Chapter 60: Yard orders and sorting
Twenty yards of yard orders and sorting
Yard orders fire on the clock: a track closes and reopens, the yardmaster reassigns a track, the work train needs one clear, and the other crew moves cars on its own schedule.
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 11 moves. Beside its theme, chapter 60 draws on stub tracks, cabooses and sealed blocks, 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 60.1 | 10 | Concord on 1, Erie on 2, Dover on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 2 | Yard 60.2 | 6 | Albany on 1, Dover on 2, Erie on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a stub behind another track. |
| 3 | Yard 60.3 | 7 | Concord on 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 4 | Yard 60.4 | 4 | The outbound Boston, Dover, Boston, Boston, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Albany on 2, Concord on 3, Erie on 4. |
| 5 | Yard 60.5 | 6 | Erie on 1, Boston on 2, Dover on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 6 | Yard 60.6 | 8 | The outbound Albany, Albany, Dover, Albany on Track 1, Boston on 2, Erie on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 7 | Yard 60.7 | 9 | Dover on 1, Albany on 2, Erie on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 8 | Yard 60.8 | 6 | Erie on 1, Concord on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a stub behind another track. |
| 9 | Yard 60.9 | 10 | Concord on 1, Albany on 2, Dover on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 10 | Yard 60.10 | 4 | Albany on 1, Erie on 2, Concord on 3, Dover on 4. |
| 11 | Yard 60.11 | 8 | The outbound Dover, Concord, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 12 | Yard 60.12 | 7 | The outbound Dover, Erie, Erie, Erie on Track 1, Albany on 2, Concord on 3, Boston on 4. |
| 13 | Yard 60.13 | 10 | Dover on 1, Boston on 2, Concord on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a stub behind another track, yard orders on the clock. |
| 14 | Yard 60.14 | 6 | Boston on 1, Erie on 2, Albany on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 15 | Yard 60.15 | 11 | The outbound Erie, Concord, Concord, Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 16 | Yard 60.16 | 7 | The outbound Dover, Erie, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Boston on 2, Albany on 3, Concord on 4. |
| 17 | Yard 60.17 | 11 | Albany on 1, Concord on 2, Erie on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 18 | Yard 60.18 | 9 | The outbound Concord, Concord, Albany, Albany on Track 1, Boston on 2, Erie on 3, Dover on 4. |
| 19 | Yard 60.19 | 5 | The outbound Erie, Dover, Dover, Erie, Erie on Track 1, Albany on 2, Boston on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for yard orders on the clock. |
| 20 | Yard 60.20 | 11 | Boston on 1, Albany on 2, Erie on 3, Dover on 4. Watch for a stub behind another track, yard orders on the clock. |
New to the game? How to play covers pulls, shoves, goals and par in a minute.