Rachael Nedrow takes Oregon crown; out-of state stackers crowd the top

Overall results at this year's Oregon State Sport Stacking Championships seem to be an echo of last year.

"Speedstackinggirl" Rachael Nedrow took home top Oregon stacker honors at the 2009 Oregon State Sport Stacking Championships held at Village Baptist in Beaverton, OR on Nov. 21, but only placed third for the individual all-around stacker list. California stackers Beau McDowell and Lillian Chin took the top two spots, and Matt Sunga took fourth. Grady Moran from Washington State placed fifth overall. Individual all-around scores are calculated by adding the combined scores from the individual 3-3-3, 3-6-3 and cycle events.

Rachael's was hampered by a less-than-stellar showing in the 3-3-3 event. Her best time in the finals was 3.31 seconds, over a second way off what she could do.

In 2008, Rachael had the best overall score among Oregon stackers, but was outpaced by stackers from Washington and Utah for the individual all-around stacker honors.

Oregon Stacking Championships featured participation by stackers from the West Coast, California, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia. Kalama Elementary from Washington sent a team of six stackers. Several state records for different age divisions were set for California, Washington, British Columbia, and Oregon.

On the home front, Rock Creek Elementary led by P.E. instructor Lori Meeks made its debut in the 10U Team Division. The fourth grade stackers (Mark Huynh, Marissa Pogolrec, Ben Fung, and James Domico) are newcomers to the sport, having only picked up the sport two months ago.

Speed RACR (Rachael Nedrow, Anne Tan, Charlotte Lindley, and Rachel Mumaw) improved their state team relay record in the Timed 3-6-3 Relay.

More results from the Oregon Tournament will be forthcoming, and all records are unofficial pending verification by WSSA.

Rock Creek stackers featured in Beaverton Valley Times

If you're in the Beaverton area, make sure you pick up a copy of the Beaverton Valley Times that came out yesterday. The speed stackers at Rock Creek Elementary are featured on page 7.

I'm waiting to see if the article gets published online. So far, nothing yet.

UPDATE Nov. 21, 2009, 3:42 AM PST. I just checked and the article is online. Click here to read all about it.

Help Support the Village Food Bank

Bring a food bank donation to get a discount to the admission for the Oregon State Sport Stacking Championships.

Spectator admission is $2 for adult and $1 for children, but bring a donation for the Village Food Bank to get a dollar off discount.

The food bank would like donations of the items listed below, ones most needed are in BOLD.

Apple Juice

Apple Sauce

Beef Canned Stew

Canned Tuna

Canned Chicken or Turkey

Peanut Butter

Chili

Cut Green Beans

Whole Kernel Corn

Canned Peaches (Natural juice)

Canned Pears (Natural juice)

Chicken Noodle Soup

Vegetable Beef Soup

Ramen Noodles

Oatmeal

Ready-To-Eat Non-Sugar Cereals

Spaghetti Noodles

Spaghetti Sauce

Macaroni and Cheese

Rice

Refried Beans

103 Stackers and Counting ...

Actually, the last time I checked the official count for the WSSA STACK UP! was at 139, 824 (as of 12:40pm PST, 11/13/09). And this doesn't include the 103 stackers yesterday at Rock Creek Elementary 4th grade P.E., Village Baptist after school, and Southwest Hills Baptist AWANA.

I've been trying to fax our numbers in all morning but have not been able to get through. I talked to Lynn at Speed Stacks and she confirmed that the fax machine has been busy since yesterday, with the faxes coming in from not just the United States, but all over the world. It may be middle of next week before all the numbers are verified and we get a final count.

Yesterday was a full day of stacking in Beaverton. Started out with "Stack Masters" at Rock Creek Elementary as fourth graders got a taste of what it would be like to stack in competition. Everyone went up to the stacking table and stacked in front of a judge. Fumbles that went uncorrected would result in a scratch. But the kids all did a great job. Overall fastest stacker was nine-year-old Mark Huynh with combined time of 27.51 seconds (3-3-3 stack, 4.46 seconds; 3-6-3 stack, 5.72 seconds; and cycle stack 17.33 seconds).

"Stack Masters" Part 2 will take place on Monday, Nov. 18, when the other two fourth grade classes take their turns.

Then we had after school STACK UP! at Village Baptist. We had a modest turnout but one of the highlights was when Oregon's fastest stacker Rachael Nedrow joined us. She got to stack Jumbo Stacks, and also had to figure out a puzzle of how to stack a single tower of Jumbo Stacks all the way to the ceiling without the use of any helps (ladders, chairs, etc.). Credit for that brain buster goes to the Kidologist and fellow stacker Karl Bastian.

