Western Railroad Discussion > Train Watching Hobby opining

As I sit trainwatching wondering how many experience the same.
Most all the guys in our area want to go out railfanning but they don't want to drive or chip in for gas(maybe a couple bucks) on top of it all I have to provide drinks/snacks. Even had some bring enough for themselves but eat mine and never offer up theirs. Do you all have the same experience or am I around the tightest folks. By the way they either have a decent job or drawing good retirement paycheck so they have the means.

I'd offer to stop by a store or restaurant for them if they're hungry.  Maybe see if they'd buy you something.
Sounds like you're making it too easy.

Some railfans seem very strange these days . Nothing like as freindly as in years gone by but thankfully a small minority.
Andy

Set the rules up front. Share in the gas with $10, buy your own food if you're hungry.

Sounds like you need new friends.

Posted from Android

Great idea on the rules but tried that and did the work. New railfan buddies may be best. The entitlement mentality pertains to a hobby just blows me away

In fond memory of the great Nancy Reagan - "just say no"

Have fun, be safe,
Bruce "Doc" Jones  Sierra Madre CA

Trainatic Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Great idea on the rules but tried that and did the
> work. New railfan buddies may be best. The
> entitlement mentality pertains to a hobby just
> blows me away
Know a few of those also!

From waaay back in the days of chasing the Reading Rambles....yes, we had cheapskates, too.
Gas, meals and tolls, to boot----typically paid for by the driver.

As has been said, collect the money in advance....at least you'll know who's contributing....

Early on, I used to get really bothered by it, my car, my gas, my eats, my tolls, they'd ride.
Soon though I got over it.  I refused to let the dollars, and my attendant envy/anger me--- 'cause we were out to have a great time chasing.

Today, I have collected great memories, the money don't mean much, now ----- and my gut was free from being all knotted by seething anger.

Soon theough, I got a chance to volunteer with Hart's excursion trains out of York, Pa, and over the Wild Mary.
Suddenly, my compatriots tired of doing the lugging for the tourist operation, I sucked it up, met Ross, and haver looked back, since.

We DID have fun at the photo stops, but you'll soon get over the dollars-crap.
 Don't let that attitude spoil your chases...

Their miserly attitude conveys over to their non-support of the main line trips.....Always was a problem, always will be.
There is no proprtionality between the few pennies they claim to spend in support of a muti-thousand dollar event.

It takes REAL bucks to put on these shows, the insurance providers charge as much as they absolutely CAN, because they can.
They know folks want to run trains, so they charge whatever they want --- without there being a competitive market.

Its the same game as sellers of drugs for rare diseases----- they charge whatever they want,  'cause they CAN & they know folks will pay it.
A $100,000.00 per pill, for a pill that contains .05% active ingredient....that they make by the cement-mixer full, and costs them
3 cents/pill  to manufacture... ( remember, that's 99.95% plaster-like filler...)!

Wes C.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/19/16 17:30 by wcamp1472.

I have a few friends that I railfan with. Guess I'm lucky, none of them are cheapskates. It helps to have an agreement up front. I use the same plan that we used to use for church youth group outings. The driver starts with a full gas tank. Any gas on the trip and whatever gas it takes to fill it up at the end of the trip is split evenly by the all the participents so the driver has a full tank when the trip is over. I provide a cooler & ice ( and usually some bottled water ) at the start, everyone brings or buys their own food & drinks. And a good time is had by all! Once you let people take advantage of you on a regular basis, they will begin to expect it AND will get upset when you try to "change" the rules.

Old Bob out in Lost Wages 

What he said...

W.

In December I offered to take a friend to a train show at a museum, about 100 miles away.  I told him he was invited to go along, just pay his way into the museum and his food.  I was going and I would take care of everything else.  He agreed and I pre-purchased the tickets and parking.  We got there and he didn't say anything about paying for his ticket.  Oh well.  When we left we stopped for chow.  He wouldn't let me pay for mine and he insisted on paying for gas when I filled up.  All together, he probably paid his share and maybe a bit more.  

