On Christmas day, we headed down to Bend, Oregon, and stayed there for three nights. One of the things we did while there was go see a cool train display. I'll have Annabelle tell you a bit more about that.
Every year, Deschutes Public Library in Bend, Oregon, hosts an event spanning the week of Christmas. Michael Lavrich, better known locally as "The Train Man," uses the library's conference room to set up an impressive display of model trains. He's been bringing his trains to the library for 18 years, and collecting them since he was 50 - meaning multiple generations have had the joy of seeing the trains.
As a former kindergarten teacher, Lavrich finds joy in bringing smiles to the faces of the kids that visit. According to his page on the Deschutes Library website, he enjoys controlling the train on the outer track the most since he can slow it down or stop it in front of the most intrigued children. While the trains have to take occasional 5-minute breaks so they can cool down, traffic through the room produces a line all the way out the door.
The Train Man has become a staple of Christmas in the Bend area, and for good reason! The event is totally free, as long as you're willing to wait in line. It only lasts one week, from December 21st to the 28th, so catch it while you can if you're in the Bend area!
As Annabelle mentioned, we did have to wait in line to get in to see the display. We waited about 20 minutes, I'd estimate. The good news is, when you're in line at the library, there is plenty to keep you entertained!
We were fortunate that during our time around the display, it included a break where the conductor shared some factoids with the crowd. CJ can tell you more about some of the things we learned. ...
The first full-scale steam locomotive is often considered to have involved Richard Trevithick's steam engine, which, on 21 February 1804, powered a train along a tramway in what is now the United Kingdom.
According to Michael Lavrich, model trains might predate "the real deal," in the sense that they existed before actual, full-scale locomotives did.
Lavrich told us that, about once an hour, model trains need to "cool down" for a period of about five minutes. Lavrich used this time to tell us information about the model trains.
Last year's model train event marked the nineteenth year in a row that Lavrich has displayed his trains at the library. According to the Deschutes Public Library website, this means that kids who saw the first train events might have children of their own by now.
The train display takes about four days to set up and four days to take down. According to Lavrich, this means that the train display basically takes up most of his December.
There were so many little details to look at. The train community's inhabitants were a varied lot, everything from holiday icons to historic figures, cartoon and movie characters to 'regular' town folk.
You can check out a time-lapse video of the scene being set up here:
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