![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1FONKa47_zQokBdRGUgZSpJ3juFJVc0SrhHfFCtUkEJXeUnR5kEO23CMKq0bG47ZbZlJO2dR4uYvRIp5NtsM9V5hvLGeYBrTOWqyxkAnhyF7NHwEPqeVuv8b8jwiw7wVbX3vhvPpM22k/s200/AW_Puzz_Cat-DSC_6943.jpg)
OK, so Brian’s been working on this one for a long time… he’d
decided on the design during the course of last year and had started talking
about it at IPP last year, where Gill asked Sue if there was any possibility of
getting a copy to me in time for my birthday at the end of September. The girls
duly cooked up a sneaky plan and I was presented with a large beautifully
wrapped box that housed a life-size(?) baby wombat – the Australian equivalent
of the Standard Puzzle Hamster – several little collectible koalas, a copy of
Ages and birthday wishes from Brian and Sue. Lucky boy, eh?
I duly took it up to the Northern Puzzle Party, managed to
find the obvious first couple of moves – and then nothing!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4JP_avK-pqM7an2hy2hz_LEtQfAkVzzhqEV6-X4M6KNKDIgAH6bwbuynNNn0yyUv9j764xyiQtELhR8oCt0CS5O9gNM1wAtHeGjAwyDTwJdbjJgShU1Ciywpdf7r_j3qWz1lf-jvgie0/s320/AW_Puzz_Cat-DSC_6941_edited-1.jpg)
It turned out that “enjoyment” lasted FOUR MONTHS!
For the first two months, I explored the first few moves in
great detail… by which I mean I kept repeating the same things over and over
again expecting something different to happen. At this point, I literally had
Brian sticking his tongue out at me, over and over again…
It turns out there’s a really sneaky move right near the
beginning and I needed some encouragement in order to make some progress… encouragement
received, I progressed and duly found myself in some serious burr territory. I
was seriously tied in knots, safe in the knowledge that “this bit” was “just” a
burr… and technically it is, but it is an absolute beast of a burr – and it
took me about a month to reduce it to a large pile of parts – during which time
I realised I was going to need a lot of help to put this thing together again if
it wasn’t going to be lying on my desk in pieces for eternity.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXft3qskREJ3WuQ9S48gp_5HzIbkhY2M8opa5LypkJyfvWqSJCbsIbR6tIrHRFTfGYzyf66Mo4TZV1H-jvXlrRuAZyQHqp5Fzh4W2uWheMj5t2EpIr7R6OqILr-SJ9RI7kJZVq-tfBpk4/s200/AW_Puzz_Cat-DSC_6944_edited-1.jpg)
This puzzle really is the BEAST that Brian promised in his
blurb – it teased and perplexed me for four months, and I’m still dead chuffed
with it – that was an awesome birthday present thanks to Gill and Sue’s
conniving and Brian’s wonderfully twisted mind. Thanks to all of you!
<Unfortunately, if you’re reading this and think to yourself:
I’d like a shot at that, you’re out of luck – Brian sold all 200 copies in less
than the time it took me to solve this little guy – in fact he sold them all
before I’d even got past the first real hurdle, and I had a head start on it! So
I’m afraid you’re going to have to resort to the secondary market if you’d like
a copy of this one.>
I've not seen this but it puzzles me that a sequential discovery puzzle has a name derived from BurrTools! Can BurrTools solve SD puzzles now?
ReplyDeleteOh George, BurrTools can do anything if you ask it just right... ;-)
ReplyDeleteCan it make breakfast? -Tyler.
ReplyDeleteYes, provided you want to consume a puzzle! Levitation can even happen for an extra fee ;-)
ReplyDelete