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1.28.04 - I recently made a "run" at the SL record, but was buried by Penev. My times are 1'18"300 and 25"272...I was within about half a second, when Penev reported 1'17"4xx! From there I was discouraged, and though I've been meaning to play some MKDD again soon, it probably won't be SL. And I probably won't make a vid now, though I have the tape.... Maybe if I get a upload occasion figured out I'll change my mind. 1.9.04 - Finally played again yesterday. Scored 1'40"862 and 0'33"128 on Mushroom City. These are ranked 5th/3rd. This track's just pure MT skills, and I can't match some of these guys right now. 12.30.03 - Has it been 10 days? Dang, I'll never keep up. I can still get records though. Today I played Waluigi Stadium for the second straight night and have settled at 1'45"318 and 0'33"245. The 3-lap misses by 6 tenths though I could get 1'43"9xx with my best splits. The f-lap, however, knocks the record by 0.828 seconds :) That's huge. F-laps are easy. 12.20.03 - Today marks the end of N-sider.com contest, and as it stands, I'm the NTSC contest winner! The track of course is Yoshi Circuit and the winning time was 1'46"236, about one second faster than the NTSC runner-up. Bart Savelkouls won the PAL region with a psycho 1'45"186, but his runner-up was at a meager 1'48"5xx or so. The reward for my labor? A GameBoy Advanced SP with Fire Emblem! I earned a few first place prizes in MGTT contests this summer, but this is definitely the coolest thing I've ever won for playing a video game. I'm very satisfied with the accomplishment. After the contest expired I put a few more hours on the f-lap and came away with 0'34"135, momentarily taking back my site record from Frederic Billaudel. I'm starting to gain confidence in my ability to stay near the top of the ranks. With NTSC champion being a very real possibility, I find my motivation is actually growing still (as I see I can still bag site records a month into competition). 12.19.03 - After almost a week off I came back strong on Daisy Cruiser with 1'43"341 and 0'33"561, both site records at the moment. I think it's safe to say that each record I get from now on is better than the last, because the records are getting very competitive. 12.13.03 - Tonight I went to Mario Circuit and came away with a 1'32"826 and 0'29"297. The f-lap is the 5th site record I've gotten on the last six f-laps attempted (MB being a 2nd place time). This is the first track I've used the barrel train on. I used it so I could cut over the hairpin turn without being slowed by the grass. 12.12.03 - After taking my very last exam today, I thought I'd test out Yoshi Circuit to see what I was up against for the N-sider contest. Before long I had smashed both site records, with much improvement on the way I'm sure. The times are Yoshi Circuit 3-lap 1'47"747 and f-lap 0'34"422 (the site record for the f-lap is 0'35"080 currently...). The Japanese got 1'46"755, but I don't think they'll find the contest...I think I can get that low anyway. I have until December 20th to defend my time.... 12.11.03 - Today I kept my focus to one track and did a little bit better than I expected, but still feel unsatisfied. The times are 1'25"459 and 0'27"685 on Mushroom Bridge. Bart just got 1'23"8xx and 0'27"2xx which is why these times felt mediocre. They are currently good for 4th and 2nd, respectively. 12.10.03 - Exams are over and now it seems I'll be able to play almost daily! Day 1 started off nicely: Baby Park - 1'07"575 / 0'08"978 Dry Dry Desert - 1'37"856 / 0'30"293 12.7.03 - Today I finally resumed my kartastica (finals week was kicking my ass at USF so I really needed to put the controller down until it was over). Unfortunately for the MKDD community, the pain train is coming now. Oh yes, that's right. Tonight I started off with a solid pair of times, 1'13"559 PB 3-Lap and a sick 0'23"483 f-lap. Right now the 3-lap ranks 4th (1'11"797 is NASTY) but the fast lap is a SITE RECORD! That actually is pretty meaningful here at the 3-week mark, as 150 people are already registered and competing. MJ, Bart, and Bertrand own about 80% of the records, so this definitely builds my confidence. 11.30.03 - I finally completed my set by getting some top 10 RR times. I returned to Luigi Circuit and managed a pretty solid 3-lap, 1'20"393. My new f-lap time of 0'26"050 is second only to Guillaume. I have serious ambitions of getting to 4th place soon. Unfortunately, Savelkous, Jongerious, and Bertrand probably won't relinquishing their positions any time soon... 11.29.03 - I almost have a complete set of times at this point. The last few days I've been doing some quality karting, looking to find a spot in the top 5 soon as Christmas break appraoches. The most notable new time is 0'50"013 f-lap on Bowser's Castle, nearing Bertrand's time of 49"922. I really just wanted under 50, but oh well, another day. As I finish up my first set of times, I find myself feeling very excited about going back and really giving them my best effort. I hope to break some records...I have no doubt I can. Could the Upstart be back? True to the name this time? 11.23.03 - I played for a few hours and got 6 new times. Two of those are records, beating Bart, Jongerius, and the upstart Bertrand. Those times were recorded on Daisy Cruiser, being 1'45"966 and 0'34"344, occurring on the same run! These are definitely my finest times so far, I encourage you to download the video: 11.21.03 - Played only briefly today, but managed an insane 0'31"781 on Dry Dry Desert f-lap. I say insane because it beats the listed best by over 2 seconds...I have a feeling this one will actually survive the next update. (edit: it didn't!--it was 2nd) 11.20.03 - After beating All-Cup and Mirror (unlocking gold kart), I began TTs. I only got through 3 tracks, but I got a "record" (momentarily beating all on the MKDD Player's Page, including Europeans who've had the game for a week), that being 0'24"153 on Peach Beach f-lap! It actually eclipsed the standing #1 time by 0.221, but I'm sure it won't last another 24 hours. Still nice to get a piece of glory early. 11.19.03 - The era begins! I finish out the day by beating everything up through 150cc Special Cup, unlocking All Cups mode. > Return home. |