This angers me...a ton....

[Thieflordz5]

Oh, Michael:

You talked early about differences in times and how the public views times differently than speedcubers. What about how they view speedstacker times?

I don't know... The public just realizes that it's easier than impossible, and they think that there's some kind of mathematical "formula" to it and if you know it, you can solve it sub-15 or something...

 

[anythingtwisty]

hey, you guys shouldn't be so hard on this "sport". if people like it and it doesn't really bother you, it's fine. kinda what i think of baseball, jus "meh". and where do you think the name "stackmat" came from. (i do not cup stack, btw)

 

[shelley]

Hey, just curious... of the people who think speedstacking is lame, how many would be upset if we removed Magic/Master Magic from the WCA official events?

Speedstacking is lame. And so are the Magics.

But that doesn't mean nobody should be allowed to compete in those events. A lot of people enjoy/practice them, and as far as magic and master magic are concerned they take up very little time in a competition. Even if you or I think Magics are silly, it does not give us the right to deny everyone in the world from competing in them.

Just because they're not WCA official doesn't mean you can't enjoy them or even compete in them anymore. But why spend any time and energy at all on those events when the cube and other twisty puzzles deserve more recognition?

 

[qqwref]

Just because they're not WCA official doesn't mean you can't enjoy them or even compete in them anymore. But why spend any time and energy at all on those events when the cube and other twisty puzzles deserve more recognition?

That's the thing, you don't have to spend any time or energy on them. Nobody important will complain if you just refuse to hold Magic at a competition (or if you say that you will only have Magic if someone else will agree to run it). But if you make it unofficial, you prevent *everyone* from doing it, and since there are so many people who enjoy Magic I don't think that can be justified.

 

[shelley]

How would that prevent someone from making a World Rubik's Magic Association if they want to compete in it that badly?

Anyway, my point is that people are bashing speedstacking, but then when it comes to Rubik's Magic they all defend it, even though they're practically the same thing.

I really don't think news coverage of speedstacking is anything to get angry about. Realize that the public's perception of stacking cups is very different from solving Rubik's cubes anyway.

 

[Thieflordz5]

How would that prevent someone from making a World Rubik's Magic Association if they want to compete in it that badly?

Anyway, my point is that people are bashing speedstacking, but then when it comes to Rubik's Magic they all defend it, even though they're practically the same thing.

I really don't think news coverage of speedstacking is anything to get angry about. Realize that the public's perception of stacking cups is very different from solving Rubik's cubes anyway.

Well, people are just getting angry about the LACK of news coverage on cubing...
They get all the 'glory' and all they're doing is stacking cups!
We actually have to think...

 

[shelley]

Aside from the speed factor, it's not as if speedstacking and cubing are similar sports. You might as well complain that baseball gets more coverage than cubing.

 

[Tyson]

Aside from the speed factor, it's not as if speedstacking and cubing are similar sports. You might as well complain that baseball gets more coverage than cubing.

Yeah, how can you bash cup stacking when there's magic? Cup stacking is more of a sport than Rubik's Magic.

And to be honest... I think I know why SpeedStacks has that type of coverage. They have a PR department. Hasbro isn't investing any money into PR, and Winning Moves is a small company.

Think about what SpeedStacks is. It's a single company invented by Mr. Fox who turned HIS product into a sport, and in order to compete in this sport, you pretty much need to use his product. So naturally, if you market, more people will buy the product.

Pretty ingenious if you ask me...

 

[SnappleXXL]

I used to sport stack, It gets really boring after a while. For one, its not as good as cubing because you cant collect. All the cups are pretty much the same. Also there aren't many variations, you do the same routine pretty much all the time.

I got pretty fast, and I do think it deserves a 'sport' status but its not hard, anyone can do it. However cubing takes alot more effort and brain power, thats why cubing is great. Lol

 

[Tyson]

I used to sport stack, It gets really boring after a while. For one, its not as good as cubing because you cant collect. All the cups are pretty much the same. Also there aren't many variations, you do the same routine pretty much all the time.

I got pretty fast, and I do think it deserves a 'sport' status but its not hard, anyone can do it. However cubing takes alot more effort and brain power, thats why cubing is great. Lol

Well, hmm... perhaps. I have met the 8 year-old in person... he is ridiculously fast. I tried to race him where he had to do two cycles to my one and he destroyed me.

I then beat him on the cube.

