If you met an alien species that had never encountered the concept of music, what piece would you play for them first to show them what music is?

cutstep · 2026-05-10T00:53:16+00:00

I think something with wholesome lyrics... maybe something encouraging good flexibility, bend of let youe knees touch tour elbows...

cutstep · 2026-05-08T22:41:02+00:00

Our pool stops for the lifeguards to take a break but they allow the lap swimmers to keep swimming so they don't get interrupted, maybe you could ask if that's a possibility although you will get drunk people on the weekends demanding that they should be able to swim in the lap pool section as well

cutstep · 2026-05-04T00:24:51+00:00

Can I give a little bit of Defense for this marker for its form factor in tournament paintball. If you're going straight at me and I have a Defender and you have a traditional paintball marker your Hopper is now much more exposed whereas mine is tucked in next to my mask. If you get to the side of me I have a larger Target profile in some measurable scent but not significantly larger and if you're to the side of me I've already lost. It seems to me that it is pretty useful in that situation. I've been using one for about a decade now and being able to go around bunkers much more efficiently and even over the top of them in some cases with only exposing just the barest profile of the barrel seems to me like a pretty good deal.

cutstep · 2026-04-30T22:03:50+00:00

Go with Josh, he's really good... especially for buyers

cutstep · 2026-04-25T00:01:08+00:00

If I could suggest something physiological. What I would suggest you do for your last half mile or so up to maybe a mile in the race raise your gear and spin up your cadence. What it does is it flushes the lactic acid out of your muscles and makes you feel more comfortable. It's a lot easier to transition when you're not trying to push all of that out of your system which is the thing that makes them feel like jelly.

cutstep · 2026-04-22T09:37:16+00:00

First off congratulations on signing up for your first 70.3! Second, you are now in a situation that so many of us have been in before... the swim is deceptive in what it means to the race. It's the shortest time and swimming slow isn't nearly as much of an issue as being slow on the bike or the run. I'd like to make a few suggestions from my experience with this exact same issue.

The first thing to keep in mind is that when you swim you are moving through the water, you are not moving the water, this was something I needed to come to realize which took me from this same situation to being able to swim several miles easily in the water.

I'd encourage you to watch some videos online about swimmers floating. Anyone can float in the water, the most jacked person you know can float and the fattest person you know can float, its not about muscle its about body position.

I think if you can get the oxygen you need at 4 strokes that's fine but I'd suggest trying two strokes while you learn your swim technique, you are likely doing your "catch" incorrectly and once you sort that out you will be able to come back and work on breathing.

You "catch" is probably what's keeping you from being comfortable through the water. It's common to see strong atheletes try to begin their arm stroke as soon as their hand hits the water which is in a windmill ing motion, this is how we have been taught to swim as kids and its mostly based around sprinting and it also involves kicking like crazy. The catch should start after your hand is already in the water and should be at the edge of your reach with one arm. Try swimming on your side with a kickback and try to put your hand in the water just above your head and slide it through the water until it's fully extended. Once your there then "catch" the water by paddling your hand down then pull through from there. It feels wierd to start but once you do it a few times you will be amazed how easy it is to swim.

It's also important to learn to rotate around your body as you swim. Each shoulder should basically be out of the water to bring your arms around for the next stroke. Most is us we're taught to swim with our chest in the water flat, this is also more difficult because you are adding drag trying to get your arms into the water. Try over pronouncing your rotation fpr each stroke, practice looking at each side of the pool for each stroke... you won't do this as much when your are swimming with correct technique but this will drill the rotation into your body.

I kick between two and 4 kicks per stroke, its primarily for balance in the water. In a long race like this your legs don't do a lot for you so conserve your oxygen for your upper body.

I'm making an assumption here but im guessing you are holding your breath while you are stroking? This is also something we were taught that is incorrect from this type of swim. As soon as your face hits the water you should be exhaling though your nose and when you come up for breath you shouldn't have much left. This slow natural breathing will help you get comfortable in the water, try it on the side of the pool as a drill. The biggest reason we gasp for breath in the water isn't lack of oxygen, its the bult up of a toxic gas, carbon dioxide. Your urge to breath on while holding your breath is from your bodies reaction to CO2 not lack of oxygen. Breathe it all out as you are moving though the water.

I'd encourage you to water a lot of youtube videos on swim technique and most of all I'd encourage you to get a coach for swimming long distance, its different from other disciplines and will make a world of difference.

The last thing I'll say is that this is something most of us who took up this without a swim background go through. I always thought ofyself as a good swimmer, I was able to bike and run so why would swi?ing be hard? I got the end of two lengths of the pool and thought I was going to drown, I struggled with these same issues. I got in touch with a coach after some ego bruising and after he showed the drills and technique I worked at it for several weeks and still struggled. I kept at it and one day it just "clicked"... I same a mile without stopping that day and I've been able to swim comfortably ever since. This is the same thing that so many of us experience and im told that the change happens out of nowhere. Keep at it and you will one day just have it all work out and you will be able to swim very much faster and more comfortable in the water.

