Supertrain 2024

The Calgary (CG) chapter of the Morse Telegraph Club had a display at this years Supertrain which was held at the Genesis Center in NE Calgary on April 20-21. Over 10,000 attendees came to this event, the largest model train show in Canada.

Our display was the hub of a four station physical telegraph network extending across more than 200'. The four stations were at the booths of Heritage Park (HP), Central Alberta Railway Museum (WA), Revelstoke Railway Museum (BY), and the Calgary MTC (CG). All are stations that will be on the MTC line. 

 

Our display also included a fantastic quilt showing the American Morse Code created by the talented Janice Povey. 

Last year we mostly sent canned text across the wire to keep the stations active.  This year we had telegraphers sending text from each station almost continuously. It was too noisy at the event to copy the text, but it was interesting to send back and forth in real time.

 As part of the MTC Line project proof of concept, I had a portable display that was battery powered and using the current incarnation of the software and hardware setup of a typical station on the line. This, along with the MTC display, was connected to the server across the Internet and therefore actually connected to the Alberta MTC Line. The portable station was used to send traffic across the line to the MTC display and then on to the Supertrain physical telegraph line. The slight delay between sending and receiving between the two stations made for an interesting effect at the booth.

The live map of the MTC Line displayed on our KOB Server website during the event.

 Despite having all the traffic going across the link, provided by tethering through my Android phone, it hardly showed on my data usage. It used a mere 268 MB of data. 

Telegraph traffic is very data friendly.

Several people from groups expressing an interest in joining up their museums to the MTC Line were at Supertrain. It was a pleasure meeting you all in person!

It was a very successful event and a great opportunity to show that Morse Code still alive and kicking.

73
Ciao
KJ

Some pictures from the event.

 MTC Calgary Chapter members
L to R
Unkonwn(Sorry), Ken Ashmead (Dispatcher), Kevin Jepson (Wire Chief), Larry Isenor (Telegrapher) Janice Povey (Telegrapher and Quilt Maker Extraordinaire), Maureen McVeigh (Telegrapher)

 

Calgary Chapter MTC Treasurer and Telegrapher Marilyn Maguire  bravely manning the Heritage Park station keeping up a continuous stream of messages!

 

 

Bill Atkinson from the Alberta Central Railway Museum keeps a watchful eye on the traffic through the WA station.