Natick this Saturday, Oct. 29 will play host to Naticube 2022, a possibly first-of-its kind local gathering of quick-handed and quick-minded devotees of the Rubik’s Cube and other such combination puzzles. Speedcubers from the region will flock to Natick Elks Lodge #1425 for this event, the brainchild of a Natick High School sophomore and his puzzle-loving friends.

Due to capacity limitations, players can have one guest each, but other spectators aren’t allowed.

Event organizer Caleb Retik has come a long way in a short time on the speedcubing circuit, which rewards those who can solve these puzzles the fastest—and we’re talking in seconds, not days… or weeks…or…

The 15-year-old Retik has been cubing on and off for a year-plus, and competitively over the last six months. He specializes in the classic 3×3 cube, and solving it left handed (even though he is right-hand dominant). Note that not all such puzzles are cubes—Retik cites the pyraminx, which is a tetrahedron.

“I was introduced to the cube in camp. At first I thought it was too hard, but I was interested in learning the algorithms from a very patient counselor.  Since then I’ve become much better than him and practice daily.  Watching my own improvement has been a lot of fun.  Speed comes with a lot of practice,” says Retik, now the owner of more than 20 cubes (his favorite: the Tornado V3M).

The student now ranks #16,000 out of about 160,000 players on the World Cube Association site. The best speedcubers solve the 3×3 cube in under 6 seconds; Retik has his time down to about 13 seconds.

Watching YouTube videos, getting high quality cubes, and practicing daily have been his secrets to success.

Retik’s mom, Ava Kleinmann, acknowledges she doesn’t know how to solve a Rubik’s Cube “or any other kind of cube,” but has enjoyed watching her son’s progress, and is proud of his work with others to arrange this weekend’s event.

“Caleb has learned all sorts of algorithms and if I look away for a moment I miss the entire solve,” she says. “I’d like to think that years of compulsory piano lessons played a role in his dexterity, but he’ll never admit to it.”

Kleinmann explains that the cubes used in competitions are generally stickerless (that was always a bummer when your Rubik’s stickers would disappear) and have varying degrees of technology, including special magnets and springs.  Oil is used to make the turns smoother and faster “since every fraction of a second counts,” she says.

“Up until a couple of years ago I thought cubing meant multiplying the same number three times (eg, 3x3x3 = 27), but I’ve learned that cubing, and speedcubing in particular, has evolved a ton since I first saw (and strictly avoided!) a Rubik’s Cube in the 1980s,” she says.

A local speedcubing event is born

Retik attended his first World Cube Association competition this past spring.

“I volunteered with scrambling [cubes] and timing various events at other competitions and enjoyed these roles in addition to competing,” he says. “I was traveling up to two hours for competitions and thought it would be fun and more convenient to have an event closer to home. So I arranged for a competition right here in Natick with some other MA speedcubers (Levi Gibson, Elijah Rain Phelps, Nico Bezzerides).”

The Natick event will feature 100 speedcubers. The roster filled within 5 minutes of registration opening, and there’s a waitlist of dozens more. “So I guess there was a desire for this kind of event in Natick,” Retik says.

Naticube will include 7 events,  including 3×3, 3×3 one handed, 4×4, 2×2, square one, clock, and 3×3 blindfolded. Yeah, there’s lingo.

Retik competes about once a month as his schedule allows, and he says the events are fun and relaxed. Players are supportive of each other. “I often see the same people at the competitions and have made some good friends that way. All ages participate both as competitors and as part of the timing/judging process. I enjoy being around people who share this very niche interest,” he says.

Will a home court advantage result in a personal record for Retik come Saturday? We’ll see.

“It’s fun to impress adults who were (and continue to be) intimidated by the Rubik’s Cube,” he says.

Consider me intimidated—and impressed.

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