Cubing CompetitionsLook for competitionsI check every morning for a competition nearby using the WCA site. Just zoom in on the map and click on any competitions near you. There, you can look at the venue, what events are being held, and the cost, and decide if the competition is right for you. You can then register, or at least get on the waiting list, after choosing what events you want to do. I personally sign up for every event that I can make the time limit for, not the cutoff. The time limit is how long you have to solve before it becomes a DNF (Did not finish). Cutoff is the time that one of your first two solves must be under to continue the average, and if you don't make it they will just use your best solve of the two as your result. Don't worry about not making the cutoff, because at least you get to solve twice. Always compete in 3x3, because the time limit is often ten minutes.
Get readyIt is important to know what events you are going to do, and what the venue is like. If the venue is at a school. I usually bring camping chairs, because you will be there for a while, and it can be a pain to sit in the cafeteria seats the whole time. As for puzzles, I bring a cube for every event that I am competing in, plus a backup cube for my main events. I also bring some fun other puzzles, such as a master pyraminx or a 3x3x2, because they are fun to show others and watch them try and solve them. Download the Cubecomps app (Or the WCA app in the near future). Bring something to eat, or know a nearby restaurant to go to. If you can, I like to bring some sort of cubing or witty shirt, just to get in the spirit. Most importantly, do a run through of the competition the day before, and do it just like you would in the competition. If you don't make cutoff, only do two solves. This lets you know what you can expect from yourself, and if you are out of practice in an event it lets you know what you might need to re-learn quickly.
Set up.When you get to the venue (I would recommend getting there 10 minutes before registration is supposed to open), get your competitor card that shows what heats of what events you are in. Then find a table, and start practicing! Soon enough, your table will fill up. I encourage you to ask people about their cubes, and get into events such as team blind (someone is blindfolded with a puzzle and everyone else tells them what moves to do), team relays (everybody solves a puzzle one after the other, and see how fast you can get), and plenty of other events. Make sure you know the schedule, and what event and what heat of that event you are in next at all times.
CompetingWhen your heat is called up, go up to the competing area and find your name. Put your puzzle that you wish to compete with on your name, and then wait in the waiting area. Soon enough, a runner should call your name. Follow them to the competing area and sit down (or stand if that works for you). The judge will ask you if you are ready, and when you are ready just say "Ready." The judge will lift a cover off of your puzzle, and you can begin to inspect the puzzle. Do not turn it, as that will result in a DNF. The judge will tell you when it has been eight seconds, and then twelve seconds. Do not go over fifteen seconds of inspection, as that will result in a +2, and over 17 seconds will result in a DNF. When you are done inspecting, put the cube back on the table, and put your hands on the timer until a green light shows on the timer. Release your hands and solve the puzzle as fast as possible, and then stop the timer by placing both hand back on it. Good job! The time on the timer is your time. The judge will hand you a paper with your time and their signature. Make sure the time is correct, and then sign. You can head back to the waiting area and do it all over again. After your second solve, if you didn't make cutoff, you can take your puzzle with you out of the competing area. Same goes for after you have done your average of five (of mean of three for other events).
Check your resultsAbout ten minutes after you have finished, start checking Cubecomps. Find your competition, and find the event you just did, and then find the round that you just did. Keep checking for your name until it shows up. The time next to your name is your result. If your name is in the yellow section, then you made it to the next round! If not, then you can always try again in other events.
JudgingThe delegates and organizers do a lot of work at competitions, so it is really great to help them out, because they can't do it all by themselves. The best thing that you can do is judging, because a lot of judges are almost always needed. All you have to do is find an open judging seat in the competing area, and wait for competitors to come over. The runner will hand you their puzzle under a cover, and their competitors sheet. You will also have a pen and a stopwatch at the station. Make sure that the timer is reset, and if not press the yellow reset button. Put the puzzle and cover on the competitor's mat, and ask them if they are ready. Once they tell you that they are ready, take the cover away and start the stopwatch. Tell the competitor once it has been 8 seconds and twelve seconds. Stop them if they go over 17 seconds, and add two second to their time if they go over 15 seconds. Stop the stopwatch once they start solving and reset it for the next competitor. After they stop the timer, write their time in the result box on the competitor sheet. Write DNF in the box if the puzzle is not solved, and not one move away from being solved. Add two seconds to their time if the puzzle is one move away form being solved. Then sign in the judge signature box. Hand the sheet to the competitor, and have them sign. Then put the puzzle and sheet in the cover, and hold it up for a runner to take back. If you need any help, call over an organizer or delegare!
Now you are ready to have a great competition, have fun!
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