Why do you compete?

[biscuit]

I'm looking to write a piece for the home page (you can too! Learn more here) but I wanted to get a little input from the community. I and the rest of the content team have come up with some questions we'd like to have your input on. If you could take a couple minutes to answer, that would be highly appreciated!

With that said, here are the questions to be answered.

1.) What made you want to compete in the first place?
2.) Are you a naturally competitive person, or is cubing the only thing you compete in?
3.) What is your main motivation to decrease your times?
4.) What is your ultimate cubing goal, if any?
5.) Do you compete against yourself, or others?
6.) How important is competition in your cubing "career"?
7.) What is your favourite thing about competitions??
8.) Do you think competitions should be structured around the faster, or the slower competitors?
9.) What role do your cubing friends play when you're at competitions?

And finally,

10.) Why do you continue to compete?

 

[tseitsei]

1. Friend who taught me how to cube said that it would be fun and I should go with him.
2. Yes very competitive.
3. Dunno. Cubing is fun and I like having NRs
4. I have currently not set any goals. Hope to maybe break 5bld NR some day.
5. Both. Nowadays mostly against myself but before big motivation for me was breaking Ville Seppänen's BLD NRs (he still has that 5bld that I always seem to dnf at comps...)
6. Quite important. Nice people nice atmosphere and nice trips with friends
7. Afterparty
8. Depends. Some more casual competitions could be directed more towards beginners but for example national championships should be more about faster cubers. And obviously euros worlds, us nationals and these "giant comps" should IMO be totally designed for fast competitors since they are meant to find out the continental or world champions...
9. Important. Wouldnt bother going to comps without my few close cubing friends at Tampere. We plan the trips together travel together and drink together after the day is finished (and have hangovers the next morning). Much fun.
10. I'm currently not competing actively but might start again. I dunno why. I like cubing?

 

[Ordway Persyn]

1: Because I can get official results
2: I'm Kind of competitive.
3: To get up the ranks
4: Top 100 for sum of ranks or kinch ranks.
5: I just want to better my official PB's, so I'd say myself more.
6: It's very fun. also gives me motivation to practice.
7: Theres a lot of other cubers to meet. (also you never hear people say "I just peel the stickers off")
8: What Tseitsei said
9: well one of my cubing friends is hosting the comp I'm going to next saturday. so that. Also so I have people that I recognize to be with.
10: because It's fun

 

[cmhardw]

1.) What made you want to compete in the first place?

My first competition was Worlds 2003, and at that point I had already been cubing for 5 years and was fairly accomplished in a few events. I wanted to compete at this competition because it was momentous, the first major cubing competition in 21 years, and in my lifetime at that point.


2.) Are you a naturally competitive person, or is cubing the only thing you compete in?

I am a naturally competitive person, but over the years I have learned to channel it into appropriate outlets. I avoid outward competition like "I want to beat you" and strive toward inward competition like "I want to become better than I am now".


3.) What is your main motivation to decrease your times?

To be better than I am now. I want to push the limits of my abilities.


4.) What is your ultimate cubing goal, if any?

To let cubing be a part of my life in a balanced way. I've been cubing for 18 years and I've seen so many people come into this community for a number of years and burn themselves out and leave. I want to be a part of this community for a long time, and the best way to do that is to not burn myself out with it. I cube when I want to, and I don't cube when I don't want to. It's as simple as that.


5.) Do you compete against yourself, or others?

I compete against myself.


6.) How important is competition in your cubing "career"?

My past accomplishments are very important to me, and form a part of my identity. I've passed my peak in terms of my performance compared to the rest of the field, but I am a better cuber today than I have ever been and this is important to me. Competition is important to me now as a way to test where I am at, and to try to set new personal best times.


7.) What is your favourite thing about competitions??

The people. I also love traveling to new places because of cubing.


8.) Do you think competitions should be structured around the faster, or the slower competitors?

They should not be structured around either group specifically. They should have a consistent format that allows people to enjoy themselves while also rewarding those who have put in the most time and have the most skill in each event.


9.) What role do your cubing friends play when you're at competitions?

They are one of the most important reasons why I go to competitions. I've enjoyed making many friends over the years through cubing.


10.) Why do you continue to compete?

To meet new people, see new places, and try to be better at cubing than I was before.

