Types of Volunteers

[thetom22]

Ever since I did my Steam Experience on the East Lancashire Railway last year in May, I've been considering joining as a Volunteer, starting as a cleaner and eventually working up to Fireman and possibly Driver.

I've noticed that many of the volunteers have a keen interest in trains (of course), but some seem a bit too keen like trains is their life and they do nothing else (being a bit extreme I know). However, some of the volunteers (more so the footplate and catering staff I've seeb) seem quite down to earth with their interest and have other things occupying them outside of the railway.

I'm a guy who is 22 years of age living independently who works as a Postman and can be quite introverted at times, as well as having an interest in trains I also like socialising with mates (who have no interest in trains at all), keeping fit and healthy with gym training, cycling and martial arts (practising and teaching children), playing video games when the mood hits, going to gigs to see rock bands such as Disturbed, Iron Maiden, Ozzy Osbourne, etc. going out every now and then for the odd drink (Cider and JD and Coke for me), solo travelling to places like Wales, Scotland, York and hopeful develop some sort of dating life in the future.

As you can see, I'm quite an outgoing kind of person (not tooting my own horn, honest) and some people that I've seen volunteering seem quite narrow minded and would only strike up a conversation with me if it was to do with something like how many carriages a 9F could pull or what my favourite Steam Loco is and although it's good that they're passionate about their interest, it can be a bit overwhelming and off putting for me sometimes like yes I like trains, but I have other interests too.

I don't mean to throw shade at those who are like anyone I've mentioned above, but I'd like to know if anyone here volunteers on a heritage railway and how they feel about it and if they do other things in their spare time.

 

[Flying Phil]

Well done for wanting to volunteer!
As you have realised, there are a lot of varieties of volunteer....I am one of those grey haired retirees but also have a family with grandchildren so spend time with them, We have a house and garden so spend time on that, I have had/still have a passion for cars/sports cars/drag racing so spend time on that.....and I paint Windcutter wagons on the GCR.
I'm sure you will find others with similar interests to yours in the railway scene.
I enjoy the banter, the feeling that I am doing my "bit" to improve our railway and the physical/mental activity of doing something different.

 

[DarloRich]

Just go with it. There are oddballs in every work place. Try to judge people when you know them.

 

[trebor79]

I was a volunteer on a minor league steam railway from age 16 to about 21.

Most people were quite normal. There were a couple of trainspotter types who were totally into trains and little else and a bit odd. There were a couple more who were just plain odd.

Like any activity or place of employment, there will be people you like more than others.

I had a great time and really enjoyed volunteering until university and my parents moving to the other end of the country meant it wasn't practical for me any longer.
Started as a cleaner and ended up as a diesel driver and "passed fireman", though driver and fireman tended to share duties anyway. I also worked on loco maintenance and overhaul.

 

[E50019]

Every railway has 'characters'... some good some bad, motive power departments (if that's where you are going) will usually have a wealth of old boys (with experience and tales to tell) but definitely worth watching and learning from. There will be some that expect you to do everything their way, and not happy if you don't turn up as often as they do.. I don't pay these individuals much attention. Management will soon get a feel for your interest and potential.

Personally, I volunteer at 2 places and do completely different things at each site, one requires commitment to a roster providing availability months in advance and a minimum number of turns a year and regular assessments etc in a uniform public facing with a certain amount of responsibility, which I really enjoy and have done this since in various roles at this site for 23 years, at another along with 3 other people I help restore rolling stock, we keep out of the way, work to our own schedule and have little to do with other factions of the railway with no roster commitments, we agree between ourselves our plans and work accordingly, and occasional on my own which can be very productive.

If you let it, it will take over your life and you will find yourself doing more and more, and offering to help out in other areas that are short, be warned.

For me its a break from my day job, which although is railway related, has nothing to do with the above, I actually started work in the railway industry after a number of volunteers I met told me about it.

Good luck with it, I'm sure you will enjoy it.

 

[JonathanP]

I volunteer at one of the larger railways. I would have to say that most of the volunteers in their 20's that I know, railways are the main interest in life. The majority, though not all, either do, have, or want to work for NR or a TOC/FOC, the majority of their friendship group comes is made up of other volunteers and they spend a lot of their leisure time on the railway. However, they aren't train crazy enough that's literally they only thing they do or can talk about.

Looking at the MPD specifically, my railway selects it's footplate crew with care, more care than any other department. Any true oddballs, i.e. those not capable of interacting with people and reacting to situations in a normal manner wouldn't make it.

There are also a bevy of 'unsung heroes', mostly retired people, who paint fences, mow lawns, lay paving, bake cakes, sell souveneirs etc. I suspect for most of them it is more about being part of a community and achieving something they can be proud of than any especial interest in railways. Probably some of the catering volunteers come into that category.

 

[reddragon]

It comes down to what YOU want out of it.

I visited several railways until I found a couple I like how I was treated as a visitor.

I then went to volunteer open days and chose one that offered me what I wanted to do, but that one is over 60 miles away and I pass several other heritage railways on the way there.

I worked there for 2 years before finding my place and there are many like you there too. You can choose between public and quiet isolated tasks as you please and age really doesn't come into it, it is about individuals.

 

[mushroomchow]

Takes all sorts to run a railway, and while you don't have to be mad to volunteer it helps!

