exiled

Wait what's this about Casey, Marc and getting kicked out of honda

ah just a fun bit of old gossip. to clarify in case the phrasing in this post was confusing, we're talking about casey's role as a test rider with honda after his retirement, so 2013-15 (not casey's initial retirement from his honda ride, which was ofc entirely his own choice)

so! first of all! from the moment casey retired, everybody was going 'when will casey be back'. this wasn't based on anything casey was actually saying - it's just how people are about retirement announcements ig, the disbelief at how early casey retired, wanting to see him race again, refusing to believe he might actually properly be done. when the riders were asked about it in pressers, they usually gave very neutral 'sure that would be nice' responses. when casey was asked about it, he was generally pretty firm in going 'I'm not interested' and also 'stop asking'. but in 2015, dani made the decision to pause his season to get an operation for his recurring severe arm pump issues. he ended up missing three races, and inevitably people went, 'hey you know who would be fun to have back for a few races, you know who also happens to be familiar with the honda bike'

and this time casey WOULD have been up for it. except, according to him, SOMEONE didn't want him to race:

now fwiw, we have zero proof that this 'someone' was marc, although ofc that was something people speculated about at the time - the idea being that marc wouldn't have wanted to be undermined by casey outperforming him, especially in the context of a tricky start to the 2015 season. (funnily enough, the phrasing does echo the "somebody inside Yamaha didn't want me there" thing; a topic for another post but I'm pretty unconvinced valentino was involved in blocking casey's yamaha deal.) and... given this is the same interview where casey talks about his belief that marc forced him out of honda (which we'll get to)... I mean, he must have at least known it's a conclusion people would draw

marc was asked in pressers about casey racing as dani's replacement, and he basically stuck to 'it's not up to me'. some more casey quotes:

I like to think 'I would've won that' was one of casey's main takeaways from sepang 2015

anyway at the end of 2015, casey left honda to join ducati as a test rider. here is an excerpt from a piece about it at the time, saying marc had complained about casey's performance level as a test rider:

you'll note the HRC sources disagree with casey on how good casey's pace was; unfortunately we'll never really know either way. (in any case it's not particularly great form for sources to 'let slip' that your test rider's pace is poor, even if it was true, but there we are.) and ofc there's the assertion that marc felt 'threatened' by casey and/or didn't think casey's feedback was valuable. here's a screenshot of the piece from speedweek being referenced:

again, a lot of this is obviously hearsay. we don't really know how hard marc pushed to get rid of casey (if at all), and certainly not for what reasons - whether it was casey being too slow or the quality of his feedback or marc's ego or whatever else. we do know casey thinks marc wanted him out because marc felt threatened by him, as he's very helpfully said as much:

casey does make it clear he doesn't have any proof that marc (and his entourage) felt threatened by him, but, well. either way he did believe it. this story dropped in january 2016 btw, so at a time where press coverage of marc was not exactly at its friendliest anyway. marc hasn't really ever responded to these assertions afaik - but when casey ended up leaving ducati again at the end of 2018, he was pretty lukewarm about the idea of casey returning to honda:

here too there's nothing from marc's side to suggest any real antipathy, but of course we also don't know whether he's being honest about his reasons for preferring the distinctly unthreatening bradl. and finally, casey has more recently (aka start of this year, 2024) said that he left honda because they only listened to marc:

which is also obviously relevant now in the context of honda's long-term decline and marc's decision to leave (criticised in some quarters by those who feel marc is at least partly to blame for said decline)

anyway ofc this is all very he said she said, so who knows what really happened - but the fun bit is that nobody can quite agree! all a bit messy isn't it. it's very low stakes beef, kinda nice... but it does also fit in with casey's whole outlook towards the sport, where he often feels like he's being unfairly treated. and (this cannot be stressed enough) a lot of the time he was right, he was being unfairly treated, so it's absolutely possible some underhanded stuff was going on here too. believe what you will! who knows!

The Eighth Sense Eps 3 & 4 Stray Thoughts

Last time, we all lost our minds at the inherent queerness of this show, and how distinct it feels in the world of BL. We met Ji Hyun, a new resident of Seoul from the countryside who recently started school, and Jae Won, a senior returning from military service and son of a wealthy family. Ji Hyun is struggling with city life, and Jae Won is struggling with everyone's expectations of him. These two met and felt instantly drawn to each other, and are now engaged in intricate rituals in the surfing club. We left them on the beach before what felt like a kiss.