 

[Hssandwich]

1) I just wanted to meet other people. Competitions always seemed like a cool prospect for me, so I was excited to get to one as soon as possible.
2) I'm not really competitive at all, apart from in cubing. Cubing is the only thing that I compete in really.
3) Probably the prospect of beating other people and the goals that you set yourself.
4) I suppose my ultimate goal is to get a world record, but I suppose that is everybody's ultimate goal. Also to get to the absolute limits of my abilities and become as fast as possible in lots of events.
5) I do both, I like to beat my friends and I like to beat my own personal goals.
6) Competitions are not too important, but I they help get you going on cubing if you are having a time of slow improvement when you feel that you might want to stop.
7) I like to see people that I only normally talk to online and to improve my official PBs.
8) I think both, smaller competitions do not seem to be as hyped for and competitive as larger competitions, so if you base the larger competitions around faster cubers, you will often gain more publicity.
9) People to talk to and talk about cubes and cubing in general.
10) To just improve officially and socialise.

 

[Jaysammey777]

1.) What made you want to compete in the first place?
I was 13 and was excited to be a cuber. I wanted to have offical results and meet people in the community; we drove 8 hours since there were not any competitions in the south region.

2.) Are you a naturally competitive person, or is cubing the only thing you compete in?
Competitively I play Pokemon cards, pvp games, etc.. Whatever I get my hands on it turns into soemthing competitive, but overall I maintain the mentality to have fun. If I'm not having fun then I usually take a break from the hobby to maintain a healthy mentality.

3.) What is your main motivation to decrease your times?
My friends and keeping up with them and the state kinch rankings.

4.) What is your ultimate cubing goal, if any?
Sweep a competition

5.) Do you compete against yourself, or others?
Against myself is primarily what I tel myself, but the friendly competition between Georgia Cubers makes it that much more fun.

6.) How important is competition in your cubing "career"?
Highly, I believe that competitions are what keep kids interested in the hobby and can help them pursue a great talent. This is why I organize competitions; to give kids the opportunity to form a great community. Without competitions I believe that the region would suffer from the same fate that my age group suffered (I'm the only 20 year old currently competing).

7.) What is your favourite thing about competitions??
The people are great. Friends and good times are a lot of fun.

8.) Do you think competitions should be structured around the faster, or the slower competitors?
Slower. I believe that encouraging as many people as possible is the best way to go about competitions. We try to always give the maximum (75%) of people to the next round. If we could let 100% in sure that we would allow even more. Everyone is truely happy with this outcome and it caters to the majority.

9.) What role do your cubing friends play when you're at competitions?
Staff. Staff staff staff. You're either Helping out or on my bad list cause you won't help out. Comps need all the help we can get and often in the south we are understaffed and struggle to get volunteers.

10.) Why do you continue to compete?
To create a rest inviroment for competitions. I love to help out as much as possible. As well gotta take back my state records, that's all of what Georgia's about.

 

[XTowncuber]

1. I wanted to meet new cubers at first. Anyone sub-15 was an idol to me. The actual competing was a side bonus to the awesomeness of hanging out at cube comps.

2. I'm very competitive in trying to improve myself, but as long as I have done my best I'm quite ok with losing.

3. I guess just beating my pbs. It's a good feeling. I also find the process of getting faster to be fun. I genuinely love just solving cubes.

4. I don't have one. I just beat pbs and try to get records when I can.

5. By showing up to competition and trying to beat myself, and others.

6. Very important. It gives me a goal to work towards and focus my practice around. It motivates when I have a good competition and makes me angry when I don't.

7. Hanging out. Seeing friends. learning something new.

8. Not 100% sure what you mean by this. I really like the inclusiveness of cubing as it encourages new cubers to improve, but I would also be ok with big events like nationals have time restrictions to register. It's just getting a little crazy with the big events.

9. My cubing friends are the people that I want to beat, and the ones I want to do well themselves. They're the people I watch solve and who watch me solve. They're the people I look for to sit with and avoid the crowds when I get to comps.

10. Because it's fun. It's challenging. It's exciting.

 

[JoshJumble]

1. I had seen lots of competition videos, and they looked really fun. Also, having official times seemed cool, and is a good way to prove your skill.

2. I'm not very competitive outside of cubing, though I do attend swim meets occassionally.

3. I see so many people average, like, sub 10, which is my ultimate goal, and just knowing that I could one day reach that level with enough dedication just makes me want to try.

4. To average sub 10.

5. Mostly myself, as I only have one IRL cubing friend, and he's a lot faster than me.

6. Very important. It keeps me interested and into cubing.

7. I can't decide what's better: No non-cubers being stupid when I do a solve, or the opportunity to meet others and try new cubes.

8. What Hssandwich said.

9. I have one cubing "friend" (Pretty annoying at times. Also, same guy referenced in #5), and he's basically the person I'm with when I'm not talking to anyone else.

10. To try to beat my previous records. And of course, to hang out with other CUBERS (no one like "I'm gonna mix your cube up so much, you're not gonna be able to solve it").


