Theme: KENTUCKY DERBY
20A: Kentucky Derby to some: RUN FOR THE ROSES
33A: 2007 Kentucky Derby winner: STREET SENSE
40A: 33A's rider: CALVIN BOREL
49A: Kentucky Derby track: CHURCHILL DOWNS
A bit extra: 45D: Headlong assault: ONRUSH. Triple Crown winner, ASSAULT, had a shock and awe performance in Kentucky Derby 1946. (update later: Please notice how 37A: OAT anchors the whole puzzle, very impressive construction!)
But why jump the gun like Barbaro at Preakness 2006? Kentucky Derby (May 3, 2008 Saturday) is still 10 days away, isn't it? I know this won't fit in the themeless Saturday pattern, but why not publish it on May 2 Friday?
Great theme entries though. Needs some "mint julep" for an intoxicating finish.
Well, you know I love ASPIC, so with the sexy "S" filled in for 33A, my choices for the horses were limited to SMARTY JONES, SEATTLE SLEW, or STREET SENSE (I don't have much knowledge on other S horses). So, the horse revealed its name to me without much spurs. I think I picked up "Any Given Saturday" last year, and got really pissed off at Todd Pletcher when none of his five horses fired!
It took a bit effort to string together the jockey's name (CALVIN BOREL). Mike Smith and Edgar Prado were the only ones that popped into my brain this morning.
I did flirt with Mr. Google a bit (3 visits). Nothing hot and heavy.
ACROSS:
1A: Deeply engrossed: RAPT
5A: Primitive calculators: ABACI(算盤). The singular form is abacus. Had to use it in my elementary arithmetics class. Insufferable headache!
15A: Punctuation mark: COLON
16A: Bahrain ruler: EMIR. It's AMEER in yesterday's puzzle, clued as "Muslim VIP, var." So, we've got EMIR, EMEER, AMEER, next one on deck will be AMIR.
18A: Perch: ROOST
23A: Chicago Team: CUBS. Thought of BULL(S) first. Had a glance at 6D, and then filled in CUBS. The letter C was essential for me to ferret out 4D: Digging machine (TRENCHER).
25A: Respiratory disorder: ASTHMA
28A: Manacle: HANDCUFF. I did not know the meaning of "Manacle". But it's gettable.
35A: Dent starter?: TRI. Trident.
36A: Poker holding: PAIR
37A: Morsel for dobbin: OAT. Put ORT initially, did not know that "dobbin" is a horse. Great clue for a Derby themed puzzle.
38A: Sense: FEEL. Dislike the clue due to STREET SENSE.
39A: O. T. book: ISA (ISAIAH). 2 religious books today.
44A: Chemical compound: CHLORIDE. A subtle nice touch on the Derby too.
46A: Imitation gold alloy: OROIDE. Stranger to me. Could also be spelled as OREIDE. It's "alloy containing copper, tin, etc., used to imitate gold". OK, so "oro" means gold, "ide" is rooted in "eide" meaning "resembling".
47A: Hide-hair link: NOR. Unknown to me. I've never heard of this phrase before. It means "Nothing whatsoever". Here is the origin.
48A: Miners entrance: ADIT. It looks like this.
56A: Corker: LULU. Did not know the meaning of "corker".
57A: Related to the mother's side: ENATE. AGNATE is related on the father's side. COGNATE is related by birth. NATE is the pp of NASCI, Latin for to be born. Oh I guess that's how INATE got its root too. Very interesting, it reminds of "Naître".
61A: Pursuing: AFTER
62A: Pull (for): ROOT
63A: Humdrum: BLAH
64A: Active sorts: DOERS
DOWN:
1D: Dreamed letter: R.E.M. Ennui! Try something new to excite me.
2D: Declare: AVER. Have to ask one more time, what's the exact difference between AVER and AVOW?
4D: Digging machine: TRENCHER. Would've not got this one with C from CUBS (23A). Here is a track trencher.
5D: Circus performer: ACROBAT
6D: Crude dudes: BOORS
8D: Bobby's blackjack: COSH. Who is Bobby? (Pls visit the Comments section for explanation)
9D: "ER" extras: INTERNS
10D: Brave: HEROIC. Oh what a diving catch by Carlos Gomez yesterday! And Justin Morneau's clutch performance! "Wild thing, you make my heart sing!"
