rules don't apply to them, which whips up resentment.  Just because someone does a lot for the club, or is the elected leader, or is a friend of someone else, doesn't mean they get to violate the rules.

Set high car/loco/track standards.  No one likes to run a club where derailments (or uncouplings) are common.

Do things together away from the club.  Have a holiday party, or a summer cookout, or a pot luck supper.  Take a railfan trip somewhere.  Build comraderie.  It will hold the club together through tough times (and you will have them).

Paul A. Cutler III

[jjdamnit]

Hello all,

If you are considering beginning a formal club, it might be well worth the time and effort to visit your nearest club, albeit over an hour away.

Let them know your intentions of forming a club. If there truly is a need in your area; "anywhere but here", I'm sure they would be supportive of your efforts.

You should have some questions going in:

• How did they form?
• Is there a charter or mission statement?
• How many members are there?
• What is the criteria for membership?
• Are there dues?
• Is it a drop-in or are there set times for meetings, op-sessions, building/maintenance, etc.?
• How did they get the word out that there was a club in their area (recruitment)?
• Is there a board of directors or another form of leadership structure?
• What kind of insurance is carried by the club?
• Is the club affiliated with The NMRA?
• What is the tax status; 501(c)(3), etc.?
• Any other Q's that you might have.
• And, any other information that you might not have considered.

You can also contact The NMRA or a regional board member and see what information they can provide you about starting a formal club.

To start a formal club many of the above questions need to be addressed, especially insurance.

If you are just running informal op-sessions, if there is an incident then the insurance of the homeowner should cover it.

In this litigious atmosphere, if something does happen to a "member", it won't be the "member" who sues, it's typically the insurance company/lawyer that will pursue the action.

For now you might consider hosting informal op-sessions on your layout without the formalities of a club, as has been suggested.

Establishing a formal club is more complex than just announcing, "Hey folks let's build a layout and run some trains!"

Hope this helps.

[gregc]

why don't you start by inviting a fellow model railroader or two over to operate your layout?    You can help operate their layout.    You might help each other build each others layouts     That will at least see if there are others also interested.

[Lone Wolf and Santa Fe]

You will need to find a cheap location. I’ve heard stories of clubs leasing old depots for $1 a year because they are abandoned and now owned by a local government which will do it in the name of redevelopment.

You will need to find other like minded people to help you make it a club. Elect officers etc. Decided on what you are going to model and how often you meet.

j.........

[dknelson]

That's a huge topic. 

The big issues are,

What does the club own (versus the members owning), and how is that paid for?

Does it charge dues so that it can rent a location (meaning either lots of members or pretty high dues)?

Or does one member generously agree to host, which is how a lot of teenage type train clubs work, or worked.  In which case who really owns that layout and can he terminate the club on a whim (or a job change)?  If the host really owns everything then be cautious about chipping in to pay for stuff.  IF a guy leaves you do not want him undoing your track work so he can take "his" double slip switch home with him for example.

Who decides what scale, what era, what prototype?  DCC or DC or battery?  You need a democracy or a dictator.

Who can join?  Anyone?  Standards?  Probation?  Lots of clubs have been torn apart by disruptive members (e.g. guys who'd come in on off days and undo other guys' work and do things their way).  I know one club that was nearly torn apart by disruption when they admitted a teen who turned out to have serious ADD issues and they did not know what to do about him.

Are there firm rules?  Elected officials?  Actual legal incorporation?

I am just listing a few issues.

I think most really successful clubs are started by guys who have been members of clubs before.  I do not know of a resource that really guides a person on how to start or run a club.  Perhaps the NMRA has something.  Decades ago (and I mean the WW II era) Al Kalmbach as "Boomer Pete" published a book on how to start and run a club, using a lot of paperwork from a Detroit club as the basis.

Dave Nelson

[Left Coast Rail]

Establish goals and rules before you get very involved. Goals include what your target for number of members, and written bylaws should be established early in the game in order to get everyone on the same page.  Clubs can be great but setting up guidelines on who does what and how formal/informal things are run play a key role in providing enjoyment and avoiding strife.  Like most other endeavors, there will be a difference of opinion on how something gets accomplished when more than one person is involved and having the framework set up to deal with differing opinions is a key.

[traintravler]

I am curios about railroad clubs and exactly how they work.  The nearest one is just over an hour away and I dont really like to drive.  I was kind of thinking of startin one up locally.  What should I consider, have and dont have, etc.. Thanks.