It’s about time I started giving away crossword stuff on the site, so why don’t we get right to it? The landmark centennial of Arthur Wynne’s first crossword puzzle in 1913 is closing approaching, and the estimable Peter Gordon edited a collection of 100 crosswords that celebrate the history since that first puzzle, titled “100 Years, 100 Crosswords.” I constructed two of the puzzles in the collection, but the book is chock full of contributions by constructors more accomplished than I: Patrick Blindauer, Francis Heaney, Brendan Emmett Quigley, and Mike Selinker, just to name a few.
The book officially releases November 6th, but I will be giving away a couple free copies here, and all you need to do is solve this week’s Rows Garden and do some brief extra-curricular activity after solving. Here are your instructions: Both entries in Row B share the same clue, as you’ll see, and they both ask for a “Triple Crown component.” I want you to e-mail me a Triple Crown component NOT mentioned in this puzzle’s grid. I will award a free copy of “100 Years, 100 Puzzles” to three randomly selected entrants among those who correctly identify a missing Triple Crown component. Email me at aries.puzzles@gmail.com and put your answer in the subject heading of the email. The contest will close at 10 PM central time next Monday, October 22nd, so get your answers in before then! Since it’s a contest, I’m not posting the solution until next week, so you can’t peek! And no spoilers in the comments, please.
10/16/12 EDIT: Typo in the Row E book title. It should read The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, not “Windfell” as I had. Thanks to Phoebe M. and Ray H. for bringing this to the attention of the staff.
Good puzzle, only had to use google a few times!
Did you see that this “Tenant of Wildfell Hall” was on Jeopardy! today? Believe it or not, I couldn’t remember which way you said was right, and I said “Windfell.”