The speaker for the closing banquet of the Fall S Fest 2010 will be Mike
Schafer.
Mike is a life-long railfan and model railroader. Born and raised in Rockford,
Illinois, Mike attended Northern Illinois University. After graduation in
1971, he has spent his career in railroad publishing. From his initial
employment at Kalmbach Publishing he has moved through several positions to
where he is today, employed by White River Productions. In addition to his
primary responsibility as editor of the Passenger Train Journal, The Milwaukee
Railroader and The Diamond, he collaborates on other publications. His
expertise in passenger railroading and Chicago area rails puts him in demand as
both an author and photographer. He travels extensively photographing railroad
subjects nationwide.
The primary subject of his presentation on the banquet program will be the
Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railroad, Chicago's most recent "Fallen Flag." The
"J" became part of the Class I Canadian National at the start of 2009. The
December 2009 issue of Railroads Illustrated featured his photography on the
cover and in support of his article, "E J & E Recall." Over half of that issue
of the magazine covered "Chicago's Outer Belt" (the Fall S Fest 2010 meet cars
are special run E J & E 40' 1937 A R A box cars in two distinctive paint
schemes).
As for Mike's model railroading, his start came with an American Flyer S gauge
train set for Christmas in 1953. He continued with his American Flyer until
1963 when he switched to HO scale. In 1985, his interest in American Flyer was
revived and added S back into his practice of model trains. His HO Illinois
and St. Louis is a double deck layout covering over 1,600 square feet. He
regularly participates in Flyer Fest (not to be confused with Fall S Fest)
events with S friends. Flyer Fest involves building large, temporary layouts
in participant's homes or offices over a weekend. These layouts have had main
lines as long as 1,000 feet and can operate up to a dozen trains at one time,
with more waiting on numerous sidings ready to take the main.
Besides the comments on the "J," Mike will include some Flyer Fest
recollections at the banquet presentation.
For additional information on the Fall S Fest 2010, contact the registrar, Joel
Lebovitz at 847-212-3541 (evenings/weekends) or Will Holt at 630-881-9035 or
224-484-8736; the web site for the Fest is www.fallsfest.net.
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