Episode 3

Okay so it was a kiss! That was not tentative at all.

Oh, I'm not a fan of pressuring new members to binge drink. Relieved others are pushing back, but still it's gross.

Why is Ji Hyun being brave about the drink? Is it to distract himself from the kiss and abrupt separation? Is it to end the tension of the moment and save the girls? Is he getting drunk enough to be taken care of by Jae Won?

This dude is so annoying every time he gets drunk. Tae Hyung definitely wants to fuck Jae Won, and it's embarrassing.

Ah, of course Jae Won has built up a history of getting drunk and kissing people. He needed to build that mask.

Hey, that was a beautiful shot of the beach.

Not a fan of Ji Hyun potentially going out into the water alone, but it is intriguing that he tried to suit up on his own in maybe the wrong size. He's not comfortable anymore.

Oh, Jae Won. You can't just ignore the boy like this. This is also unfortunately familiar.

I have questions about the person running a bar in Korea that can't understand enough Korean to take orders.

I get Jae Won feeling more comfortable with Yoon Won after all this time because she feels grounded.

Jae Won, you can't smile fondly at his art after ignoring him!

Damn, the freshmen just casually clocking Yoon Won as a lesbian.

There's a lot of drinking in this show.

I don't think the roommate's assessment is totally off. If Jae Won is signalling that he doesn't want to interact with Ji Hyun anymore, it's probably best to just let it go. Does beg whether Ji Hyun knows he's queer.

If Ji Hyun doesn't want this girl to attach to him too much, it would be ideal to introduce her to the definitely straight friend.

I like Joon Pyo.

Oh, I like experiencing the therapy session through the distorted reflection

I love the bar owner. Ji Hyun definitely needs encouragement.

Here Jae Won goes with the meaningful looks again. Not sure how I want to read them having an interaction right after a therapy session.

I liked this episode. I like Ji Hyun taking his angst and confusion in stride. I also like how many people encourage him.

Episode 4

Gosh, seeing these two recognize that there's something special about just being near each other in silence is just...wow.

Wonder what changed for Hae? Is it because it's night time. Don't send me back to my beauty in the dark phase.

I like Jae Won learning how to draw. It's really sweet to see them learning the other's passion. We also get to see Ji Hyun smile and laugh.

"Do you want to eat ramen with me?" *I understood that reference.*

Again the tension between these two when Jae Won adjusts Ji Hyun's bag. These two are delivering.

I love Ji Hyun's briefcase. I hope there isn't a plot point involving it going missing.

I'm obsessed with Ae Ri. She looked at Jae Won and Ji Hyun and was like, "Ah, gays," and immediately covered for Ji Hyun. Then, she goes on to show Ji Hyun how obvious things appear, and to keep his wits about him, before making clear she does not desire him. I hope she gets everything she wants.

Here these dudes go again meddling in Jae Won's affairs with Eun Ji.

If Eun Ji does something cruel to these boys because she saw them bonding in the stacks....

I'm not a therapist, nor have I been in much therapy, but it feels like Jae Won can be honest with his.

Here Eun Ji goes being mean to Ji Hyun.

Oh my goodness. That was a low-key read. "I didn't say you broke it intentionally. But if you broke it, is it that hard to apologize to the person fixing it?" She doesn't know why this girl is bullying Ji Hyun, but she is not going to let it slide.

A pinky brush into hand holding? We stay winning.

"A beer in your dorm room. Aren't we moving too fast?" Sir, you kissed and then avoided him!

I no longer like Joon Pyo. We had everything. A hand on a leg, a secret romantic desire expressed, and a lean in for a kiss. Then he runs in to spoil the moment!

I'm really glad they give us two episodes a week. I'd have been really frustrated to only get episode 3 with Jae Won avoiding him only to end on the subway would have been annoying. Instead we're seeing this support network grow around Ji Hyun and the obvious relationship blossoming between these two. I'm curious to learn about this secret desire Jae Won is afraid to voice.

