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Post by curtis on Oct 23, 2023 21:25:06 GMT
Curious about your thoughts on attendance!
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Post by curtis on Oct 23, 2023 21:44:48 GMT
I will admit that I got to talk to all the big YouTubers and they are all approachable and willing to talk. I can't thank this group enough as they are keeping the hobby alive and BUILDING it! Thank You YouTubers!
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Post by dlagrua on Oct 23, 2023 21:49:49 GMT
Attendance was around 7200. It is still one of the largest O gauge shows but as with other hobby and collector shows they have most likely been affected by shifting demographics, changes in the supply chain and online stores/buying.
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Post by healey36 on Oct 23, 2023 22:44:42 GMT
I don't know what the median age is for attendees, but I suspect something in the late fifties/early sixties. If so, I've shot right past the demographics, lol.
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Post by runamuckchuck on Oct 23, 2023 22:46:58 GMT
I will admit that I got to talk to all the big YouTubers and they are all approachable and willing to talk. I can't thank this group enough as they are keeping the hobby alive and BUILDING it! Thank You YouTubers! My enthusiasm for the You Tube so called influencers is considerably less. Perhaps the vicarious unboxing videos appeal to some but it smacks of narcissistic behavior to me more than anything else. The one exception that I know of is Sean's Trains. Rather than hawking new products or plugging a train dealer, Sean actually shows you how to do things mechanical, technical, layout planning/execution, or explain things involving the hobby that few in his age group appear interested in or incapable of doing. IMO it is Sean's approach which will sustain and grow the hobby far more than the what passes for informative content by the young train You Tubers that I have seen.
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Post by rockymountaineer on Oct 24, 2023 0:25:27 GMT
... My enthusiasm for the You Tube so called influencers is considerably less. Perhaps the vicarious unboxing videos appeal to some but it smacks of narcissistic behavior to me more than anything else. ...
I give the YouTubers all the credit in the world for enthusiasm, but I couldn't agree with you more about the unboxing videos nonsense -- especially when using a huge hunting knife to open a basic shipping carton, when a simple exacto knife or even a kitchen scissors would suffice. There's perhaps no greater example of someone being full of themselves than that. But some folks seem enamored by that... or at the very least find it entertaining. I can only smile and shake my head while all the while thinking, "Are you kidding me???". 
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Post by david1 on Oct 24, 2023 0:31:22 GMT
Some are good and some not so good, on the downside I know how to open a box, I think it would be better to have it out and ready to review. I watch most of them no matter how annoying some can be.
Dave
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Post by dennym57 on Oct 24, 2023 1:32:50 GMT
... My enthusiasm for the You Tube so called influencers is considerably less. Perhaps the vicarious unboxing videos appeal to some but it smacks of narcissistic behavior to me more than anything else. ...
I give the YouTubers all the credit in the world for enthusiasm, but I couldn't agree with you more about the unboxing videos nonsense -- especially when using a huge hunting knife to open a basic shipping carton, when a simple exacto knife or even a kitchen scissors would suffice. There's perhaps no greater example of someone being full of themselves than that. But some folks seem enamored by that... or at the very least find it entertaining. I can only smile and shake my head while all the while thinking, "Are you kidding me???".
I know who you're talking about.
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Post by eddieg on Oct 24, 2023 1:36:05 GMT
What do youtubers got to do with the show? and who cares what the attendance was.
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Post by curtis on Oct 24, 2023 4:12:59 GMT
Good or bad YouTubers do affect the show and hobby. You don't have over 150 people go to a meet and greet if they are of no importance. Taking an attitude of "I don't need a YouTuber showing how to open a box" makes me think of this question. "What have YOU done to promote the hobby?" I am not saying I disagree with you or your analysis, but if they help promote the hobby it is good. I would rather watch someone opening a box to do a review or show a new product than watch someone complain about it and do nothing that I can see to promote the hobby but complain. Lionel makes mistakes, OFG makes mistakes, OGR makes mistakes, the list goes on and on, and I know I do but we are trying to promote a hobby rather than say it is dying. My suggestion is learn CPR for the hobby!
