Sowega Spring 2025

Date: Mar 2, 2025
City: Albany, Georgia, United States
Venue: The Event Center at Northwest Library
Address: 2507 Dawson Road, Albany, GA 31707
Contact: Organization team
Organizers: CubingUSA Treasurer and Raymond Goslow
WCA Delegates: Clay Moore, Jacob Ambrose, Raymond Goslow, and Roman Wofford

: Download all the competition's details as PDF here.

Information

The entrance to the Event Center is on the right side of the building under the drive-through awning - to park, drive around the right side of the building and park in the Event Center lot behind the building.

This competition is supported by CubingUSA.

Events
Main event

Competitor limit: 70

Number of times bookmarked: 43

Registration period: Online registration will be open from to .
Registration requirements: 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.
There is a competitor limit of 70 competitors.
The base registration fee for this competition is $25 (United States Dollar).
The registration fee has to be paid through Stripe here once registered.
If your registration is cancelled before you will be refunded 80% of your registration fee.
Registrants on the waiting list may be accepted onto the competitor list until .
If you are a registered competitor you may change your registered events until on the Register tab.
No on the spot registrations will be accepted.
Any spectator can attend for free.

Registrations are accepted manually, so please be patient while waiting for your name to appear on the competitor list after you submit payment for your registration. Your registration is not complete until you pay. If you still do not see your name on the competitor list 24 hours after submitting your payment, then please contact the organizers to resolve the issue. You do not have a confirmed spot at the competition until you receive an email with the subject line: "Registration Accepted: Sowega Spring 2025." Any travel plans that you make before receiving the acceptance email are at your own risk.

After the competitor limit has been reached, you may still submit payment for your registration in order to be put on the waiting list. If you are first on the waiting list and someone cancels their registration, then you will receive an email from the organizers notifying you that you are being accepted into the competition. After the competition, all competitors left on the waiting list will receive a refund for the registration cost, minus processing fees.

First-Time Competitors

Familiarize yourself with the WCA Regulations before the competition. Watching a competitor tutorial video before the competition can help you become familiar with the key procedures of competing and the relevant regulations, but the full regulations always apply - even those not mentioned in a tutorial.
Bring documentation showing your name and birthdate and present it during the check-in period (8:30am-9:00am) to verify the information on your WCA account. Due to the age of the average competitor, a birth certificate is generally the most common document suiting this need, but a drivers license or passport will work perfectly too (as long as it is for the competitor themselves and not a parent/guardian). If you have any concerns about this, please reach out ASAP ahead of the competition.
Attend the new competitor tutorial at 9:00am. Even if you have read the Regulations and watched an online tutorial, attending the in-person tutorial will help familiarize you with the specific procedures and expectations for this competition, and it's also your chance to ask questions if anything is still puzzling you before you actually compete.

All Competitors

Reach out at least two weeks before the competition if you need accommodations. If there is any circumstance (e.g. disability) that would prevent you from competing normally, reaching out ahead of the competition will give the organizers and WCA Delegates time to best accommodate your unique needs.
Be present at least 15 minutes early for any round you are competing in. If the competition gets ahead of schedule, it will stay ahead of schedule, and you may not be able to compete if you miss your scheduled group (especially for subsequent rounds).
Fulfill all judging assignments throughout the day. In addition to the groups you are assigned to compete in, you will also be scheduled to judge in certain groups throughout the day. Your judging assignments will usually come immediately after you compete or far enough before you compete to give you time to warm up. If you repeatedly miss your judging assignments, you may be subject to disqualification from the competition - the WCA is a volunteer-driven organization, so everyone is expected to help out at least as much they compete.
Let the organizers know if you are leaving before your last round. If you need to skip a round that you advanced to, letting the organizers know ahead of time will allow someone else to take your place in the round.

Registration

Question	Answer
Why am I not on the competitor list yet? I already signed up and paid!	Registrations are approved manually, so it may take some time for the organizers/WCA Delegates to see and accept your registration. If you still do not see your name on the competitor list 48 hours after submitting payment, please reach out via the contact link. Please note that if registration is already full when you register and pay, you will remain on the waiting list with a pending registration status until a spot opens up.
How do I change my events or cancel my registration?	You are able to change your own registered events for this competition on the Register tab. If you need to cancel your registration entirely, please reach out via the contact link and an organizer or WCA Delegate will handle your request. Please note that no refunds, cancellations, event changes, etc. will be processed after the deadlines listed on the General Info tab under "Registration Requirements".
Are spectators or guests allowed to attend? Do they have to pay an entrance fee?	At this competition, there are no limits or fees for spectators or guests. You are welcome to attend as a friend/family member of a competitor or even just as a non-competitor who is interested in the event.

