VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Families came out to a Rubik's Cube Speed-Solving Competition in Virginia Beach Saturday. The World Cube Association hosts competitions globally. One of the competitors here even holds a world record for the two-by-two cube contest.
In this story, we take a look inside guided by Nick Silvestri with the World Cube Association - the official sanctioning body.
"Alright... 3-2-1-Go!" said one of a trio of young competitors.
"Today we have a Rubik's Cube competition going on," Nick Silvestri told us. "We have people from all over the region here. We've all coalesced here in Virginia Beach to have a, you know, Rubik's Cube competition, that toy from the 1980s."
"3-2-1-Go. Oh no, I messed up big up already," said competitor Ethan Gurygis while showing us his technique.
"I think there's just something that is a little bit mystical about a Rubik's Cube," Silvestri continued. "You know when you touch it and you're like - 'oh, you know - I can connect these colors.' And then at some point you know, you can maybe start figuring some pieces out on your own and the first time you just finally get all the colors the same way, it's so satisfying and it just kind of grips you," he described.
Competitor Maggie Clark told us: "Well. I initially got into it just because it was really colorful and I like colors."
"Most people think that it's math that helps you do it," said competitor Nirmal Vukkum. "But actually, I'm thinking about: 'What I should do next.'"
"There's so many scrambles," said competitor Minh Quang. "There's more than 4 quintillion scrambles. You can do 4 quintillion." Then, someone corrected him: "Yeah - 43 quintillion."
"I think it's just fun, I think is what it is," Nick Silvestri said. "And then it also helps that a lot of the younger kids also have a lot more dexterity than, than some of the older people.
"You know, I'm 24, but I am one of the older people here at the competition today. So, you know, my fingers don't move as fast as theirs do anymore, so..." he trailed off.
The same trio of competitors who opened our story gave us another demonstration of their skills. It took only seconds for one to proclaim: "Done!"
Rubik's Cube competitors in Virginia Beach show off speed and skill
"I think there's just something that is a little bit mystical about a Rubik's Cube," Nick Silvestri said. "It's so satisfying and it just kind of grips you."