Chapter 39: The helper and sorting
Twenty yards of the helper and sorting
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.
Every car has a destination and every track an assignment. Pull cuts to the lead, shove them back in the right place, and do it in as few moves as the yard allows.
20 yards, pars from 4 to 13 moves. Beside its theme, chapter 39 draws on placard spacing, placards and auto racks, 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 39.1 | 8 | Boston on 1, Concord on 2, Erie on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 2 | Yard 39.2 | 5 | The outbound Boston, Albany, Albany, Albany, Boston on Track 1, Concord on 2, Erie on 3. |
| 3 | Yard 39.3 | 8 | Boston on 1, Concord on 2, Dover on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 4 | Yard 39.4 | 9 | Erie on 1, Boston on 2, Dover on 3, Albany on 4. |
| 5 | Yard 39.5 | 4 | Erie on 1, Boston on 2, Albany on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 6 | Yard 39.6 | 11 | The outbound Concord, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. |
| 7 | Yard 39.7 | 8 | Erie on 1, Boston on 2, Concord on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 8 | Yard 39.8 | 7 | The outbound Dover, Boston, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 9 | Yard 39.9 | 11 | Boston on 1, Concord on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 10 | Yard 39.10 | 7 | Erie on 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. |
| 11 | Yard 39.11 | 8 | The outbound Albany, Albany, Erie, Albany on Track 1, Concord on 2, Dover on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 12 | Yard 39.12 | 8 | The outbound Albany, Dover, Albany, Albany on Track 1, Boston on 2, Concord on 3, Erie on 4. |
| 13 | Yard 39.13 | 13* | The outbound Albany, Albany, Erie, Albany, Erie on Track 1, Boston on 2, Dover on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 14 | Yard 39.14 | 8 | Boston on 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 15 | Yard 39.15 | 11 | The outbound Dover, Albany, Albany on Track 1, Concord on 2, Erie on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 16 | Yard 39.16 | 9 | The outbound Albany, Albany, Concord, Concord, Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3. |
| 17 | Yard 39.17 | 12 | Albany on 1, Concord on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 18 | Yard 39.18 | 10 | The outbound Dover, Erie, Erie on Track 1, Boston on 2, Albany on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 19 | Yard 39.19 | 9 | The outbound Boston, Boston, Concord on Track 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
| 20 | Yard 39.20 | 10* | The outbound Boston, Boston, Concord, Boston on Track 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a helper on the far lead. |
* 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.