Confessions Of Dr. Crow by Bob Cassidy

Most cyclical stacks are based on either mathematical progressions (Si Stebbins) or nonsense rhymes ("Eight Kings" and John Mulholland''s "Hungry Jackass.") While memorized stacks, such as the Nikola explained in Encyclopedia of Card Tricks, allow for the fastest determination of a cards position in the pack, performers who don''t use the set-up generally seem to avoid the memory route. The mathematical systems, which serve as substitutes for memory, can sometimes be difficult in performance situations. Furthermore, many of the mathematical formulas only allow you to determine the position of a given card, and not the card at a given position.

Hence the "Ring Stack." It is a new type of cyclical stack, with a few simple "anchors" that allow for the quick determination of a card's location or the identity of a card at a given number. Unlike other cyclical stacks, it is not based on mathematics or rhymes. Instead, it is based on a few words, some basic (very basic) mnemonics and a bit of logic. With a minimal amount of practice, it can be mastered in a few hours.

As a bonus you get two card stack unrelated impression devices: "Dr. Crow's Address Book", and "The Kiwi Board". Both are ingenious if you ask me. The address book is diabolic thinking and the Kiwi board is material science at its best!

1st edition 2002; 17 pages.
word count: 5095 which is equivalent to 20 standard pages of text