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Junior Justin Choi practices unscrambling a 3x3 Rubik’s Cube by timing himself during eighth period. “My highest ranking was 13 in the world at one point. And that’s definitely the accomplishment I am most, most proud of,” Choi said.

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NOW Jefferson’s Rubik’s Cube Team one of the top teams in the world

by Yulee Kang and Jeremy Kim

megaminx

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rubik’s revenge 24.54s

pocket cube 1.24s Senior Ray Bai’s solve times

THE TIMER STARTS.

Hands flying and colors whirling, junior Justin Choi furiously unscrambles the cube before him as his teammates await anxiously.

One. He finishes the base. Two. Three. Four. Five. Almost there. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Nine and a half. Nine and three quarters- DONE! Triumphantly, he slams the cube down in front of him as the teammate to his right immediately picks up his own cube. How many people do you know who can solve a Rubik’s cube? How many people do you know who can solve one with their feet? Blindfolded? One-handed? Jefferson Cubing has it all.

What sets Jefferson Cubing apart from other high school teams? President of the Jefferson Cubing club Justin Choi says it’s due to the high level of teamwork within the club. “We have to work as a team to get things done,” Choi said. “When we go to competitions we usually go together. Especially for one of the main events, which is solving 25 cubes with eight people, you have to be able to coordinate who’s going to solve what cube and if you have half of a cube left, for example, who’s going to get that cube.”

Others, such as sophomore Michael Fatemi, accredit the team’s success to the close cubing community that meets frequently. The Rubik’s Cube Team meets during most B blocks on Wednesday and Friday, which has a consistent turnout of members who regularly participate in the club. “We practice a lot and there’s are a really nice community around here and everyone has to work together which means that we get to know each other really well,” Fatemi said. “Which is really fun because we just hang out while solving cubes and practicing for the big competitions which are usually in April.”

From those who have never attempted to solve a cube to competitive cubers, the club is open to anyone who is interested. However, many of the members of Jefferson Cubing had already been interested in Rubik’s cubes long before they even entered high school. “I started cubing when I was in fourth grade and I started because I saw my dad cubing and thought he was really fast at the time, even though it took him a minute to solve the cube, and from there I really wanted to beat him. So I went out and looked up a guide on how to solve a cube, and that’s where everything started,” Choi said. “I knew about the club before I came to [Jefferson] because I saw them at a competition in Las Vegas when I was little. This was actually the World Championships in 2013, so when I moved back to Virginia from California I saw them at a competition hosted at [Jefferson] and knew about Ms. Conklin before I came to [Jefferson].”

Attracting members since its founding, Jefferson’s Cubing team is a renowned high school team and one of the top in the country; it has placed within the top ten multiple times at several World Championships and holds the current world record for the fastest time for the 25-cube team event.

“We’ve been breaking the record for the last three years. I was only doing this for the last two years,” Choi said.

Freshman Harsha Ravella and sophomore Michael Fantemi cube together at Rubik’s Cube club. Fatemi began his cubing career during third grade after watching his friend solve a cube. “One of my friends showed me and I thought, the thing is so fast, so I wanted to do that,” Fatemi said.