Halliday, Resnick & Walker — Force and Motion–I: Problem 18

In April 1974, John Massis of Belgium managed to move two passenger railroad cars. He did so by clamping his teeth down on a bit that was attached to the cars with a rope and then leaning backward while pressing his feet against the railway ties (Fig. 5.19). The cars together weighed 700 kN (about 80 tons). Assume that he pulled with a constant force that was 2.5 times his body weight, at an upward angle \(\theta\) of \(30^\circ\) from the horizontal. His mass was 80 kg, and he moved the cars by 1.0 m. Neglecting any retarding force from the wheel rotation, find the speed of the cars at the end of the pull.