Cabin Fever Kubb Tournament 2018 Recap

APPLETON, Wisc. — It may have been a 6 degree day in Appleton, but that didn’t stop kubb players from kicking off their socks and throwing some batons. Luckily, the 2018 Cabin Fever Kubb Tournament was held indoors at the Game Day Sports Bar’s sand volleyball courts.

A field of 24 teams, including quite a few first-timers, battled in seven rounds of 25 minute one-game matches. The teams were then split into championship or consolation brackets based on their rankings.

The championship bracket was the top eight teams, and included many familiar faces from the kubb circuit. The teams would play out best of three series to determine who would end up on the podium.

The semi-finals saw the top four seeded teams matched together. On one side, Kubb Mas (Darren Finger, Steve Beyer) took on Kubb Snipers Evolution (Matt Green, J.R. Hrejsa, Joe Hresja). The other side of the bracket was Ragnarok (Lars Arneson, Jens Arneson) versus The Blocking Dead (Evan Fitzgerald, Bryan Jones, Christopher Jones).

Kubb Snipers Evolution started strong with a game one win. Kubb Mas wasn’t out yet, as they battled back to take game two. They managed to ride their momentum into a third game win, and earned their seat in the finals. Meanwhile, the other semi-final hadn’t yet finished game one.

Ragnarok and The Blocking Dead were very well matched. Earlier in the day, the two teams played in the qualification rounds. In that game, The Blocking Dead narrowly took the win. It was no surprise when an equally close game was taking place in the semis. Ragnarok avenged their earlier loss with a W in the first semi-finals game. The Blocking Dead took the second game, but Ragnarok was triumphant in game three, earning a trip to the finals.

The finals would be a very entertaining series. Game one was tilted toward Kubb Mas, but game two was all Ragnarok. They came back with a vengeance, and cleared their back row right away. Kubb Mas didn’t have enough turns to answer and the match headed to a third game. It looked like Ragnarok was in great position, with only one back row kubb left, but after a good blast, Kubb Mas was back in it. Finger did what he does best and went three-for-three on the back row, putting them in winning position. Teammate Beyer did not hesitate, slaying the championship king with his remaining baton.

The third place match returned to a one-and-done battle. The Blocking Dead continued their strong play, which proved to be enough to earn the last spot on the podium.

In the consolation bracket, Bearded Heathens (Chad Bevers, Kyle Krueger) would finish on top.

The tournament had no entry fee, but did take donations and held a number of raffles that raised nearly $2000 for a local family who lost their wife/mother to cancer.

Final Results

1. Kubb Mas (Darren Finger, Steve Beyer)
2. Ragnarok (Lars Arneson, Jens Arneson)
3. The Blocking Dead (Evan Fitzgerald, Bryan Jones, Christopher Jones)

Consolation Winner: Bearded Heathens (Chad Bevers, Kyle Krueger)