Matt Schaefer

[John]

This was posted to Yahoo over the weekend ..

Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2009 10:06 PM
To: n_scale@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [n_scale] The Passing of a Legend

It is with deep regret that I share the news of the passing of Matt Schaefer
of Northern Virginia NTRAK. Matt passed away in his sleep this morning,
ending an almost decade long battle with cancer. If you ever met Matt, you
would never forget him. His Hawk's Nest module set was the one of the first
(if not the first) NTRAK modules that didn't followed the angled corners
standard, instead opting for a free-form curve that made for a truer
prototype look. His enthusiasm for the hobby was infectious and he was a
great leader that led quietly. He saw things through a different set of
eyes; looking at a module drawing, you would see lines on a paper - he would
see the finished project and how it would look with a train running through
it, owing to his artistic and engineering background. If I know Matt, he's
sitting up in Heaven right now with a pizza box on his lap, drawing new
module ideas and telling God the trains will look better running through the
curves if you superelevate
them. I had stopped believing in Santa Claus...then I met Matt. If there's
an NTRAK Hall of Fame, Matt has a rightful place in it...

Resquiat in Pace my friend

[wm3798]

I never got to meet him.  Bernie and I chatted about his condition yesterday during our visit.  Truly a pioneer, and from what it sounds like, a class guy all the way around. 

Lee

[csolivais1979]

RIP. Paryers go out to family and friends.

[AlkemScaleModels]

I never got to meet him.  Bernie and I chatted about his condition yesterday during our visit.  Truly a pioneer, and from what it sounds like, a class guy all the way around. 

Lee

Even though we knew this was coming, the news is devastating. He will be sorely missed.

[John]

1a. Passing of Matt Schaefer
Posted by: "David Freshwater" david.freshwater@west-point.org freshwaterd
Date: Tue Sep 1, 2009 9:25 am ((PDT))

With deep regret, it is my sad duty to report that Matt Schaefer passed
away early on August 29th.

Northern Virginia NTRAK counted on Matt’s range of contacts whenever we
wanted to coordinate a large layout with other clubs. While not formally
recognized as such (NTRAK has no “Legends” program similar to the NMRA
program), Matt’s contributions to NTRAK truly are legendary. His Hawks
Nest modules broke the mold of NTRAK “racetrack” or “fortress” layouts. He
broke the paradigm that tracks had to stay parallel to the edges of the
module. Where many were content with low, rolling hills, Matt modeled a
scene that required feet of space from the top of the hills to the river
bottom. And, having based the modules on a real location, he is
responsible for the NVNTRAK New River Subdivision that journeys to Hawks
Nest, WV, each spring.

Having shown everyone that NTRAK layouts could be more than rectangular,
Matt’s next innovation meant that layouts could do more than just outline
the perimeter of a space. With the junction module design, many more
modules could fit within the same floor space. Every large layout over the
past 13 years owes something to Matt.

Matt had a role in adapting AristoCraft throttles, designed for garden
railroads, to NTRAK, so that one could follow trains around our layouts.
He surely served as an inspiration for the development of oNeTRAK. And he
was a driving force in the uNconvention layout in 1999, where we provided
helper service to RANTRAK and adapted NTRAK, oNeTRAK, Bendtrack, and maybe
a few other module standards into that single layout. And we then stood
all standards on their ears and ran Aristo trains over several layout
loops on the Yellow and Blue lines while the Red line spine and other
loops ran on Digitrax DCC. Matt was our senior statesman for the 2004
Capitol Limited– and recruited even more people to come be part of the
layout.

Matt shared his knowledge with others inside the club and in the wider
NTRAK community as a regular contributor to the NTRAK Newsletter.

The West Point Alma Mater includes the lines –
“And when our work is done,
Our course on earth is run,
May it be said, 'Well Done;
Be Thou At Peace.'”
Well done, Matt. Be at peace.


David Freshwater
President, Northern Virginia NTRAK

[Zox]

MARRS' participation in the uNconvention 1999 layout was our club's first participation in a multi-club layout, as one of the "other module standards" mentioned.

Unfortunately, I didn't know Mr. Schaefer personally. However, as president of MARRS, I'd like to acknowledge his contribution to diversity in N scale modular railroading, in helping it break out of the "Plain Ol' Four Footer" mold.

[Hiroe]

I remember meeting him in preparation for the NMRA national here in Philly, after getting asked to put together an Ntrak display layout for the show. He was helping get things moving for it, and was always a great guy.

[AlkemScaleModels]

I posted some pictures of Matt and his Memorial Service at the following link:

http://family.webshots.com/album/574479498mGDmAa