Yes, I've heard "I'm gonna mix your cube up so much, you're not gonna be able to solve it" WAYYYY too much.

 

[Yetiowin]

1.) Someone told me about a competition, and since I usually like more intellectual activities, I tried it and just kept on cubing from then.
2.) Yes, I do math competitions and generally like competitions.
3.) Seeing my times go down and me beat my records is just satisfying, and I always want to bet my brother.
4.) Be a recognized cuber, in some way.
5.) Mostly with my brother, as we started at the same time.
6.) Pretty important. They make my achievements seem more valid and official.
7.) Updating my official results and having a reason to spend a whole day cubing.
8.) I think that the smaller competitions should be more for people to hang out and update their results but the larger ones should be more speed focused.
9.) I'm pretty shy, so I mostly just talk to the people I know from elsewhere.
10.) It's fun, and I think my current progression could be promising...

 

[Scruggsy13]

1.) What made you want to compete in the first place?
My friend was hosting a competition about 30 minutes from my house and I was curious to know how the competitive aspect of cubing was since I'd spent a lot of time on youtube watching competition videos and records.
2.) Are you a naturally competitive person, or is cubing the only thing you compete in?
I used to be a competitive swimmer but I've since stopped that. I think I can be naturally competitive regardless of how often I tell myself that I'm not.
3.) What is your main motivation to decrease your times?
Partially to see how I compare to my friends but ultimately because it makes me feel a sense of accomplishment and lets me know that I'm not completely wasting my time.
4.) What is your ultimate cubing goal, if any?
I have a few material goals, such as AWECC membership, improving my world ranking in all events, and eventually traveling to competitions outside of the United States, but ultimately I just want to enjoy cubing as a hobby. I've passed through several phases of hobbies in my life but cubing has been quite a major one that I hope stays.
5.) Do you compete against yourself, or others?
For the most part, against myself. However when I'm in the competition environment it's difficult for me to stop myself from competing against my friends .
6.) How important is competition in your cubing "career"?
On a scale of 1-10, maybe like 6 or 7. They're definitely enjoyable but I'm not heartbroken if I have to miss a competition.
7.) What is your favourite thing about competitions??
Probably just getting to see my friends that I don't get to see or talk with otherwise.
8.) Do you think competitions should be structured around the faster, or the slower competitors?
I'm really torn on this one since I think cubing is really cool in the way that the "fast" and "slow" competitors can participate at the same competitions and talk with one another. However, it becomes really difficult when at more "elite" competitions there are still participants that many consider "slow." I don't necessarily think that organizers should feel obligated to structure smaller, more local competitions around a certain group of cubers but the more "elite competitions" such as World/Continental/National Championships should cater to the "faster" competitors.
9.) What role do your cubing friends play when you're at competitions?
They're there to converse with, maybe compete against, but ultimately we crack jokes and have a good time.
10.) Why do you continue to compete?
Mostly because it's fun.

 

[turtwig]

1.) What made you want to compete in the first place?

My mom told me about an upcoming competition so I thought that I would try it. I have a twin brother so I also wanted to be better than him.

2.) Are you a naturally competitive person, or is cubing the only thing you compete in?

I consider myself quite competitive. I also enjoy competing in math competitions.

3.) What is your main motivation to decrease your times?

I want to be better than my brother, so that keeps us both practicing. The prospect of getting a record or winning a competition is another strong motivator.

4.) What is your ultimate cubing goal, if any?

To obtain a record, I guess (world or continental would be nice, but I'd take a national record ). It would also be cool to be recognized and be able to consider myself as a world-class cuber. It would be nice to work for a cube shop or something so I can cube kind of as a job, but that's pretty unrealistic .

5.) Do you compete against yourself, or others?

Others. My brother and I compare times all the time.

6.) How important is competition in your cubing "career"?

Not too important. Competitions are very fun and it's nice to update results, but accomplishment outside of competition are just as rewarding and you know that you'll eventually to able to show your skill at a competition. I haven't been to many competitions so they're more like a rare treat for me.

7.) What is your favourite thing about competitions?

Doing an official solve and looking at official results just gives me a really awesome feeling that I don't get with unofficial solves.

8.) Do you think competitions should be structured around the faster, or the slower competitors?

I think there should be a balance. They're good enough at the moment. Let the slower competitors compete, but give faster competitors more opportunities to break records.

9.) What role do your cubing friends play when you're at competitions?

Not much, I guess. I'm a very introverted person and I spend a lot of competition time solving or helping out so I don't get to talk a lot to others.

10.) Why do you continue to compete?