This morning I'm up early enough to hear the bikes thunder through from wherever as they zip-tear the sky open, I keep thinking a plane is falling and wonder what'd happen if I flung my legs over the back of a stranger's two-wheeler. Where I'd end up, how far away or how far below. I didn't sleep last night except to have a single dream. The roaring continues at intervals, the ones who fueled up, slept in, who knows. On Wednesday night I went to see a friends band play at Old Bar, after he finished drumming - which I didn't even know was one of his many skills as well as producing and playing an assortment of stringed and non-stringed instruments - I said I was experiencing too many big feelings to verbalise and he said to write it down. I'm gonna be honest I still don't know how to write about live music, I think the people who do it best have some manner of technical insight that I don't possess. All I know is that if you're lucky, one-in-so-many performers might make you want to get up on stage and embody them but if you're really lucky, an Artist or group offers you something pretty irreplaceable which is an authentic sense that it's actually okay to be who or whatever you already are; and share it boldly or by being. That's what I felt. Through the varied personal style of the band members; which is neither shallow nor trivial a subject, through the banter and rapport with one another and through Sid, the front woman's vocal range and lack of self conscious expression in performing I felt emboldened to exist more freely. The power in her voice reminded me of a remastered Siouxsie Sioux and took me by surprise. I wrote a long time ago about an experience where while discussing music and art, I told a stranger seated opposite by circumstance that I made Art but wanted to be Nothing - and I guess it was said as both the most and least self-conscious thing I could offer to avoid attention but I felt it was understood. That was Sid who let me be nothing. Today more than any other day the importance of receiving and reciprocating energy from such good natured muses is profound. Yesterday I went to a Summer Solstice Art event at a friends place in Windsor, it kind of emboldened me to want to hold similar events at our place and/or contribute next time. Live music, pottery, drawing, painting, we collaged and stamped our monstrosities into badges to keep. We lingered in the kitchen picking at a woven basket filled with cherry's. We used cards from our wallet to decipher whether or not we'd won big on scratch cards until the money ran out and walked while pop rocks crackled on our tongues. Jack's partner Cal tattooed people, friends gave other friends 90's style Dolphin tramp stamps using Henna then we left and ate dinner at Yellow Bird. I took my burger to go and ate it in bed feeling tipsy and thankful. Obviously I'm burning out with the thought streams by now. 2024 will be better.

Totally understand if you're not up for it and fully recognize the ronald mcdonald dom/sub anon vibes which is an AMAZING post btw but like...now i'm curious, what the hell did Lord of the Flies anon DO that got him blocked for the discourse? like...i just can't wrap my head around high school lit being...uh...that inflammatory i guess?

Okay so, I'll start by saying I've had a new anon from apparently the same anon saying they are NOT the person I blocked, just a rando making the same points, but I'll answer your question anyway just to set out why this person in particular got blocked, out of the several thousand who reblogged/commented on that very successful addition to the LoTF post I made.

First off, I added the 'real life Lord of the Flies' story because I thought it was a good story. I had read about it only a couple days beforehand in Humankind and, after reading out the entire chapter to my parents who weren't very interested, I was excited that there was not only a post where it would be relevant to post, but that I wouldn't be hijacking it, as it was already rejecting the widespread interpretation taught in many schools, that humanity is inherently savage.

When making the addition, I a) did not think it would get more than a couple reblogs, because the post was already at 50k notes and I figured anyone that might be interested would already have seen it, and b) I did not know the very specific context that prompted William Golding to write the book; all I knew was that he had been a teacher at a public school (basically, the poshest schools in the country - think Eton, Harrow, very 'old money' places that pump out Conservative politicians by the bucket-load 🤢) who hated his job and the boys he taught (which, valid), and new information I'd been given in Humankind - that Golding had said to his wife one day, "Wouldn't it be a good idea to write a story about some boys on an island, showing how they would really behave?" - which had no mention of The Coral Island by R. M. Ballantyne, which I have since learned was the text that Golding loathed enough to write an entire novel in refutation of - and included what I considered a very telling letter from Golding to his publisher, in which Golding wrote of his belief that 'even if we start with a clean slate, our nature compels us to make a muck of it.' Another Golding quote that I believe portrays his belief in humanity's 'innate savagery' is that "man produces evil as a bee produces honey."

Obviously, the author of a book putting forward the case for humanity's inherent goodness was going to oppose Golding's hypothesis; Bregman not only noted Golding's literary accomplishments and beliefs, but his personal life.

