Jump to: tricky clues | Today’s theme
Sunday’s Puzzle — Adam Wagner from Auckland is the Creative Lead at Patreon, a monetization platform for content creators. This is his 16th time on the New York Times crossword and his 5th time on the Sunday grid. Mr. Wagner is part of a large community of puzzle makers in the Bay Area. He speculates that the overlap between technology and crossword construction may be the reason for the concentration.
Is there a lot of traffic? This eye-catching visual theme presented a series of obstacles that reminded me of San Francisco’s self-driving cars that keep popping up in the news. (It just shows how self-centered I am. If you’re also mentally aware of this solution, don’t miss the constructor notes below.)
Today’s theme
The puzzles that make up this theme have five pairs of horizontal entries, all of which are remarkable for their creative embellishment. For each 22-, 45-, 68-, 88-, 112-sport there was a series of boxes with yellow slashes, and I reflexively recognized: barricade, a temporary type that is set up to block part of a highway, for example. 27-, 52-, 74-, 94-, and 117-Across are all made entirely of gray boxes. Each of these entries is one row below the yellow and white ‘barricades’, so the relationship between the two is obvious even before you start looking at the puzzle clues. This is important because these clues are very confusing without context.
Each clue with a barricade inside has two elements, one of which is canceled. For example, 88-Across is “P̶h̶o̶t̶o̶g̶r̶a̶p̶h̶e̶r̶’s̶e̶t̶t̶i̶n̶g ̶ Detour: Helpful.” 45-Across is “H̶o̶m̶e̶l̶a̶n̶d̶ s̶e̶c̶u̶r̶i̶t̶y̶ c̶o̶n̶c̶e̶r̶n̶s̶ bypass: computer port insertion”.
However, if you solve one of these entries, you’ll find that the crossed-out hint actually applies. 88-Across is FILM SPEED; The words “MSPE” are within the zone of the yellow diagonal barricade. 45-Across is USB BorderS, this is a “homeland security concern.”
Check out the clues for the second set of entries here. Each of 27-Across through 117-Across is just a “DETOUR” #1 through #5. This confirms that it is indeed relevant, but is otherwise not very helpful.
Then please help by writing a letter. 94-Across, “DETOUR #4” is directly below “MSPE” in FILM SPEResolves to ED, LANE. Look at 88-Across again and note the second element, “become useful.”If you detour Changing from MSPE to LANE creates a whole new term: FIL.laneED. How helpful! To move from the first strikethrough element to the second part of the main clue, turn around and use the letters in each connected DETOUR entry to return to the main drag.
That is, 45-Across, USBorderMr. S needs to reroute to DRIVE at 52-Across, “DETOUR #2” to get the USB. driveS, or “computer port insert.”
You’ll have to deduce the “DETOUR” clues entirely, but if you know they’re all passages, it’s doable. The first example at 22-Across and 27-Across might be the hardest, but it’s also my favorite. “D̶i̶c̶k̶e̶n̶s̶ c̶l̶e̶r̶k̶ DETOUR: Theatrical success” becomes a B.OB CRATCHit, from “”Christmas carol” and detours to B.road strike.
tricky clues
25A. This commendable term for “horrible but wonderful action” debuted as BADASSERY. However, I’ve had some terrible problems with crosswords in the past.
58A. I wasn’t expecting a BAR BET because I thought “settling things over drinks” required a bill. (Indeed, BET wagering could be on the tab for the night.)
75A. If you drink enough whiskey and do enough of his damn BAR BETs, you might embody the “losing balance?” pun on this tip. Unfortunately, the answer is “breaks”.
108A. We’re familiar with the language, so we can deduce this term for “gold” from Latin (and the chemical symbol for the precious metal). It is AUREATE.
4D. I loved this riddle. “The hunt and peck type?” They’re not hovering over keyboards, they’re soaring over fields like BIRDS OF PREY.
70D.Lovers of clean interior activities From the 2010s You may be familiar with the “Motion Sensing Microsoft Gaming Devices”, also known as XBOX Kinects. This is a great, esoteric entry.
72D. Fans of messy hijinks outdoors, on the other hand, will get this one. The “backyard toy that attaches to the hose” is the SLIP N SLIDE. prototyped There was a large roll of Naugahyde in 1960, and it’s still made today.
Constructor note
“But Adam!” you protest, “This is not a tight set!” Roads, drives, lanes, streets, and…PATH? You can’t drive on PATH!” Oh, poor car-brained souls. who said something about driving? The theme of this time is about the bike detour! You can spread that autonomous thinking elsewhere…I’m just pedaling here.
Stray thoughts:
The dream was to prioritize detours over answers and conclude with a revelation of TAKE THE HIGH ROAD.But I couldn’t afford to miss BOB CRATCHIT/B[ROADWAY] It was a hit, so I scrapped the Liberator to avoid ducking ROADWAY/ROAD.
I also had to throw a picket line/pick [A VENUE] Because the detour never connects back to the main entrance. You may or may not have noticed this only after building the whole grid around it.
My sister-in-law gave me a hat with a portmanteau of 71A and 106D. i’m obsessed with it.
My favorite tips are 4D and 75A. Favorite edit additions are 28A, 24D, and 97A.
I could include some autobiographical clues about 61D (my wife and I are all couples on this show), 120A, 118A, and 110A (I’m a terrible liar, but I love getting beaten up in this game). I’m glad.
Hope you enjoyed it!
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