I don't get down to the GCR nearly as much as I would like to with the 9-5 and family commitments sucking up whole weekends left, right and centre, but even though that means there are always new faces when I do turn out for a day's work once in a blue moon, I've always found even the most oddball amongst them to be good company. If you're not really one for 24/7 company, there's plenty you can be getting on with solo, especially up and down a platform and the surrounding grounds, but remember the kettle is always waiting for you in the Mess Room!

You're not wrong that there are some people who can take their enthusiasm to an almost unbearable degree, but that's the nature of the hobby as a whole I've found. Some people dedicate more time than others, you'll get a handful that seem to never leave, there'll be the odd bit of daft drama over nothing, but really it all boils down to a group of people keeping the past alive and having a laugh and near-lethal amounts of tea while doing it. It's a corny cliché, but it feels like a family.

Since you're a similar age to me, I'd be more concerned at having to explain the ways of the Milennial to the retired members of the workforce than the conversations about the comparable tractive effort of a Jinty and an 9F, though I can give as good as I get in both scenarios to be fair.

 

[JayDee]

Well for me I volunteer because it's fun and social. There's always going to be those types (murricans call them "foamers") but then I am a super laid back guy who's easy to talk to. Even to the foamers likes we get here.

I say be chill, find a group of like minded folks at the railway and hang out with them. You soon fit in.

 

[Paul Hitchcock]

"Foamer" is a lovely word. So is the Australian equivalent "gunzil". Whether foamer, gricer or gunzil reality has a habit or coming up against wishful thought!

PH

 

[HaggisBotherer]

I've noticed that many of the volunteers have a keen interest in trains (of course), but some seem a bit too keen like trains is their life and they do nothing else (being a bit extreme I know). However, some of the volunteers (more so the footplate and catering staff I've seeb) seem quite down to earth with their interest and have other things occupying them outside of the railway.

A perfect nutshell of railway internet forums as well. In my experience the latter type you've described do all the actual doing and the former nearly all of the talking about doing, but never actually doing a great deal of useful doing.

"Foamer" is a lovely word. So is the Australian equivalent "gunzil". Whether foamer, gricer or gunzil reality has a habit or coming up against wishful thought!

Stoatface is my favourite term for hardcore railway nutters

 

[Harbon 1]

I volunteer at the East Lancs on the back of a diesel driver experience, and now volunteer on that loco. Always good to see more people my (exact) age coming into volunteering, even if it is for the kettle side!

p.s. the pub is excellent on the station after a long hard day

 

[Journeyman]

I've done some volunteering on the Bo'ness and Kinneil Railway, mainly between jobs so not doing it currently, but I've been involved in two things - the Monday Squad, responsible for civils maintenance and installation, and working on the front desk in the museum. Both were very enjoyable - the former was in a big gang of people, mainly older guys, the latter a more solitary pursuit, but interacting with the public a lot more. It was fun answering questions about the exhibits and stuff.

While it's a lot like paid workplaces, I did find there can be a weird extra dynamic in volunteering, which is that people can get quite political about their particular passions and priorities, and the preservation movement can generate a lot of unnecessary drama. It's easy to keep out of, but it helps to be aware of it, when you come across someone who thinks all the money should be spent on maintaining a comprehensive collection of Highland Railway foot-warmers and picnic hampers.

Essentially volunteers only get "fired" if they do something very, very seriously wrong, so you'll get some oddballs occasionally who you wouldn't expect to find in a workplace, but I've only come across a tiny handful of these.

 

[Belperpete]

some people that I've seen volunteering seem quite narrow minded and would only strike up a conversation with me if it was to do with something like how many carriages a 9F could pull or what my favourite Steam Loco is and although it's good that they're passionate about their interest, it can be a bit overwhelming and off putting for me sometimes like yes I like trains, but I have other interests

Let me turn your question on its head, and ask, when you strike up a conversation with such people, what do you talk about? It is easiest to start a conversation with a topic that interests you both. As railway volunteers, it a safe assumption to make that you will both be interested in railways. Only when you have got to know people better, will you know what other interests they have.

But yes, there are "railway bores", just as there are football bores, people who can prattle on for hours about roadworks, or their favourite band, ...... You just have to learn to avoid triggering them off, or how to turn the conversation when they get started. Just a simple "What do you do when you're not volunteering here?" is usually enough.

The real problem is when you get two or more die-hard enthusiasts together, when you can feel a bit like the one Iron Maiden enthusiast in a group of Abba devotees. In which case, the thing to do is to involve yourself in the conversation as best you can. You never know, you might learn something useful (knowing how many coaches a 9F can pull could be useful if you're firing a 9F), and the conversation may turn. The worst thing, if two people are having a conversation that they are enjoying, is for someone else to keep trying to steer it onto another topic, and you will make yourself unpopular if you try doing so.

The art of good conversation is not to talk about what you are interested in, but to be able to talk about what the other person is interested in.

 

[realaledrinker]

I am weeks off retiring and the missus keeps badgering we about 'what are you going to do'. Well I half in jest said I'm going to volunteer at a preserved railway, so thanks all for the above!

 

[Journeyman]

I am weeks off retiring and the missus keeps badgering we about 'what are you going to do'. Well I half in jest said I'm going to volunteer at a preserved railway, so thanks all for the above!

Go for it! It's an extremely worthwhile thing to do, and gives you the chance to get hands-on with some very cool kit indeed.