Like most of you, I had trains as a kid; starting with a Lionel set at age 9, then going to HO-Scale at around age 13. However, as I got older, interest in girls and cars cut into model railroading time. Then came the draft, which done it in all together, then marriage, and the rest is history. Sound familiar? Then, on December 24th, 1991 (26-1/2 years after getting drafted), I decided to get back into model railroading.

I started Loy’s Toys in June, 1994, with the introduction of my ARSC (Automatic Reverse Section Controller) for DCC, and a few other ancillary items. By January, 1995, I was specializing in DCC—specifically, Digitrax—and ancillary items for DCC and Digitrax products. With a background in the computer industry, it was very easy for me to understand how it all worked, therefore becoming immersed in DCC.

Over the years, I developed and marketed several other items unique to DCC, such as the Decoder Tester, power supplies, Resistor Selection Box, and others. But more profoundly, we published more DCC information over those years than any other retailer in the business, including newsletters, magazine articles, and books—including the DCC Encyclopedia and Mastering the Zephyr.

Loy’s Toys eventually expanded beyond the one-man operation I started in La Mirada, California, to having five employees (some full time, others part time) after moving to Wesley, Arkansas.

One of the things we did was hold DCC camps. People from all over the country would come and spend a week being immersed in all things DCC. This included five days of Clinics from 8:30 AM till 5:PM, with an hour break for lunch. Topics included What DCC is, How DCC works, How to use DCC, Layout wiring, Decoder and Sound installation, Programming, a hexadecimal/decimal math class, and more.

In the evening, after supper, we would go to the layout room for relaxation. Some wanted more detail about the day’s lessons, while others wanted to run trains. Others would just sit around and shoot the bull—solving the world’s problems. Mostly, it was an unstructured time where attendees could spend the time however it suited them best.

All this came to an end when I woke up one morning and realized that I was no longer able to participate in model railroading, because the obligations of running a business got in the way. Yes, I went to the NMRA national conventions and train shows, but it was for business, not for pleasure. And I was always having to decline offers to go operate with the group up in Bellevista. Then I had to miss out on the opportunity of a lifetime at the Live Steam Convention in Durango CO. I had offers for goose and steam train rides, and a place to stay all lined up, but had to cancel in the 11th hour due to family and business obligations—a victim of too much work with too little help. It was after that let-down that I decided to retire.

I ran more trains the first month after retirement than I got to run in the previous five years combined. I now run trains regularly with the Bellevista group, and have time to improve my own layout so the Bellevista group can come down to run trains here on occasion.