Chapter 149: The helper and the running track
Twenty yards of the helper and the running track
A second switcher works the far lead with its own cut. Either engine can move, changing engines is free, and the two have to hand cars to each other through the tracks.
A running track loops to a far lead and far ladder, so open tracks can be worked from either end. One move takes the engine and its cut round the loop.
20 yards, pars from 5 to 13 moves. Beside its theme, chapter 149 draws on the wye, yard orders and no-engine tracks, 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 149.1 | 9 | Erie on 1, Concord on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 2 | Yard 149.2 | 8 | Dover on 1, Albany on 2, Concord on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a wye off the lead. |
| 3 | Yard 149.3 | 6 | Concord on 1, Boston on 2, Erie on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 4 | Yard 149.4 | 7 | Boston on 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 5 | Yard 149.5 | 5 | Albany on 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 6 | Yard 149.6 | 7 | The outbound Concord, Dover, Concord on Track 1, Albany on 2, Boston on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a track closed to the engine. |
| 7 | Yard 149.7 | 5 | Albany on 1, Concord on 2, Dover on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 8 | Yard 149.8 | 9 | Concord on 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a wye off the lead. |
| 9 | Yard 149.9 | 8 | Boston on 1, Erie on 2, Concord on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 10 | Yard 149.10 | 5 | Dover on 1, Albany on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 11 | Yard 149.11 | 6 | The outbound Boston, Dover, Dover, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Albany on 2, Erie on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 12 | Yard 149.12 | 5 | The outbound Erie, Boston, Boston, Erie, Boston on Track 1, Concord on 2, Albany on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a track closed to the engine. |
| 13 | Yard 149.13 | 13* | Albany on 1, Dover on 2, Erie on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead, a wye off the lead. |
| 14 | Yard 149.14 | 7 | Boston on 1, Concord on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. |
| 15 | Yard 149.15 | 7 | The outbound Albany, Concord, Concord, Concord, Albany on Track 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 16 | Yard 149.16 | 7 | The outbound Boston, Erie, Boston, Boston on Track 1, Albany on 2, Concord on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 17 | Yard 149.17 | 12 | Boston on 1, Dover on 2, Albany on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead, a track closed to the engine. |
| 18 | Yard 149.18 | 8 | The outbound Boston, Concord, Boston, Concord, Concord on Track 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a track closed to the engine. |
| 19 | Yard 149.19 | 8 | The outbound Concord, Erie, Erie, Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 20 | Yard 149.20 | 10 | Concord on 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead, a wye off the lead. |
* A par marked with a star is the best known line for a yard too large to solve outright.
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