My Apology

rowehessler

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Joined
Nov 25, 2007
Messages
877
Dear cubing community,
At Westchester Fall 2008 I did in fact get the second scramble twice for BLD. My judge was inexperienced and did not write down DNF on the second solve, and I took advantage of this and got the same scramble twice. I am not sure how the 52 was in fact counted as the last solve, that part is a mystery to me. However, I did get the same scramble, rechecked my memo in 15 seconds, blindfolded myself, and solved the cube in 52.27 "WR". I have felt guilty about this for years, and I was scared about coming clean. I was only 17 at the time and i was young and irresponsible. I could have held this secret for my entire life and would have never gotten caught. No one had any suspicion, but I came clean on my own without anyone blaming, suspecting, or notifying the WCA board about me. I notified them myself, 4 years after the day it happened, and confessed and told them I would accept any punishment they give me. I love this community, and now that you all know this horrible truth I feel good about being honest with you all and I do not expect you to still respect me in anyway. Although the WCA has decided to give me no punishment, all the hatred and disrespect I will get for the next few years is punishment enough. I am deeply sorry, Ville Sepannen, who truly had the WR during those short two weeks. I apologize to the WCA board for disrespecting regulations and not being honest with them. I apologize to Dan Cohen, who did in fact really win BLD at Westchester Fall 2008. Lastly, I apologize to the entire cubing community for not being honest with them from the beginning, but I feel better now telling you this than keeping it a secret for the rest of my life. This is the biggest mistake I've ever made in my life, and I hope someday you can all look past this terrible decision and forgive me. Thank you.
-Rowe Hessler
 
If this is your biggest mistake, then you are quite lucky. With all of the fake video's I have seen on here, I would find it almost impossible for some people to fess up after being presented a WR. My opinion about your bld skills went down today, but I am glad you admitted what you did wrong because stuff like that belongs in the fresh air.
 
Wow. Well, this is, to say the least shocking. But the thing is, you apologized and did what you could. Now you don't have to live with this anymore. And of course I (and hopefully others) will still respect you. Heck, you way better at cubing than me. ;) And like the old saying goes, "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it."
 
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I think most people can imagine their younger, not-so-wise-headed self doing stupid, irresponsible things in any aspect of life. What's not easy to imagine ourselves doing, at any age, is coming forward in a situation where our reputation in a community we treasure could be tarnished. I think you have set a positive example, and I don't think you have anything to worry about. It must be a relief to get it off your back, well done.
 
I’m shocked you have not been given any more consequences, cuz it’s not like cheating on a World Record is serious or anything. This brings my respect for you to an all-time low.
 
People replying negatively to this: Imagine this. You are a WR record caliber blindsolver, and have gotten sub WR solves at home, but are yet to get a decent solve in competition. (BLD solvers know this frustration) You are at a competition, and you are ready for your first solve. You pull off the cover, and see that only 2 edges and 2 corners need to be solved. (Remember, this is hypothetical) You realize the scrambler must have messed up, and because your judge is a novice, (like Rowe's) he doesn't realize the simplicity of the scramble. You know if you do the solve, it is an instant WR, but it would be cheating. Would you take the WR?
 
That's why they check the scrambles. If I got a repeat scramble, like I did at Harvard, I would tell them, like I did at Harvard. I wouldn't go on with the solve, it's cheating myself and everyone else.
 
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