Pretoria Spring Afternoon 2023
- Date
- Nov 25, 2023
- City
- Pretoria, South Africa
- Venue
Brooklyn Gereformeede Kerk Hall
- Address
- 230 Duxbury Rd, Hillcrest, Pretoria, 0083
- Details
Drive to the gates and the guards will let you through, park in any open parking, entrances to the venue will have signs
- Contact
- Organization team
- Organizers
- Duncan Hobbs and Marike Faught
- WCA Delegates
- Duncan Hobbs and Marike Faught
- Download all the competition's details as PDF .
- Information
CubingZA is excited to announce our first series competition in Joburg.
SERIES COMPETITION
There will be two competitions happening on Saturday the 25th - you need to choose ONE to sign up for.
* The Morning Competition will only feature 3x3 - we will aim to have 3-4 rounds of 3x3, depending how much time is available.
* The Afternoon Competition will feature 3x3, 4x4 and 3x3 one-handed - there will be more strict cutoff/advancement criteria for the Afternoon Competition, in order to fit all the events into the time we have available.SPECTATORS
Competitors are welcome to bring up to two spectators with them.
VOLUNTEERING
Please note that all competitors are required to assist with volunteering during the competition - either in the role of "runner", "judge" or "scrambler". These roles will be explained as part of the "New Competitor Tutorial", but you can take a look at this video.
SPONSORSHIP
A big thanks to Solve-it Puzzles who are sponsoring vouchers as a part of the prizes for this competition. They will have a stall set up at the venue for you to try out and buy the different speedcubes they have on offer.
About CubingZA
Competitions in South Africa have exploded since the end of COVID, and interest is only getting stronger. CubingZA is a volunteer organisation made up of delegates and community members who have come together to try and ensure that we can sustainably run regular competitions all across the country.
- Events
- Main event
- Competitors
- 27
- Registration period
-
Online registration opened and closed .
- Registration requirements
-
This competition is over, click here to display the registration requirements it used.Create a WCA account here if you don't have one.
If this is not your first competition, associate your WCA ID to your WCA account here.
Register for this competition here.
This competition is part of the Pretoria Spring Series 2023 Competition Series. Other competitions in this Series are: Note: You can submit a registration for all competitions in a Series, but only one of those registrations can be confirmed and accepted. You will only be allowed to compete in one of the Series competitions!
There is a competitor limit of 40 competitors.
The base registration fee for this competition is R130 (South African Rand).
If your registration is cancelled before you will be refunded 100% of your registration fee.
Registrants on the waiting list may be accepted onto the competitor list until .
We encourage everyone to register for the events they want to compete in via your online registration, however you may add events to your registration up until the event has started.
On the spot registrations will be accepted with a base registration fee of R130 (South African Rand).
Payment
Please note that there are THREE steps you need to take to be entered into this competition:
- First-timer competitors must create a WCA account if they do not already have one (or their parent/guardian must create one for them).
- The competitor must register for the competition using their WCA account, specifying which events they want to participate in.
- The competitor must pay the entry fee by sending the appropriate amount of R130.00 to the following bank account. DO NOT PAY UNTIL YOU HAVE REGISTERED IN STEP 2 ABOVE PLEASE.
Bank Details:
- Account Name: Mr Duncan Hobbs
- Bank: Tymebank
- Account number: 5300 1800 564
- Reference: COMPETITOR full name / WCA ID AND Morning/Afternoon
- Branch code: 678910
- Account type: Current Account
Please note: We will be handling the EFT payments manually, so it might take a few days for us to confirm your registration. If you have not recieved a notification from us saying that your registration has been approved within 3 DAYS (72HRS) of making payment, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Please note the following:
* If you haven't both registered for the competition (Step 2) and paid for a ticket (Step 3), you will not be able to compete. - Highlights
-
Click here to display the highlights of the competition.
Shivaan Harichander won with an average of 7.95 seconds in the 3x3x3 Cube event. Isaac Scheepers finished second (9.33) and Osman Badroodin finished third (9.64).
| Event | Name | Best | Average | Representing | Solves | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3x3x3 Cube | Shivaan Harichander | 6.69 | 7.95 | South Africa | 9.55 | 7.85 | 7.77 | 8.24 | 6.69 | |||
| 4x4x4 Cube | Osman Badroodin | 32.82 | 37.74 | South Africa | 40.10 | 38.53 | 34.58 | 41.16 | 32.82 | |||
| 3x3x3 One-Handed | Osman Badroodin | 13.04 | 14.40 | South Africa | 14.22 | 13.86 | 18.24 | 13.04 | 15.11 | |||
If you're a first-time competitor, we would love to have you! It doesn't matter how quickly you can solve the cube - everyone is there to have fun, make new friends, and do their best. The speedcubing community is a healthy environment for cubers of all ages!
Please note that we will not be doing a newcomer tutorial on the day due to the limited time available. If it is your (or your child's) first time, please watch this tutorial, which explains how you will complete your solves.
Make sure to arrive at least 15 minutes before Registration ends - this helps us with entering everyone into the system.
If you're on the fence about going, take a look at this video giving a bit of insight into what a cube competition is like. If you would like some more information about what to expect, take a look at this video on what to expect at your first competition.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to the organisers - we would be happy to help!
Clarifying Multiple Competitions on the Same Weekend
Q. Why so many competitions on the same weekend?
Simply put, our choice was between competitions on the same weekend, or no competition in Joburg/Pretoria until January/February 2024.