To continue to beat my own times and hopefully some records in the future... also it's really fun and a hobby that I can bring anywhere and do at anytime. Unlike video games (to a certain extend), chess, sports, and a lot of other hobbies, I can pick up a cube and solve it anytime I please.

 

[newtonbase]

1.) I saw it as a challenge and wanted official recognition as a cuber.
2.) Very competitive but I don't do anything else officially.
3.) I just want to be better.
4.) No ultimate goal. New targets are set whenever an old one is reached.
5.) I'm slow so it's myself mainly.
6.) It helps me focus on improvement so it's very important.
7.) The opportunity to focus on my favourite hobby without distraction. This includes the social side.
8.) A focus on faster cubers is fine but they need to be inclusive or new cubers will be put off. Cutoffs shouldn't be too harsh.
9.) They make the whole experience much more enjoyable and it's a great opportunity to swap tips.
10.) I love it.

 

[pjk]

1.) What made you want to compete in the first place?
A curiosity to meet other cubers, an interest in competing and ranking in the community, and a good reason to travel.

2.) Are you a naturally competitive person, or is cubing the only thing you compete in?
Yes, growing up with 2 older brothers I've always been competitive.

3.) What is your main motivation to decrease your times?
Getting hooked on the hobby. When I first heard of the world record being 11.13 seconds years ago, I didn't believe it. The more I looked into it, the more I realized how wrong I was. My best friend was also into solving as well so we competed against each other. As we both improved it made the competition more intense, and the pure act of cubing brought a lot of excitement to my life.

4.) What is your ultimate cubing goal, if any?
I can't say I have a goal anymore. Initially it was to get under 20 seconds, but after that it just became me trying to beat my previous times. I do have ambitions to get much better at BLD.

5.) Do you compete against yourself, or others?
Both. These days it's more about beating my times from when I was younger and better. I know I don't practice nearly enough to beat most others these days who practice a lot more than me.

6.) How important is competition in your cubing "career"?
I think competition brought motivation to keep me cubing. Every time I went to another competition I would leave more motivated than ever to practice. The further people push the limits, the more interested I am. But at the same time as I've gotten older priorities have changed, as have interests. With that said, cubing is still a big part of my life and I thoroughly enjoy going to competitions.

7.) What is your favourite thing about competitions?
Exploring a new city, hanging out with friends, watching the top solvers compete, hanging out in a crowd of people who all share the same interest.

8.) Do you think competitions should be structured around the faster, or the slower competitors?
It should be structured around people who want to compete, as those people have likely spent the most time practicing and are most interested. I think the current setup is good, though I think there are some improvements to make it more intriguing to both the audience and cubers who aren't so fast.

9.) What role do your cubing friends play when you're at competitions?
The same role friends at any activity play - they are people to share stories with, share the experience with, compete with, etc.

10.) Why do you continue to compete?
It's fun and enjoyable. And things that are fun and enjoyable I try to keep doing.

 

[tx789]

.) What made you want to compete in the first place?

NZ Champianships 2009 was actucally advertised on TV as as the NZ Champs 2010. I wanted to go to NZ Champs 2009 the first time I saw that partially because I could solve a 3x3. Maybe a want to meet others with a similiar interest. I don't really remember I had to wait a year however. I can really answer this.

2.) Are you a naturally competitive person, or is cubing the only thing you compete in?

I don't think I'm that completive.

3.) What is your main motivation to decrease your times?

New people at comps being better than me and now an ugre to be at considered pretty fast at every event.

4.) What is your ultimate cubing goal, if any?

To complete at every event. And be fast at all of them.

5.) Do you compete against yourself, or others?

In comps, I'd like to beat my PB, but I'd like to podium at least once in 3x3 (the only event I've done where I haven't), break the NZ Pyraminx and 2x2 NR averages.
6.) How important is competition in your cubing "career"?

A bit I guess but comps are infrequent in NZ compared to other locations. I've been to 9 comps there a 10th I want to go to that's just been annouced, it's not certain I can go yet. In New Zealand we've had 16 comps in 7 years. Which is still quite a few.

7.) What is your favourite thing about competitions??

Not sure.

8.) Do you think competitions should be structured around the faster, or the slower competitors?

What do you mean exaclty. Would structing for slower competitors mean no cut offs. Cut offs are needed because of scheleing. They make good goals for slower people.

9.) What role do your cubing friends play when you're at competitions?

People to talk to at competitions. People to hang around with at comps. And a way to travel to comps outside Wellington, I guess.

10.) Why do you continue to compete?

It's enjoyable, I want to improve. Since I do everything (BLD pending) and aren't that good. I still can improve a lot (but time is much more limited now due to Uni). Trying to practise a lot pf events with little time doesn't add together well.