Does Anyone Else get slagging from their significant other for being on this?

[Oisin88]

I got an awful ragging from my fiancee about this site. Is there a support group? I showed her the Wikipaedia site on Irish Diesel Locomotives to make this place look more normal to her, but I'm not sure it worked.....

[Mark Gleeson]

Firstly you never show the other half this site, main site yes

Most people instantly say trainspotters, which we are not. Put it this way we are not sad people who stand in the rain in some remote location looking for a photo of a moving scrap heap, they are the scurge of all who seek a modern efficent (boring) rail transport system.

Interestingly women make up the bulk of complaints we see, blokes too lazy it seems. The most active campaigners on the ground have been women, no I'm 100% serious

[Derek Wheeler]

Oisin,

It probably won't work. I get slagged on a regular basis. The usual line is..."your a trainspotter, where's your anorak". Its all in good sport, from friends and family. I'm neither a trainspotter, nor do I own an anorak. Have a good golf umbrella though.

Unfortunetly, any interest in railways, usually meets with a reaction of..."you're a nerd, trainspotter blah, blah, blah". This is whats known as "the negative trainspotter impact syndrome". Hardened campaigners like P11 get tarred with this brush on a regular basis, but we put it down to ignorance and we are very sympathetic to this ignorance, but aware of the danger the trainspotter poses to successful lobbying.

In James Wickhams book, Gridlock, P11 are described as an organisation that was started by a small group of rail enthuasiasts. He's right. It was. But a broader mind should be willing to accept that a rail enthuasiast isn't necessarily an inept social reject, living at home with mammy and standing on platforms with a notebook and camera.

My wife Louise is a committee member of P11. She'll admit herself that she knows nothing about railways from an operational or technical viewpoint. But what she does know, is that a lot of IE staff are rude, trains are dirty/late or non-existant and that basic customer issues are ignored by the operator. She's about to explode onto the scene very soon with campaigns that your average trainspotter couldn't even comprehend.She came up with them herself. Furthermore, she is supportive of my interest in making the railways better and she views it that way, always has done. I don't neglect our relationship, because Im standing on a platform in the middle of nowhere looking for some oul banger of a train, so I can add it to my list. But I have neglected it, by attending meetings with concerned rail users, politicians, councillors and god knows who else, in an effort to make it better. Thats an activity, that can be referred to as, "bettering peoples lives" for no financial or any other gain.

The P11 bandwagon is no different to any other campaigning group. Thats what it is, pure and simple.

The trainspotters can stay on the platforms or wherever they want to hang out. Their hobby should never be confused with what P11 do online or otherwise.

[PaulM]

I know very little about trains and what I do know I learned here.

I got fed up of coming from real cities back to the excuse that is public transport in Dublin.

I decided rather than sit in silence I thought I would try to do something about it.

[Thomas J Stamp]

I laughed my head off when I read the title of this thread.

My mates give me an awfull slagging, including one - yes Gerry Pollard, I mean you - who is always giving out about IE - and so does the brother and the siiter in law but Mrsthomasjstamp is of the opinion that its all a waste of time, but its my time to waste. EG, if its me on the internet on a Tuesday night as opposed to going to Parnell Park for a match she's ok with it. She dosnt slag me off about it.

You have hit the nail on the head as to why we are doing the things we are doing to the main page of the site, the message boards, the logo. We are the passengers, we are not trainspotters.

I do not care what kind of train i am on, so long as it is clean, warm in the winter, cool in the summer, there are enough seats, they dont numb your arse and break your back, the lights work, the doors work, the toilet works, the pa works, it turns up on time and gets you to where you are goin on time and there are enough trains at proper times to meet demand.

And that is the Platform11 mission statement.

[TomB]

I get slagging from my fiancee too!

Worst thing is she has relations in Cork, Limerick, Galway, Ballina and Sligo, so I had to have a big long chat with her not long after we started going out about why the WRC is a waste of time. She's done Galway-Cork before by bus so she was a bit emphatic.

I'm marrying a WRC supporter! It's true, love knows no bounds...

I think it's the same with other lobby groups -- this being Ireland everyone has so little faith in our political system that nobody really believes that things can change, so the few who decide to do something inevitably get treated like weirdos.

Having said that maybe what makes us weird is not our interest in trains, but the Eurovision!

