# A backtest shows only the regimes you fed it, which is why the equity curve looks complete.

RIGOR · https://karlaurel.io/tips/the-backtest-shows-only-what-you-fed-it

The crash you left out and the survivors you cleaned up are invisible. Nothing
on the chart marks their absence, so the picture reads as the whole story.

Every gap in the data becomes a gap in your judgement.