Rubik's cube fans

Meeting of the nimble fingers was a complete success

The boys are united by their passion for the Rubik's Cube. Girls are also welcome - as long as they meet the time requirements.(Bild: Wenzel Markus)

Eleven "speedcubers" met up on Friday to quickly solve the Rubik's cubes. Some of the participants already have international competition experience, but anyone who can sort the "Rubik's Cube" by color in under 30 seconds is welcome. The meetings are now to take place every two months. 

It took Ernö Rubik one month to solve his Rubik's Cube for the first time in 1974. Even today, the toy is far from being a "children's game": it takes a lot of practice, talent and motivation to solve the Rubik's Cube as quickly as possible. This is exactly what the "Speedcubers" have set themselves the goal of doing.

In order to network this scene, Susanne Peruzzi organized a meeting of the nimble fingers at Johannes Kepler University in Linz on Friday evening. "My son Markus discovered the Rubik's Cube a year and a half ago. His current record is 14 seconds," says the proud mother.

"Easy once you understand it"
How did it come about? "My friend Johannes is very good at it and always did it at school. So I thought to myself, I want to be able to do that too," explains the 13-year-old from Linz, before solving the cube during a Krone local inspection as if it were the easiest thing in the world. "The algorithms and recognizing the positions are difficult," explains Johannes Yang (13). "But once you've understood it, it's really easy!"

Maxi Leibetseder (13) from Puchenau was captivated by a YouTube video three years ago. His current best time is around ten seconds and, like Markus Peruzzi, he has already gained international competition experience.

Meeting every two months
"Yesterday's meeting was a complete success. Eleven boys signed up and competed against each other in a friendly competition. They got to know each other and had a lot of fun," says organizer Peruzzi happily. "We now want to organize meetings like this every two months. Anyone who can achieve a best time of under 30 seconds is welcome. We would also be delighted to welcome girls!" Incidentally, the best time on Friday was set by Felizian Baumgartner (14) from Linz: He only needed exactly ten seconds for his "solve".