Maybe you should point her towards that Margaret Mead quote:

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.

[Louise Ball]

My wife Louise is a committee member of P11. She'll admit herself that she knows nothing about railways from an operational or technical viewpoint.

And to be honest, i never want to know!

[Mark]

Most people here that have met me know that I can talk till the cows come home about rail alignments, metro, luas, tunnels, stations etc. but when it comes to actual trains, trams and customer relations etc. I have next to no idea, anything I do know has been gathered over the last 6 or so years from this site and most of the time im not interested.

I was very sly by convincing my girlfriend that all this is work related, which it kinda is..

[Mark Gleeson]

Originally Posted by Mark

I was very sly by convincing my girlfriend that all this is work related, which it kinda is..

Its public consultation for the EIS.........

[Brian Condron]

I'm similar to yourself Mark, I more interested in the track than the train, as all civil engineers should be. My girlfriend tolerates my interest, but of course I've pulled the "it has to do with work" line myself a couple of times.

I do come out with the odd rail related anecdote that she finds interesting, but 9 times out of 10 I bore her. Especially the time we landed in Oslo airport, hopped on the bus and watched the high speed city train go by, and I asked what the standard gauge used on that line was. Still, she was impressed when I could tell her why the section of T-Banen near her home was so slow, despite the trains being brand new!

However, sometimes when I read you guys talking about the actual trains themselves, I understand how my girlfriend feels!

[Oisin88]

My fiancée, aka, or bridezilla as I like to call her at the monent, will kill me for starting this thread, but she doesn't have to know

Anyhow, she has been caught looking at www.irishweddings.com and has a folder on her work PC called "wedding" so I think I could buy an anorak and notebook and still have the upper hand. She does like to have a go all the same.

Thank you all for your supportive comments. I do observe the whole "make the system better for all of us" vibe and a healthy dose of practicality mostly as well.

[Oisin88]

Oh and she also knows that before I ever knew about this site that I have a healthy interest in public transport and want to see the whole island covered in trains.

Monorail for Tullamore, weyhey!

[Derek Wheeler]

To sort out anyones wife/partner etc. in relation to P11 being a "trainspotters" hang out, just show them the IRN site. Compare both and come to the obvious conclusion.

We're miles and miles apart.

Its a worthwhile endeavour.

[turnapin]

Don't mention the IRN site. You'll get done for guilt by association.

[Thomas J Stamp]

Thomas B gives the real reason for leaving the committee of platform11:

I'm marrying a WRC supporter! It's true, love knows no bounds...

Alas alas and alack..........

[Derek Wheeler]

Love knows no bounds until you say, "I do". Then it takes on a much vaunted guise, yet frequently ignored concept.

Another riddle from the riddler.

[craigybagel]

From what ive heard the trainspotters are no particularly big fan of P11 (and im an enthusiast not a spotter, and a lapsed member of IRRS). Wont mention the exact words ive heard on here to protect the innocent but......

[sean]

Go ahead: we've heard it all before.

[craigybagel]

Then you dont need me to tell you that said the reason i started posting here was because you guys seem to approve more of my views on transport in Ireland than they do, though once finance and accomodation permits (complicated) i plan on being a member of both groups.

[Thomas J Stamp]

There's no problem being a member of both, i am. I dont post much over there for the simple reason that I couldnt disagree with any of the discussion there as it is fairly harmless. IRN is made up of people who have ahabby. It is only when members of IRN try to influence government policy regarding irish rail transport for reasons which are not actaully connected with benifiting the rail passangers that it gets Dereks and my goat up.

I also, for my own part, have no problem whatsoever with members of IRN posting here and adding to our debate, if anyone knows their stuff about how the machienery works, some of them on IRN do, including several employees of Irish Rail. However, we do have Mark Gleeson, who can give the Mekon a run for his money with these things, and therefore we have weighty authority on our side when we make our pronouncements.

I can understand the sense of loss and upset some people on IRN feel for the way that IE are re-shaping the fleet, fair enough, that's their bag. I dont share it, that's my bag. I had very high hopes for the forum on IRN called "Crisis on Irish Rail" but it wasnt nearly as critical as i had hoped.


As for what they think of us? Cant understand it really, we're a rail passengers repersentation group, and I cannot understand why they have a problem with that. The day IE gets its act together then we can get back to watching the telly and they can keep writing down the numbers.