Older cubers discussions

[kcl]

Since you guys do the cross plus 1 races, i figured you guys would want to check out this scramble. It was 5 moves. My full solve time was 19.23 but if i would've timed just the cross + 1 it probably would've been like sub-2. Time it, i want to see what you all can get!
Scramble:
R2 U2 R2 U2 F' R2 F R2 U2 B' F2 U' R2 F L' U2 L' D2 F U2

Solve:
u L2 R2 U2 B2// X Cross

Solve was7.21, timed the Xcross again. Got 1.04

 

[pipkiksass]

Yeah look ahead is magical. The difference between my good runs and crap runs is usually look ahead. I can feel it working - it's a bit like being in the zone, and when not in the zone, everything breaks down. Do you remember those weird 3D pictures that were a fad in the 90s? Like a page of random patterns, and if you defocus and stare through it, after a while a 3D animal or something pops out? For me, look ahead is a bit like that

Could not agree more. You can scream 'slow down and look ahead' at me till you're blue in the face, but I'll still try to go fast. It's speedsolving, not slowsolving, dummy! Counterintuitive as it may be, it's absolutely right.

As for the staring 'through' the cube, that's a good analogy - I remember these pictures well, and it's a similar feeling to the 'zone' feeling. You aren't rushing to find a pair, you're just kind of aware of it.

Kind of!

 

[mark49152]

You aren't rushing to find a pair, you're just kind of aware of it.

Sometimes I find myself solving a pair and I'm not sure when or how I saw where it was, or when or how I decided how to solve it. It just kind of happened.

 

[MarcelP]

Jumping on the improvement bandwagon!

Awesome! I wish I had these times.

Everyone: About cross + 1. Check out these walkthrough solves from Colin:

He spots his first pair in inspection all the time.

http://youtu.be/oFZ4aG3Wavs

 

[pipkiksass]

Awesome! I wish I had these times.

Thanks Marcel - I remember being inspired by your posts when I first joined the forum. They showed me that, as an older cuber, I might one day not be slow!

 

[mark49152]

Thanks Marcel - I remember being inspired by your posts when I first joined the forum. They showed me that, as an older cuber, I might one day not be slow!

Yeah I second that. Marcel, Pip, sneaklyfox and the mutual encouragement offered in this thread have made this a more enjoyable hobby for me, and are the main reason I read the forums. As an older cuber, I don't know any other cubers IRL, and so this is the only place I get to talk about my passion.

 

[MarcelP]

Thanks guys. Of course you do inspire me too. @mark, you should definatly go to a competition when you can. There are people of all ages and all share the same passion. And getting official times makes it more worth for me.

 

[mark49152]

I'd love to go to a comp, but any spare time I have is spent with my family. Disappearing to a comp for a day or two would not go down well

 

[sneaklyfox]

Jumping on the improvement bandwagon!

I've been doing some blind cross practice, but more just focussing on executing my cross while staring vaguely at the cube, which is something Marcel talked about the other day! I'm trying harder to look ahead while solving, and it's really paying dividends. I don't have a great deal of time for cubing, so I find it hard to not just do timed solves.

Today I did an Ao50 on my lunchbreak, but tried to focus on looking ahead and slow(er) turning. My Ao50 PB before this session was 18.38 and, after solve 49, the session average was 18.0x. I'm not going to lie and say that the 50th solve didn't feel fast, but I wasn't turning in surges, it was steady and consistent... and 13.33 (NL pb by .24). I had no less than 5 13s in the session, 4 of which full-step, and 3 of which (13.36, 13.55 and 13.33) were below my old PB (13.57)!

Awesome, pip!

 

[kcl]

Hi, Marcel from Holland here

I remember thinking how fast all of you were when I first joined.. It feels like I've been here forever haha.

 

[Rocky0701]

I remember how fast i used to think sub 30 was when when i was averaging a minute. Now three months later, when i am almost sub 25, i am still horribly slow.

 

[mark49152]

There was a time when I doubted I could get sub-30, and thought that if I ever did, I would be pushing my limits and couldn't go much further. Now I'm shooting for sub-20.and have some confidence that I could get sub-15 with time. It's taken me a year and a half to get here though.

 

[kcl]

There was a time when I doubted I could get sub-30, and thought that if I ever did, I would be pushing my limits and couldn't go much further. Now I'm shooting for sub-20.and have some confidence that I could get sub-15 with time. It's taken me a year and a half to get here though.

