cteno4 Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 We were recently invited to display the JRM layout at the Japanese Embassy on May 3, 10-4pm for Open Passport day which is an open house event for many embassies in DC that day. We will be in the main hall of the old ambassador's residence right next to the main embassy gate where most of the cultural displays will be along with JR Central and some tourism displays. Since space is limited the shinkansen yard will stay home! Very fun to get into the embassy and also with JICC (japanese information and culture center) to see if there are other events we might do with various japanese cultural events around town! So if you are around come on down, but expect some lines as it can get really busy from what i have heard. I think they will be selling bento lunch boxes as well. would have been super fun to do the new york layout there (would have fit the space better) but its just way to much work to assemble the thousand odd pieces to recreate it. cheers jeff 5 Link to comment
nscalestation Posted April 27, 2014 Share Posted April 27, 2014 That's outstanding Jeff. Sound's like time to bring out the smaller trains and leave the Shinkansens at home. Did someone from the embassy see you guys at Grand Central ? Link to comment
cteno4 Posted April 27, 2014 Author Share Posted April 27, 2014 Thanks brad! Actually we will still have the full 16 car Shinkansen station on the layout with its two passing tracks so we can have 4 up to 16 car each Shinkansens on the viaduct lines. We just have to leave off the Shinkansen yard that goes off the end of the layout about 12' that has room for a dozen trains. They actually approached us at the cherry blossom festival a few weeks ago. They may have also heard from jr east and the tourism office of the great reception we got in NYC. There may have been embassy staff up at Japan week as that a big event now. We are also going to run without any crowd barriers at this show! Space is tight so we are just going to have folks stationed around the layout to try and stop fingers before they happen. We are setting up on tables so we can have like 4" of table around the edge to keep small ones from grabbing the edge of the layout itself. We do a ttrak setup at the local Buddhist temple's obon festival every July and we run an 8' ttrak loop w/o barriers and have never had any problems with the tracks right at eye level with little ones. Something very nice to not force the audience back. In my exhibit work we have always been successful when we don't armor an exhibit, as when you respect the audience they respect you. Anyhow should be a fun experience! Cheers, Jeff Link to comment
cteno4 Posted May 3, 2014 Author Share Posted May 3, 2014 (edited) Well we just got back from the embassy open house, quite an event! Over 7,000 people thru in 6 hours and since it was basically a stream thru event just about everyone went but the layout! Running without barriers went very well, no digital derailments and it only real danger were the swag bags from the companies as folks would forget they had one looped on their arm when they leaned into take a picture or turn around. But all and all a great show! Got to meet ambassador Sasae. Goji was a very big hit as usual, every cell phone had to come out for a pict of him. Wonderful time was had by all and JICC staff was great! Cheers Jeff Edited May 4, 2014 by cteno4 1 Link to comment
Claude_Dreyfus Posted May 4, 2014 Share Posted May 4, 2014 Sounds like you had a great time. Yet another cool venue for you guys! Link to comment
Davo Dentetsu Posted May 5, 2014 Share Posted May 5, 2014 digital derailments This is my new favourite model railway term. :P Sounds like a great event. Link to comment
cteno4 Posted May 5, 2014 Author Share Posted May 5, 2014 We had a couple of good analog ones too! First lap of the brand new E7 and it derailed on the first point! Poor Thomas was worried it would be a total crasher but after picking up cars we discovered a wheel set under a car on the tracks. Assumed it was from the E7 so looked thru all the cars but all the wheels were there! Then looked at the n700 that had been running for a half hour and low and behold it was missing from one of those cars! So the n700 ran along fine missing a wheel and never tripped up on it, quite amazing. Later the n700 lost its end car came around before anyone noticed and the front end car did a spectacular ramp jump up the other end car! Jeff Link to comment
Mudkip Orange Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 So the n700 ran along fine missing a wheel and never tripped up on it, quite amazing. Later the n700 lost its end car came around before anyone noticed and the front end car did a spectacular ramp jump up the other end car! Directed by Michael Bay. Link to comment
cteno4 Posted May 6, 2014 Author Share Posted May 6, 2014 (edited) yep exactly! you can even see the densha otaku there at the end of the platform getting the perfect shots! Edited May 6, 2014 by cteno4 Link to comment
nscalestation Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 Just saw Phil's Flickr photos of the show. Very cool. https://www.flickr.com/photos/p-c/sets/72157644124149389/ You guys may be the first to have ever had a layout at an embassy ? Link to comment
Martijn Meerts Posted May 6, 2014 Share Posted May 6, 2014 yep exactly! you can even see the densha otaku there at the end of the platform getting the perfect shots! Nowhere near enough fire and explosions =) Link to comment
cteno4 Posted May 6, 2014 Author Share Posted May 6, 2014 well thats the next step to rig some explosions and such! it was a good gomez adams moment... im not sure if we were the first layout, i heard some mention that there was a small train set up there in the past sometime, might have been an embassy employee that brought some of their trains with them from japan! I think it was different for them, thats for sure! also probably a little odd 5 white guys having a presentation there! wish we could have done the new york layout there, it has more scenes on it, but its just such a bear to assemble the thousand items for it and long set up time as well. jeff Link to comment
1954G Posted May 7, 2014 Share Posted May 7, 2014 Goji was a very big hit as usual, every cell phone had to come out for a pict of him. Wait, there was a scale model of Godzilla in the layout somewhere? As you might have guessed from my avatar, I'd like to know more. Link to comment
cteno4 Posted May 7, 2014 Author Share Posted May 7, 2014 Our mascot, goji. http://japanrailmodelers.org/photos/_goji/index.html Ill pull some pictures from the camera from the embassy show, goji had a great backdrop of mt Fuji and the rising sun from the JRM banner behind him, made for a great photo op. Jeff Ps old goji threads here http://www.jnsforum.com/community/topic/3584-where-are-the-n-scale-type-66-maser-cannons/?hl=maser Link to comment
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