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Union Pacific Auctions Cab Ride Aboard ‘Big Boy’ 4014

The auction will benefit the Union Pacific Railroad Museum and is expected to bring in tens of thousands of dollars. Photo by Jim Kleeman.

Union Pacific Auctions Cab Ride Aboard ‘Big Boy’ 4014

By Railfan & Railroad Staff

Union Pacific is auctioning off the “experience of a lifetime” to ride in the cab of “Big Boy”  4014 this summer. 

On Friday, the railroad announced that it would allow the highest bidder of an Ebay auction to ride the locomotive during its upcoming trip this month. The auction proceeds — which as of this writing had hit $17,100 — will go to the Union Pacific Railroad Museum. 

Locomotive 4014 will depart Cheyenne, Wyo., on June 7, and will make stops in Wyoming and Nebraska, before returning to its home base in Cheyenne on July 3. During its Omaha display next to Charles Schwab Field, the public can see the locomotive up close between June 15-21 and June 24-25 from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. A detailed schedule of the trip can be found online

The cab ride will take place on July 3, between Pine Bluff and Cheyenne, Wyo., and is expected to take 90 minutes. The lucky winner will be required to arrange ground transportation to and from the ride and arrive 30 minutes prior to departure. The auction will end at 8 a.m. CDT on June 11.

Next month’s outing will be the first for the world’s largest operating steam locomotive since last summer when it ran to Denver. The locomotive was restored to service in 2019. 

This article was posted on: June 5, 2023