Product Testing

I'm still pretty sore from Saturday's race, but am pleased to say that I seem to have remained more-or-less intact. I expect to resume running in the next few days.

Yes, I do realize that it's too late to actually achieve any training effect before my upcoming triathlon, but at least I should be able to maintain my current fitness level without degradation. And along with a modest running program, I will continue to ride my bike when I can, and will stick with my normal swim schedule. I am confident that I can achieve my (revised) race goal of not being dead last in my age group.

I also plan to be more disciplined about stretching, stability work, and core strengthening over the coming month. Which brings us to today's topic question: What drug-addled pinhead decided it was a good idea to change the hot tub jets at 24-Hour Fitness?

OK, perhaps that's not the precisely correct phrasing. After all, I've been thinking for some time about suggesting a change to the jet configuration myself. But MY change would have improved the therapeutic value of the tub, rather than negating it.

I have mentioned on numerous occasions that while my skillset for mainstream employability is somewhat limited, I do possess a Rainman-like talent for discovering design flaws within the creations of others.

I guess I could be thought of as the hardware version of a literary critic. Can't build squat myself, but I can tell you a dozen different ways to improve your user interface.

For hot tub jets, the main flaw comes from the use of air to power the jets. Using tiny submerged propellers to accelerate the water would provide improved impact and reduce the cooling that comes from the air bubbles. But I do understand this one -- from an economic and design simplicity standpoint, there are clear advantages to using air.

But there is no reason on earth that you couldn't vary the depth of the jets. Some manufacturers do this, and congratulations to them...but the tubs at 24 seem to expect that all sore muscles are going to occur at the same elevation above the seat shelf. The best solution would be to have gooseneck nozzles that the user could direct to sore areas, but I would settle for a variety of nozzle placements that would allow you to move around to the spot that works best for your own particular relief and relaxation.

Step two would be to provide some sort of anchor so that your body doesn't float away while you're trying to obtain your jet massage. For arms and shoulders, this isn't a big problem, but when you lift your foot off the floor to attack a tight spot in the ankle or calf, it's pretty hard to maintain your stationary location. A series of attached loops or handles near the jets would do the trick. Or maybe seatbelts.

Despite the fact that they could be improved, the initial jet nozzles in the 24-Hr tub were at least moderately useful. But for some reason, they were suddenly changed a couple of weeks ago. Now rather than jetting straight out (as shown above) the jets have a deflector covering that blows the force straight up, right next to the wall. It is no longer possible to have a direct blast aimed at a specific therapy target. What's up with that?

The new updraft configuration does provide a rather soothing rippling of your upper back muscles in you sit right in front of it. And I can sortof see the logic in making the assumption that everyone would want an upper back massage. But why not make the change to just one or two jets, and leave the others for specific spot thumpery?

Anyway, the point is that if you're an inventor or someone responsible for your customer's experience, you should hire me to test your product before chucking it into the marketplace. In fact, I would be happy to have you install a prototype hot tub in my home for extended user feedback, and I would promise to give you all sorts of good advice on how to optimize the design. I would also be willing to test big-screen televisions, soft-serve ice cream dispensers, high-powered motorcycles, or household cleaning robots. And if you're designing new swimwear for the Swedish Bikini Team, I could offer a very reasonable rate to provide detailed up-close and personal aesthetic feedback.

Let me know how I can help. In the meantime, make the best of the whatever jets are available, and have a great day!