The main factor was when a venue was available in Pretoria - unfortunately the only one we were able to confidently secure in Pretoria was only available on Saturday the 25th of November, making a clash with Mimosa Mall Master Cubers inevitable. As a result, there are effectively 3 competitions running on that weekend:
- 25th November - Mimosa Mall Master Cubers (Bloemfontein)
- 25th November - Pretoria Spring Morning/Afternoon
- These show up as different competitions, but are part of a "Series" - meaning that competitors can only choose to attend ONE of them
- 26th November - Joburg blindfolded-focused competition
Q. Which competition should I go to?
On Saturday 25th November, you have 3 options:
* If you're a competitor who wants to do as much 3x3 as possible, Pretoria Spring Morning 2023.
* If you're a competitor who wants to compete in a lot of different events and you can travel, Mimosa Mall Master Cubers 2023 (in Bloemfontein)
* If you're a competitor who wants to compete in different events but you can't travel, Pretoria Spring Afternoon 2023.
On Sunday 26th November, you have one option:
* If you like blindfolded events, Please Be Solved This Time Joburg 2023.
Q. Why run 2 "Series" competitions instead of one big competition?
Our Pretoria venue only has a capacity of ~200 people, which allows for 60 competitors at a time. Given that it's been a while since a competition happened in Pretoria/Joburg, and the option to travel to Bloemfontein exists for more invested competitors, we wanted to experiment with a different competition format - which wouldn't conflict with Mimosa Master Cubers' format, and which would give many more casual cubers (120 instead of 60) the chance to compete in a day.
Q. What is needed for more and larger competitions to happen in the Joburg/Pretoria area?
We expect that the main bottlenecks for competitions in this area will be resolved as early as January next year - 2-3 more delegates will become available in the region, and more large venues become available as it is no longer the end of the school year.
General FAQ
Q. What is a 'series competition'?
It is a group of competitions held close together, which you can only attend one of. In this case, we have two competitions - one in the Morning (with only 3x3), one in the Afternoon (with 3x3, 4x4 and One-Handed). We're doing this to make sure as many people as possible are able to compete.
Q. Can I compete in both competitions?
No, you can only compete in either the Morning competition or the Afternoon competition.
Q. What time should I arrive at the competition?
For the Morning competition you should arrive for check-in and registration around 07:30.
For the Afternoon competition you should arrive for check-in and registration around 12:00.
Q. How old do I have to be to compete?
Anyone can compete at any age! We encourage anyone considering to compete to register as it will be a great experience regardless of age.
Q. How fast do I have to be to compete?
You only need to know how to solve the 3x3x3 cube in under 10 minutes to compete! But please be aware that we will have cumulative time limits in place - refer to the Events tab to see specific Time Limits and Cutoffs for the rounds and events.
Q. How can I change my events?
You must make any change to your registered events by the morning of the competition. You can change your events via the competition registration page.
Q. How can I prepare before the competition day?
PLEASE make sure you know how a competition works - watch this video for an excellent guide!
Q. What do I need to bring?
You need to bring a puzzle for each event you are signed up to compete in - make sure they are allowed per the WCA regulations. Many competitors also bring a 'warm up cube' to use between submitting their puzzle for scrambling and starting their official solve. All timing equipment is provided.
Q. How do I find out if I've progressed to the second round?
Times will be uploaded through the day onto WCA Live. Please allow up to an hour from finishing your solves to them being uploaded. After all the times of a round have been entered, you can see if you are in the following round.
Q. Who can I ask for help on the day?
Your Delegates for this competition are Duncan Hobbs and Marike Faught. Feel free to ask them any questions you may have on the day.
Q. Can I help on the day?
Definitely! Throughout the day we will always need judges and runners so please see our Delegates to ask how you can best assist.
Q. How can I find out about upcoming competitions in South Africa?
You can find out about upcoming competitions in South Africa by signing up on CubingZA or checking the WCA Competitions page.
Q: How do I get a WCA ID?
After official results are posted after the competitions you will receive an email with information on your WCA ID.
Please also refer to the WCA's FAQ.
Prizes will be a combination of vouchers and prizes, awarded for the following podiums:
* 3x3x3 Main Event Podium
* Women's 3x3x3 Podium
* 3x3x3 One-handed Main Event Podium
* 4x4x4 Main Event Podium
Big thanks to Solve-it Puzzles who are contributing the voucher portion of the prizes!
Why a Women's Podium?
Most speedcubers in South Africa are currently men, which might discourage women from attending their first competition, or becoming a regular part of the speedcubing community. No one likes feeling like the odd-one-out, after all!
We hope that by incentivising women/young girls to compete, we can create a "flywheel" effect where women regularly attend competitions, befriend others who do as well, the community becomes self-sustaining.
- This is still in the experimental stage for us. If you're a women who's on the fence about attending, or you have a daughter who is on the fence, we'd love to have you!
- If you have any other ideas or feedback on developing the community in this regard, we'd love to hear them!
Time limit
If you reach the time limit during your solve, the judge will stop you and your result will be DNF (see Regulation A1a4).
A cumulative time limit may be enforced (see Regulation A1a2).
Cutoff
The result to beat to proceed to the second phase of a cutoff round (see Regulation 9g).
Format
The format describes how to determine the ranking of competitors based on their results. The list of allowed formats per event is described in Regulation 9b. See Regulation 9f for a description of each format.