When I began delving into the author's life, I learned what an unhappy individual he'd been. An alcoholic. Prone to depression. A man who, as a teacher, once divided his pupils into gangs and encouraged them to attack each other. "I have always understood the Nazis," Golding confessed, "because I am of that sort by nature." (Humankind by Rutger Bregman, p. 24-25)

I have bolded the part about him as a teacher, because it is incredibly relevant to the original post that I commented on, which begins with a comic of a teacher locking her class in to see them 'recreate' Lord of the Flies, something which the follow up comments before mine staunchly reject as both misunderstanding the point of the book, and the fact that it took the kids in Lord of the Flies a significant amount of time without adult supervision to go 'savage'. This misreading of the text is widespread enough that when Golding won the Nobel Prize for Lord of the Flies, the Swedish Nobel committee wrote that his book 'illuminate[s] the human condition in the world of today'. Whether or not they misread it is beyond my expertise - they do at least mention the factors of the outside world neglected by many when analysing the book, but still seem to believe it says something about human nature as a whole rather than just, to quote thedarkbutbeige 'British kids being rat bastards' - but Golding quite happily took his Nobel prize on this basis. Which, in fairness, I would too. It's a fucking Nobel prize.

It was with this knowledge, and this knowledge alone, that I stated in my now very, very widely read comment that Golding 'wrote the book to be a dick', in response to the tags of the person I reblogged from. As I said, I now know that Golding did not write the book (solely) because he hated the kids he taught, but as a response to The Coral Island and the general idea that clearly the British were inherently civilsed, whilst the people they colonised and enslaved were inherently savage. So. That's the background.

The anon - or rather, the person I thought was anon - was the sole exception out of dozens of replies, who instead of telling me about The Coral Island politely decided it was time to go ALL CAPS and regurgitate points already made by thespaceshipoftheseus, and implied that the only reason that the real life Tongan castaways didn't go all Lord of the Flies was because they weren't British. Not because they weren't surrounded by violence like the boys in Lord of the Flies, or there wasn't a World War ongoing, or that they weren't the upper, upper, upper crust of a class-obsessed society like Britain - but because they weren't British. A complete inversion of the concept that Golding was trying to get across - now, instead of all of humanity being equally prone to savagery in the right conditions, it was solely nationality that determined it. As in, the British were inherently savage, but nobody else was.

I, trying for humour, made the terrible mistake of replying to them.

I won't lie, I was absolutely blown away that this was real life. What I think they were trying to do was be that Cool Tumblr Person who, after somebody's been shitty on a post, goes to their blog and sees something Damning in their about/description. In an ideal world, I imagine I'd have gone nuts or done something Unforgiveable. In what I can only call the rant that followed, they stated several times that I needed to go back to high school to get some 'proper literary analysis' skills and that the story of the Tongan castaways was completely unrelated to the point at hand which. I mean, I disagree, considering that I made the addition, but I couldn't get my head around how commenting on a post that was already rejecting the thesis that the 'point' of Lord of the Flies was that humanity was inherently savage and was, in fact, about how kids - British or otherwise - learn how to function from the adults around them, and that traumatised, terrified children aren't going to create a mini-Utopia, and put forward a real life example of how without the key additions of an ongoing world war, a colonial Empire and the subsequent mindset of thinking you are 'inherently civilised' and therefore can't do anything wrong, actually, people just want to take care of each other.

A friend has since asked me why I even have 'england' in my description. To be honest, it's a timezone thing - I talk to a lot of people online who don't share my timezone, and it generally makes me feel like if I don't reply immediately because it's 3am, they have the tools to see that I'm not in their timezone and not just ignoring them. I did consider changing it to 'british' or 'uk' after it was... 'used against me', I guess, simply because I didn't want to deal with it, but you know what. No. Not gonna do that. I am from England, and I have never hid that fact. I have a tag called 'uk politics', during Eurovision I refer to the UK's act as 'us' (even if I really, really don't want to. Because James Newman slaughtered that song and it was downright embarrassing), I regularly post stuff in my personal tag about where I live (and mostly complain about this piece of shit government). If people really think my nationality makes every point I make null and void, then they don't have to follow me or interact with my posts; tumblr is big, and I am one medium-small blog very easily passed over.

