Powerballs

That was the sound of Borys using a Powerball.

Powerballs are the coolest little toy (they tell me it’s an exercise device but I refuse to listen :-)).

I bought one as early as I could this morning and have been using it all day.

My current highest spin is 9,638 RPM, which is short of Borys’ 10,192 RPM. Being the competetive bastard that I am, this is breaking my heart. I’ll resume trying to beat you Borys when I get the feeling back in my right arm 🙂

UPDATE (16 Jan 2006) : Current speed 12,223 RPM!

Check them out at http://powerballs.com or the aussie site http://powerballs.com.au, the best way to get the concept is by watching some of the many videos on their site.

From the Powerball website:

Bring your new Powerball up…up to 10,000rpm…the forces are now much stronger, much more vibrant. Higher! Take it to 12,000rpm…no, higher still…take it right up, thrashing and jerking as your arm and wrist try to control and calm it down, faster and faster it spins until you have it up to an unbelievable 15,000rpm at which point it’s exerting almost 40lbs of pressure on your limbs and is travelling at nearly 250 revolutions per second – no batteries, no motor, just pure gyroscopic power – the fastest human propelled device ever created!

Want the newspaper from the day of your birth?

Came across paperworld.com.au this afternoon . . .

Paper World offers a wide range of original major daily newspapers, magazines and other date related memorabilia from Australia and New Zealand dating back over 100 years.

What a nifty little pressie for someone. They go for $99 a pop – which, I think is quite reasonable with you think about it.

A friend of mine, Anthony, bought me something similar a few years back – you can go to the State Library of NSW, go through the microfiche of old newspapers and print out the front cover from a friends day of birth, all for a few bucks. Laminate it and you’ve got yourself a nice little gift too.