this can save a good 5 sec minimum if you can do it before the bar goes back under the spike at the first try. but can it be possible to pick up fire flower and do the skip?

Since it isn't a lost of time because you have time to take it before the bar return back under spikes, i always pick the flower there, and if 8-6 is the volcano one, maybe you loose 0.5 sec going further than normal. But if this trick can be consistent picking the flower would definitively be a better idea

Is there anyone who has passed this level faster with this technique?

I did an IL with the new strat:

I'll try to see if I can make it consistent.

I did an IL with ZeldaCubed's setup + the slide cancel:

Awesome! These two new things make the trick much easier.

btw this doesnt replace fast 8-2, fast 8-2 can save up to 10 seconds. this only saves 3. however fast 8-2 sucks and this is cool

Just adding a small note because Pidgey missed out on the small “optimization,” and I wouldn’t want people to keep using the older trick which requires a reaction time of several frames. When you’re sliding in your blue shell from holding dash, there’s a way to come to a full stop without ever coming out of your shell; braking, if you will. Pretty simple set of inputs: while sliding with dash, start holding ↓ and release dash right after. For doing the 8-T skip, you’ll want to start holding ↓ halfway in and then release dash soon after that