Dear Pioneer Zephyr,
Your letter caused quite a stir. I heard the volunteers hollering about it even from my spot on the far end of the wye. And then to hear that it was addressed to me! I nearly turned over from the shock.
Of course you can call me Silver Pilot! Being on a named basis with the original Burlington Zephyr would be a great honor. Even among us E5s, your Denver-to-Chicago sprint was legend. Silver Mate and I used to joke about how much quicker our route in and out of Dallas would be if we could do the whole thing over seventy miles per hour!
I do take your meaning about service. Hard not to, when it’s pretty much all I have to think about anymore. If we’re being honest, you‘re the first one who’s called me Silver Pilot since I arrived. All us stainless steel equipment had names, but they made sure we weren’t too proud about them. They’d tell us, “Even the baggage car has a name,” if one of us started getting too cocky. So the mechanics here just call me 9952. I always liked being called by my name though because all us booster and cab sets were named to match.
The visitors all call me “Nebraska Zephyr” or sometimes just “The Zephyr” which the Goddesses are not very happy about. They don’t think I’m worthy of the name. They say the Texas Zephyr wasn’t Burlington so it doesn’t count. Most of them only ever call me “that engine” (though your letter seems to have softened their opinion of me somewhat, so thank you for that!) I can’t blame them for being unsure, though. They know what it takes to pull a train like theirs.
One of the volunteers suggested that we be “pen pals” and write back and forth regularly. I’d like that and, if you’d be willing, I’d love to hear more about the Museum of Science and Industry and your time at the CB&Q. If I’m to be the last Zephyr engine in service, I think I ought to take some pointers from the best!
Your friend,
Silver Pilot