The Hunt Year was...

2008 Post Hunt

Your online guide to the zaniness of the 2008 Post Hunt!

When: 5/18/2008

Where: Washington D.C.

Dave Barry finally repays Tom Shroder's ongoing service and support of the Herald Hunt by coming up to Washington D.C. and introduce the Hunt to a whole new world of Hunt fanatics. And, joining them, is Mr. Gene Weingarten, also formerly of Tropic!

The Initial Puzzles
NOTE: The puzzle answers are hidden! In order to see them, you must highlight them with your mouse to reverse the text!

1. Bob and Steve both manage hedge funds. This year, Bob�s total compensation will be $78 million, and Steve�s will be $1.2 billion. How much more - expressed as a percentage - does Steve make than Bob?
A - 24 percent
B - 53 percent
VII - I don�t care; I want them both to die.

Answer: VII

2. One day, Marge decides to drive all the way around the Beltway during rush hour. If the Beltway is 64 miles around, and Marge drives at a steady speed of 55 mph, which of the following statements is correct?
A - Marge�s trip will take about 50 minutes.
B - Marge�s trip will take about 80 minutes.
VIII - Marge�s trip will end suddenly in about eight feet.

Answer: VIII

3. Who is the U.S. secretary of commerce?
A - Harnell A. Grootbingle
B - Ethel Merman
XIV - It doesn�t matter.

Answer: XIV

4. Which of the following is not an actual federal government job title?
A - Principal assistant deputy undersecretary
B - Principal deputy deputy assistant secretary
C - Chief of staff to the associate deputy assistant secretary
D - Chief of staff to the assistant assistant secretary
XIV - These are all actual job titles that we swear we are not making up.

Answer: XIV

5. What has 18 legs and no Johnson?
A - A centipede
XII - The Supreme Court
B - Ethel Merman

Answer: XII

Main Puzzles (i.e. the puzzle sites)
NOTE: Puzzle answers and their descriptions are hidden! In order to see them, you must highlight them with your mouse to reverse the text!

Puzzle: The Comics
Location: At the main Hunt stage
Description:
Hunters started at the Hunt Main Stage and watched a series of stand up comedians, "Washington Post Comics". While Hunters gathered at the main stage, volunteers at a table near the Hunt sponsors were giving out copies of the Sunday Comics section from the Washington Post. Each of the three stand up routines had a unique theme. The first comic talked a lot about crocodiles, the second one referenced what it was like to be an elementary school janitor, and the third act talked about penguins quite a bit.
Related puzzle photos and materials...

Puzzle Answer: 689
How to get the answer:
The comediens (or "comics") were talking about the Sunday Comics section, and each routine was pointing to a specific comic strip. The penguin references pointed to "Opus", the janitor jokes led you to "Fraz" and the crocs were in "Pearls Before Swine". If Hunters looked closely at each of these three comics, they would see a number hidden in each of the strips by the comic illustrators:
Pearls Before Swine - Six (written on a beer can)
Fraz - Eight (spelled out with letters on the ground)
Opus - Nine (written on a lab coat on one of the characters)

Putting the numbers together, the answer was 689.

Puzzle: The Arch
Location: At the corner of 7th St. NW and H St. NW
Description:
Hunters arrived the Chinatown Arch and were given a handout that said "Look up Chinese Characters!". The handout had many different Chinese symbols on it, some of which matched the three symbols on the arch itself. When you translated them, they read "Too small, think vastly bigger".
Related puzzle photos and materials...

Puzzle Answer: 12
How to get the answer:
One of the symbols on the sheet actually looked like the arch itself. It's description was "angry men". This was a reference to the play/movie "12 Angry Men". The answer was 12.

Puzzle: Second Glance
Location: Carnegie Lirbary
Description:
When Hunters arrived at the this puzzle location, they noticed that it looked familiar. It was the Carnegy Library, which was the subject of the Second Glance puzzle in the Hunt magazine, which requires readers to find 12 differences between two pictures. Also, there were three signs at the foot of the stairs:
13 ?
14 ?
15 ?
Related puzzle photos and materials...

Puzzle Answer: 555
How to get the answer:
The signs were pointing out that were there three additional differences between the photos in the magazine and the building that was right in front of them. Also, in the magazine, under the "Second Glance" title on the page was the hint "Etched in Stone". Looking at the building and the picture revealed that there were three Us in words that, on the building, were Vs instead. V in Roman numerals is '5', so the 13th, 14th and 15th differences were 5, 5 and 5, for answer of 555.

Puzzle: The Presidents
Location: Franklin Park
Description:
At Franklin Square, Hunters witnessed a race titled: "The Post Hunt Presidential Race: A Time For Change". Running in the race, were the National baseball team mascots; big headed-versions of Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington and Teddy Roosevelt. Also in the running: a large headed male deer mascot. The race occurred again and again, each time with the deer in first, Washington in second and Lincoln in third. The announcer frequently referred to the winners being "in the money".

NOTE: At times, while the National mascots were taking a break, others filled in for them using Halloween-style masks, but the race results were always the same with the deer, Washington and Lincoln coming in first, second and third, respectively.
Related puzzle photos and materials...

Puzzle Answer: 126
How to get the answer:
The winners in the race all had money references to them. The deer was a "buck", and Washington appears on the quarter, and Licoln on the penny. The answer was $1.26, or 126.

Puzzle: The Cookies
Location: At the corner of 13th St. NW and H St. NW
Description:
At this puzzle location, Hunters were given a fortune cookie sealed in clear cellophane. The fortune inside each cookie was the same:
"He who has discerning taste will know success."
On the back of the fortune was the statement "Learn Chinese" and a chinese symbol. Underneath the symbol was "movie theater".

Hunters who had read the Hunt magazine recognized that there was a fake movie theater advertisement which listed five movies and their starting times:
COCONUTS - 11 AM
BANANAS - 1:30 PM
DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES - 4 PM
A CLOCKWORK ORANGE - 6:30 PM
DUCK SOUP - 9 PM
Related puzzle photos and materials...

Puzzle Answer: 11
How to get the answer:
Hunters who ate the cookie should have noticed that it's flavor was a little odd. Remembering the fortune "He who has discerning taste will know success.", Hunters who realized it was a coconut flavored fortune cookie arrived at the right answer, 11, which was the starting time for the movie "Coconuts".

The Clues
11. (All you need to do is remove eds from the middle, and the solution is right in front of you!)
12. The answer for you begins for me.
126. The first letter is the 14th letter and the third letter is the 13th letter!
555. Seek letters that end with a PS.
689. If second comes after first, what comes after third?

The Final Puzzle
NOTE: The final puzzle description is hidden! In order to see them, you must highlight them with your mouse to reverse the text!

The Final Puzzle:
At 3pm, Dave Barry and Tom Shroder constructed a small display, consisting of two swords that crossed one another.
Final puzzle photos and materials...

Solving the Hunt:
This answer was so complicated that it's best to watch the video:

And here's a Hunt wrapup:

Who won (Congratulations!):

Photos & related materials for the winners...

Articles/Ads

Photos, articles, stories and other multimedia related to the hunt...

CLICK HERE TO BROWSE PHOTOS FOR 2008!

Page last updated: Sunday, April 28, 2024 8:32:42 PM