On another occasion a fellow ask me if he could ride to a hamfest with me, about 150 mile away.  Sure.  He said he'd pay for half the gas.  This was years ago when gas was around a buck a gallon.  We drove to the hamfest and afterwards headed home.  I stopped for gas about 20 miles into the return trip.  I remember that the gas was about $20 to fill up.  He offered me $7, saying that he figured that was about half the gas because I had already driven part of the way home before filling up.  It only bothered me because of the way he did it.   I was going to spend the money anyway.  Heck, if I was the rider I would have paid to fill the tank.  Kind of a way to say thanks for driving and for using your car.

Some people are just tighter than a duck's butt.  (A duck's butt is water tight, otherwise the duck would sink.)

John
 

I belonged to a rail fan group some years ago.  One rule was the car goes through a car wash when we got back.

we have them on east coast to
but have to say who buying gas today 
i stop in a place to grab lunch i get a separate check
if you want to have fun order let other order then , once there done say to wait staff oh pleae put my order on separate check 
they either say they have it or some may change from steak to a dog 
but it not only train watching it family too , 

Back in my younger days, a couple friends went with me to chase an early day Amtrak over Raton Pass.  Gas was about sixty cents a gallon, so you understand this was 1972-73 era.  I supplied the car, the driving, and my experience to guide us.  When we got home, we stopped and filled her up and I let the guys pay for it.  Heck, it must have been only seven or eight dollars!  The handicapped kid appreciated that he got to go, paid his half, and had no comment.  The other friend howeled at having to cover his half of the gas. I told him flat out that I paid for the car, maintenance and depreciation, insurance, and I did all the driving!  And I still needed to drive him home!  There are all kinds out there.  Now I have become very much a loaner kind of fan.

rob

The cheapskates are not your friends.

The people that play these games will continue to take advantage of
you as long as you let them.

Find new folk to hang around with. 

Be Well,

Tim Colbert  K3HX

 

I've done a bunch of mulity day trips with a friend all over the country. The rules were simple I covered every other gas stop and every other hotel. If you had to cover a extra hotel then the other guy would pickup a couple of gas fill ups to make it more even.
You covered your own food at stops which were usually just breakfast and supper. There was always a cooler in the back that I supplied with my favorite drinks and my friend with his. Didn't usually share too much snack wise as you just picked up what you wanted at the gas stops for yourself.
If there happened to be a third person along then everything went to thirds.

Posted from iPhone

We would always start with a full tank of gas and end with a full tank of gas. The cost of filling up at the end of the trip, any gas bought during the trip and hotel costs were always divided up evenly between each person at the end of the trip. The person driving would pay for all the gas and hotels during the trip and that person would be to whom the monies would go to when we got back home. As for meals, drinks and snacks? You'd simply pay for your own whenever we'd stop somewhere.

JB

Sadly, this happens with any semi-social activity.  Be glad you're not an aircraft owner - Avgas is expensive when you're looking at over 100 gallons to fill up and people think you are now their "airline on demand at no cost" option!

I'm glad to say I've never had that problem while fanning with others. Everybody, myself included when travelling in someone else's vehicle, were/are more than generous in dividing shared costs of fuel, lodging, or rental cars ( if used ).  Food is dutch, with the exception of a round of drinks as a treat.

Trainatic Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> As I sit trainwatching wondering how many
> experience the same.
> Most all the guys in our area want to go out
> railfanning but they don't want to drive or chip
> in for gas(maybe a couple bucks) on top of it all
> I have to provide drinks/snacks. Even had some
> bring enough for themselves but eat mine and never
> offer up theirs. Do you all have the same
> experience or am I around the tightest folks. By
> the way they either have a decent job or drawing
> good retirement paycheck so they have the means.

This isn't limited to just railfanning. Stay alert and find ways to weed out the parasites as quickly as you can. They will almost always take your generosity for granted, and when you call them out on it later even if done nicely, they become hostile and retaliate.