Beginner Big Cubes Ohio 2024

A razor-thin margin of four tenths of a second decided the 4x4x4 Cube final, setting the tone for an intense day of championship-level focus. Jack Bohning delivered under pressure to capture first place with a 35.06 average, edging out Braden Richards at 35.46. The single-round format across all four categories meant that every competitor faced direct knockout pressure on every solve. From the opening turn, the battle across the larger puzzles demanded absolute consistency, leaving no margin for recovery across the five-solve sets in London, Ohio, USA.

Held on April 12, 2024 at the Madison County EMA Office, Beginner Big Cubes Ohio 2024 brought together a dedicated field of 18 competitors. While enthusiasts often track traditional 3x3 results to measure speed, this specialized speedcubing tournament bypassed smaller puzzles entirely to spotlight the endurance and technical discipline of larger mechanisms. The single-day schedule delivered high stakes from start to finish, tasking each entrant with navigating four heavyweight events without preliminary qualification rounds to find their rhythm.

The 5x5x5 Cube title turned into another thrilling duel, with Jacob Dyland Bennett securing the top step of the podium. Bennett posted a winning average of 1:09.02, highlighted by a best single of 1:05.52, to hold off a charging Bohning, who finished second with a 1:09.76 mark. Darshan Bhavanasi claimed the third-place position with an average of 1:12.01. Bennett’s poise through the middle-layer alignment stages illustrated the precision required when moving beyond the standard Rubik's Cube into high-order speed cubing categories.

Bhavanasi made his own championship statement in the 6x6x6 Cube, breaking through the two-minute barrier to seize victory. Averaging 1:58.97 alongside the day’s fastest single of 1:49.35, Bhavanasi took gold over Bennett, who placed second in 2:07.85, and Richards, who took third in 2:10.00. The 6x6x6 puzzle introduces parity errors and immense hardware resistance, making sub-two-minute averages a major benchmark in any cubing competition.

The 7x7x7 Cube rounded out the program as the ultimate test of stamina, where Mason Langenderfer captured the title with a commanding 3:19.13 average and a 3:16.20 single. Richards collected another podium placing by securing second at 3:30.12, while Bennett completed a versatile three-podium day by finishing third at 3:36.98. The grueling physical and mental demands of the largest official puzzle rewarded Langenderfer’s relentless pacing across all five solves.

Behind the medal battles, the event yielded massive personal breakthroughs that the final standings only begin to reflect. Chase Farrell delivered one of the day’s standout performances across 4 events, slashing his 6x6x6 personal best by 32.6 percent down to 4:44.22 from 7:01.45, improving his 4x4x4 best by 26.6 percent to 1:02.54, and logging a first ever attempt at 7x7x7 Cube with a 9:07.69. Jeff Poto took on all 4 events, notching his first ever attempt at 6x6x6 Cube with a 7:38.33, his first ever attempt at 7x7x7 Cube in 10:39.00, and an 18.7 percent drop in 4x4x4 Cube down to 1:49.14. Michael Stoops lowered his 5x5x5 best by 8.3 percent to 2:24.43 and improved his 4x4x4 best by 6.4 percent to 1:07.11.

The milestone performances continued as Tony Pugh completed his first ever attempt at 7x7x7 Cube in 10:27.00 while cutting his 5x5x5 mark by 4.9 percent to 3:36.67. Tze Tseng Soh recorded a first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube with a 1:43.08 and improved by 6.8 percent in 5x5x5 Cube to 2:53.66. Kendall Newell tackled 3 events and completed a first ever attempt at 6x6x6 Cube in 10:46.00. Emery McFeeter trimmed 6.9 percent off his 7x7x7 best to finish in 7:24.39, and Chris Nankervis set a new 5x5x5 personal best of 2:06.58 with a 3.9 percent improvement.

Across the entire day, the podium distribution reflected a dominant showing by the host country with 10 total top-three finishes, alongside 2 podium results for India. Every competitor in the 18-person field pushed through complex layer management and endurance checks without the cushion of preliminary heats. Beginner Big Cubes Ohio 2024 proved that concentrated, single-round competition can produce extraordinary intensity and technical excellence across the full spectrum of high-order puzzles in a sanctioned WCA competition.