11D: Book after Joel: AMOS
12D: Sexologist Shere: HITE. Wow, she is still alive. Doubt if anyone here has ever read her book. Mary Roach's "Bonk" looks very interesting though.
13D: Greek god of war: ARES. MARS for the Romans.
21D: Seethe with anger: FUME
25D: Meat stock jelly: ASPIC. Wow, identical grid spot on April 10th puzzle!
26D: Hidden store: STASH
27D: Courtroom event: TRIAL
28D: Throw with effort: HEAVE
30D: Wombs: UTERI. Singular form is Uterus.
31D: Emancipated: FREED
32D: French girl: FILLE. Or French daughter. Fils et Fille (son and daughter).
34D: Auctioneer's last word: SOLD!
38D: Soccer skill: FOOTWORK. Is this a common soccer term?
40D: Gator's cousin: CROC
41D: Mindless individual: AIRHEAD
42D: Non-verbal consenters: NODDERS. Whoa, that's a stretch, isn't it? To me, nodders are bobblehead, like this Johan Santana one.
43D: Panache: BRIO. Hi, welcome back.
45D: Headlong assault: ONRUSH. I don't get this one. Why?
48D: Change: ALTER. Awful intersection between ALTER and AFTER.
49D: Simple weapon: CLUB. I really really like Sergio Garcia's "Hit the Club" commercial. Bet Dennis was hitting the wrong clues in South Beach.
50D: Throw: HURL. Why not "Toss" for the clue? Why did you foist two "Throw"s on us? (see 28D)?
52D: Scuttlebutt: INFO. Did not know the meaning of "scuttlebutt". Very inferable though.
53D: After time: LATE. I hate this clue. After what time?
54D: Lunch time: NOON. Time and time again!
55D: Oxford or brogue: SHOE. I like this clue.
59D: Sault __ Marie: STE. One in Michigan and one in Ontario.
C.C.
20A: Kentucky Derby to some: RUN FOR THE ROSES
33A: 2007 Kentucky Derby winner: STREET SENSE
40A: 33A's rider: CALVIN BOREL
49A: Kentucky Derby track: CHURCHILL DOWNS
A bit extra: 45D: Headlong assault: ONRUSH. Triple Crown winner, ASSAULT, had a shock and awe performance in Kentucky Derby 1946. (update later: Please notice how 37A: OAT anchors the whole puzzle, very impressive construction!)
But why jump the gun like Barbaro at Preakness 2006? Kentucky Derby (May 3, 2008 Saturday) is still 10 days away, isn't it? I know this won't fit in the themeless Saturday pattern, but why not publish it on May 2 Friday?
Great theme entries though. Needs some "mint julep" for an intoxicating finish.
Well, you know I love ASPIC, so with the sexy "S" filled in for 33A, my choices for the horses were limited to SMARTY JONES, SEATTLE SLEW, or STREET SENSE (I don't have much knowledge on other S horses). So, the horse revealed its name to me without much spurs. I think I picked up "Any Given Saturday" last year, and got really pissed off at Todd Pletcher when none of his five horses fired!
It took a bit effort to string together the jockey's name (CALVIN BOREL). Mike Smith and Edgar Prado were the only ones that popped into my brain this morning.
I did flirt with Mr. Google a bit (3 visits). Nothing hot and heavy.
ACROSS:
1A: Deeply engrossed: RAPT
5A: Primitive calculators: ABACI(算盤). The singular form is abacus. Had to use it in my elementary arithmetics class. Insufferable headache!
15A: Punctuation mark: COLON
16A: Bahrain ruler: EMIR. It's AMEER in yesterday's puzzle, clued as "Muslim VIP, var." So, we've got EMIR, EMEER, AMEER, next one on deck will be AMIR.
18A: Perch: ROOST
23A: Chicago Team: CUBS. Thought of BULL(S) first. Had a glance at 6D, and then filled in CUBS. The letter C was essential for me to ferret out 4D: Digging machine (TRENCHER).
