Chapter 222: Outbounds and the helper
Twenty yards of outbounds and the helper
An outbound train must stand on its departure track in exactly the order the sign gives, ladder end first, so the order you shove cars in is the whole puzzle.
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.
20 yards, pars from 6 to 16 moves. Beside its theme, chapter 222 draws on yard orders, no-engine tracks and stub 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 222.1 | 6 | The outbound Dover, Boston, Dover, Boston on Track 1, Albany on 2, Erie on 3. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 2 | Yard 222.2 | 6 | Concord on 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 3 | Yard 222.3 | 7 | The outbound Concord, Erie, Erie, Erie, Erie on Track 1, Dover on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 4 | Yard 222.4 | 8 | Concord on 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a track closed to the engine. |
| 5 | Yard 222.5 | 6 | The outbound Erie, Dover, Erie, Erie, Dover on Track 1, Albany on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 6 | Yard 222.6 | 6 | The outbound Albany, Albany, Erie, Albany on Track 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a stub behind another track. |
| 7 | Yard 222.7 | 6 | The outbound Albany, Albany, Erie, Erie, Albany on Track 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 8 | Yard 222.8 | 9 | Boston on 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 9 | Yard 222.9 | 8 | The outbound Erie, Erie, Dover, Erie, Dover on Track 1, Albany on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 10 | Yard 222.10 | 8 | Erie on 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 11 | Yard 222.11 | 8 | The outbound Albany, Albany, Concord, Concord, Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 12 | Yard 222.12 | 7 | The outbound Dover, Dover, Boston, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Albany on 2, Erie on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a stub behind another track. |
| 13 | Yard 222.13 | 14 | The outbound Boston, Concord, Concord, Boston, Boston on Track 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead, yard orders on the clock. |
| 14 | Yard 222.14 | 7 | Boston on 1, Dover on 2, Concord on 3, Albany on 4. |
| 15 | Yard 222.15 | 9 | The outbound Concord, Albany, Concord, Concord, Albany on Track 1, Dover on 2, Erie on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 16 | Yard 222.16 | 9 | The outbound Concord, Boston, Concord, Concord, Boston on Track 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a track closed to the engine. |
| 17 | Yard 222.17 | 16* | The outbound Dover, Dover, Boston, Dover on Track 1, Concord on 2, Albany on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead, a stub behind another track. |
| 18 | Yard 222.18 | 11 | The outbound Dover, Dover, Boston, Boston, Dover on Track 1, Concord on 2, Albany on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a stub behind another track. |
| 19 | Yard 222.19 | 8 | The outbound Erie, Concord, Concord, Erie, Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 20 | Yard 222.20 | 12 | The outbound Dover, Boston, Dover, Dover, Boston on Track 1, Albany on 2, Concord on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead, yard orders on the clock. |
* A par marked with a star is the best known line for a yard too large to solve outright.
New to the game? How to play covers pulls, shoves, goals and par in a minute.