What Tobi is about to do today is one of the most insane things I’ve seen in athletic performance. He will be racing for 2.5 hours straight. Before immersing myself in this sport for the past few days, I would have thought “oh that’s cool, he’ll be driving a fast car around a track.” That is not what this is. And why I have so much respect for him. Tobi will be driving a car over 180 mph, experiencing up to 4.2 g of force. That will throw his body forward with 715 lbs of force and his head by 67 lbs. Braking action requires up to 200 lbs of leg force. The cockpit will average 104-122°F (40 to 50°C). His multi-layer suit barely allows for evaporation. This will cause his core body temperature to reach 102°F. I achieved this same body temp after 200°F of dry sauna for 34 min. It’s overwhelming. His heart rate will beat between 140-170 bpm. He will sweat up to 170 fl oz (5 kg), losing 11 lbs of body weight. Some classes run driver cooling systems. His LMP2 doesn't. Under these conditions, he will need to maintain perfect concentration for the entire 2.5 hours. He’s fighting for tenths of a second on every turn and every stretch. One small slip up and trouble awaits. Today it’s even more intense… it’s raining. The track is wet, scrambling everything. He has to maintain spatial memory of every other car on the track, the complicated rules to avoid penalty, and constantly strategize overtaking other drivers, communicate with his team on the radio, watch for debris, be aware of slightest nuances of his car, and anticipate other drivers. He did a practice run on Thursday and then a qualifying race yesterday, when he emerged from the car, he was a different human. Unrecognizable from the person who entered the car. Beaming with something like an omnipresence of reality. We celebrate those who are especially good at kicking balls, shooting balls into baskets, and running with balls. What Tobi will do today is alien to those. I struggle to think of a sport equally as demanding. Tobi and I have a lot in common. We’ve both built companies. We both spend a lot of time at the keyboard trying to organize the world in ways that we find beautiful. We both love data, method, and analysis. We both have a love for continuous improvement and will endure any pain required to achieve that next goal. What I’ve not experienced is the unmatched flow state Tobi tells me he drops into when under these racing conditions. I deeply understand what it means to achieve a 102°F core body temperature after 34 min in a 200°F dry sauna. I also know what 3 g’s feels like from being a pilot. These are extremely intense psychological states. I know what it means to apply 200 lbs of pressure with my legs. What I’ve never experienced is all these things, at the same time, for 2.5 hours straight, while maintaining perfect focus. He is new to car racing. Late by racing standards. DHH got him into it a few years ago. During this first year of racing, he endured to overcome the extreme motion sickness that accompanies the physical and mental violence of the sport. The race starts at noon eastern. Tobi will be driving for the first 2.5 hours and then @dhh will drop in, followed by Mathias Beche. The race will conclude at 10 pm. I’ll be in the pit watching as all the data streams in from his car and body and imagining what it’s like to be in that car.

What Tobi is about to do today is one of the most insane things I’ve seen in athletic performance. He will be racing for 2.5 hours straight. Before immersing myself in this sport for the past few days, I would have thought “oh that’s cool, he’ll be driving a fast car around a track.” That is not what this is. And why I have so much respect for him. Tobi will be driving a car over 180 mph, experiencing up to 4.2 g of force. That will throw his body forward with 715 lbs of force and his head by 67 lbs. Braking action requires up to 200 lbs of leg force. The cockpit will average 104-122°F (40 to 50°C). His multi-layer suit barely allows for evaporation. This will cause his core body temperature to reach 102°F. I achieved this same body temp after 200°F of dry sauna for 34 min. It’s overwhelming. His heart rate will beat between 140-170 bpm. He will sweat up to 170 fl oz (5 kg), losing 11 lbs of body weight. Some classes run driver cooling systems. His LMP2 doesn't. Under these conditions, he will need to maintain perfect concentration for the entire 2.5 hours. He’s fighting for tenths of a second on every turn and every stretch. One small slip up and trouble awaits. Today it’s even more intense… it’s raining. The track is wet, scrambling everything. He has to maintain spatial memory of every other car on the track, the complicated rules to avoid penalty, and constantly strategize overtaking other drivers, communicate with his team on the radio, watch for debris, be aware of slightest nuances of his car, and anticipate other drivers. He did a practice run on Thursday and then a qualifying race yesterday, when he emerged from the car, he was a different human. Unrecognizable from the person who entered the car. Beaming with something like an omnipresence of reality. We celebrate those who are especially good at kicking balls, shooting balls into baskets, and running with balls. What Tobi will do today is alien to those. I struggle to think of a sport equally as demanding. Tobi and I have a lot in common. We’ve both built companies. We both spend a lot of time at the keyboard trying to organize the world in ways that we find beautiful. We both love data, method, and analysis. We both have a love for continuous improvement and will endure any pain required to achieve that next goal. What I’ve not experienced is the unmatched flow state Tobi tells me he drops into when under these racing conditions. I deeply understand what it means to achieve a 102°F core body temperature after 34 min in a 200°F dry sauna. I also know what 3 g’s feels like from being a pilot. These are extremely intense psychological states. I know what it means to apply 200 lbs of pressure with my legs. What I’ve never experienced is all these things, at the same time, for 2.5 hours straight, while maintaining perfect focus. He is new to car racing. Late by racing standards. DHH got him into it a few years ago. During this first year of racing, he endured to overcome the extreme motion sickness that accompanies the physical and mental violence of the sport. The race starts at noon eastern. Tobi will be driving for the first 2.5 hours and then @dhh will drop in, followed by Mathias Beche. The race will conclude at 10 pm. I’ll be in the pit watching as all the data streams in from his car and body and imagining what it’s like to be in that car.