25A: Respiratory disorder: ASTHMA
28A: Manacle: HANDCUFF. I did not know the meaning of "Manacle". But it's gettable.
35A: Dent starter?: TRI. Trident.
36A: Poker holding: PAIR
37A: Morsel for dobbin: OAT. Put ORT initially, did not know that "dobbin" is a horse. Great clue for a Derby themed puzzle.
38A: Sense: FEEL. Dislike the clue due to STREET SENSE.
39A: O. T. book: ISA (ISAIAH). 2 religious books today.
44A: Chemical compound: CHLORIDE. A subtle nice touch on the Derby too.
46A: Imitation gold alloy: OROIDE. Stranger to me. Could also be spelled as OREIDE. It's "alloy containing copper, tin, etc., used to imitate gold". OK, so "oro" means gold, "ide" is rooted in "eide" meaning "resembling".
47A: Hide-hair link: NOR. Unknown to me. I've never heard of this phrase before. It means "Nothing whatsoever". Here is the origin.
48A: Miners entrance: ADIT. It looks like this.
56A: Corker: LULU. Did not know the meaning of "corker".
57A: Related to the mother's side: ENATE. AGNATE is related on the father's side. COGNATE is related by birth. NATE is the pp of NASCI, Latin for to be born. Oh I guess that's how INATE got its root too. Very interesting, it reminds of "Naître".
61A: Pursuing: AFTER
62A: Pull (for): ROOT
63A: Humdrum: BLAH
64A: Active sorts: DOERS
DOWN:
1D: Dreamed letter: R.E.M. Ennui! Try something new to excite me.
2D: Declare: AVER. Have to ask one more time, what's the exact difference between AVER and AVOW?
4D: Digging machine: TRENCHER. Would've not got this one with C from CUBS (23A). Here is a track trencher.
5D: Circus performer: ACROBAT
6D: Crude dudes: BOORS
8D: Bobby's blackjack: COSH. Who is Bobby? (Pls visit the Comments section for explanation)
9D: "ER" extras: INTERNS
10D: Brave: HEROIC. Oh what a diving catch by Carlos Gomez yesterday! And Justin Morneau's clutch performance! "Wild thing, you make my heart sing!"
11D: Book after Joel: AMOS
12D: Sexologist Shere: HITE. Wow, she is still alive. Doubt if anyone here has ever read her book. Mary Roach's "Bonk" looks very interesting though.
13D: Greek god of war: ARES. MARS for the Romans.
21D: Seethe with anger: FUME
25D: Meat stock jelly: ASPIC. Wow, identical grid spot on April 10th puzzle!
26D: Hidden store: STASH
27D: Courtroom event: TRIAL
28D: Throw with effort: HEAVE
30D: Wombs: UTERI. Singular form is Uterus.
31D: Emancipated: FREED
32D: French girl: FILLE. Or French daughter. Fils et Fille (son and daughter).
34D: Auctioneer's last word: SOLD!
38D: Soccer skill: FOOTWORK. Is this a common soccer term?
40D: Gator's cousin: CROC
41D: Mindless individual: AIRHEAD
42D: Non-verbal consenters: NODDERS. Whoa, that's a stretch, isn't it? To me, nodders are bobblehead, like this Johan Santana one.
43D: Panache: BRIO. Hi, welcome back.
45D: Headlong assault: ONRUSH. I don't get this one. Why?
48D: Change: ALTER. Awful intersection between ALTER and AFTER.
49D: Simple weapon: CLUB. I really really like Sergio Garcia's "Hit the Club" commercial. Bet Dennis was hitting the wrong clues in South Beach.
50D: Throw: HURL. Why not "Toss" for the clue? Why did you foist two "Throw"s on us? (see 28D)?
52D: Scuttlebutt: INFO. Did not know the meaning of "scuttlebutt". Very inferable though.
53D: After time: LATE. I hate this clue. After what time?
54D: Lunch time: NOON. Time and time again!
55D: Oxford or brogue: SHOE. I like this clue.
59D: Sault __ Marie: STE. One in Michigan and one in Ontario.
C.C.