Afterwards, my daughter Anne took charge and brought the stacks to the AWANA at Southwest Hills Baptist, where she led them in "Builders and Blasters" and other stacking games. Wow! Anne is coming into her own as a leader. She could be the next sport stack ambassador.

BTW, the official sponsor for yesterday's event was Wonderful Pistachios. Maybe their motto should be changed from Get Crackin' to Get Stackin'

Stack Up! after school at Village on Thursday, Nov. 12

Join us to set a new world record in stacking. The annual STACK UP! happens this Thursday all around the world and we want to invite you to come help set a new record this year.

If you're in the Portland, Beaverton area, join us at Village Baptist Church on Nov. 12 from 3:30-6:00 pm at the Willamette-A Meeting Room on the lower level of the new worship center. Village's address is  330 SW Murray Blvd., Beaverton, OR 97005.

You don't have to bring any equipment. We'll have regular stacks, Battlestacks, mini-stacks, Super Stacks, Jumbo Stacks, and Pro Series cups for you to try out.

Here's the official reminder from the WSSA on this event:

Guinness World Records Day, November 12th This is the week! Let the 2009 WSSA STACK UP! begin...

Thursday is the day, and we're glad you're on board to crack a new Guinness World Record for "Most People Sport Stacking at Multiple Locations in One Day." You will be joining participants from all over the world in this united stacking effort. As of this writing, we have more than 1,500 schools/organizations registered with nearly 270,000 projected stackers from 26 countries. We need everyone to participate to beat last year's record of 222,560 and exceed our goal of a quarter million stackers. Have a terrific STACK UP! and stay tuned to the WSSA home page for updated tallies on the STACK UP! counter.

Oregon State Championships Early Registration Extended

Registrations for 2009 Oregon State Sport Stacking Championships have been coming in this past weekend. And so far, we have registrants from Oregon, Washington, California and CANADA.

It's not too late yet to register. The early registration has been extended till Friday, Nov. 13.

You can register by downloading the forms from the WSSA website, from Village's website, or registering online at active.com.

Oregon State 2009 Championships logo

Some of you who have picked up the 2009 Oregon State Sport Stacking Championships registration forms have mentioned that the logo on the form is the old one from last year. I apologize for using the old logo, but I did not have the logo for this year's competition at the time.

But here it is, the new logo for this year's competition. What do you think?

I will be updating the registration forms with the new logo and will post new versions of the registration forms later this week.

Stacking at Village on Saturday (10/17)

Join us to stack and practice together at Village Baptist Church this Saturday from 10 am to 12:30 pm. We'll be in the Fellowship Hall (Room 112-113).

We'll have a few Pro Series cups to try out to see if they live up to their reputation. We'll also practice some relays and introduce doubles to kids who have not tried it yet. Most importantly, we get to prep for the Oregon State Sport Stacking Championships coming up next month.

Village is located at 330 SW Murray Blvd, Beaverton, OR 97005. If coming from Portland, take Highway 26 going west into Beaverton, and take the Murray Blvd. exit and turn left. Village is less than half a mile down Murray on the left side.

Stacking on Time Warp (i.e., Rachael Nedrow on Discovery Channel)

If you missed Rachael Nedrow on Discovery Channel's Time Warp last night, here are some screenshots from the program, where Rachael is challenged to stack THIMBLES. The thimbles proved to be quite a challenge for Oregon's top stacker.

You can also watch the clip on Disovery Channel by clicking here.

Pro Series are here; Stacking at Rock Creek & Nancy Ryles

Pro Series are here in Beaverton. The order came in yesterday and I will be checking it out this weekend to see if I set new personal records.

If you're a child studying at or a parent with a child at Rock Creek Elementary in Beaverton, you might want to check out what the fourth graders are doing in P.E. this month. They're learning to stack the Cycle and will have an opportunity to test themselves against the clock early next month. Kudos to Lori Meeks, P.E. Instructor at Rock Creek for scheduling this.

And over at Nancy Ryles Elementary in south Beaverton (where my son attends), stacking will be coming up at some point this fall. Nancy Ryles Elementary has signed up for a loaner sport pack from Speed Stacks and will be able to use it for five weeks, complimentary of Speed Stacks.

If you know of a school in the greater Portland area who is interested in stacking, drop me a note and we'll see what we can do to help them.

Oregon Sport Stacking Championships forms are up.

Go here to get the registration forms and other details for the 2009 Oregon Sport Stacking Championships to be held on November 21, Saturday, at Village Baptist Church gym in Beaverton, OR.

Registration is $20.00 for all registrations received by Nov. 6. Special Stacker registration is $15.00. Registrations received after Nov. 6 will be assessed a late fee of $10.00.

