There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today’s puzzle before reading further! Ziplines

Constructor: Katja Brinck

Editor: Anna Gundlach

Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructor

Katja: I came up with this idea when I was reminiscing about a ziplining adventure I did at Sonoma Zipline Adventures a couple years ago, and it clicked in my brain that “zip” can be used to indicate nothing. So as any crossword constructor will do, I immediately went and started brainstorming. My original idea was looking at different entries hiding different words to indicate nothing, including NADA, NIL, and NONE; but working through the process with Amanda, I eventually landed on three different entries hiding NADA. It’s really fun when you find a lot of possibilities and can really pick your favorite entries. Almost as fun as ziplining. Enjoy the puzzle, go on a zipline, and please also enjoy the picture of my niece’s cat, Nate!

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• HOGS (24A: Bogarts) Somehow in all of my many years, I have never heard this meaning of the word bogarts. Merriam-Webster tells me the first known use of bogarts to mean HOGS was in 1965 (so this word has been used in this way my entire life!), and that the etymology of the word is likely connected to the actor Humphrey Bogart.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• NALA (13A: “The Lion King” lion) My first thought here was Simba, but when I saw the answer was only four letters, I adjusted my thinking. A good reminder that there are lots of lions in Disney’s movie The Lion King, including NALA. My cat, Willow, always appreciates a mention of her big cat cousin the lion. She’s also happy that Katja shared a photo of her niece’s cat, Nate, today. Look at Nate’s white toes – adorable!