I did reply to them, trying to explain the above, but their next response really just doubled down. Because I used the word British instead of English - foolishly because the posts above mine focused on Britishness, and also because although Golding was English and taught English kids, the pro-Imperialism author of The Coral Island, R. M. Bannatyne was actually Scottish so, ding ding ding, falls into the 'British' category - they then decided that I was somehow trying to pretend I wasn't English and made all the same points, before ending with this doozy:

At this point, I knew there was nothing to be gained from replying, because if we're whipping out conditions like they're pokemon cards then there's no actual conversation anymore, and I'm not going to start mudslinging like an identity politician. They made up their mind, and I figured there could be no harm in letting them think that they 'won' by blocking them instead of replying.

Until the ask. INNATE ENGLISH SAVAGERY did, I'll admit, make me think it was them, back again. I even thought up a really good response approximately 12 hours after I replied, I was that sure. Until the second message came in, and said they were just someone who came from the post and made the same point by chance. So the saga draws to a close... for now.

It may have been them, it may not have been - the anon feature makes it impossible to be sure, but as the second message I got said, we're in a heatwave. It's too hot to argue. And I've just written a goddamn essay about a book I dislike anyway.

My pasty English ass is going to go melt. If there's Disk Horse, do not tell me. I am Done™

So I heard matchups are open! I'm a female, 5'1, and I can say I'm a little bit chubby. I like to draw a lot, and sometimes also cook and play videogames. I think of myself as a caring person, maybe even "mom" of the group. I'm very kind to friends, but at the same time, I'm not afraid of telling them the straight-up truth. With strangers I'm friendly most of the times, but not so open. I also tend to get angry very easily, and also cry because of little things. Although, I try not to show it.

Indeed they are, anon! Hope you like this one!! Don´t worry about that either , I hate the tumblr ask word limit :/

I match you with....

Joseph!!

Joseph wouldn´t care about you being a bit chubby, in fact he would probably like that a lot! He´s very touchy-feely and would love getting hugs from you.

While he may not know much about art in general, he will boast about your art to anyone that is unfortunate enough to listen. Anyone dares to give criticism, even if well meaning or helpful? They will get beat up within an inch of their life. Joseph truly believes that you are the best person to walk this earth so no one should be allowed to criticize you. He knows that you tend to tear up over small things so he will stomp out any opportunity for that to happen. You don´t need to know what happened to that one guy that addressed you a bit roughly, Joseph took care of him.

Appreciates your cooking because honest to god, you can´t tell me this boi knows how to cook. Will see dinner with you as dates whether you like it or not. I do think he likes to play videogames as well, mainly competitive games like Mario Kart or Smash Bros but he´s a sore loser. If he loses he will whine about it for hours, clinging onto you and invading your personal space without mercy. Won´t let go if you complain about it, instead holding on to you even tighter. He will never let go of you.

I think with his boisterous nature, he definitely needs someone that can be more levelheaded than him so you being a “mom” friend is great! He likes that you´re comfortable around him but not afraid to say what´s on your mind. Please stop this idiot from getting himself into dangerous situations! That might backfire tho. Might start to get himself into more trouble just to have you spend more time with him.

Gling!Gling!Gling!

This sound keeps on resonating through the colony ,I don't know what making them ring the bell at this time of the day ,such an early hour 😔, oh no ! I know why it's been rang it's because today is the day all young mermaid are to come out for the race before hunting activities begin we do this once every month .I just want to sleep 😴 and cover my ears with the pillows but that's impossible since they are going to still check round all the house for us or wait 🤨 is the colony under attack that's why the bell is been rang so that everyone can come out to fight 😕 this makes me shoot my eyes open to start looking for where to hide as I can't fight for my self I can at least look for how to stay alive .

Am not like every other mermaid 🧜🏽‍♀️ am weak ,slow ,I can't make wave or create storms ,etcetera 🤔who even does that here Lol 😂 but still I can't do anything for my self so I should definitely hide before they get here 😰

Mummy,what about mum ,what do I do I can't go out to look for her I'll die before I make it to any where by now my head has started feeling so heavy I couldn't just get the picture of mom been killed right in front of me ,my hands started shaking I could feel the tears threatening to drop from my eyes 😑😭 why does this always have to happen to me .I have been having this anxiety attack and ptsd as well since when I was a kid ,no,no,no,I can't start thinking of this things I have to go get mum I just have to ,I tried moving but couldn't get my feet or body too as I applied more force I felt my strength dissipate and my eye lids close gradually as I accept the darkness that's comes with it .

