On a rain-filled afternoon of September 28, 2014, Montana Rail Link SD45 (SD45M) No. 351 hustles a westbound BNSF freight along the Yellowstone River at Elton, Montana. The locomotive exudes muscle in her profile, and labeling it as such isn’t much of a stretch. Built by EMD for Great Northern as No. 415 in April 1967, she is a former roster mate to more famous Great Northern No. 400 christened “Hustle Muscle” that was EMD’s first 3,600 h.p. locomotive. Preservation for No. 400 came in the form of the GN Railway Historical Society and Minnesota Transportation Museum. But on a cold day in Big Sky Country, as rainwater streaks down the sides of a nearly 50-year-old machine, the fate of one of her sisters is unknown and will likely be decided soon.
