Live from the Leaderboard, Dispatch #2: The Dust Settles 🏆

Mike Capraro, better known as super catcher caprarom, is back with his second dispatch from our Global Catchathon for Stall Catchers' tenth birthday.

In his first report, starider and Hasret were leaving the rest of the field in their dust. This time, Mike checks in on the race at the top and the latest on his unofficial skill metric (Score divided by Research Vessels). He also catches up with old teammates and scouts the teams turning up on the daily top ten. Stick around for his keyboard shortcut tip at the end.

There's still time to earn a spot in his next report: the Catchathon wraps on October 30. Take it away, Mike!

Report from Mike

Things have been pretty stable on the Leaderboards. That could make for dull reporting, but not to worry: my brain is artificial intelligence, so capable of hallucination and wild imagining to spice things up if necessary.

I am happy to report that we are no longer eating starider's and Hasret's dust. Of course, that's just because they are so far in front that their dust has plenty of time to settle.

Norstan maintains a lock on third place in the individual scoring. Norstan also sits atop the team standings as he is on starider's team, Tracker. And, yes, he's still Numero Uno in the "Skill" metric as described last time (1284). However, yours truly, Hasret, and starider are putting some pressure to bear with scores in the range of 1240 to 1242, essentially a three-way tie (as of 7PM on the 18th). I may say more on the accuracy of that skill metric next time.

I've had the pleasure of playing on several SC teams over the years, including with at least two of our current Leaderboard occupants. One is long-time stalwart and my good and very "crafty" friend and remote "neighbor," Carol_aka_Mema, currently 5th in the individual scoring. Another is our very esteemed colleague JADCOM_Media. Given his inspiring contributions to the memory care community over the years and to improving the lives of people in cognitive decline, his recent endeavor and team name, Gentle Recall, seems most appropriate. He and jkaufbenefits are currently vying for 9th in the individual scores.

I hope to join jkaufbenefits' Retirees team for one of these challenges (if he'll have me). I'll complete 20 years of retirement at the conclusion of this event, so I think I'm qualified. I'm probably not qualified to play on team Canada with KarisFraMauro, but that could be a real hoot! (I have rowed in the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta, Karis! Does that count?) While we've not teamed up on Stall Catchers, starider and I were "Duster" colleagues on our famous predecessor project, Stardust@Home.

Despite his username, I believe ALZ_BOT_X to be (like me) at least mostly human. ALZ_BOT_X and ababbie seem to be battling it out for 7th position.

lscatcher, another very familiar name in our regular top ten listings, is right in the mix at 6th position in the individual ranking. Yet another very familiar name in our regular top ten is YaTom, who is playing on the Retirees team and can't be too far off the individual Leaderboard himself. XmamayX, whom you've likely seen on the daily top ten listings, is playing with Hasret on the Acts of Science: Connected 2026 team.

Another shout-out to our Microsoft colleagues! Both the MS Give LLE Team (off & on) and the Microsoft Intune Give Campaign 2026 teams have made their presence known on the Leaderboards. Of the Leaderboard teams, they also sport the most team members participating in our October Challenge, 21 and 29 respectively. I was about to say they likely have other participating teams, and voilà! There's team Catch Anu from the Microsoft Giving League appearing on the daily top ten team listing.

I had wondered also about our ardent Girl Scouts, but again no worries, team USAGSO - Austria (USA Girl Scouts Overseas in Austria) has appeared on the daily top ten listing as well! I'll try to keep a closer eye out for other teams there.

'Til next time; keep on catching.

-caprarom

Tech Tip from Mike

Here's a technical tip from an IT-challenged individual. Some of you know we have shortcut keys available. I started taking advantage of one this year, using my non-dominant (left) hand to hit the numeral 1 on my keyboard vs. using the "Flowing" button on the screen. (You can also use the "2" key for "Stalled.") This saves much wear and tear on my overworked mousing finger! It is also a bit more efficient. One caveat though: If you are drowsy and nod off while playing with your finger poised over a shortcut key... well, you may see a very unpleasant textbox message when you open your eyes again. It actually says "Incorrect ...," but when my bleary eyes see that flash of red color, it screams, "You blew it again, Dummy!"

Catching up on the Catchathon

Stall Catchers launched in October 2016, and we're celebrating ten years with a Global Catchathon that runs October 1 to 30. There's still time to get in on it:

• Join or make a team and rally your friends, coworkers, library, school, or troop. Land on the daily top ten teams and Mike may spot you in his next dispatch.
• Catch all month for a shot at a Stall Catchers 10-year t-shirt. The top 10 catchers win one, announced at our celebration on October 30.
• Host a pizza party of five or more people and we'll reimburse up to $50 of pizza. Email caroline@hcinst.org at least 24 hours ahead to clear it, then send us a photo of the group and add your meetup to SciStarter as an event. Full rules are on the pizza party form.

New to Stall Catchers? You watch short movies from mouse brains and mark each vessel as flowing or stalled, which helps Alzheimer's research at Cornell University. It works on a phone, tablet, or computer, and no experience is needed. Start at stallcatchers.com, and get the full story in our kickoff post.

Follow along

Mike's next dispatch is on its way, possibly with more on that skill metric. Until then, catch the latest on Instagram, the Stall Catchers Facebook group, the HCI Facebook page, and YouTube. You can also swap tips with fellow catchers on the forum.

See you on the leaderboard! 💜

P.S. Mike hits 20 years of retirement right as the Catchathon wraps. Congratulations, Mike! jkaufbenefits, please consider this his application to the Retirees team.