A correspondent who works in the railroad industry writes with this insight about ‘railfans’:
“…we members of the railroad industry call them, “foamers”, as in they foam at the mouth at the mere mention of trains. Many of them work for the railroad as well. I know one foamer who worked in our… group, and thus lived and breathed railroad operations all day every day, then took a vacation to go camping next to our tracks and watch trains go by for a week…
As a Corner reader, my correspondent is, of course, a tolerant sort:
“I personally can’t understand their fascination, but different strokes for different folks, I guess.”
And then adds this mysterious comment:
“I’m sure many of them would recoil in horror at what I do in my free time.”
Intriguing.