Chapter 83: The helper and the hump
Twenty yards of the helper and the hump
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.
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.
20 yards, pars from 4 to 11 moves. Beside its theme, chapter 83 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 83.1 | 8 | Albany on 1, Boston on 2, Dover on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 2 | Yard 83.2 | 6 | The outbound Dover, Erie, Erie, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Concord on 2, Albany on 3, Boston on 4. |
| 3 | Yard 83.3 | 5 | Erie on 1, Boston on 2, Albany on 3, Concord on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 4 | Yard 83.4 | 8 | Concord on 1, Erie on 2, Boston on 3, Dover on 4. |
| 5 | Yard 83.5 | 5 | Albany on 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 6 | Yard 83.6 | 8 | The outbound Dover, Albany, Albany, Dover, Dover on Track 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Erie on 4. |
| 7 | Yard 83.7 | 7 | Erie on 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 8 | Yard 83.8 | 7 | The outbound Dover, Boston, Dover on Track 1, Concord on 2, Albany on 3, Erie on 4. |
| 9 | Yard 83.9 | 8 | Dover on 1, Boston on 2, Erie on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 10 | Yard 83.10 | 6 | Dover on 1, Boston on 2, Concord on 3, Albany on 4. |
| 11 | Yard 83.11 | 7 | The outbound Dover, Albany, Dover, Albany on Track 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 12 | Yard 83.12 | 4 | The outbound Concord, Dover, Concord on Track 1, Boston on 2, Albany on 3, Erie on 4. |
| 13 | Yard 83.13 | 11* | The outbound Concord, Concord, Albany on Track 1, Dover on 2, Erie on 3, Boston on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 14 | Yard 83.14 | 6 | Albany on 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Dover on 4. |
| 15 | Yard 83.15 | 7 | The outbound Dover, Erie, Erie on Track 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 16 | Yard 83.16 | 5 | The outbound Concord, Erie, Erie, Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Boston on 3, Albany on 4. |
| 17 | Yard 83.17 | 10 | Albany on 1, Concord on 2, Boston on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 18 | Yard 83.18 | 8 | The outbound Boston, Concord, Boston on Track 1, Albany on 2, Erie on 3, Dover on 4. |
| 19 | Yard 83.19 | 6 | The outbound Boston, Boston, Concord, Concord on Track 1, Dover on 2, Albany on 3, Erie on 4. Watch for a hump yard, a helper on the far lead. |
| 20 | Yard 83.20 | 10 | The outbound Erie, Erie, Boston, Boston, Boston on Track 1, Dover on 2, Concord on 3, Albany on 4. Watch for a hump yard, 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.
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