"Ada ,Ada,Ada, wake up , wake up baby ,you need to go for the race ,darling wake up you are scaring me "I heard my mum say as I gently open my eyes to find my mum looking at me with worry written all over her face ,I could have sworn she had called my name more than 20 times before I woke up ,

"oh mum ,my sweet mum"I say as I hug her in a rush thanking the water Goddess for keeping my mum alive for me

"Ada ,...Adaobi, what's wrong baby are you okay ?." Mum says as she pulls me out of my daze

"yes mum am fine ,I couldn't be more better "I said to my mum mentally cursing my self for worrying her that much then it me ' the race 'am going to be late and that's if I aren't already late I wonder how many hours I was out for shit I cursed again .

"Ada prepare for the race you have twenty minutes to get out of this house and show them how strong you are " mum said knowing fully well that I was so impotent to do that 😓but still she has faith in me

"Alright mum I'll be down in a sec ,you really know I have to stop going since I haven't made any improvement since then "I said with a worried look on my face "but I'll be down soon never mind ,so no if you don't mind can you leave my room so I can get dress up ,thanks " I said as I gave mum a kiss on her cheeks

As soon as mum shut the door behind her I feel to the bed out of exhaustion am so tired of this stuff

FLASHBACK

The coach was asking all of the racers to a queue for more co-ordinance and here I was just staying in a corner as always . Coach is a man in his late forties ,it seems like he was well structured by the water goddess as he has a handsome face for a man his age with prominent jaws ,small pinky lips and attractive dimples many unmarried mermaids often go after him seeing as his wife passed away leaving him and his two children James and Julia martins and ever since then he has refused to get married .

Coach has always been one of the three people who have been nice to me although he shows it more privately than publicly ,according to him people find fault with what ever I do I'm and he won't want them reading meaning into what doesn't have a meaning although I don't care 🤷‍♀️ or maybe I do care but what can I do 😩.

Well as for his race I don't even know what an doing here ,this race takes place every month on the day which there is a storm ,not the very very troubling storms ,just the light ones as we are still young stars ,I always lose the race because I'm slow and can't challenge my self to do anything .All of my pair are better than me ,I'm ten years old now and am still as incapable as a three year old child I just pray he doesn't remember to call me .Just as I am liking my wounds I begin to hear my name from a distance

"Adaobi,come join them for the race "I felt like swearing at myself as I walk to join the others ,I mean who knows that the mind is powerful as well I thought it was just the tongue that's powerful what a mess 😪.i have never won this race before neither have I gotten between the 1st to 15th people who has been wining since I was five ,so I cant definitely win this. I'm just been put here to be the laughingstock of the community again so here I go as coach blows the third whistle ,the race begins and every one has started swimming they are so very fast and I'm still so slow .

The race is to go around the temple of the mermaids and back to the starting points before the time is up every time I pass there it seems like there's more to it although I can't quite figure it out but this time around as I passing the temple something begins to call me ,to draw my attention to check it out ,to open it , to be honest no one has been able to open the doors to the temple talk less of cracking. It was so real right here at the side of the temple As a noise begin to rise its tempo in my hears I recognized it as clattering sounds of plates and dishes and then cries then it starts to make me slow down making me want to pass out there then am sure there was something being said between all of this but I could hear it as I was almost out because of fear ,then before I know it all I begin to hear is run ,run Adaobi run ,of possible fast ways I could think of swimming nothing came through .I just did the only thing I could that was to swim as fast as I possible could to get out of there .

I got to the finishing point where I began seeing people again before my heartbeat subsided and I realize that everyone was looking at me which face of a WOW and question of 'what was pursuing you 'then I turned to the board to find out that I came in as the fifth person in the competition I couldn't believe it ,isn't it I who had never gotten past twenty second in the race is now the fifth .

I was over joyed ,confused but still happy 😆 because then I began to think that I had hope that I wasn't useless at all just then I took a look at my clothes and I think everyone had started seeing it too and started laughing at me.Well at the end even though I passed that day I never passed again which still means that no one recognized me as a winner that month they all still laughed at me .

FLASHBACK OVER

So now since that one time i thought I won till now that I'm eighteen years old I still haven't won at all am still the slowest amongst the set of people am competing with as my pairs have all graduated to another level of train about two years ago but I still continue going on my mother's request and yes if your asking whether the noise continues then I'll be glad to say 'NO big 'NO' but oops who knows what today will bring .