High Way
... the heck?
Congrats to everyone who won, participated, and just plain enjoyed the bonhomie of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament this past weekend. That event (moving next year from Connecticut to Pennsylvania) is the locus of U.S. crossword culture, and, as in so many matters, your somewhat curmudgeonly constructors prefer something a little closer to home.
As such, we've dug the heck out of the inaugural two years of the Midwest Crossword Tournament, a.k.a. Midwest Gridfest. We've spoken before about how precious our online community is to us — it's why The Rackenfracker exists — but even better than hanging out online is getting to spend an October weekend in Chicago meeting-for-the-first-time and greeting many of the boldface names you've seen here over the years. Registration for 2026 is now open — you can do the deed at their website and learn more in some very nice coverage.
The Gridfest team asked us to contribute a cryptic for last year's tournament entrants to solve in their spare, non-solving time. Endeavoring upon it, we were surprised to realize it was going to be another entrant in our High Concept series. With their gracious permission, we're sharing it with you as a free puzzle. (The tournament's puzzle packs are for sale at the Gridfest site.) Thanks to our test solvers Andy, John, and the undisclosed solvers that organizers Shannon Rapp and Sally Hoelscher brought to the party, as well, of course, as Shannon and Sally themselves. Merci also to Kelsey Dixon, who designed the fest's logo and composed the above image. Thanks your inviting us to your party, guys, and see you (and maybe even you?) this fall.