Chapter 113: The hump and open slots
Twenty yards of the hump and open slots
From the crest of the hump a whole cut rolls off one car at a time, each routed to a track as it goes, and the lot counts as a single move.
Outbound patterns can leave slots open to any car, or to a set of destinations. Choosing which car fills a slot cheaply is the puzzle, because the handy one is rarely the right one.
20 yards, pars from 3 to 11 moves. Beside its theme, chapter 113 draws on the shop, the helper and placard spacing, with two breathers of plain sorting and extra cars. Difficulty runs as a sawtooth: runs of easy yards, a spike, a breather.
The yards
| # | Yard | Par | The job |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yard 113.1 | 4 | The outbound Dover, Erie, Dover, Boston or Dover, Erie on Track 1, Albany on 2, Boston on 3. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 2 | Yard 113.2 | 9 | Concord on 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for cars that need the shop first. |
| 3 | Yard 113.3 | 5 | The outbound Albany, Albany or Concord, Boston or Erie, Erie on Track 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 4 | Yard 113.4 | 9 | Boston on 1, Dover on 2, Concord on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 5 | Yard 113.5 | 5 | The outbound Concord, Concord, any car on Track 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 6 | Yard 113.6 | 7 | The outbound Boston, Boston, Dover on Track 1, Albany on 2, Concord on 3, Erie on 4. |
| 7 | Yard 113.7 | 7 | The outbound Concord, Albany or Concord, Dover on Track 1, Boston on 2, Erie on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 8 | Yard 113.8 | 8 | Albany on 1, Dover on 2, Erie on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for cars that need the shop first. |
| 9 | Yard 113.9 | 8 | The outbound Albany or Dover, Erie, Erie, Dover, Concord or Erie on Track 1, Boston on 2, Albany on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 10 | Yard 113.10 | 6 | Boston on 1, Concord on 2, Erie on 3, Albany on 4. |
| 11 | Yard 113.11 | 5 | The outbound Erie, Dover or Erie, Erie, Boston, Boston on Track 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 12 | Yard 113.12 | 10 | The outbound Boston, Albany, Boston on Track 1, Erie on 2, Dover on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 13 | Yard 113.13 | 9 | The outbound Albany, Albany, Concord, Concord, Albany or Boston on Track 1, Boston on 2, Erie on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a hump yard, cars that need the shop first. |
| 14 | Yard 113.14 | 6 | Erie on 1, Albany on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 15 | Yard 113.15 | 4 | The outbound Dover or Erie, Erie, Albany or Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 16 | Yard 113.16 | 6 | The outbound Boston, Albany, Boston, Boston on Track 1, Concord on 2, Erie on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 17 | Yard 113.17 | 11* | The outbound Concord, Albany, Concord, any car, Concord on Track 1, Erie on 2, Dover on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 18 | Yard 113.18 | 3 | The outbound Concord, Albany, Albany, Albany on Track 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Dover on 4. |
| 19 | Yard 113.19 | 11 | The outbound Concord, Concord, Dover, any car, Dover on Track 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard. |
| 20 | Yard 113.20 | 9 | The outbound Boston, Dover, Albany or Boston on Track 1, Albany on 2, Erie on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a hump yard, cars that need the shop first. |
* A par marked with a star is the best known line for a yard too large to solve outright.
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