This westbound train has seven (yes, seven!) mid-train swing helpers. Looks like the days of Tennessee Pass! The reason for the power is because this is actually two trains, combined as one. As you can see, the second half of the train is a coal empty. To keep the general manifest cars moving, UP added them to the front of this coal empty, headed for Grand Junction. They did this so the manifest cars would not have to wait for the (regularly scheduled) MNYGJ. Most of this power will be used on the coal train after the train is split in Grand Junction. This type of train blocking is all the result of the theory known as Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR). A philosophy that Class 1 railroads in particular have really embraced.
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