ACROSS LITE PUZZLE: [ LIGHT IT UP]
PROGRAM: [Across Lite]
PRINTOUT PUZZLE: [ LIGHT IT UP]
PROGRAM: [Adobe Acrobat]
There is one constructor who is routinely the death of me: Bob Klahn. I just simply cannot get on Bob's page. He peppers erudition throughout whistle-clean grids and then serves them up with a heaping helping of never-before-seen clues. You will never ever see ALAI clued as {Jai ___} in a Klahn puzzle when a bit of trivia about the Alai Mountains would do just nicely. There are virtually no gimmes. Every entry, hell every square is a workout.
Allow me to butcher a baseball analogy. Solving Bob's puzzles is probably not unlike going up against Sandy Koufax. Koufax couldn't disguise his pitches and the batters knew it was either going to be a four-seam fastball or an overhand curve ball. Didn't matter that the pitch was being telegraphed. You were not going to hit him, end of discussion. Bob's the same way, you look at his clues, you get a sense you know what he's trying to go for. Doesn't matter, you aren't going to get it (for me at least).
Bob had the Times puzzle two days ago and it wasn't pretty. I thought at first I might have pulled out a victory as I was granted a whopping six "gimmes," although one turned out to be completely wrong. All those supposed gimmes didn't matter. A half hour later, deflated, dejected, pissed off, bruised, humbled and a few other -ed words, I was vanquished. Another unfinished Klahn puzzle. Bob, I know you read the blog every now and again: you own me.
Let's start up a dialog here: are there any other puzzlemakers out there who flat out destroy you? Share you answers and/or Bob Klahn pwning stories in the comments.
Share the puzzle. New one on Wednesday.
Brendan Emmett Quigley creates custom-made puzzles for all occasions: birthdays and bar mitzvahs, anniversaries and retirements. You name it. Need a puzzle for your website or your publication? He can do that, too.
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