Monday, November 10, 2008

Tmou X.

The dream finally came true. This weekend I was a member of the winning team (Prahory) in the game (competition) Tmou. The game starts at one place, this time Velodrom. All teams (450teams, 2000 people) receive first code (cypher), the solution of which guides them to the second level, where the next cypher is hidden. This goes on for about 20 hours, during night and cold weather. Tmou is one of many games like this in Czech Republic-probably the oldest one here and the most famous.
We were leading since the third level, even though one team was able to catch up at the last but one level, so we had to run for it.
Apart from happiness, I feel certain emptiness. Winning Tmou was an important goal, and it was really hard to achieve it for a long time. Yet, there is nothing left now. I don't feel like going to another game any time soon. I'm sure other teams can appreciate this. Our team won last year as well, even though I was in San Diego and could not participate.
Our team was created about 6 years ago and made a significant progress since them. Previously, we solved the cyphers in the style "One person, one cypher"-most cyphers were broken by a clearly identifiable individual. Currently, we cooperate so well that we cannot tell who broke any particular code. We talk about the cypher, everybody mentions curious facts and ideas. In a few minutes the procedure (the idea) is clear and what remains is somewhat boring part of actually doing the work that may take an hour or so. While this sounds great (and it is, if you want to win the game), it does not feel so. There is no particular moment to remember, no clear point in the game in which you were helpful/crucial/indispensable.

And the big question at the end is: "What do I want to achieve in my life now?"

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