Previewing this weekend's May Minnesota Madness (3M) tournament

When I initially wrote the weather-themed blurb for the 3M tournament, back when the dark depths of Hoth (aka Minnesnowta) were still subzero on a nearly daily basis, I looked to Josh and said, "I hope I didn't jinx it - it should be spring then, right?" He looked back at me with a confident look and said, "it won't snow."

In hindsight, that confidence may actually have been a foreshadowing of doom, because let me tell you - I think I almost jinxed it! Since the 3M was announced, Minnesota has endured an unfairly dreary March and one of the coolest Aprils on record, and spring has only truly arrived in the last week or so. Of course, that past week has involved two bouts of severe storms and a threat to skip spring entirely and go straight to July heat.

Ah, weather - as any native can tell you, weather is the truest Minnesota sport, and unlike our so-called professional teams it is the only one not guaranteed to, at some point, break your heart.

I suppose I should actually get to talking about the Scrabble, huh? This weekend will see 10 (or more - we still have plenty of room!) local and not-so-local players converging to play 14 games of our favorite fickle, capricious, awe-inspiring, and weather-emulating board game (see, Evans, all that weather talk had a point!).

(Editor's note: I never doubted you for a minute, Rob.)

As I worked with the CoCo team to build up this tournament, the goal of exploring a variety of venues resonated with me. I knew that I ultimately wanted to try to find a location that was a change of pace from the hotels that are often used to host Scrabble tournaments, and despite all the ups and downs of the pandemic, I think I succeeded in that goal.

GameZenter is a combination of a convention-style gaming hall and game shop, hosting a ton of casual, organized, and tournament events. It used to be the "beta testing lab" for Fantasy Flight Games, a local board game company that specializes in expansive and complex games, before branching out into a broader gaming experience venue. GZ also offers an adaptable café with a variety of food and drink options, and most importantly, they are as enthusiastic and excited to host the 3M as I am!

Josh and I are really looking forward to seeing long-missed familiar faces and reconnecting with friends, and personally speaking, I am excited to see just how well I remember how to play this game. Please join us in person, or follow the live coverage to join us from afar!

P.S. The forecast is currently showing a weekend of temps around 60 and lots of sun (and pollen too)!