Railroad group says it cared for engine

The president of Sierra Nevada Railroad has sent the V&T Railway Commission a letter protesting claims they didn't take good care of the McCloud Engine No. 18 over the past four years.

Sierra Nevada had been operating the locomotive while V&T organizers worked to get the tracks built from Virginia City to Carson City.

The V&T operated its first run in more than three decades on Aug. 14, but had to use the steam engine owned by the Grays, who run the existing V&T short run in Virginia City.

V&T Commissioner Ron Allen said the reason was that Sierra "didn't maintain it to the proper standards." He said it would take a significant amount of work to get No. 18 running so it can haul tourists up and down the hill.

In a letter dated Thursday, Sierra Nevada President Christopher Hart objected to that characterization, saying his company did a good job of maintaining No. 18.

"The primary reason the Commission was unable to run the #18 during Rail Fest was because insufficient time was allowed for the proper movement and preparation of the #18 for service, not because of any lack of proper maintenance on our part," he said in the letter.

Hart said V&T commissioners were warned in May the engine needed work to be ready for Rail Fest but that the commission waited until a month before the event to bring the train to Nevada.

He said No. 18 is in reasonable shape.

"But that is not to say that it was in perfect condition," he wrote. "Steam engines are century-old machines requiring constant attention and care. As a result, they will always have a list of work needing to be done and will never again be in mint condition."

He said Sierra wasn't running the engine during this weak economy and, therefore, chose not to conduct its annual inspection and get the engine certified to run another year. He said the only reason that became an issue was that the V&T Commission left little time to move the engine to Nevada and prepare it.

The engine was inspected a week before Rail Fest but both sides are still awaiting the report on its condition.

Hart said he will attend Monday's meeting of the V&T Railway Commission to discuss the situation.