• ATARI (18A: Video game company with a logo nicknamed “Fuji”) Although ATARI’s logo is known “Fuji” because it reminds people of Mount Fuji, a mountain located on the Japanese island of Honshu, the origins of the logo are unrelated to the mountain. The logo’s designer intended for the logo’s silhouette to simply resemble the letter A.
• LEE (22A: Olympic gymnast Sunisa)  Sunisa “Suni” LEE was on the USA women’s gymnastics Olympic team that won gold at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris last year. She also represented Team USA at the 2020 Summer Olympics (held in 2021), where she was the all-around gold medalist in women’s gymnastics.
• ASUS (32A: Taiwanese laptop brand) ASUS is a Taiwanese computer company. The company based its name on Pegasus, the winged horse in Greek mythology, but it chose to use only the last four letters of Pegasus so the company would appear higher in alphabetical listings. 
• OLIVE (38A: Castelvetrano or Kalamata fruit) Not only are the Castelvetrano OLIVE and the Kalamata OLIVE both OLIVES, they also share the fact that they are named after places. The Castelvetrano OLIVE – a large, green OLIVE – is named after the Italian town of Castelvetrano, located on the island of Sicily. The Kalamata OLIVE – a large, dark purple OLIVE – is named after the Greek city Kalamata.
• BADGE (43A: Award for a Brownie) and SASH (58D: Accessory for a Brownie) I enjoy when I notice that non-consecutive clues relate to each other. First of all, I feel observant for noticing! Secondly, it makes the puzzle feel cohesive.
• SEA (48A: Manatee’s habitat) Manatees are slow-moving herbivorous mammals sometimes referred to as SEA cows. Manatees live in marshy coastal areas and rivers in the Caribbean SEA, Gulf of Mexico, Amazon basin, and West Africa. Manatees cannot tolerate prolonged exposure to cold temperatures, so in the winter they migrate to areas with warm water. Sometimes that is the warm-water outflows from power plants.
• GEENA DAVIS (60A: “A League of Their Own” co-star) A League of Their Own is 1992 movie that is set in 1943 and tells a fictionalized account of the real All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. GEENA DAVIS plays the role of catcher and assistant manager, Dorothy “Dottie” Hinson. The TV series of the same name is an adaptation of the movie.
• HAIKU (62A: Matsuo Basho poem) Matsuo Bashō (1644-1694) was a Japanese poet famous during the Edo period (1603-1867). He wrote almost 1,000 HAIKU poems (called hokku at the time) during his lifetime, and is recognized as a master of this poetic form.
• INTO (65A: “___ the Groove” (Madonna hit)) “INTO the Groove” is a 1985 song by Madonna that was featured in the movie Desperately Seeking Susan. Madonna starred in the movie as the title character. I am a fan of using song titles to add interest to clues for common 4-letter words.
• ASPEN (67A: Colorado ski town) Of course, ASPEN isn’t the only ski town in Colorado, but it is definitely a popular one. ASPEN was founded in the late 1800s as a mining camp and named for the abundance of ASPEN trees in the area. ASPEN Mountain, with a peak elevation of 11,212 feet above sea level, is located just outside the city of ASPEN. The ASPEN Skiing Company was founded in 1946, and the area has been known as a skiing destination since that time.
• BARTS (2D: St. ___ (Caribbean isle, for short)) The official name of St. BARTS is the Collectivité territoriale de Saint-Barthélemy. It’s understandable that it is referred to as Saint Barthélemy, and is also known as St. BARTS in English and St. Barth in French.
• GREEN TEA (5D: Genmaicha or matcha) Genmaicha is a Japanese beverage made of GREEN TEA mixed with roasted brown rice. Matcha is a finely ground powder of GREEN TEA.
• ROAN (6D: “Hot to Go!” singer Chappell) “Hot to Go!” is a song from Chappell ROAN’s 2023 album, THE Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. To promote the song, Chappell ROAN created a dance for the song’s chorus that spells out the song’s title with a person’s arms (reminiscent of the Village People’s “Y.M.C.A.”).
• KENDO (8D: Japanese martial art that translates to “way of the sword”) KENDO is a Japanese martial art that uses bamboo swords.
• ERIE (12D: Shallowest Great Lake) Our crossword friend ERIE is indeed the shallowest of the five Great Lakes. Because of this, Lake ERIE is also the warmest of the Great Lakes. ERIE is making its second appearance of the month (and the year) today.
• ABBA (32A: Bestselling Swedish band of all time) and SAAB (33D: Former Swedish automaker) Speaking of related clues, it’s also fun when they are consecutive. We have a pocket of Swedish content in the middle left section of the grid. Our crossword friends ABBA are making their fourth appearance of the month.
• HINGE (55D: Dating app that’s “designed to be deleted”) Founded in 2012, the dating app HINGE markets itself as “designed to be deleted” when users fall in love. 
• PIPE (59D: Half-___ (skateboarding spot) A half-PIPE is a structure with two concave ramps facing each other, with a flat section in-between and decks at the top of each ramp. From the side, a half-PIPE resembles a wide letter U. Skateboarders use the ramp to perform tricks.
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
  • HOME (9A: GPS starting point, often)
  • SAYS YOU (15D: “Hard disagree!”)
  • TIRE (29D: Car part used as a swing)
  • NERF GUN (40D: DinoSquad Raptor-Slash Dart Blaster, for one)

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• IT’S BEEN A DAY (19A: Don’t even ask how I’m doing”)
• BANANA DAIQUIRIS (39A: Yellow rum cocktails)
• GEENA DAVIS (60A: “A League of Their Own” co-star)

ZIPLINES: The word NADA, a synonym of ZIP, is hidden in each theme answer: IT’S BEEN A DAY, BANANA DAIQUIRIS, and GEENA DAVIS.

I haven’t been ziplining, but now I kind of want to try it. For now, I will be satisfied with solving this puzzle inspired by Katja’s experience. Before Katja sent me her constructor notes for this puzzle, she reached out to see if it was okay if she sent me not just one picture, but two. She wanted to share a photo of her niece’s cat as well as her ziplining photo. As you can see, I said, “Of course!” I’m always happy to receive pet photos. You can find all the pets I’ve featured over the years on this page. A good one to bookmark for when you need a cute pet fix. Thank you, Katja, for this excellent puzzle.

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