pglewis
Member
Yeah, I'd agree it's definitely more a "nice to have" than a big deal because the timers are so simple. I wouldn't trade mine in for another puzzle though .
Yeah, I'd agree it's definitely more a "nice to have" than a big deal because the timers are so simple. I wouldn't trade mine in for another puzzle though .
I think you are approaching the competition with the right attitude. Just enjoy the experience and set targets for next time. Enter everything that you can solve no matter how slow you are. Try to get involved too by running or judging once you are comfortable with the process.Great to hear you're getting to a comp! I'd get a Stackmat timer for home if you can; they're very simple to use and compact/portable, nearly zero learning curve. At the very least be familiar with the location of the reset button and press it every time you sit down to solve as it's easy for the judges to forget and you don't want to realize it won't arm itself at 12 seconds into your inspection time.
Otherwise, I figure just a deep breath before inspection and remind myself that I've done thousands of solves. Just do what I always do without "trying" to go fast.
Should be targeting a sub 2 min single next go-round but it's going back on the cube stand for 3x3 focus for now.
My first comp my only goal was to get an average. I didn't want to mess up and DNF. I had a +2 on my first solve I think but that was it so I was happy.I signed up for my first competition: Montreal Open Winter 2017. I registered for 3x3, 4x4 and pyraminx.
I don't want to stress myself out with goals, so here is my list of goals
1. get a WCA id. (I think that should be not too hard )
2. see how competitions are organized and connect with people to see how I can help organizing in the future.
And I have a list of "nice to have":
1. Don't freak out too much during solves.
2. Get a sub-30 single in 3x3. (I currently average around 25-26 at home, so I think it's realistic)
Do you guys think I should buy a timer to practice with one? How difficult is it to adjust to it?
Will anyone go to that competition?
On another topic: I was noticing today that OLLs on my Weichuang seem to flow really nicely, but PLLs get really catchy. Has anybody else noticed this kind of phenomenon? Is this something with the cube, or just something I'll have to practice my way out of?
For what it's worth, my biggest improvement in my 3x3 times was a direct result of a lot of 4x4 practice. Of course there is a limit: I think my 34/1:55 averages are a little bit out of balance, and my best chance for improvement on either is 3x3 practice and learning full OLL.
4x4 PB single out of nowhere when trying to get back onto the race to sub 1:20. Almost 2 seconds off my previous PB and with PLL parity. A pity because it would have been pretty close to sub 1 min otherwise. It happened on the 2nd scramble of round 47b:
1. 1:05.44 L B F Uw B' R2 U L Fw F2 Rw F' Uw2 F U' R2 Uw2 Rw L2 U2 R2 L2 Fw2 F R L' F B' U' L' B U' L' R2 Uw' R B' F Rw U
Shengshou Master Pyraminx - this is a proper fun puzzle. Not quite the quality you need for speed but it's still pretty good. I couldn't quite finish the solve by myself but found someone who could. Highly recommended.
My weakest parts are L4C and also F3E. My F2C are good I think, even though I don't always make an effort to plan the whole 2nd center during inspection, just the 1st one and, depending on how easy the scramble is, maybe just the 1st bar of the 2nd center. I should practise with unlimited inspection to improve this.
I can only start with either white or yellow center (and always do white cross) as I don't know the colour scheme well for other F2C combinations. That's what I like about 5x5, you always have the centers there to guide you. It's a pity, because I very frequently see easy centers in blue/green or red/orange that I cannot take advantage of.
If you haven't given Hoya a shot, I suggest that you do.I'm also white/yellow centres and white cross. I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing, but I sometimes see 3/4 of a blue centre or whatever during inspection, and wish I were colour neutral!
I only plan first centre during inspection. I've never tried planning the second, unless the scramble is SUPER easy. I'll sometimes try to track 1/2 pieces of the second centre, but I know the 'pros' can plan and insert F2C blind. I think I could definitely improve F2C, which might help me chasing the F3E?!?
I haven't been timing 4x4 for weeks, definite improvements with a 2:28/2:48 single/ao5 with OLL parity on every $#@$ one. 7 solves in a row that needed OLL parity fixes . Should be targeting a sub 2 min single next go-round but it's going back on the cube stand for 3x3 focus for now.