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Reprinted from the September, 1980 National Model Railroad Association Bulletin
A Statement of Condition
by Gerry Leone
A Statement of Condition for a model railroad? Why not? After all, don't we spend hours turning a bunch of tiny trains into a real railroad system?
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Actually, the BVRR Statement is nothing more than the usual collection of pike trivia in a more official-looking form. But it does take the dream one step closer to reality by giving the railroad more of a corporate image. And it helps visitors (and myself) more fully appreciate the time and work put into it.
I find that most armchair (and closet) model railroaders take particular note of the Construction Time section. The idea came from a hunch I'd had while working on my previous layout: I had the feeling I was spending more time on maintenance than on operation and construction. So a calendar was posted at the train room door. After three months I found my hunch was correct. The old layout then came down, and I took a lot more care in constructing the new one.
Now you new and borderline armchair model railroaders, don't get the idea that a pike really has to take this much time -- it can if, and only if: (1) you let it, (2) you want it to, and (3) you have as understanding and patient a spouse as I do.
Many readers may think that this type of time tabulation is like punching a timeclock. It really isn't. And just a few months of keeping track of your railroad time will tell you if you really are doing what you enjoy most, and if not, where the problems are. (My train room appearance really does bear out my figures: I do spend the least time in clean- up.) And it only takes about half an hour with a pocket calculator every month to figure out the totals.
Speaking of totals, a real Statement of Condition, of course, would list a company's assets and liabilities. But since the BVRR (like most others) runs in a fixed economy-household income --there are no real assets, and all operations are carried out in a constant state of debit. (Or so says the Treasurer... )
Therefore, expenditures have been politely classified as "investitures." No dollar amount is listed, naturally, in accordance with BV Rule #1, the CYA Rule. Many of you know this same rule as the "Protection of Marital Bliss" Act, or the "I Swear This Brass Only Cost $19.99" Amendment. We at the Bona Vista Railroad call it "Covering Your Assets."
ADDENDUM: Several weeks after writing about the Bona Vista's Statement of Condition, it occurred to me that I'd missed a significant point. The time-keeping system and formal Statement really give a sense of concrete satisfaction at the end of the year-kind of like a yardstick of improvement. Even now --only a half-year or so after I compiled the SoC, I'm using it to see how much I've done this year. Suddenly I realize I've almost eliminated the commercial turnouts in the mainline, have scratchbuilt the yard ladder, added the turntable, and am now adding a hidden staging yard. Motive power was added, sidings lengthened, rolling stock added... all sorts of little things that I probably wouldn't have remembered or realized had it not been for the Statement.