Students compete in sports stacking competition

It may not be a sanctioned Olympic event but "sports stacking," a competition that is gaining renown is rapidly becoming popular among Yuma students says a local educator.

Stacking is an international competition and it is actually broadcast over the ESPN network, says Bill Wachunas, AmeriSchools Academy principal.

"Since we start school the first week of August it's just too hot outside to have P.E. classes, so we have the kids do stacking. It's a hand/eye coordination activity and some of our kids are super fast."

Just before AmeriSchools fall break for the Columbus Day holiday, the students assembled at Joe Henry Gymnasium for a school-wide competition. A set of stacking cups (speed stacks) is comprised of 12 plastic cups that look like ordinary drinking containers but with  three air vents drilled into the bottoms along with a plastic table mat and a timer.

There are three basic sequences of competition where students attempt to race to the finish ahead of opponents, says Jeff Millis, music teacher and after-school program director. But in each variation, students must stack cups in a pyramid formation and then take them down while their time is recorded.

"Stacking is a lot of fun," Millis said. "It's been proven to help students improve their ability to play musical instruments. And it also helps them with sports. It reinforces all the skills a competitor needs for many types of athletic competition."

The three fundamental sequences are known by the numerical arrangement of the cups: the 3-3-3, 3-6-3 and the cycle. The first sequence is the easiest and the only one that uses just nine cups.

The cups are inserted inside each other in groups of three. The object is to stack each group of three into a pyramid and then dismantle the pyramid stacking each group of three inside of one another again. The other variations expand on that objective with more complex goals to resolve, Millis explained.

He went on to explain that there is now an international recognized regulatory body that has standardized the rules of competition called the World Sport Stacking Association.

At the 2009 world championships held last April in Denver, 11-year old Steven Purugganan from Massachusetts set a new world record for the 3-6-3 sequence of just 2.5 seconds. Although no AmeriSchools students have progressed to that caliber, some student's ability have improved remarkably well, Millis said.

Clarissa Ruiz, 10, an AmeriSchools sixth-grade student said stacking makes her brain work hard and as her speed increased she became very eager for the competition.

"Last year I won in the cycle and came in second place for the 3-6-3. It does help you do other things but I don't like to play sports. I only like to dance."

Clarissa went on, that she likes to do hip-hop dance and hopes to become famous as a professional dancer some day. She added, her parents were very proud of her stacking ability and hoped she could attend the next WSSA championships to be held in Denver.

Clarissa also said, she had a lot of confidence in duplicating her victorious efforts of last year because she has her own set of cups and practiced a lot at home.

But history did not repeat itself as the the top winners at Joe Henry Park Friday were Salma De La Vega winning first place in the cycle, Wyatt Buckelew winning the 3-3-3 sequence and Allison Taylor winning the 3-6-3 sequence.  

Millis said, there are few things he has seen that children get as excited about as stacking.

"It's quite addicting. I started doing this three years ago. The first thing I asked for from my family for Christmas was a set of speed stacks for myself."

William Roller can be reached at wroller@yumasun.com or 539-6858.