On Saturday afternoons, a diligent group of OSU students work to perfect the art of solving Rubik’s Cubes, sometimes called “cubing.” For them, it has become less of a hobby and more of a sport.
As well as getting the chance to socialize and improve their skills, members spend their time together preparing for competitions around the United States. Competitors “speed solve” in a variety of categories, including 2×2, 3×3, 4×4, and 5×5 cubing. Some events include blindfolded cubing, one-handed cubing, feet cubing, and cubing with obscure forms of the Rubik’s Cube.
“With so many people, everyone takes it as a sport … when you are there all you hear is ‘click, click, click’,” said Marc Khoury, freshman computer science and engineering major.
Members attended the 2008 Lexington Fall Open and the 2008 Indiana Winter Open this quarter, and plan to attend competitions in the spring.
Ohio State will be hosting its own competition, the Ohio Open 2009, on March 28 and 29 in Hitchcock Hall.
The Rubik’s Cube Club was started this year by Jim Mertens, a junior majoring in physics. Last year, after meeting a friend in his dorm with the same passion and excitement for cubing, they decided to make an official Rubik’s Cube club.
“We want to be able to teach new people, spread the knowledge of how to solve a cube, socialize, and improve on our skills,” Mertens said.
Tomoya Ide, a sophomore majoring in electrical computerengineering, has been with Mertens from the start. Ide started cubing in high school, and said anyone with an interest can learn.
“Anyone can do it once you put effort into it. Some parts are intuitive. It’s mostly about memorization. If you can memorize patterns, you can solve,” Ide said.
According to Rubiks.com, the official Rubik’s Web site, the Rubik’s Cube was invented in 1977 by Erno Rubik and gained much popularity in the early ’80s. The first world championship occurred on June 5, 1982 in Budapest, Hungary. An American competitor took the winning time with 22.95 seconds at this first championship.
Since then, skills have improved, and an average score is usually under 20 seconds. The OSU Rubik’s club members usually average between 11-15 seconds to solve a cube.
Despite fluctuating popularity, dedicated fans of the Rubik’s Cube are still standing strong 30 years later. Ohio state students are proudly participating in a little-known hobby with a whole lot of personality.
Lindsay Minnema can be reached at [email protected].
