SP,
You have to realize that the 90 was built new for the Great Western.
The Great Western Runs from Loveland to Officer Junction. From Officer the line ran north to Eaton and South to Johnstown. From Johnstown the line went east to Milliken and south to Wattenburg; due south to Longmont; and due west to Welty (just short of Berthoud).
Even at the height of Beet Campaign (harvest), you can make a run from Loveland to Eaton, fill two trains and return to Loveland within your 12 hours.
Back then the 16 hour law was in affect.
The GW needed the 90 to haul beets and used it until the mid 1960's as Campaign Power as were the 60, 51 and 75. During the regular year, the freight chores were handled by two SW 1200's, the 120 and 121 and three SW 1's, the 600, 601 and 602 (these are all diesels).
The 90 was the largest steam locomotive used by the GW. The rest of the GW power was 2-8-0's, with the exception of two 0-6-0's used in Loveland. There were a number of tank locomotives owned by the Sugar Company (not the railroad) that were used at the Sugar Mills. A few of these tanks also still exist.
In short, there was no need for speed with GW 90.
At the time that the Sugar Industry was going great guns in Colorado, the GW Railroad served the following Sugar Mills located along its line: Eaton, Windsor (later dismantled and moved to Caruso, Kansas), Loveland, Johnstown (which actually processed Molasses and MSG), and Longmont. Other GW plants located close by were in Greeley and Brighton.
As an aside, the GW was one of the last Railroads in the country to operate actual mixed-train Passenger Service. You could go to the Loveland Depot and buy a ticket and ride a caboose all day, up and down the line for the princely sum of $1.00, and even have a ticket stub to take home. Insurance carriers made them stop offering mixed-train service in the 1970's. It was one heckuva way to kill a day, though, and lots of fun.
I worked for the GW back in the early 1980's when I was cut-off of the UP.
Rick Steele
