http://www.borail.org/Steampunk.aspx



The only comment I will make:

They managed to schedule this during Baltimore Beer Week, at almost the same time as the biggest beer fest in Baltimore this year happens over at the M&T Bank Stadium, and they didn't even approach Baltimore Beer Week to promote it for them--never mind that, at my insistence when we started Baltimore Beer Week seven years ago, nonprofits that hold events like this (there's also an event at the Maryland Zoo and several charity fundraiser events) get listed/promoted for FREE.............

Good for them! Public awareness is the name of the game. As well as butts in seats.

Excellent !!! I kind of like those "dampfbierfests" they have in the EU, where you can get completely discombobulated while riding behind steam or watching steam work up close. The great thing is that they have these events worked out so that nobody gets injured, no matter how much too much beer they may drink !!!

At my request, the B&O Museum Steampunk/Brews event is now listed online as part of Baltimore Beer Week.

I've noticed a massive difference in attitude, depending on the region of the country you're in, towards embracing these type of events. I think there is a an overly unjustified fear that every patron is going to wind up completely drunk and wind up climbing on top of equipment or breaking displays.

Lot's of railroads around the country embrace Thomas or Polar Express events, but the demographic these draw tend to be kids, and mostly ignores the reason why the museum is there to begin with. I understand Christmas trains are a bit more diverse and you'll find couples on date night riding the train, but a beer garden event is going to draw lots of people who may not be interested in showing up on the high-brow days with lots of kids around.

For the record, there happens to be a MUCH larger beer-centric event--and with a much better "return on your investment" if you're all about pounding back beers until you're intoxicated enough to be cut off and removed from the premises--about a mile or so away.

And literally in-between this and the B&O Museum, there's a neighborhood street festival--with beers.

http://baltimorebeerweek.com/events/?wp ... cat=oct-10

So, while I approve of the Museum's "outreach" initiative, I happen to think their timing was off.......

Agreed. People are going to want beer more than one day this year.

I can back up this claim with a great deal of first-hand evidence.

Our group tends to worry about every blessed thing but hurting the equipment has never come up for discussion (yet). The biggest worry is that everybody is going to get drunk then sue the railroad if they get in an accident.

I'm also surprised by the amount of customers that ask "is the event all you can drink?".

I think some of it depends on who is crewing your train, assuming it's an event on board a moving train for this example. If I'm a paid employee of the railroad, there is a reasonable expectation that more could be expected of me if you compared my position to a volunteer crew. I've worked some trains with some intoxicated passengers, but of the years I've been doing this, it's extremely rare to get anyone who was belligerent from alcohol. I've been screamed at and abused far more by completely sober passengers who refuse to listen to directions or instruction for the most minuscule of reasons.

In this case, would a conservative crew base help or hinder the ability for the railroad to expand with different offerings involving alcohol? Lots of operations don't serve and I feel it's an interesting avenue. Look how may new breweries have opened in the last 10 years...

Is there any way to increase the capacity of the restroom facilities on these trains?

"You can never buy beer, you just rent it." - A. Bunker

Niles Canyon Railway runs a beer tasting Oktoberfest train as well as wine tasting trains. Beer comes from three local craft beer breweries. Tickets are $45 each so it is a good money maker. In addition bratwurst and sauerkraut are sold on board.

Just open all the "dark side" vestibule doors and designate them as pissoirs. You could do the sunny side, too, but then the trackside photographers might get a bit upset.

I stopped by. VERY modest turnout, most likely because of the "first time" and short notice. I overheard one of the participants telling another about the upcoming Strasburg weekend (this weekend)--"they get something like 5,000 over the course of the weekend!"

Beer was a nice mix of local crafts by the bottle--apparently "steampunkers" are highly appreciative of craft beer/spirits/wine for all the right reasons.