I've been able to do this since I was a kid. It always took about 30-40 seconds for me to do it. I can still do it in about a minute even though I don't practice anymore.

My "Speed" cube was busted by the baby. That cube was so smooth from the years of petroleum jelly it could actually fall apart while you were playing with it. Well, the baby dropped it and the cube became many cubes and the center section broke in half.

Below are my two cubes. One, unopened, was a gift from Susan and the other was a special edition and has raised tiles. It's probably 20+ years old.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.2006.../BNStory/Technology/

Man solves Rubik's cube in record time

Monday, January 16, 2006 Posted at 2:38 PM EST

Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO — A 20-year-old California Institute of Technology student set a new world record for solving the popular Rubik's Cube puzzle, turning the tiled brain-twister from scrambled to solved in 11.13 seconds.

Leyan Lo is part of Caltech's Rubik's Cube Club, a student group that hosted the competition at the Exploratorium museum in San Francisco. Lo's record-setting time came early Saturday, among his first five tries in the preliminary rounds.

The record-setting solution caught competitors and even Lo himself by surprise.

"It's kind of scary now that I set it, because I have two more [attempts] to go," Lo said humbly afterward. His time of 11.13 seconds broke the previous record of 11.75 seconds, set by Frenchman Jean Pons at the Dutch Open competition last year.

Still, the world record alone didn't gain Lo the overall champion's title at the event, which was determined by averaging three of five solution times in the final round. For that title, Lo went up against the teenager widely considered the fastest Rubik's Cube solver on the planet — Shotaro "Macky" Makisumi, a 15-year-old from Pasadena.

Makisumi prevailed, clocking in with an average time of 14.91 seconds in the final round to take first place.

Besides blindingly fast fingers and a head for memorizing algorithms used by most top competitors to solve the cube, what is Makisumi's secret?

"I don't know. Faster first two layers," he surmised, referring to solving the first two layers of the cube's coloured tiles before moving on to the last.

For his victory, Makisumi won a Rubik's Snake puzzle, one of several variations of the basic cube which has sold more than 100 million worldwide, according to the manufacturer.

I've been able to do this since I was a kid. It always took about 30-40 seconds for me to do it. I can still do it in about a minute even though I don't practice anymore.

My "Speed" cube was busted by the baby. That cube was so smooth from the years of petroleum jelly it could actually fall apart while you were playing with it. Well, the baby dropped it and the cube became many cubes and the center section broke in half.

Below are my two cubes. One, unopened, was a gift from Susan and the other was a special edition and has raised tiles. It's probably 20+ years old.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.2006.../BNStory/Technology/

Man solves Rubik's cube in record time

Monday, January 16, 2006 Posted at 2:38 PM EST

Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO — A 20-year-old California Institute of Technology student set a new world record for solving the popular Rubik's Cube puzzle, turning the tiled brain-twister from scrambled to solved in 11.13 seconds.

Leyan Lo is part of Caltech's Rubik's Cube Club, a student group that hosted the competition at the Exploratorium museum in San Francisco. Lo's record-setting time came early Saturday, among his first five tries in the preliminary rounds.

The record-setting solution caught competitors and even Lo himself by surprise.

"It's kind of scary now that I set it, because I have two more [attempts] to go," Lo said humbly afterward. His time of 11.13 seconds broke the previous record of 11.75 seconds, set by Frenchman Jean Pons at the Dutch Open competition last year.

Still, the world record alone didn't gain Lo the overall champion's title at the event, which was determined by averaging three of five solution times in the final round. For that title, Lo went up against the teenager widely considered the fastest Rubik's Cube solver on the planet — Shotaro "Macky" Makisumi, a 15-year-old from Pasadena.

Makisumi prevailed, clocking in with an average time of 14.91 seconds in the final round to take first place.

Besides blindingly fast fingers and a head for memorizing algorithms used by most top competitors to solve the cube, what is Makisumi's secret?

"I don't know. Faster first two layers," he surmised, referring to solving the first two layers of the cube's coloured tiles before moving on to the last.

For his victory, Makisumi won a Rubik's Snake puzzle, one of several variations of the basic cube which has sold more than 100 million worldwide, according to the manufacturer.

I think we should clock tie rod change-out times. Rumor has it that the East coasters are leading the competiton.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by CO Hummer:
I think we should clock tie rod change-out times. Rumor has it that the East coasters are leading the competiton. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>That is true. I wish I would have been there to actually see it. Dan was.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Alec W:
Ken, this thread is only marginally more interesting than Dirty’s H2 in the flood video.

I broke a Rubik’s cube when I threw it at a wall out of frustration .

CO Hummer, thanks for saving the thread by hyjacking it. Nice work. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Rubik rage. Nice.

Those were around when you were a kid? they didn't show up on the market until about 1980. I saw one at spring break '80 and solved it ain about a minute thought that was good... guess I am just not from the gaming generation.

Man, Orbital! You must be old!!!

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by KenP:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by CO Hummer:
I think we should clock tie rod change-out times. Rumor has it that the East coasters are leading the competiton. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>That is true. I wish I would have been there to actually see it. Dan was. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yeah, it was pretty fast. Under 15 minutes, 12 if I remember correctly.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Tootsie:
Man, Orbital! You must be old!!! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

ancient, older than dirt