Thomas the Tank Engine Lives! Southern Pacific purchased 357 flared radiator SD45s from EMD (not counting variants, such as SDP45s, SD45Xs and SD45T-2s). And these big 20-cylinder brutes just reeked of the SP: L-windshields, large snowplows, roof-mounted bells and, of course, the distinctive SP light clusters on the nose. In Colton, California, on a typically hazy April 27th, 1978, nine-year-old SD45 9102 has acquired a fair amount of grime (another SP trademark), most likely from the tunnels on Donner Pass, the Siskiyou Line and Tehachapi. Perhaps reflecting the old SP nickname "The Friendly" some crewman has adorned the scarlet nose's grime with a smiley face. This short eastbound is about to cross the Santa Fe / Union Pacific joint trackage in Colton, while another eastbound waits at the red block just behind it. SP's SD45s - They just looked as if they meant business!
