History Main / RailEnthusiast

In Japan, the most commonly depicted form is the ''densha otaku'' (not to be confused with DenshaOtoko), also known as ''tetsuota'' (''tetsu'' is Japanese for "iron", and railroads in several languages are known as "iron roads"), a species of {{otaku}} whose obsession is trains. This stereotype has much in common with the English trainspotter, being extremely geeky and socially awkward, and obsessed with their chosen subject. The Japanese version is more likely than the English one to be a keen photographer of railway subjects, and many depictions involve a big camera and lens. Japanese rail photography often concentrates on trains' heads, by the way.

** ''Discworld/UnseenAcademicals'' has a brief mention of a magazine for "Golem-spotters", suggesting that this has become the equivilent. It remains to be seen if Death has taken it up.

* ''MontyPythonsFlyingCircus'' did a [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTVDOx35FNg sketch parodying them]], with a "camel spotter" turning out to be a confused train spotter.
** Of course Railfans know that the best Python sketch was the one with [[http://www.ibras.dk/montypython/episode24.htm#5 all the rubbish about railway timetables.]]

* One of the ''{{Discworld}}'' books discusses [[AC: [[GrimReaper DEATH]]'S]] patient, methodical personality by saying that while there aren't any trains or steam engines on the Discworld, he'll surely be there to note it down as soon as one is invented.

* There's even a whole ImageBoard dedicated to trainspotting called 1chan.net. They feel very strongly about the political aspects of rail infrastructure.

* The [=F40PH=] locomotive, depicted in the page image, is a subject of MemeticMutation. For some odd reason, it's common to post it coupled with the phrase "Yiff in hell, [[FurryFandom furfags]]!" on Image Boards. Also, [[BerserkButton don't call it a train]] in front of Rail Enthusiasts.

** The Other Wiki has a pretty good list of railfan celebrities, including (supposedly) Phil Collins, Michael Jordan, and Tom Hanks.

Related hobbies include bus spotting and plane spotting.

* BBC Radio sometime in the 90s had a half-hour comic monologue called "Anorak of Fire". The narrator is a trainspotter who's so obsessed with trains that he misinterprets everyting else he sees and hears. At one point in his narration he describes seeing a train carrying nuclear waste through the middle of town, but all he's excited about is the fact that it's hauled by a rare type of locomotive.

* This troper has seen a couple people with bumper stickers that say "Just another ferroequinologist out chasing trains". The fact that they work with [[http://www.durangotrain.com/ this company]] might be related to that though. * looks at the link* ...this troper just learned how his town was founded from a link on tvtropes. Excuse him while he goes to get a life.
** Fun fact: That train was used for the film ButchCassidyAndTheSundanceKid. [[http://www.durangotrain.com/train-history Proof.]]

In Britain (and America, too!), the most popular depiction is the ''trainspotter'', whose railway obsession revolves around hunting down each and every locomotive -- and sometimes other rail equipment -- and marking down each one they've seen in a little book listing all such equipment existing. In the field, they may use a paper notebook instead of their master stock book, and modern technology means they may now make their notes using a voice recorder and keep their master list as a computer database. Being a trainspotter involves lots of standing around in the cold and wet on station platforms waiting for that elusive quarry; this made the waterproof coats that they generally wear, the "anorak", become a symbol of the trainspotter. The word "anorak" itself has become a generic term, in fact, used to refer to the obsessively geeky in other fields as well. Trainspotters are generally depicted with most of the nerd/geek stereotypes -- thick glasses, bad hair, no fashion sense, and frequently physically unattractive and socially awkward.

In the United States, most media depictions of the ''railfan'' involve model railroads, which were generally treated as a common and respectable hobby. It's more rarely depicted in recent years. Most portrayed tend to be older, and although respectable, it tends to be treated as SeriousBusiness for humor's sake. Traditional railfen--already derisively referred to by railroad workers as ''foamers''--have been massively hurt by post 9-11 changes where standing around bridges waiting to photograph trains is considered terrorist behavior.

[[caption-width-right:300:The [=F40PH=] locomotive, the idol of the trainspotter!]]

* The [=F40PH=] locomotive, depicted in the page image, is a subject of MemeticMutation.

In Britain, the most popular depiction is the ''trainspotter'', whose railway obsession revolves around hunting down each and every locomotive -- and sometimes other rail equipment -- and marking down each one they've seen in a little book listing all such equipment existing. In the field, they may use a paper notebook instead of their master stock book, and modern technology means they may now make their notes using a voice recorder and keep their master list as a computer database. Being a trainspotter involves lots of standing around in the cold and wet on station platforms waiting for that elusive quarry; this made the waterproof coats that they generally wear, the "anorak", become a symbol of the trainspotter. The word "anorak" itself has become a generic term, in fact, used to refer to the obsessively geeky in other fields as well. Trainspotters are generally depicted with most of the nerd/geek stereotypes -- thick glasses, bad hair, no fashion sense, and frequently physically unattractive and socially awkward.

In the United States, most media depictions of the ''railfan'' involve model railroads, which were generally treated as a common and respectable hobby. It's more rarely depicted in recent years. Most portrayed tend to be older, and although respectable, it tends to be treated as SeriousBusiness for humor's sake. Traditional railfen have been massively hurt by post 9-11 changes where standing around bridges waiting to photograph trains is considered terrorist behavior.

Where British railfans use notebooks, German railfans prefer cameras, just like Japanese ''densha otaku''. German rail photographs refer to themselves as ''Fotofuzzis'' or simply ''Fuzzis'' and don't need anoraks either because they usually refuse to take photos when the sun isn't shining, and be it a tiny little cloud blocking the sun the very second a train passes. Quality standards are high, and nitpicking on photographs is common in online communities whenever the standards of commercial photobooks aren't reached. For example, nothing is allowed to obstruct the view on the photographed vehicles, neither overhead catenary poles nor platforms nor signs nor vegetation (which ''Fuzzis'' sometimes cut down themselves). The common rules for vehicle portraits (45-60° angle from ahead, sun from behind and not too high, and so forth) have been used so often that some peope don't do portraits anymore because it's boring. Newer rolling stock and newer liveries are loathed by older railfans, especially those who have seen regular steam traffic in the West before 1977 and still put films in their semi-automatic SLRs, and preferred prey of younger railfans who hardly know anything older and go out with a compact camera or even their phone as their camera. While British railfans wait and see what comes, German railfans love to track down particular vehicles, especially locomotives with advertising on them, using sightings and leaked schedules and [[BerserkButton go ballistic]] when the expected material doesn't show up at the expected time.

Model railroading is quite popular in Germany, too, and the world's biggest model railroad is just one of the signs, as is the sheer number of German brands in the model railroad industry. Passionate German model railroaders know just about everything about the rolling stock they're running, they know which locomotives have been used in which services, which livery and numbering belongs to which era, and how train consists are composed correctly; occasionally, they don't even shy away from lecturing those who either don't know or don't care and just want to enjoy their beautiful trains (which is the case on most public model railroads). They would soup up a €500 locomotive with etched brass parts because the manufacturer got tiny details wrong, because the handles are too thick, or whatever. The fact that the core of German model railroaders is aging is shown by the majority still refusing any locomotives, cars, liveries, or letterings introduced after 1968, sometimes even 1960.

* The F40PH locomotive, depicted in the page image, is a subject of MemeticMutation.

*The ClassicDisneyShort ''Out of Scale'' has Donald Duck building a very elaborate model train set in his backyard. HilarityEnsues when he removes Chip n' Dale's tree because it's out of scale with the rest of the set.