We will have divisions open for all ages from 4u to seniors divisions. Encourage your stackers to compete in as many event as they can (Individual 3-3-3, 3-6-3, and Cycle, Doubles, Parent-Child Doubles, and Team Relays).

We will hold a warm-up event on Oct. 17 (Saturday) at Village Baptist. Stackers can come and practice with other stackers, and join up to form teams as needed.

Update. Our first registrant is Matt S. from northern California.

Order your Pro Series cups now

I just got off the phone with Speed Stacks and yes, the Pro Series cups are now available for sale through Speed Stacks Group Order. The group order price is $19.99 and shipping is always free with the Group Order.

If you're located in the Beaverton and Portland area, make sure you choose Oregon and then Beaverton, then Village Baptist Church. Payments can be made directly to Speed Stacks via credit card, or you can write a check to Village Baptist and bring it in. Our address is 330 SW Murray Blvd., Beaverton, OR 97005. Click here for directions.

The online store is not yet set up for Pro Series cups ordering, but should be ready soon.

Update. The Pro Series cups are scheduled to ship end of the month. But you can place your order now.

Pro Series Stacking Cups Are Coming

Signed and endorsed by former world champion and record holder Emily Fox, the Pro Series Stacking Cups are newly-designed cups that will enable stackers to stack faster and with fewer fumbles. What's really cool is that the bag holding your cups are gone, and instead the cups are held together by a single quick release stem. No more struggling to put the cups in or take them out of the bag.

During a recent road trip, my kids and I visited the Speed Stacks office in Colorado and were given the grand tour by Mark Lingle, WSSA Director. We also got to test the new Pro Series stacking cups. They looked really cool and sharp, but unfortunately, we were asked not to blog about it until the official release. Well, I just heard from Rachael Nedrow (Oregon's fastest stacker and new member of Team USA) that the Pro Series are now officially on sale in Hong Kong.

Here's hoping that the cups will be available for sale here soon. I'm hoping to be among the first to get a set of the stacks. So far, I've seen the Pro Series in two colors, black and white (it's listed as "clear" on the HK Speed Stacks website).

You can also see a video of the Pro Series cups in action on YouTube.

Join us for Stacking Event on August 8 at Village

On Saturday, August 8, local Oregon sport stackers are invited to join us from 9:30-11:30 AM for a Stack Meet at Village Baptist Church (click here for directions). We'll have stacking practices, team relays, and you can be among the first to register for the 2009 Oregon State Sport Stacking Championships.

The event is free to attend and participate. Stacking equipment will be available for sale. For more info, email or call 503-643-6511.

Speed Stacks Office Photos, Plus Something New Is Coming

My family just got back from a road trip to Texas Friday last week. It was exciting to meet up with old friends and renew relationships. And we got to make a detour that made this year's road trip really STACK UP!

Photo op with Mark Lingle, WSSA Director.

Passing through the Denver, CO, we went to the Speed Stacks office in Englewood and surprised the staff there. It was a real treat to meet WSSA Director Mark Lingle and several of the Speed Stacks team. I got a chance to put faces to names and voices I already knew.

Here are a few photos from our visit.

Boxes of stacking equipment as they arrived at the Speed stacks warehouse.

Sorting out the cups by colors.

Stack mats ...

... and stacking cups ...

... and more stacking cups.

Psssst. TOP SECRET. While at the Speed Stacks office, we saw the next new Speed Stacks product and even got to check it out. Unfortunately, we're not allowed to talk about it. We couldn't even take photos. But here's a clue. Pastor Karl Bastian and I actually talked about this several years ago, saying how useful it would be in order to face off in a stacking duel.

Emily Fox drafted by Minnesota Lynx

Emily Fox and University of MInnesota women's basketball head coach Pam Burton

Ever wonder what happened to the young speedster who previously held the world record in sport stacking? Well, one of her lifelong dreams has become a reality.

From the WNBA Minnesota Lynx website:

Apr 10 2009 10:43AM. Emily Fox enters the WNBA after enjoying a storied career at the University of Minnesota. The five-foot-nine guard finished her Golden Gopher career ranked seventh in scoring (1,449 points), third in assists (413) and fourth in steals (242). The Highland Ranch, Colo., native was a three-time All-Big Ten honoree, including a First Team selection in 2008.

Fox is the 18th player in Minnesota history to score over 1,000 career points (ended with 1,449) and just the seventh player in Minnesota history to record over 100 three-pointers (finished with 112). Fox also notched the third-best free throw shooting percentage (78.1 percent) in Gopher history during her career.

