Carolina Piedmont Division 13
of the
NMRA Mid-Eastern Region

NMRA Achievement Program (AP)

 
Getting Started
Go to a Regional or Divisional meet. Take a model along and enter it in the model contest. Contest results will provide you with a good benchmark of your current skills. If you score enough points you will be presented with a Merit Award that you can use towards your Certificates of Achievement (see below). If you don't earn a merit Award the judges will be happy to advise you on how you might improve the model or build a better one next time.

If entering a contest doesn't appeal to you, contact your local AP Chairman to arrange for merit Award judging to be performed on your model at the next Division or Region meet separate from the contest.

AP judges will make house calls. If you are applying for a Golden Spike Award (see below) or for categories like Scenery, Civil or Electrical which cannot be transported to a contest, your local AP Chairman will send judges to your home at an agreed time for Merit Award judging. Talk to your local AP Chairman about the items you will need for the judging.

The AP Chairman for the Carolina Piedmont Division 13 is Vic Bitleris. Vic can be contacted as follows:

Vic Bitleris
2636 Iman Drive
Raleigh, NC 27615

Phone: (919) 870-7558

Click here to send an Email to Vic.

The AP Chair for the NMRA's Mid-Eastern Region is:

Charlie Flichman
6909 Crandall Court
Clemons, NC 27012-9056
Phone: (336) 766-8353
Email: cwflich@aol.com

This section provides examples of how to fill in the AP submission forms. Right mouse click on these links and select "Save Link As..." to save it to your local computer.

Submission example for House on the Hill — Houseonthehillr2005.doc — 24 KB

Please contact AP Chairman Vic Bitleris for the article on House on the Hill project.

David Lynam Earns Master Model Railroader No. 354
October 2005

David Lynam, former Division Superintendent and Current Assistant Superintendent is the Carolina Piedmont Division's second Master Model Railroader (MMR), No. 354 in the NMRA. The following article appeared in Scale Rails's July 2006 Bulletin.

My entry into model railroading began as a young boy in Tampa, Florida. The garage in our back yard contained many items of interest. On the back wall of this garage were some old HO boxcars and refrigerated cars. They were quite beat up, some missing trucks, others missing wheel sets, but all sporting couplers that had a hook and a ring of metal. But most importantly, my family had a great deal to do with my entering the hobby.

My Uncle Bobby was a modeler. He became a deaf mute from a childhood illness and only my Dad and he could communicate with their own sign language. He would gladly show me his latest project and I would do my best to understand and share his enthusiasm. Although our conversations weren't totally clear, I conveyed my appreciation for his skills the best I knew how. And he always seemed to understand.

Then there was my Uncle Joe. He suffered from rheumatoid arthritis and was in pain all the time. However, he had a basement workshop full of HO trains. Knowing what a young boy liked, he would invite me down to the workshop and show off some of his past achievements from Bowser, Varney, and Penn-Line. Hundreds of parts separated into jars and boxes fueled my imagination. I'm sure if he had been able, he could have built a beautiful layout in that basement.

After visits like those, I was eager for my own HO trains. My first engine was a Christmas gift from Mom and Dad. It was a Santa Fe U25C by AHM with built-in sound! The sound was simple the gears and motor. I now needed a track, so Dad made a 4x6 table that hung on the wall and could be folded up when not in use. I wasn't into scenery, so this arrangement worked out fine. My brother, Bruce, was a modeler and taught me about airbrushing, detailing and scratchbuilding. Then came the discovery of a certain little hobby shop called Chester Holley's. There I saw my first brass engine, Marklin trains, Lionel, American Flyer, and tons of books, kits, and of course HO trains! I became acquainted with Dave Frary, John Olsten, Malcolm Furlow, and of course John Allen, John Armstrong and Lynn Westcott.

All this fun was put on hold while I graduated from high school, did four and a half years in the Army, got married to my wonderful wife, Brenda, went into the family business, and dabbled in R/C airplanes. I later became a Registered Nurse. During school I learned about the dangers of skin cancer and how I was a perfect candidate. So, the planes were sold and trains again came back into the picture. I learned about the NMRA, and the Achievement Program. I discovered the Sunshine Region and got involved for the first time in a regional convention as model contest entrant. The people were great! Bill Porter showed me the ropes of filling out the forms. I made a lot of new friends and saw some awesome models.

