Re: The Good Guys

You read into that wrong - it wasnt an attack at the Loop nor support for the CHS. If you'll re-read my post, youll see I said I agree with Rick..the CHS to me is a bunch of well meaning (far as ideals) assholes that run the Loop with very hands off attitude. They may as well have robots maintain the RR as they seem to not want to get thier hands dirty.
All I am saying is, that if you were to follow the fellow above idea then the death of the Loop will happen...the diehards are a part of the business too.
Now - to respond to your NCNG comment. Let me get this straight, I dont know what you have heard but the NCNG is NOT a WIP tourist RR. For the most part we know now that an operation is pretty much impossible. We have a little track we can move small thinsg back and forth on...that is all. NCNG 5 is a peice of junk.....you think C&S 9 is bad? 5 is the cobbled-together marriage of 5 different engines with a laundry boiler riding on top. If it ever gets a full restoration (1 million +) we would have to replace all but the frame - the rest of it is still so mangled from 2 fires that a new tender will have to built to finally put 3's tender (which it has carried behind it for decades) to rest with 3's remains. There no longer is much of any zeal toward a tourist line. At best, someday NCNG 5 will make the occasional trek to Cal state, thats it. We are so poorly funded it's sad..I dont expect to see 5 restored properly before I am 60.