Once I said I would focus on school more once I got sub 10. I am now sub 10.. And.. I was wrong

 

[sneaklyfox]

I remember thinking how fast all of you were when I first joined.. It feels like I've been here forever haha.

Wait... is that a compliment or an insult?

 

[kcl]

Wait... is that a compliment or an insult?

Compliment

I was sup 30 when I joined, all of you were honestly inspiration.

 

[MarcelP]

I remember thinking how fast all of you were when I first joined.. It feels like I've been here forever haha.

If there is one person that mad enormous progress here it's you. I wonder if I would have been as young as you if my progress might have been faster. Keep it up and you will be up there with Feliks and Mats someday.

There was a time when I doubted I could get sub-30, and thought that if I ever did, I would be pushing my limits and couldn't go much further. Now I'm shooting for sub-20.and have some confidence that I could get sub-15 with time. It's taken me a year and a half to get here though.

Sub 20 might come in reach for me some day. But sub 15 seems to fast for me. When I started out I was introduced into CFOP by Guus (http://www.speedsolving.com/wiki/index.php/Guus_Razoux_Schultz). He is a collegue of mine. He was in the first worldchampionship in 1982 and he became second. His best time was 24 seconds I think. Doing 24 seconds on a storebought Rubiks cube is still quite an achievement I think. anyway, he conviced me to do fingertricks instead of wrist moves etc. He convinced me to learn F2L instead of keyhole (what I was doing since kid) and he convinced me to learn full OLL. I always hoped to get an official single faster than his world championship single and last year I did (21 seconds). His current best official average is 17.xx Now sub 20 will be a lot of hard work but doable. I highly doubt at my age (turning 45 this year) I will be breaking Guus' offical average. I would be perfectly happy sticking with my current times the rest of my live btw. I enjoy cube too much for me to fuss about really a few seconds this and that.

 

[mark49152]

Sub 20 might come in reach for me some day. But sub 15 seems to fast for me.

Sub-15 is not too fast for you. You are pushing sub-20 now, you have solved sub-15 before, and you're continuing to make progress. One day you will get there.

The reason I say I can reach sub-15 some day is that I once thought sub-20 was out of reach and now it's close. I know sub-15 will take a lot of practice and probably some more technique breakthroughs (like cross+1 ), but it's a realistic goal. The other day I had a 16.01 full step solve. It wasn't superhuman or particularly lucky. Just all the ingredients came together right - lookahead, recognition, algorithm flow, no fumbles or locks. If I can do that on one solve, I should be able to apply it more consistently with practice. Sub-15 doesn't mean I have to push physical limits and increase finger speed by 50%, etc. Only 4tps is needed and I'm capable of that now.

One day you will beat Guus's average and it will feel great

 

[MarcelP]

Sub-15 is not too fast for you. You are pushing sub-20 now, you have solved sub-15 before, and you're continuing to make progress. One day you will get there.

...

One day you will beat Guus's average and it will feel great

I have no doubt you will get there. You have what it takes to be that determined (like a pro). I am more of an amateur

 

[mark49152]

I have no doubt you will get there. You have what it takes to be that determined (like a pro). I am more of an amateur

Aww man, come on, that's one of the silliest things I've heard you say! . Your consistent dedication and enthusiasm for cubing is inspirational to many on here, and that's just the quality you need to get there. If you just keep going, it will happen.

Maybe cross+1 is the key

 

[pipkiksass]

I remember how fast i used to think sub 30 was when when i was averaging a minute. Now three months later, when i am almost sub 25, i am still horribly slow.

There was a time when I doubted I could get sub-30, and thought that if I ever did, I would be pushing my limits and couldn't go much further. Now I'm shooting for sub-20.and have some confidence that I could get sub-15 with time. It's taken me a year and a half to get here though.

When I first joined, my ambition was to get sub-30. Then sub-20. In the last 12 months I've gone from about 26 second average to 18/19. Today (after my first ever cross + 1 session) I had my first non-lucky (let's not get contentious about luck, please Mark!) sub-13 single - 12.78 fullstep. It didn't even feel that fast, just smooth.

I'm pretty sure I can be sub-15 someday, and certain that I'll have sub-10 singles - I just need to focus on looking ahead. Mark's substep race has proved to me that my cross + 1 is slowing me down MASSIVELY. I was always aware of this, but not the extent of it. I think the key to everything is lookahead - 4TPS is not that fast if you're solving smoothly. Where we're all going wrong is trying to be fast, not trying to be smooth. They should change the name of the forum to smoothsolving.com to encourage this. I suggest everyone stop what they're doing and look ahead immediately, and we all average sub-10.