I have this rule, where if Stephen Hawking can beat you, it's not a sport. Stephen Hawking, if sufficiently trained, could beat me in chess. As such, I don't consider chess a sport.

 

[qqwref]

Yeah, how can you bash cup stacking when there's magic? Cup stacking is more of a sport than Rubik's Magic.

That's how I think of it - cup stacking and Magic are basically the same thing. So to me it is like Rubik's Magic getting way more press coverage than 3x3 (let alone any other event).

You can see why I don't like it. But unlike you and Shelley I don't agree that just because Magic is a stupid boring fail event it should be made unofficial.

 

[mpohl100]

In my opinion, there are two strong reasons why Sport stacking gets more press coverage than cubing:

1. Sport stacking represents the average intellect way more.
2. Steven Purugannan: very sensational that a 10/11 year old is the fastest in the world. That's more attention-grabbing than some older guy being the world champion at cubing.

Now imagine what would happen if Mats Valk/ Durben Virtucio or some other youngster would become World champion at the 3x3 event. I think if that happens cubing would also get much more press coverage

 

[Tyson]

In my opinion, there are two strong reasons why Sport stacking gets more press coverage than cubing:

1. Sport stacking represents the average intellect way more.
2. Steven Purugannan: very sensational that a 10/11 year old is the fastest in the world. That's more attention-grabbing than some older guy being the world champion at cubing.

Now imagine what would happen if Mats Valk/ Durben Virtucio or some other youngster would become World champion at the 3x3 event. I think if that happens cubing would also get much more press coverage

Or, it would take away from the integrity of the sport. Imagine if you had some 8 year-old as the world champion of chess. All those 18 to 23 year-olds would feel worthless.

 

[JTW2007]

Or, it would take away from the integrity of the sport. Imagine if you had some 8 year-old as the world champion of chess. All those 18 to 23 year-olds would feel worthless.

Good point.

I love chess...

 

[qqwref]

I don't know about WORLD champion, Tyson, but at any given point there's typically at least one child Chess prodigy who is, unless you're really highly ranked in Chess yourself, better than you and very young (for instance Ivana Maria Furtado had a FIDE rating of ~1850 in late 2007, at age 8). I don't think this really takes away from the sport or necessarily has to make older players feel "worthless" - they might be destroyed by a much younger player, but they should realize that the younger player will almost certainly be even better by the time he/she is 18-20.

 

[JTW2007]

(for instance Ivana Maria Furtado had a FIDE rating of ~1850 in late 2007, at age 8)

What!? 1850!? That's insane.

 

[Tyson]

Eh, I mean these types of things happen all the time. But what if an 8 year-old were at the top of the rankings?

Illya Nyzhnyk wins Group B

Now comes the interesting part: Group B (and please note: not the children's section) was won by Illya Nyzhnyk, who scored 8.5/9 points with a 2633 performance. The point is that this Ukrainian player, nominally rated 2217, is just ten years old! We are going to have to watch the boy carefully, and even learn to pronounce his name.

http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3655

10 year-old FM... (though somebody PLEASE BUY HIM A VOWEL)

 

[Mike Hughey]

I like his holding the teddy bear. Just adds to the effect.

 

[Daniel Wu]

Ha ha. In the vid. He's walking around with the teddy bear.
It must be a tactic. It makes the person he's facing think 'oh wow. i can crush him' and then the little kid goes in and dominates. Clever. lol.

 

[JLarsen]

if few people can solve a cube, few people will know how impressive a fast time is.

I don't understand that...
Once people know how to solve a cube, those 10.xx world records are still impressive, but if someone had showed me that before I knew how to solve it, I would have been like "Whoa!!!! That's impossible!!!"

In any talent, were the person is incredibly far better than the observer, the observer is not actually capable of comprehending exactly how amazing what just happened in front of them really is. With cubing in particular people have noidea what is going on in the slightest, so how could they appreciate it in full? Now for an example other then cubing, drumming, or any instrument for that matter. If people see speed or hear something that sounds fast, they automatically say "Woah! He's good!" But they can't comprehend how difficult (complex) it is to play.

Oh, Michael:

You talked early about differences in times and how the public views times differently than speedcubers. What about how they view speedstacker times?

I don't know... The public just realizes that it's easier than impossible, and they think that there's some kind of mathematical "formula" to it and if you know it, you can solve it sub-15 or something...

This is the ignorance I'm talking about. They think we're doing something similar to group theory at 12 tps. Truth is, half the solve we're just spamming algs that we have memorized and done thousands of times.