At the Competition

Question	Answer
Do I use my own cubes to compete?	Yes, you are responsible for providing your own puzzles. Be sure to review Article 3 of the WCA regulations and confirm that your puzzles are competition legal before the event. Some examples of non-legal puzzles are electronic cubes (such as Giiker, GOcube, or GAN356i), cubes with carbon fiber stickers, cubes with more than one logo, and cubes with significantly damaged or missing stickers/pieces.
Do I use my own timer to compete?	No, all equipment for the competition (timers, displays, etc.) is provided by the organizers/WCA Delegates.
How fast do you have to be to compete?	As long as you are able to solve the puzzle within the time limit listed on the Events tab, you are fast enough to compete!
What will the average age of competitors be?	Most competitors are between 10 and 25 years old, with the average age usually falling in the early to mid-teens. However, all ages are welcome - everyone can and should cube!
Are competitors divided by gender/age/experience/any other distinction?	No, all competitors compete on the same even playing field and are recognized in the official WCA results without any distinction.
How do I know when exactly I will be competing?	To see what time each event takes place, check the Schedule tab. At the competition, you will receive a nametag or card with your group assignments to let you know which group you are assigned to compete in for the first round of each of your events. (Each group competes in order - group 1, then group 2, and so on.) If you advance to the next round in any event, information about group assignments for subsequent rounds will be shared at or before the time the round starts. Please be familiar with which group you are in and pay attention as they are called up throughout the day - you may not be able to compete if you miss your group.
What do I do while I'm not competing?	In addition to the groups you are assigned to compete in, you will also be assigned to judge throughout the day. Your judging assignments will usually come immediately after you compete (though you are welcome and encouraged to judge as much as you want - it's a fun way to get right up in the middle of the action!) When you're not judging or competing, you'll probably want to hang out at the tables with other cubers and make some new friends!
Can I leave in between rounds/go home early if I don't have anything to compete in?	We hope you're having enough fun to stay through the whole day, but you are welcome to leave in between rounds or go home early for the day. Please return at least 15 minutes early for any later round you plan to compete in just in case the competition is running ahead of schedule. If you go home for the day before a subsequent round that you advanced to, though, please let the organizers know so they can accept someone else to the round in your place.

Results

Question	Answer
Where do I find my results during the competition?	During the competition, you can see results on WCA Live as they are entered. Please note that all results are entered by hand and there may be delays depending on the availability of staff to enter data.
How will I know if I made it to the next round?	As the results are entered on WCA Live, the competitors whose names are highlighted in dark green are the ones who will be advancing to the next round. (Names highlighted in light green are in a position to advance at the moment but still have the potential to be bumped out as more results are entered.) Please note that the advancing competitors are not 100% locked in until every competitor's results are entered - you can scroll down to the bottom of the page to see if anyone is still missing results.
Where do I find my results after the competition?	Within a week of the end of the competition, the results of the competition will be uploaded on the main WCA website and will appear on your WCA profile. You will receive an email notification when this happens.

If you have any other question about the competition that's not answered here, you can always reach out via the contact link on the General Info tab and we'll get back to you shortly!

Venue

This competition takes place in the Event Center space of Northwest Library (2507 Dawson Road, Albany, GA 31707). The entrance to the Event Center is on the right side of the building under the drive-through awning - to park, drive around the right side of the building and park in the Event Center lot behind the building, where there is ample free parking. Although the location is also served by some of Albany's local bus routes, these buses do not run on Sundays, making driving the most viable way of reaching the venue.

Dining

There are plenty of fast food restaurants within a short drive of the venue, as well as a Burger King within walking distance.

Lodging

There are plenty of hotels within a short drive of the venue.

Intercity Travel

Albany has the following options for intercity arrivals, in addition to driving:

The Albany airport is located about 7 miles from the venue and has commercial service to Atlanta as well as rental cars for local travel.
Greyhound buses connect Albany with with other major cities in Georgia and neighboring states at the BP One Leaf east of town, where Albany's Red Line local bus connects to the main bus station downtown. However, keep in mind that there is no bus service on the day of the competition to reach the venue from downtown.

If you are interested in joining the volunteer staff for this competition, you can apply below:

Staff Application

Staff members are expected to spend most of the day helping out, especially with scrambling and running. In exchange for your hard work, we'll provide snacks and lunch for you during the competition and refund your registration fee after the competition. Please note that we may receive more staff applications than we are able to accept, so we apologize in advance if you are not selected.

About Southeast Cubing, Inc.

Southeast Cubing, Inc. (SECI) is the official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization for speedcubing in the Southeast United States! SECI supports current and future cubers across the region by:

collecting and sharing information on speedcubing competitions and clubs
supporting the organization of more speedcubing competitions and clubs with resources, guidance, and logistical support
organizing a regional championship every year
engaging in outreach to expand the speedcubing community by visiting local community events
providing spaces (both physical and virtual) for Southeast cubers and their supporters to connect and learn

Getting Involved with SECI

You can get involved with SECI in a variety of ways:

Following SECI's social media pages to keep up with the latest news about Southeast cubing:
Joining SECI's social media discussion groups to be a part of the online conversation:
Becoming a competition staff member, a competition organizer, or a WCA Delegate in the Southeast
Hosting a cubing club in the Southeast
Volunteering as an SECI team or Board member
Donating directly to SECI to support the mission:

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.