Author: paschmann

Carbon Fiber Arm Rests

paschmann

This is my second pass at producing something strong enough and reliable enough to put onto my triathlon bike, and in this case some carbon fiber arm rests. My current arm rests pretty much did the job but at 300+g for the set, it seems like an easy win to reduce weight by making something similar out of CF.

The design for these took quite a lot of time, lots of trial and error and mistakes along the way 🙂 Cardboard cutouts, angles and long prints were the most tedious aspects, but ultimately I think they came out OK in the end.

Ideation and prototyping Steps

Tool/CAD Design


Mould 3D printing

These moulds had various finishes I was testing, everything from raw prints to epoxy coated. read more

2024 – Ironman 70.3 – North Carolina

paschmann

3 years of doing 70.3 IM NC. Such a fun race in one of my favorite coastal towns of Wilmington/Wrightsville beach. Overall, a great race. 6th this year compared to 5th from last year, but due to the fast swim current, I improved my swim 8 minutes. On the bike I had a major rookie mistake and forgot to load my nutrition bottle on the bike, which meant stopping at the first aid station and loading up as much as I could carry, giving up some time, but also really important. There my bike was 2 minutes slower than 2023. On the run, I was right around the same as previous years with a 1:28. The 5th place finisher was over 2 minutes ahead of me, so I needed quite a considerable improvement to catch up to them. read more

Chat … GPT

paschmann

From all our interactions, what is one thing you can tell about myself, that I may not already know about myself?

ChatGPT said:

One thing I notice about you is your passion for creating tools and apps that make life more efficient and enjoyable, whether for work or personal interests. You’re deeply engaged in improving processes, building apps that solve practical problems for people—from tracking sewer installations to celebrating colleagues’ milestones. You also balance this focus on productivity with personal connections, like attending friends’ weddings or sharing thoughtful moments with family. This mix of efficiency and meaningful relationships seems to drive much of what you do. It shows a unique blend of technical skill and empathy. Does this resonate with you? read more

The quiet art of attention

paschmann

Source: https://billwear.github.io/art-of-attention.html

There comes a moment in life, often in the quietest of hours, when one realizes that the world will continue on its wayward course, indifferent to our desires or frustrations. And it is then, perhaps, that a subtle truth begins to emerge: the only thing we truly possess, the only thing we might, with enough care, exert some mastery over, is our mind. It is not a realization of resignation, but rather of liberation. For if the mind can be ordered, if it can be made still in the midst of this restless life, then we have already discovered the key to a deeper kind of freedom.

But how does one begin? It is not with grand declarations or bold, sweeping changes. That would miss the point entirely. Rather, it is with a gentle attention to the present, a deliberate shift in the way we move through the world. We begin by paying attention to what our mind does—its wanderings, its anxieties, its compulsions. It is a garden untended, overgrown with concerns that may not even be our own. And the first step is simply to watch, to observe how the mind moves, without judgment, without rush. read more

Looking back: Swimming Technique

paschmann

Sometimes it fun to zoom out, and take a look back to where my swim journey started. Here is a Reddit post asking for some advice on how to improve my technique. Since posting this, I have swum about 400 miles over the past 2 years, and got my comfortable pace down to ~ 1:30 min/100 yards.

Freestyle form improvement tips – Triathlete – Multiple videos/Angles
byu/paschmann_ inSwimming

Hi All,

I started swimming more frequently last year preparing for a half distance triathlon (Augusta, GA, USA), and have another race planned for October this year (Beach to Battleship, NC, USA). I am looking for some form/suggestions/ideas/advice based on the videos I have included below.

While speed is important, with the race being 1.2 miles / 2000 yards / 1.9km, its not the most important aspect (maybe I am wrong?). read more

The “Third place”?

paschmann

In sociology, the third place refers to the social surroundings that are separate from the two usual social environments of home (“first place”) and the workplace (“second place”). Examples of third places include churches, cafes, bars, clubs, libraries, gyms, bookstores, hackerspaces, stoops, parks, theaters, among others.

Right now statistically speaking, my “Second place” would be the gym to swim. Although I only have “One place” … I would love my third to be a library. Where is your third place?

The Great Good Place (book) – WikipediaFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia