Monday

The final full week of July 2010 was the timeframe for the LCCA annual Convention – our 40th anniversary event. The week began with a train ride in Union Pacific’s Heritage fleet of passenger cars pulled by their famous 4-8-4 steam engine #844 accompanied by DD40X, Centennial diesel #6936, as a back-up if needed.

When we returned to our Convention host – the Denver Marriott Tech Center Hotel – after a day of train travel, a majority of the travelers made for the onsite LCCA Store. They gathered up great deals, including a die-cast 1:43 scale 1941 Ford UP Railroad Police Car with Cheyenne markings. This special product was available to those who rode the train, but later in the week all other members could buy it too.

Tuesday

Tuesday’s tour included the Rocky Mountain High tour with a stop at the famous Colorado Railroad Museum near Golden, CO. Its collection, comprised of rolling stock indigenous to mountain railroading, included the well-known and often-photographed Rio Grande Galloping Goose. In addition, we visited one of Colorado’s most amazing locales, the Red Rocks State Park. It’s an outdoor natural amphitheatre, and the acoustics are astonishing. After a stop for lunch at the Ship Rock Grill, this tour ended at the Coors Brewery.

The other Tuesday tour was a visit to the Denver Light Rail System and its Elate Maintenance Operation Facility. On Tuesday night, Convention-goers traveled to Georgetown, CO, for a Moonlight in the Mountains Dinner Train event.

Adventures in the Atrium
Starting Tuesday night at 10 o’clock in the hotel atrium, the TW Design team, Lionel staffers, and some club volunteers began assembling the huge Lionel train layout and display. At 8 a.m. on Wednesday morning, the trains were running, smoking, and filling the atrium with sound. Because of significant newspaper and TV coverage, families with children showed up en masse on Wednesday through Saturday. Youngsters and parents played with Lionel train sets on the carpeted floor, and hundreds of others admired and took pictures of the large Lionel layout. We had a tremendous public turnout – the largest ever experienced at a LCCA Convention. Denver hobbyists brought vintage Lionel trains to the site for free appraisals. Oftentimes, the waiting line was 10 persons long.

Wednesday

Those interested in a rail tour opted for a train trip aboard the Leadville, Colorado & Southern Railroad. Departing from the Leadville depot at 10,500 feet above sea level, travelers climbed to 10,850 feet along the Arkansas River Valley.

It was a YEE-HAW! day for those who chose to attend the “Daddy of them All” rodeo, Frontier Days in Cheyenne. After a “behind the chutes” tour and a catered BBQ lunch, we took excellent seats in the shady grandstand for about three hours of world class rodeo action.

On Wednesday night, about 100 first time conventioneers attended the First Timer’s Reception and met other members and club leaders.

Thursday

At early morning, a group departed the host hotel for a ride about the Royal Gorge Route. This scenic railroad tracks along the Arkansas River and across the famous Hanging Bridge, which was built out across the river because the canyon is too narrow to support a ledge for the road bed. After riding to the end of the line, we returned to the incline railroad where we rode to the top of the gorge for an eagle’s eye perspective of the gorge – 1,053 feet down.

The second tour was a Rocky Mountain High motor coach tour to one of America’s most visited national parks.

The third tour leaving was a ride on the Georgetown Loop Railroad. After crossing the 95-feet-high steel loop bridge, we gathered for a BBQ lunch and a tour of the Lebanon Silver Mine.

Friday

On Friday, members had a second opportunity to visit the Colorado RR Museum and the Red Rocks State Park. Others took the Mile High City tour which included a tour of downtown, City Park, the LoDo District, and the “Unsinkable” Molly Brown Mansion. There were stops at Coors Field and the Capitol building plus a scrumptious lunch at Maggiano’s Little Italy. Then we returned to the hotel for the LCCA annual business meeting, the Lionel Seminar, and the opening of the Trading Hall.

Saturday

Saturday night was the annual banquet and silent auction. We had a surprise visit from a look-alike Teddy Roosevelt who related what it was like during his presidency and what he did before, during, and afterwards. After the banquet, raffle prizes were awarded to those lucky ticket holders who purchased tickets during the week.