We’re at the beginning of the tourist railroad season and just about all of the 200 or so locomotives that steam at least once a year for the public will be out and about in the next six months. Big engines are plentiful, too. Milwaukee Road 261 is running over BNSF out of Minneapolis June 4, 611 is under steam on Norfolk Southern in Virginia the first weekend in June, Nickel Plate Road 765 is under steam and pulling excursions on Metra and BNSF in Chicagoland for two weekends. Other engines are rolling out of shops later this summer and fall.
It’s a good time to be a steam fan. But it’s also a good time to realize that what we have could be gone in the time it takes a safety valve to lift. The steam we enjoy this summer and fall is thanks to the hard work of paid employees and volunteers who do superman-style work to keep these ancient machines in shape. The steam we enjoy is thanks to the investors, the managers, the railroad presidents, veeps, superintendents and others saying “yes” our heritage is worth continuing. The steam we enjoy is because of those who buy a ticket and share a word of thanks in person, in print, or online.
The greatest appreciation you can show for steam is to buy a ticket and show up. A few years ago, I boarded a photo special on one of the west’s most drop-dead gorgeous railroads with a rare steam locomotives, a real treat. We left Silverton, Colo., with only 17 on board a coach behind Dan Markoff’s 1875 wood-burning 4-4-0 Eureka. I was surprised, no shocked, that people weren’t packed wall to wall in the car.
The second best way to keep steam going to find a begrimed crew member, trip manager, volunteer, or employee and thank him or her for lapping those valves, shoveling that coal, and taking those tickets in lieu of attending Aunt Flossie’s birthday party. Give thanks in a letter or online post to the railroad that hosted your favorite locomotive. They don’t have to run the engine or the train, but bully for them when they do.
Enjoy the steamy summer of 2016 with ticket in hand and a smile for those who make it possible. You’ll be glad you did when you come back and your favorite 4-8-4 is lined out onto the main with a green signal beckoning one more time.
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