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Post by keithb on Oct 24, 2023 9:16:42 GMT
I leaned a lot from U Tube.Glad the show was well attended.
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Post by Traindiesel! on Oct 24, 2023 21:35:37 GMT
Personally I am encouraged by the lower attendance. I view attendees as competitors, common thieves who rob, steal and plunder train items I want by buying them before I do. Twice I had locomotives I liked swiped away before I could get back to them. I was foiled by the need for a hot dog and the items were pilfered while I dined. Filthy, rotten criminals attend these events and they must be stopped!!
As for the YouTubers, I think they are very important no matter what their content is. They are reaching a younger audience that neither the TCA or train forums do. Young kids today peruse mediums like YouTube for entertainment. These guys and gals show the hobby in a positive and enthusiastic manner that can fuel the hobby. The hobby is better with them than not. Who cares if they want attention? They are providing a service to the industry and the hobby.
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Post by rockymountaineer on Oct 24, 2023 22:51:57 GMT
...
As for the YouTubers, I think they are very important no matter what their content is. They are reaching a younger audience that neither the TCA or train forums do. Young kids today peruse mediums like YouTube for entertainment. ... I couldn't agree with you more, Brian. And newest generation of enthusiasts is proceeding WITHOUT any deference whatsoever to the likes and/or dislikes of those of us who've been in the hobby for decades.
Life marches onward, and the new generation has its own way of doing things. They're apparently entertained by a guy using hunting knives to open shipping cartons. And heck... they even went goo-goo, ga-ga over a Lionel locomotive with his name plastered all over it. That offering did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for me... but obviously, it was a success. And I hear Legacy Station sold MANY more than Lionel's minimum custom-run commitment of 40 units. A LOT MORE.
Meanwhile... at least the recent Trainworld special-run Katy locomotive co-sponsored by a different YouTuber only featured that YouTuber's much more discrete logo in a very tasteful paint scheme -- albeit one where the delivered product was a bit of a color surprise to everyone involved in the project. BTW, I've gotta admit... that color DOES tend to grow on you once you see it in real-life. I "almost" succumbed to it at York. But the day before York, I received an email from Charles Ro indicating several goodies were on their way to me after hitting my credit card. And like I've been saying all along... there's just TOO MANY big-ticket items being offered these days to jump at everything that catches our eye. We ALL have our limits!!!
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Post by Traindiesel! on Oct 25, 2023 0:17:49 GMT
...
As for the YouTubers, I think they are very important no matter what their content is. They are reaching a younger audience that neither the TCA or train forums do. Young kids today peruse mediums like YouTube for entertainment. ... I couldn't agree with you more, Brian. And newest generation of enthusiasts is proceeding WITHOUT any deference whatsoever to the likes and/or dislikes of those of us who've been in the hobby for decades.
Life marches onward, and the new generation has its own way of doing things. They're apparently entertained by a guy using hunting knives to open shipping cartons. And heck... they even went goo-goo, ga-ga over a Lionel locomotive with his name plastered all over it. That offering did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for me... but obviously, it was a success. And I hear Legacy Station sold MANY more than Lionel's minimum custom-run commitment of 40 units. A LOT MORE.
Meanwhile... at least the recent Trainworld special-run Katy locomotive co-sponsored by a different YouTuber only featured that YouTuber's much more discrete logo in a very tasteful paint scheme -- albeit one where the delivered product was a bit of a color surprise to everyone involved in the project. BTW, I've gotta admit... that color DOES tend to grow on you once you see it in real-life. I "almost" succumbed to it at York. But the day before York, I received an email from Charles Ro indicating several goodies were on their way to me after hitting my credit card. And like I've been saying all along... there's just TOO MANY big-ticket items being offered these days to jump at everything that catches our eye. We ALL have our limits!!!
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Post by g3750 on Oct 26, 2023 3:36:43 GMT
I leaned a lot from U Tube.Glad the show was well attended.
I learn a lot from YouTube, but that knowledge certainly doesn't come from "the influencers". Most of them are full of themselves and don't really know how to do anything but push products made by their employers.
Thanks very much, but I prefer to do my own thinking. Really, 150 people went to a "meet and greet" with these people? Sheesh. Must be lemming season.
George
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