When my oldest son Jonathan was 10, he bought his first Rubik's cube. We spent hours together hunched over that little puzzle, rewinding YouTube tutorials, writing down algorithms, and celebrating small victories. It didn't take long before he lapped me completely. Within weeks he was solving the 3x3 in under a minute while I was still fumbling through the second layer. From there, his collection grew and his speed improved.

Then he discovered competitive speedcubing. As new fulltime RVers, he realized that we had the opportunity to go to competitions anywhere. He stalked the map of upcoming events and compared it to our planned route. Then, he registered for his first official competition in March 2020.

You can guess what happened next.

Cancelled. Along with everything else in the world.

The speedcubing community adapted in 2020, pivoting to online competitions to keep the flame alive. Jonathan competed virtually and kept sharpening his skills. But when the world started reopening, he was ready, itching to compete in person. As a fulltime RVing family, we had a unique advantage: we could route our travels to find a competition near our path. He found one, we adjusted our route and timing slightly, and he finally got his moment. He placed 4th in Clock and 8th in Skewb in that debut competition.

What started with a cheap 3x3 cube and a YouTube video has grown into something much bigger. Last summer, at 18, Jonathan traveled to Seattle on his own to volunteer as a staff member at the WCA World Championship. And now, having come off the road a couple years ago, he has taken the next step to organizing an official WCA competition this summer right here in the small town where we have settled. 

That's the arc this hobby can take. And being fulltime RVers made much of this possible for my son.

If your family has a speedcuber on board, here's how to find competitions. And remember: there are no age limits but some events have maximum time cut offs.

START WITH THE WCA WEBSITE

The World Cube Association maintains a comprehensive competition database at worldcubeassociation.org/competitions. Here's how to use it:

- Head to the Competitions tab and select All Competitions.

- Use the map view or filter by region to see what's near your travel route.

- Each listing shows the location, date, registration deadline, cost, and which puzzle events will be hosted (3x3, 2x2, Pyraminx, and more).

- Registration is handled through the WCA site. Most competitions require sign-up weeks in advance, so check early before spots fill. Some competitions fill very quickly after registration opens, but often have a wait list.

Pro tip: Bookmark the WCA competition page and check it every time you're planning your next stretch of road. Competitions happen in school gyms, community centers, and college campuses and other venues in cities large and small.

PLAN YOUR ROUTE AROUND EVENTS

This is where RV life truly shines. Instead of hoping a competition is planned near you, you can route your travels to one. Heading up the East Coast, and spot a competition in Boston in a few months? Build your itinerary around it. Arrive a day early, explore the city, compete on Saturday, and roll out Sunday with a fresh memory and maybe a new personal record. (Many competitions are on Saturday, but there are occasionally competitions on Sundays and multi-day competitions.)

Use the WCA map alongside your favorite campground apps to find RV parks within a reasonable drive of the venue.

BUILDING COMMUNITY ON THE ROAD

One of the hardest parts of full-time RV life, especially for kids, is finding your people. Speedcubing solves that in a surprisingly natural way. Walk into any WCA competition, and your child already has something deeply in common with everyone in the room. Friendships form fast over shared solve times, cube recommendations, and the universal groan of bad solve.

That community doesn't disappear when you leave the venue, either. The speedcubing world has a thriving Discord community where cubers of all ages and skill levels connect between competitions, sharing tips, celebrating PRs, trash-talking solve times, and keeping up with upcoming events. For a kid growing up on the road, it's a ready-made social world that travels with them. Jonathan has stayed connected with cubers he met at competitions hundreds of miles ago, and that network kept growing with every event, ultimately leading him to share a hotel room with friends who were also staffing at the World Championship in Seattle. Other official cubing accounts on socials like Facebook and Instagram can be found in the regional organization tab listed on almost any competition page. These regional orgs like Southern Cubing and Midwest Cubing Association are the governing authorities for hosting a competition in their respective regions. The regional org tab has links to send you directly to their official accounts that post regional updates, podium photos, and competition announcements.

And competitions are not just for the speedcuber. WCA competitions are a family affair! Parents and siblings can volunteer on-site as judges or runners or help with other needs. These are roles that require no cubing experience and come with training on the spot. Judges oversee solves and ensure everything runs according to WCA guidelines, while runners ferry scrambled cubes between stations to keep the flow moving. It's a genuinely fun way for the whole family to be part of the action rather than sitting bored waiting for your competitor’s next solve, and the cubing community is always grateful for the extra hands.

TIPS FOR COMPETING AS A TRAVELING FAMILY

- Keep a dedicated competition bag. Keep your cubes, timer, and mat together in one backpack or bag so everything is ready to grab and go on competition morning. Timers and mats are provided, but you’ll want your own for warm up and practice times between rounds.

- Watch registration deadlines. WCA competitions often cap out weeks early. Set a reminder the moment you spot an event you want. Sometimes there are special competition t-shirts, and those may need to be ordered in advance, too.

- Join the Discord community or other social media communities. Even before your first in-person comp, the speedcubing Discord is a great place to get oriented, ask questions, and start making connections.

- No flash photography during the competition! This one is tough in the world of smartphones with auto settings. (I might have been reprimanded by an organizer or delegate at least once or twice for this slip-up!)

One of the unexpected gifts of fulltime RV life is discovering that your kid's niche hobby has a passionate community spread across every corner of the country and beyond.

Amanda Pelser is a homeschooling mom of four boys, former full-time RVer, and certified homeopath who integrates Christian faith with natural wellness. After reclaiming her own health from chronic pain and autoimmune conditions, she now helps Christian moms find biblically aligned, hope-filled health for their families at RootedHomeopathy.com.

Amanda and her family know firsthand what it means to hit the road for a passion — they spent years traveling the country chasing Rubik's Cube competitions for her son Jonathan. She brings that same real-life RV experience to everything she shares here on Learn to RV.