When we moved to North Carolina, I checked on the NMRA Web site for a division in the Raleigh area and discovered the Carolina Piedmont Division of the MER. The Division Superintendent was Dick Genthner, and he invited me to his operating group and the division meeting. Through this group of folks, I made many life-long friendships and was inspired to continue in the AP program. Three years ago, I was elected superintendent of the division. Last year, our division sponsored our first MER regional convention called "Rails to Raleigh."

All along the way were family, friends and mentors helping me improve my skills and helping me to achieve my goal of MMR. A big thanks to my wife, Brenda, for her critical eye and support. And to all my buddies in the CPD13, thanks for all your support and encouragement. This hobby is fun, but sharing the hobby with others makes lifelong friendships and memories. Give it a try! You'll be a better modeler and gain friendships for a lifetime. I hold the following AP Certificates: Master Builder Cars, Master Builder Structures, Model Railroad Engineering-Civil and Electrical, Association Volunteer, Chief Dispatcher, and Model Railroad Author.

Richard Genthner Earns Master Model Railroader No. 330
January 2004

Richard Genthner, Charter Division Member, former Division Superintendent and Current Division AP Chairman is the Carolina Piedmont Division's first Master Model Railroader (MMR), No. 330 in the NMRA.

Following is the write-up from Scale Rails:

Dick Genthner first got involved with model railroading, as so many others did, via the Lionel train route. The first train he remembers is a Standard gauge Lionel set followed by other O gauge tinplate trains. The whole family was involved. Dick, his older brother Glen and their dad Glen Sr. moved ahead with an O scale layout on the second floor of a two car garage while the brothers were in high school. This model railroad was called the "Glenwood and Dixon" line. After college and marrying his childhood sweetheart, Pat, plus a tour in the Navy during the Korean War, Dick constructed a portable HO scale layout that folded up and could be stored under a double bed. With the wiring hanging out underneath, the movers always thought it was a large stereo set like those of that time. This was the first "Arpee and Western" railroad.

Following the military tour, there were numerous civilian jobs, home relocations and the arrival of three daughters, all of which slowed down the model railroad activities. However finally in the 70's the newest home had a basement with space for a workshop and an HO layout. This became the third of five reincarnations of the Arpee and Western.

Finally, after retirement and a move to North Carolina, the dreams of a larger, operating railroad came to be realized. The retirement home had to have a suitable basement (plus be near a golf course) and thus the fifth version of the Arpee and Western came into being. About the same time Dick became associated with Jack Frame and his "Monon" operating group and became hooked on building a model railroad designed for operating. In 1995, Dick started the AWOGs (Arpee and Western Operating Group) with only four members. As the railroad expanded, the AWOGs grew to a group of fifteen or so operators who now enjoy operations on three different local model railroads. The AWOGs operate the A&W at least once a month plus operating two other railroads that are part of the group, Dil Huey's Brandywine Valley and Ed Dougherty's Pennsylvania Railroad-Eno Division.

The Arpee and Western is a free-lance model of a 1930s steam powered railroad operating in the Catskill mountain area of New York. It interconnects with two other regional railroads called the Glenwood and Dixon and the Ulster and Delaware. Presently, the A&W is fully operational and the scenery is complete. The newest addition is an operating cable car railway called the Otis Elevating Railway, based on a prototype from up state New York in the early 1900s. Negotiations are underway for a future expansion into the work shop area.

Dick first became a member of the NMRA in 1945. Although a member of the NMRA and the NER for many years, making a living kept Dick from being active in the associations. He is a charter member of the Carolina Piedmont Division of the Mid Eastern Region and this has turned out to be a very rewarding experience. He served as Superintendent for over two years as well as being the Achievement Program chairman twice. Dick and his wife Pat have found time to travel to three national conventions and numerous MER conventions. Serving as an apprentice judge at several MER convention model contests provided him with the inspiration to move ahead in the AP. His thanks go out to all those who been such patient teachers and supporters, including Dil Huey, Ed Dougherty, Jack Frame, Dave Lynam, Jim Kellow, Roger Cason and Ray Bilodeau. Most of all he is most thankful for the help and support of his understanding wife of fifty-one years.

Dick holds the AP certificates for Master Builder-Cars, Master Builder-Scenery, Engineer-Electrical, Engineer-Civil, Chief Dispatcher, Author and Association Volunteer.

Copyright © 1997–2010 by the Carolina Piedmont Division 13, NMRA MER. All rights reserved.
The CPD13 is a Not-For-Profit Corporation incorporated in North Carolina.
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Last updated: Wednesday January 28, 2010

Carolina Piedmont Division

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