It’s wild seeing DHH, Tobi, and Bryan Johnson in the same picture.

I’m watching three friends lose 11 lbs of body weight in a race car tomorrow + Tobias Lutke (founder shopify) + DHH (creator ruby on rails) + Mathias Beche (le mans podium) Race car driving is insane… + 122°F cockpit + heart rate 170 + 2.5 hours straight + 10 hr race + up to 4.2 g force (wild) + multi-layer fireproof suit + sweat barely evaporate + 600-900 calories per hour The race is a 10-hour endurance track in atlanta. It’s called Motul Petit Le Mans. Tomorrow is the season finale, where 54 cars across multiple classes run roughly 400 laps of the 2.54-mile road. The race doesn’t end till 10 pm. They’ll be driving an LMP2: + 603 horsepower + 2,050 pounds + 9,000 rpm I’ve personally experienced some of the above things: > core body temp of 102°F > 3 g force in my airplane > non evaporative clothing > stomping 200 lbs > severe dehydration But never all at once… inside a race car for 2.5 hours straight, competing for tenths of a second, and in a high risk environment. I’m struggling to get my head around it. Last week, Tobi and I were at a conference catching up. He and I have been friends for 15 years. Tobi and DHH were my first customers at my payments startup Braintree. I’ll forever be grateful to them and DHH’s co-founder @jasonfried for giving my company life. Tobi approaches racing as I do my body. Data, method and analysis. A closed loop game of continuous improvement. Off the track, Tobi: + founder and ceo of Shopify + 6 million+ merchants + $195 billion market cap + 20 yrs building Off the track, DHH: + created Ruby on Rails + co-founder 37signals + 20 yrs building + profitable, no outside capital + 24 Hours of Le Mans class winner On the track, Mathias Beche: + 24 Hours of Le Mans podium finisher + European Le Mans Series LMP2 + FIA Endurance Championship winner + 15+ career prototype victories What a team of bad asses. I’m excited to be in the pit on tomorrow and watch all of this go down.

Chief Design Officer @jgebbia officially unveils America.gov, the new online home for the United States of America

Spent 5 days at 7,000 ft in Colorado and Wyoming: > sleep down 15% > nervous system down 17% > resting heart rate up 16% Very happy to be back at sea level today.

the surprise conclusion of the machine consciousness debate will be that people are machines.

Claude has discovered a previously unknown enzyme system hidden in the DNA of bacteriophages. Beside the enzyme’s gene sits a long array of repeating DNA—a structure that looks somewhat similar to CRISPR. We don’t yet understand what this system does, but only a handful of known systems share its features, and all of them are able to cut, copy, and paste DNA. Historically, the discovery of such programmable systems has helped revolutionize medicine. CRISPR, for instance, is now the foundation of genetic medicines. But it will take much more work to learn what this system does, and whether it can be put to similar use. Read more: anthropic.com/news/claude-di…

I frequently lay on top of Kate with all of my bodyweight. The deep pressure calms her nervous system, quiets racing thoughts, and releases oxytocin which lowers cortisol. We call it GLP-Bryan.

teacher: "so what do you want to be when you grow up?" me: "I want to be a shitposter just like my dad!"