[Unofficial] Sub 19 - Slow Turning Average of 12

Selkie

Premium Member
Joined
Jan 4, 2011
Messages
1,846
Location
Devon, UK
WCA ID
2011WRIG01
YouTube
Visit Channel
Filmed some slow turning for my own training and critique but there was 12 solves in the middle that were sub 19. This is slow turning throughout including the last layer.

As you will see these are by no mean pause-less or ideal solves but given the TPS throughout hopefully it will inspire some and show anyone can be sub 20, especially my fellow over 40 year old solvers who might feel they do not have the TPS to achieve this milestone :)

 
Last edited by a moderator:
I love it when someone posts a video that makes it look a whole load easier than it seems to me ;)

To be fair I was exactly the same a few years ago. Using every resource to get faster I often watched slow turning videos and wondered how they did it. However they always seemed to race the LL and I could not really relate to that as I suspected I would never be as fast at the LL being in my 40's.. Hopefully this demonstrates that even with pauses and mistakes sub 20 is possible without fast hands.

As mentioned it is more an exercise for me to watch back to see where my rotation are, where I am not tracking pieces, where I can solve a back slot earlier, opportunities of edge orientation so I can start incorporating some winter variation etc but being the first time I had filmed these solves I thought someone my benefit from me sharing.
 
That video is brilliant. I never managed sub-20 and am just coming back from a few years break, but I'm determined to get there now.. This is exactly the inspiration I need!
 
Hopefully this demonstrates that even with pauses and mistakes sub 20 is possible without fast hands.
In theory, efficient CFOP should take ~60 moves and 3 tps is not fast. What your video shows me is how slow 3 tps actually is. I must pause more than I realise, because I have to turn much faster than that. Need to video myself I guess.
 
That video is brilliant. I never managed sub-20 and am just coming back from a few years break, but I'm determined to get there now.. This is exactly the inspiration I need!

Welcome back mate, I remember us chatting quite a bit on the forums a few years ago. To be fair I have only recently returned myself regularly though I was always solving. Good to see you return :tu

That's pretty awesome!

Thank you Marcel :)

In theory, efficient CFOP should take ~60 moves and 3 tps is not fast. What your video shows me is how slow 3 tps actually is. I must pause more than I realise, because I have to turn much faster than that. Need to video myself I guess.

Indeed I pause a lot but turn relatively slow. I am hoping by switching between "fast as my hands will go" and "Snail slow with look ahead" will improve TPS and look ahead :)
 
Wow !! I'm quite impressed with those solves for a number of reasons. They really looked effortless and so slow I can't almost believe that you managed a sub 20 ao12 doing that. Also in terms of cubing age (I'm 45) I would consider myself a dinosaur compared to most of the young lot around, so it really inspires me as I am currently struggling with an average of around 25-27sec. My ao100 from yesterday was just over 27.
 
Wow !! I'm quite impressed with those solves for a number of reasons. They really looked effortless and so slow I can't almost believe that you managed a sub 20 ao12 doing that. Also in terms of cubing age (I'm 45) I would consider myself a dinosaur compared to most of the young lot around, so it really inspires me as I am currently struggling with an average of around 25-27sec. My ao100 from yesterday was just over 27.

I am also 45. It is great seeing so many active 40+ years old solvers around these days. It certainly was not that way a few years ago.

It is surprising how close these are to normal times. I average (Ao100) about 16.2-16.3 so these solves are within 2.5 odd seconds of my normal times, a lot closer than I had anticipated. As a frame of reference I filmed 3 sub 15 averages the other day and posted in another thread so you can see my normal speed. https://www.speedsolving.com/forum/showthread.php?54203-Three-separate-14-6x-averages-on-3-different-cubes
 
I have been trying a variation on this. This speed for cross + first three pairs and then 80% TPS for last pair, OLL and PLL and it is surprising how close to my usual times it is!
 
I have been trying a variation on this. This speed for cross + first three pairs and then 80% TPS for last pair, OLL and PLL and it is surprising how close to my usual times it is!

This is what I do whenever I do slow solves (unless I want to practice last layer prediction). I don't see a reason to slow down during the algorithms :P
 
This is what I do whenever I do slow solves (unless I want to practice last layer prediction). I don't see a reason to slow down during the algorithms :P

Well, it was really helpfull for me to see actual proof that by slow turning INCL last layer you still can be sub 19. I really suck at algs. My fastest PLL is around 2.5 - 3 secs.. :)
 
Watching you videos really gives me something to work towards, so I really have to thank you for that. An aside question, how long have you been cubing ? I know from my own situation that finding dedicated time to cube is difficult, and I usually spend time late at night when I'm tired.
 