Gopher Sports (website for the University of Minnesota Athletics Program) adds:

Emily Fox become the third Minnesota Golden Gopher to be drafted in the WNBA Draft on Thursday, when the Minnesota Lynx selected Fox with their third round pick, the 30th selection overall. Fox is the first Minnesota player to be drafted by the hometown Lynx.

Fox is the third Minnesota player selected in the WNBA Draft. Lindsay Whalen was drafted fourth in the first round by the Connecticut Sun in 2004. Janel McCarville was the number-one pick overall in the 2005 WNBA Draft by the now-disbanded Charlotte Sting. McCarville currently plays for the New York Liberty.

I actually saw this piece of news back in April but haven't had the chance to blog about it until now. While I'm happy for Emily for this achievement, I know she still has aways to go. Being the third round draft for the Minnesota Lynx means that she's going to have to work hard to get to play. I'll continue to root for her. Wish the WNBA played in Portland. Then I'd get the chance to see her play some day.

Need stacking equipment?

Need equipment? Check out the Speed Stacks Group Order. A group order saves you money with discounted prices over regular Speed Stacks store retail prices and free shipping. Just click on Oregon for state, and Village Baptist Church for organization/school.

All orders are delivered to Village Baptist Church in Beaverton, OR, and you can either pick up or if I'm coming by your way, I'll drop off your order to you. Let me know if you have any questions.

Rock Creek Elementary students and parents who order thru Village Baptist's Group Order will have their orders delivered to their school and can pick up from the P.E. (Lori Meeks') office. Pay via credit card at the Speed Stacks website.

Portland girl among world top's stackers

John Ansotigue of the Northwest Regional Sport Stacking Championships sent me an email yesterday to report on how northwest stackers did during the recent World Championships in Denver, CO.

Here's what he wrote me:

Hi all,

Just wanted to share with you my trip to Denver for the World Sport Stacking Championships from April 18-19. While I was there up to 4 feet of snow fell within 30 min of Denver with us getting almost 2 feet of snow in Littleton, CO which was only 20 min from Denver. It was pretty amazing to have so much snow and then on Sunday with temperatures 68 degrees, there wasn't a drop of snow on the ground, even though the airport was closed on Friday morning and the roads to and from were also shut down.

Here is how the kids from our Northwest event did down at the Worlds:

Preliminary Rounds:

Age (Division) Name, Hometown, Place (IN DIVISION)—Time

12U (3-3-3) Grady Moran, Brier,WA (5th Place)—2.33
12U (3-6-3) Grady Moran, Brier, WA (5th Place)—2.81
12U (Cycle) Grady Moran, Brier, WA (5th Place)—7.90

13U (3-3-3) Rachel Nedrow, Portland, OR (7th Place)—2.40
13U (3-3-3) Ryan Cunningham, British Columbia (20th Place)—3.83
13U (3-3-3) Adam Rookard, Sequim, WA (25th Place)—4.58

13U (3-6-3) Rachel Nedrow, Portland, OR (5th Place)—2.75
13U (3-6-3) Ryan Cunningham, British Columbia (11th Place)—3.21
13U (3-6-3) Adam Rookard, Sequim, WA (23rd Place)—5.21

13U (Cycle) Adam Rookard, Sequim, WA (14th Place)—9.40
13U (Cycle) Rachel Nedrow, Portland, OR (16th Place)—9.90
13U (Cycle) Ryan Cunningham, British Columbia (20th Place)—13.83

14U (3-6-3) Josiah Hansen, Silverton, OR (16th Place)—3.31
14U (3-6-3) Josiah Hansen, Silverton, OR (11th Place)—3.40
14U (Cycle) Josiah Hansen, Silverton, OR (13th Place)—10.56

TOP 10 went to the Finals

FINALS:

Age (Division) Name, Hometown, Place (IN DIVISION)—Time

12U (3-3-3) Grady Moran, Brier,WA (8th Place)—2.56
12U (3-6-3) Grady Moran, Brier, WA (9th Place)—3.19
12U (Cycle) Grady Moran, Brier, WA (7th Place)—8.61

13U (3-3-3) Rachel Nedrow, Portland, OR (7th Place)—2.31
13U (3-6-3) Rachel Nedrow, Portland, OR (3rd Place)—2.72

So with these kids going, we were well-represented in the finals for their respective age divisions. Congratulations to them. To see all the results of the 2009 WSSA Championships go to WSSA website and click on complete results.

Stacking in funny pages

Gordon L. and Teri M. at Village both told me about a cartoon that showed up on Wednesday this week in the Oregonian. But thanks to Tom S. who emailed it to me. I don't subscribe to the paper and would have missed it if they hadn't pointed it out.