Friends of the Cumbres & Toltec - FriendsOfCumbresToltec.org

Jade Communications has announced the availability of fiber internet to Antonito, the latter part of the summer. Of particular interest is that the Antonito C&TSR railyard is included in the service area. The installation of Antonito depot cameras might be a timely topic to introduce at the next Friends board of directors meeting. It would also give rise to discussing and establishing a more effective web web camera maintenance and repair program at both Chama and Antonito locations. Jason's earlier report of substantial annual viewership does show a legitimate following for this C&TSR narrow gauge railroad experience. The good intentions of Tim and his volunteer crew to keep the cameras live are certainly appreciated. However, for many Friends, passengers, and possible future passengers, when the cameras are down, the railroad is down. Noticed that Taos has more than 10 companies that service computers and the internet connection. Your thoughts?

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Rick: I hope you passed this info on to Tim too!

This would be a great addition to our cams. I am not sure but I don't think we have fiber in Chama.

Rick:

Interesting topic and yes there have been suggestions in the past about Antonito. Friends members always have the opportunity to make suggestions and we appreciate that. The Friends are also made up of a lot of volunteers. There are a certain percentage that are very active and participate in work sessions, docent or work in our Dorman Photo Collection. So, here is what you should do; research it and come up with a proposal as to cost (purchase of camera, wiring, bandwidth costs, etc.) and an idea of how we should pay for it. We would then be happy to discuss it internally and see where it may go.

The webcams are a great tool but there is a cost and as the saying goes there is no free lunch. Advertising revenue used to more than pay for the operation but unfortunately we have lost the bulk of our advertisers so that income has dried up. Fortunately there are people who have stepped up and have made donations which are a tremendous help. We continue to thank those people who have provided support.

The objective of the cameras initially was to hopefully generate more ridership for the Cumbres & Toltec and garner more members for the Friends. Do the cameras stimulate more ridership? We're not sure but suspect they do help to some extent in that arena. Are they helping to increase Friends membership? From what we track the answer is no. Now, as I mentioned above there are some very kind folks who are donating to the cause. They understand and because they enjoy having that service provide support.

I realize that for many people the cameras are entertainment and they cherish the opportunity to see what is going on in the Chama Yard. Some folks do come and ride on account of the cameras and some will never be able to come and experience the C&TS. We apologize when the cameras are down and with our tremendous volunteer group riding herd over the problems, Jason Rose, Joe Kanocz & John Engs, they troubleshoot and address issues ASAP. I thank them for their diligent efforts.

So I will reiterate again, we are always open for suggestions but with those suggestions, as Friends members, please also have a proposal and plan that can be considered. We can discuss first with the team that is in the trenches as to what their viewpoint is and then further discuss with the Board. Thank you for the post and passion for the webcams and the railroad.

Tim Tennant

Tim: It may be time to make the cameras "Friends Members Only" JMHO!

By the way...Rick is one of those generous donors to the Chama webcams! We thank you for your support.

Tim Tennant

Craig...….we'll continue to see how things go. It is great to see people make contributions. Thanks.

Tim Tennant wrote:Rick:

Interesting topic and yes there have been suggestions in the past about Antonito. Friends members always have the opportunity to make suggestions and we appreciate that. The Friends are also made up of a lot of volunteers. There are a certain percentage that are very active and participate in work sessions, docent or work in our Dorman Photo Collection. So, here is what you should do; research it and come up with a proposal as to cost (purchase of camera, wiring, bandwidth costs, etc.) and an idea of how we should pay for it. We would then be happy to discuss it internally and see where it may go.

The webcams are a great tool but there is a cost and as the saying goes there is no free lunch. Advertising revenue used to more than pay for the operation but unfortunately we have lost the bulk of our advertisers so that income has dried up. Fortunately there are people who have stepped up and have made donations which are a tremendous help. We continue to thank those people who have provided support.

The objective of the cameras initially was to hopefully generate more ridership for the Cumbres & Toltec and garner more members for the Friends. Do the cameras stimulate more ridership? We're not sure but suspect they do help to some extent in that arena. Are they helping to increase Friends membership? From what we track the answer is no. Now, as I mentioned above there are some very kind folks who are donating to the cause. They understand and because they enjoy having that service provide support.



I realize that for many people the cameras are entertainment and they cherish the opportunity to see what is going on in the Chama Yard. Some folks do come and ride on account of the cameras and some will never be able to come and experience the C&TS. We apologize when the cameras are down and with our tremendous volunteer group riding herd over the problems, Jason Rose, Joe Kanocz & John Engs, they troubleshoot and address issues ASAP. I thank them for their diligent efforts.

So I will reiterate again, we are always open for suggestions but with those suggestions, as Friends members, please also have a proposal and plan that can be considered. We can discuss first with the team that is in the trenches as to what their viewpoint is and then further discuss with the Board. Thank you for the post and passion for the webcams and the railroad.

Tim Tennant

Tim, thanks for your quick response and for showing a willingness to go forward and cooperate with an effort to bring cameras to Antonito. To get things started, today I am sending you a check in the amount of $100.00 to be set aside and used solely to bring streaming cameras online for Antonito. I will continue to communicate with you on this camera forum so that everybody is current on our progress. Also, I am asking that any funds remaining of the $300 I sent you last month, to help defray the cost of Jason's efforts to bring the cameras back on line in Chama, be included in the Antonito escrow account.

I am confident that there are other viewers who would like to participate in this effort with their ideas and treasury. Sharon, Craig , Jonathan, and Jason come to mind immediately. All are welcomed. Jason recently published viewership information for July, which evidences at least 15,000 folks sharing the cameras. With a bit of digging into the data provided by BrownRice (the company which hosts our cameras) , he might also be able to tell us where they are located.

Random Camera Data
Postby Jason Rose » Wed Aug 01, 2018 2:07 pm

Here's the usage date from July, in case you wanted to know.

Cam 1 (South)
Total Views: 92,492
Unique Viewers: 18,482
62 Gb of data streamed

Cam 2 (North)
Total Views: 78,129
Unique Viewers: 16,716
62 Gb of data streamed

Cam 3 (Depot)
Total Views: 70,671
Unique Viewers: 15,116
62 Gb of data streamed

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Thank you Rick for the contribution to the cam fund in Antonito. I gave close to 100 to fund Drop Box for the Friends work session photographs so right now I am unable to give to this.

Sharon Evans wrote:Thank you Rick for the contribution to the cam fund in Antonito. I gave close to 100 to fund Drop Box for the Friends work session photographs so right now I am unable to give to this.

Sharon, thank you for shelling out the $100 on behalf of Friends to enable the posting of graphic expressions of volunteer work effort and accomplishments. You have a wonderful wealth of experience and knowledge about the Chama & Toltec Scenic Railroad and its operation. This will enable us provide an informative and entertaining venue for Chama and Antonito camera followers.

Tim: Next time you visit with John Bush please ask him how he arranged the donation to the restoration of locomotive No. 168 and whether the Enhanced Rural Enterlprise Zone Tax Credit applies to the new web cameras for Antonito. It could mean more dollars for the construction and operation fund of the Antonito camers.Thanks. Rick


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