This is what I do whenever I do slow solves (unless I want to practice last layer prediction). I don't see a reason to slow down during the algorithms :P

About 4 years ago I saw a sub 15 slow turning average where the LL was at usual speed however the very good cuber who had made the video had a LL of about 3 seconds. Whilst I could relate to the slow turning I could not really aspire to getting as good as the video because I felt his LL TPS was unattainable with older hands. This video was really to try and demonstrate and show a sub 20 turn speed attainable by the vast majority of people, especially those in their 40's struggling with sub-20 and more importantly struggling with the nagging question .. "Am I too old to be sub 20?" :)

It is interesting because for years I have tried to follow the recommendation of "Slow Down And Look Ahead" without really considering my max TPS should be fine for look ahead. Getting off my 3 year plateau has involved trying to increase TPS as much as possible so I can slow 5% from there :)
 
Watching you videos really gives me something to work towards, so I really have to thank you for that. An aside question, how long have you been cubing ? I know from my own situation that finding dedicated time to cube is difficult, and I usually spend time late at night when I'm tired.

I started cubing when the cube came out. I remember being in the last year of primary school when the craze hit and I can remember like it was yesterday a playground full of kids all stood still with cube in their hands and all you could hear was "clack, clack, clack!". Quite surreal! :)

Over the course of a year, myself and two other friends learned to solve through experimentation, collective discussion and the odd alg from a book or two. From the early 80s I never forgot how to solve with this hybrid beginners method. That is how it stayed until 5 years ago when my wife bought me a cube at Christmas. I had often thought it would be great to learn a fast method so in January 2011 I started learning CFOP.

If I was to trawl back through the race threads I could find how long it took me to get sub 1m, sub 30s and sub 20. I do remember there was no real difference in my progression and those who were younger but I suspect learning full OLL early helped. I hit a plateau of 17.5-18s about 3 years ago and there I stayed for three year. Over the course of that time other commitments meant I didnt really practice much or attend competitions but I always did a number of casual solves each week in fear of losing my algorithms.

Recent practice has really been about trying to challenge as many things about my solving and do exercises to stop me just subconsciously solving as I have for years. This video being one such exercise :)

As for thanks it is my pleasure to be able to help :)
 
My story is very similar to yours. I originally started back in 1981 when the Rubiks cube was first release in South Africa. Learnt how to solve it from a 1 page beginner method. That same method stuck in my head for the next 30-odd years. I would occasionally pick up my cube to see if I could still solve it and always patted myself on the back when I did :-)

At the beginning of this year I was inspired to pick it up again and attempt to do it faster than my 30 year old record of 1:30 achieved in 1981. Starting with a better cube was a revelation that it could be done and I started to learn CFOP. I've not done to badly starting around the 3 minute mark at the beginning of the year down to a 27 second average now, and a PB single of 16.74. But as well as I think I've done, I've been frustrated along the way thinking I have get faster to be faster when in fact as you demonstrated that is clearly not the case. There is hope for me yet :-)
 
I agree, very inspiring. Although I'm 43 and remember when the original cube came out, I didn't learn to solve it until much later. I learned beginner's method from BadMephisto, put it on the shelf and forgot it for a few year, and then started back up about 3-4 weeks ago and had to re-learn it. After doing Beginner's Method again I decided to learn Roux for a change (and less memorization) and have been working on that.

I'm not quite sure what's a realistic time target for me to shoot for, but this video gives me hope that maybe I too can do sub-20 someday.
 
Another one here who started in the early 80s. I remember racing in the 6th form common room, using beginner method with loads of sunes, on a keyring cube, cheering each other on. Times were north of 2 minutes :)

My interest was rekindled with a vengeance in 2012 when I randomly stumbled across a Feliks vid on YouTube. Been hopelessly addicted ever since.
 
Haha, sune spam! remember that so well :D

Its great to hear so many mature cubers who remember the original launch and be so interested in the the scene the puzzle has become today. That is a testament to those who who created the WCA.

We inherit middle age, with older hands, shaky reaction, doubtful eyesight and self disbelief but its competing that matters. For my part I thrive off watching the new generation. I will attain my goals, they seem so far away, but I will.

Perhaps we should create a mature cubers thread?! .. Food for thought!
 
Back
Top