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People · United States

Ben Marlin

2×2 · top 0.98% of 186,767 all-time · competing since April 2015 · 2015MARL01

Ben Marlin has been competing for 11 years. His best event is the 2×2: a personal-best single of 1.18, set at Quabbin Open 2016, puts him in the top 0.98% of the 186,767 people who have ever been ranked in the event, and 410th in the United States. Until November 2008, no official 2×2 solve in the world had been that fast. Across 23 competitions since April 2015, he has put 1,084 official solves on the record across 15 events. Solve to solve, his 3×3 times vary about 14% around a typical one; 64% of the 35,811 competitors with ten or more counted rounds hold a tighter spread. His 3×3 best has come down from 19.64 in April 2015 to 6.94, a 65% improvement. Ben has entered 23 competitions, more competitions than 97% of everyone who has ever competed.

2×2
best event — top 0.98% of 186,767 all-time
1.18
signature single · Quabbin Open 2016
1,084
official solves on the record
14%
solve-to-solve spread · wider than 64% of the field

Standing, event by event

vs everyone ever ranked
EventPB singlePB averageAll-time standingUnited States
2×21.182.48
top 0.98%410 / 40,951
Pyraminx2.034.83
top 1.2%330 / 28,708
3×36.949.94
top 1.3%768 / 59,724
3×3 blindfolded29.90—
top 4.1%79 / 2,092
4×433.9236.44
top 5.8%889 / 19,072
3×3 one-handed14.0316.59
top 6.2%852 / 15,683
Skewb3.745.86
top 9.2%1,412 / 18,907
4×4 blindfolded4:01.76—
early days — 1 solve56 / 440
Square-115.6121.31
top 17.8%1,209 / 6,743
5×51:18.401:24.65
top 17.9%1,373 / 9,401
Megaminx1:14.041:20.21
top 18.1%1,223 / 7,841
3×3 Fewest Moves33 moves—
early days — 3 solves507 / 2,040
6×62:45.273:12.55
top 33.6%1,203 / 4,196
3×3 Multi-Blind8 of 12 cubes · 58:58—
early days — 1 solve368 / 731
7×75:19.95—
top 56.9%1,682 / 3,184

Percentile against all competitors ever ranked in each event, a fairer measure than raw rank, because the pools differ by a factor of ten.

The line so far

Lexington Spring 2015: 19.64MIT Spring 2015: 18.88Melrose Spring 2015: 19.52SoCal Supercomp 2015: 16.95Phillips Exeter Cube Day 2015: 11.44Lexington Fall 2015: 11.90Northeastern Fall 2015: 13.08MIT Fall 2015: 11.58Sharon Winter 2016: 11.90Williams Winter 2016: 10.88Weston Spring 2016: 9.21MIT Spring 2016: 10.97Melrose Summer 2016: 10.46Sharon Summer 2016: 8.95Quabbin Open 2016: 10.26Phillips Exeter Cube Day 2016: 6.94South Berwick Open 2016: 9.45Monument Mountain Winter 2017: 9.12Maybe Melrose Spring 2017: 8.97CubingUSA Nationals 2017: 9.69Pennsylvania 2018: 8.44Quinnipiac 2018: 8.716.9419.6411 Apr 20158 Sep 2018

Best single per competition, 3×3. Faster is higher — the axis is the right way up.

The story so far

Competitions

Reading this page: a single is one solve's time · an average is the middle three of five solves, best and worst discarded · a PB is a personal best · a DNF (did not finish) is an attempt with no valid result: a popped piece, an unsolved face, an over-limit memorisation · top X% compares against everyone ever ranked in that event, which is fairer than raw rank because event pools differ tenfold.

The circuit

The people whose scorecards keep turning up next to his.

Next targets

  • A sub-1 2×2 single — 1,032 people have one; it is 0.18 away.
  • A sub-2 Pyraminx single — 1,476 people have one; it is 0.03 away.

Targets move as he improves.