October 15, 2011 - To understand the magnetism of model railroading, you’ve got to feel it with your own hands. That’s what our new program, “See It, Hold It, Run It!” is about — giving potential hobbyists a hands-on experience in the hope of drawing them into our hobby. In our recent O gauge catalogs, we’ve launched a program called “3in3,” in which we’re asking each model railroader to get three new people into our hobby over the next three years. As our first 3in3 promotion, we began the annual Blue Comet Award for the person or organization that does the most to promote the O gauge hobby to the public. “See It, Hold It, Run It!” (“SHR”) is our second 3in3 promotion and is open to all scales.

PROGRAM GOALS

  • To givechildren and adults the opportunity to hold a model train in their hands and then run it on an actual layout
  • To create an online database of places and dates where folks can take advantage of that opportunity
  • To give model railroad clubs a fundraising opportunity, by allowing them to purchase a “See It, Hold It, Run It!” HO or O gauge train set at dealer cost and raffle it off to the public (at the end of their open house or display period) as a fundraiser

HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS

  • Participating organizations can be hobby shops, clubs with permanent or modular layouts, or organizations that setup temporary layouts (such as annual holiday displays).
  • A database on the MTH Website will list location, dates and times, brief description of layout, and a contact person to schedule SHR sessions of about 15 minutes in length. Adults and children at least 7 or 8 years old (or younger if a participating organization permits) can sign up for an SHR session. Participating organizations can also promote SHR sessions on their own, as part of an open house, holiday display, or regular operating session.
     
  • A “See It, Hold It, Run It!” session will last about 15 minutes (at the organization’s discretion) and consist of
  • a). See It: brief introduction to the model (what scale it is, what kind of locomotive, what the model can do, for example) b).
  • b) Hold It: having the child or adult hold the model in their hands and put it on the track 
  • c) Run It: explaining how the throttle and sounds work, and having the child or adult run the model around the display layout.
     
  • A train set to be used for SHR sessions can be purchased once per year at dealer cost by participating organizations that are not hobby shops. It is understood that club members will not want the general public handling delicate models, so participating organizations can purchase one Ready-to-Run MTH HO or 3-rail O gauge set per year to be used for SHR purposes and then be raffled off to benefit the organization. Organizations can choose from HO sets that are compatible with analog and DCC control, and O gauge sets with Proto-Sound 2.0 or 3.0.
  • M.T.H. Ready-to-Run Catalogs can be requested by participating organizations to be used as free handouts and to help promote their train set raffle.

For additional information and for assistance in taking advantage of this program, organizations and hobby shops are urged to contact MTH at SHRprogram@mth-railking.com