CubingUSA Rocky Mountain Championship 2024

223 competitors converged on Provo, Utah, USA, from across the region and beyond, making the journey to the Utah Valley Convention Center for three full days of elite speedcubing from June 20 to June 22, 2024. The massive turnout turned the regional gathering into an expansive festival of dexterity and mental endurance. For hundreds of solvers, the road trips and flights paid off across a packed schedule that spanned 16 events and 31 separate rounds of intense, high-stakes competition.

The flagship Rubik's Cube event delivered an electric conclusion at the CubingUSA Rocky Mountain Championship 2024. Across three rounds featuring a field of 213 entrants, Brayden Wroten claimed the premier title with a winning average of 7.66 seconds, highlighted by a sharp single of 6.23. Wroten narrowly edged out Jeremy Bulambot, who finished as runner-up with an average of 7.70, while multi-event standout Jacob Nokes secured third place on the podium with an average of 7.88. The close 3x3 results capped a weekend of world-class consistency at the tables.

Wroten was far from finished with his main-event triumph, mounting a comprehensive campaign across multiple disciplines. In Clock, Wroten captured first place with an average of 4.08 seconds after posting a best single of 3.66. He also conquered one of the most grueling tests of memory in modern speed cubing, winning 5x5x5 Blindfolded with a single solve of 12:44.00, standing as the only competitor in the final round to successfully register a time while four others suffered DNFs.

Alongside Wroten, Jacob Nokes authored one of the most dominant individual performances in recent memory at the CubingUSA Rocky Mountain Championship 2024. Nokes swept the big cubes and specialty puzzles, earning gold medals in 4x4x4 Cube with an average of 30.75, 5x5x5 Cube with 48.13, 6x6x6 Cube with 1:27.19, and 7x7x7 Cube with 2:20.52. Nokes added a fifth title by winning Square-1 with an average of 8.69, proving his versatility across puzzles of vastly different mechanics and layer counts.

Beyond the championship battles, the heart of the cubing competition was visible in the tremendous strides made by competitors broadening their event portfolios. Hunter Hemingway took on a massive 11-event slate, making first-ever official attempts in the 7x7x7 Cube at 6:21.36, the 6x6x6 Cube at 4:20.55, and Clock at 27.19. Ayden Hunt expanded their range with debut attempts in 3x3x3 One-Handed with 32.07, Pyraminx with 11.41, and 5x5x5 Cube with 2:46.91. Noah Parker also branched out into new disciplines, recording first-time marks in Skewb at 15.51, Pyraminx at 12.45, and One-Handed at 1:03.34, while Julee Hemingway successfully logged first attempts in Skewb at 37.42, Pyraminx at 18.62, and 4x4x4 Cube at 2:53.19.

Massive personal bests highlighted the weekend for dedicated solvers who brought significant practice to the stage. Zekiel Wong slashed an astonishing 52.1 percent off their 3x3x3 One-Handed mark to finish in 30.04 seconds, down from 1:02.67, while also logging a personal best of 9.72 in Skewb and attempting Square-1 for the first time. Dean Richard Mackerell trimmed their Pyraminx record by 46.9 percent down to 8.73 seconds and improved their 4x4x4 mark by 35.6 percent to 1:25.05. Samuel Phillips delivered a huge 38.6 percent improvement in Pyraminx with a 5.05 single alongside a debut in One-Handed at 42.06, while Matthew Hanks took 29.6 percent off their One-Handed time down to 28.82 and posted a first-ever blindfolded solve of 5:12.65.

The shorter formats produced blistering speed across every round at the CubingUSA Rocky Mountain Championship 2024. In 2x2x2 Cube, Ezra Severson captured the championship with a winning average of 1.72 seconds, leading Ivan Vanek at 2.23 and Wroten at 2.47. Corbin Rodriguez secured top honors in Pyraminx with an average of 2.85 seconds, featuring a best single of 1.88. In Skewb, Jacob Levie stood atop the podium with a 2.73 average, while Jeremy Bulambot showcased incredible dexterity to take the 3x3x3 One-Handed title in 12.19 seconds.

The blindfolded and non-standard events concluded with impressive tactical execution. Brendan Bakker won the 3x3x3 Blindfolded event with a rapid single of 22.34 seconds, besting Jared Blanco and Wroten. Blanco earned his own victory in 4x4x4 Blindfolded with a winning single of 3:45.85. Raymos Castillo delivered a dual triumph, winning Megaminx with an average of 50.27 seconds before securing the 3x3x3 Multi-Blind title by successfully resolving 13 of 14 cubes in 57:08.

With 50 podium places earned by domestic solvers, the CubingUSA Rocky Mountain Championship 2024 highlighted the extraordinary depth of talent traveling into Provo. From grueling multi-blind marathons to sub-two-second sprint solves, the three-day WCA competition showcased the tireless dedication of competitors at every level of the sport as the community looks ahead to the next stops on the circuit.