As soon as the weather gets warmer, Eau Claire Kubb fanatics gather together at Heartbreakers for Sunday evenings full of beer, laughs and friendly competition. The Eau Claire Kubb League (ECKL) was founded in 2015, and with it, members that have been playing for years.
Eau Claire resident, Scott Taylor, joined the league with his wife, Stephanie Taylor, in 2019.
“Eric Anderson, who is the Godfather of Kubb in Eau Claire, told us if we wanted to get better the league would give us a chance to play with some of the top players in the world week in and week out,” said Taylor. “We lost way more often than we won, but it did increase our love of the sport and we felt pretty good going into Nationals that year.”
Most members of the ECKL not only use their Sunday meet-ups as a time to socialize but to hone their craft of the sport for the various tournaments they participate in throughout the year and for the US National Kubb Championship hosted in July.
“You could say we are all in at this point,” Scott Taylor said. “My wife and I are playing in 25 tournaments (two virtual) this year, which is nine more than we did last year! I simply cannot overstate how much of an impact this community has had on our lives.”
This sentiment is also shared by Carl Walters who has been playing in the league with his best friend since 2016. Walters plays in tournaments all over Minnesota including Kubbing to Kick Cancer and Kubb-On-
A-Stick.
“My favorite part of the Kubb community is the camaraderie of it,” said Walters. “You get to know others from the area and some you get to know a bit deeper as friendships have evolved over time. Although we consider ourselves serious players now, we mostly just love the game and the people that play it.”
The ECKL is comprised of about 32 teams that play consistently each week. Each team is made up of partners, friends and family members of all ages.
Maja Anderson, the daughter of Eric Anderson, was roped into the Kubb community at a young age but still plays in tournaments to this day.
“Since I left for college I haven’t played as much as I used to, but as soon as summer starts I have more time to travel to tournaments and practice with my team,” Maja Anderson said. “Kubb is just such a big part of my family’s social life, so, at barbecues and get-togethers, we are always playing it. I don’t think I could imagine summer without it.”
The ECKL welcomes players of every skill set and, because of this, have almost tripled in size since their very first season. It’s clear by the inviting atmosphere at these events that Kubb has touched the hearts of many Eau Claire residents.
Whether the members of the ECKL consider themselves die-hard players or not, they certainly have created a community they are proud to be a part of.