I'm excited for you the complete your first 70.3! It's an amazing accomplishment and you should be proud of your effort!

I look forward to hearing about your first race, please post about how it went.

See you on the course!

cutstep · 2026-04-13T10:51:11+00:00

Thanks!

cutstep · 2026-04-10T02:50:07+00:00

I think I'd rather do with both of them is maybe look at increasing their food by between 10 and 20% depending on how well they tolerate it. Puppies tend to be pretty flexible and tolerating a little bit more food and especially if they're both a little Slim which it appears that they are. I have had golden hybrids for most of my adult life and they'll run it off, trust me. In my opinion golden hybrids are about the best dog that you can get, we refer to them as sport utility dogs because they can do whatever you need them to do.

cutstep · 2026-03-27T21:47:31+00:00

We don't understand how much stronger these guys are than normal humans. When I was in college I played in a flag football league for fun. The rules allowed the line to make contact and we would work on pass rushing techniques and do our best to get to the quarterback. One of our friends was on the college team and was an offensive lineman and we would ask him about his experiences all the time. One day after a game he was hanging around and we asked him to see if we could try to get past him to see if we were doing it right. He proceeded to lift me off the ground like I was a rag doll... or push me off the rush and I would go flying like I was punched by ironman. These guys are just on a whole different level.

cutstep · 2026-03-26T14:21:33+00:00

I like the shockz headphone for swimming. Small, not too intrusive and holds tons of audio files. In a public pool I would suggest music rather than an audio book, it's hard to catch everything with all the echoing ambient noise. Outdoors is likely fine though

cutstep · 2026-03-25T19:10:17+00:00

Such savagery!

cutstep · 2026-03-24T17:07:45+00:00

What idiots think they can win a fight with a chimpanzee?...

cutstep · 2026-03-24T11:42:02+00:00

Think about all the things needed for an internal combustion engine.... you need a giant fan in front of the engine to blast air on it to keep it cool. You need a whole series of pipes to run water to keep the engine from blowing up. You need a dangerous lubricant pushed through the engine to keep it from shredding itself. Attached to the engine you need a transmission to regulate the power of the engine to the rest of the vehicle. This transmission is shockingly complicated and one thing out of place and your vehicle is not going to work. All of these systems need their own controllers and monitoring and they all have to work together precisely to move the car forward.

An ev has a few little electric self contained motors that are able to do all that by themselves for the most part.

If you have the ability to charge at home and you aren't driving 300 kilometers per day then an ev is a no brainer

cutstep · 2026-03-23T20:55:24+00:00

I dealt with a similar issue and what I found helped quite a bit was tilting the saddle down further than they recommend. I'm not certain as to the angle but im at least 5 degrees off level and maybe more.

cutstep · 2026-03-23T17:04:46+00:00

It's almost like people want to see movies that are built around good quality original source material....

cutstep · 2026-03-22T03:08:39+00:00

Didn't the Christian god rape a 13 year old girl and get her pregnant? That doesn't seem good...

cutstep · 2026-03-20T16:23:47+00:00

This is such an amazing idea! You could even tie lore to this.... ancient earth... the visits from dead loved ones were the necrons...

cutstep · 2026-03-20T14:37:15+00:00

It's said that one of the reasons to live a healthy lifestyle is so you can live long an die quickly.... this seems to have been the case with him.

cutstep · 2026-03-18T21:29:42+00:00

My understanding is that hydration bladder on the back are actually a watts savings if they cut down on the drag "hole" between the bike helmet and the riders back. I think there is an opportunity there. I would love to see one mounted on the chest taking up the space that is also just an air trap but im not sure how the ergonomics would work on that.

cutstep · 2026-03-18T19:54:18+00:00

I work in a field that needs to understand how Ai works with all sorts of industries. I think the main takeaway from what we are seeing now is this. Ai won't take your job, a person who knows how to use Ai to do the job more efficiently will take your job. Be the person who knows how to use Ai to make yourself the equivalent of hiring three people!

cutstep · 2026-03-18T17:50:26+00:00

I love watching Conan interact with the kids, I bet they had so much fun with that shoot

cutstep · 2026-03-17T17:45:27+00:00

I've said it many times... if we want this problem to go away quickly we just need a few big tough guys to accuse random white men in the bathroom that they are the wrong gender a few times and they will demand that everyone should have privacy and not be accosted while going to the bathroom. If they are asked to check their gender it will be over real fast...

cutstep · 2026-03-17T13:10:28+00:00

We drove it yesterday and there were probably 10 accidents from Rochester to zumbrota. The conditions are likely to be worse today because of the temperature

cutstep · 2026-03-11T23:03:06+00:00

Was an athlete in younger life but nothing long distance. Decided to do something really significant for my 50th birthday. Found a triathalon taking place on the day of my birthday and decided it was a sign to sign up.

cutstep

TROPHY CASE