Reply to "Why does the Big Boy need a diesel helper? The answer from Ed himself."

Interesting debate between authentic running the Big Boy versus a fake run for show.  I like railroad museums.  All the engines are dead.  Seeing any steam live on real rails is a great sight to see IMHO.  I didn't make it to see the Big Boy run because the crowds were too thick and I had to drive too far and that was a turnoff.   I have seen a few at museums.  I was able to climb on 4017 stand inside the cab and walk inside the tender.  That was pretty cool.  Seeing one actually roll by probably would be pretty cool, too.