As the old forum name implies, I earn my train tokens as an accountant; part-time for a manufacturing company, part time as a freelance lecturer/trainer.

Although I had the obligatory Hornby-Dublo 3-rail train set as a lad, my first love was aircraft (plane-spotting at Speke Airport). Lots of Airfix kits were assembled, too. Model railways only really came to the fore on the birth of our son (29 years ago - eeek!). I soon moved into French HO and US HO and N, building a total of 4 layouts. G-Scale arrived in the late 1990's with some Bachmann items, and the first steps into the garden were in 2002. In the last 12 months I've started to migrate from US stock to British outline, and the Linville and Cedar Junction Railroad has given way to the Ardnacraish Light Railway, a 3ft gauge line in the west of Scotland.

Away from trains, my other interests overlap with some others on here: military history(Napoleonic wars and WW2), music (rock, folk and classical), photography, real ale and malt whisky. Oh, and sailing.