My experience with SP Alco's was just as a young, low-senority brakeman on the flatlands of the San Joaquin Division in the late 1960's. But I well recall that on the 177-mile runs between Roseville and Fresno the big Alco's were not highly reliable. It appeared then that the SP shop crews were more able to keep the EMD power in running condition. Also, on the road a savvy hoghead might be able to coax a balky Geep or SD into going through transition using some homemade "tools" whereas a six-motor Alco exhibiting various problems would often have to be isolated and shut down en route.