Beybladers young and old are preparing to battle this weekend in downtown Ashburton.
Clash X, a Beyblade X social tournament, will be held at the Flashbacks arcade and restaurant, on Sunday at 173 Burnett St. It starts at 1pm.
It will be the first public event hosted by Beyblade Ashburton, set up this year by enthusiast Alehana Taupe of Ashburton. He is keen to meet others interested in the craze.
Products, spot prizes and bragging rights will be up for grabs.
The 32-year-old had first-generation Beyblades in his youth and reconnected with the spinning top toy line about a year ago.
Taupe now regularly travels to Christchurch and Timaru to play others in competitive and social battles.
‘‘Beyblades are pretty much spinning tops,’’ he said, of the small metallic discs known as beys.
‘‘They have different parts, they detach. There are four types – attack, defence type, stamina and balance.’’
Beyblade X is the latest generation of the top, first released in Japan back in 1999.
They ranged in cost from about $16 to more than $700 for a rare bey out of Japan, Taupe said.
A battle between beys takes place in a partially enclosed tabletop BeyStadium and begins with the use of a launcher.
Tops spin at high speed. They are old-school and do not need internet connectivity.
‘‘I love the Beyblade community, a lot of the older generation (players) are helping the younger ones,’’ Taupe said.
‘‘It’s perfect for kids these days,’’ the father-of-four said.
‘‘They are competitive and it’s fun.’’
The competitiveness also appealed to Taupe’s son, Leikyn, who at one time was top ranked in Christchurch, based on points, and nephew Raeina Tepaki.
In battle, victory goes to the first player to get four points awarded in different ways depending on the format.
Taupe said the Clash X social tournament on Sunday in Ashburton, set up with National Beyblade Day in mind, was open to anyone to attend and free to enter.
Also known as 3-2-1 day, the national day is officially March 21. It was a chance for fans to battle, collect and celebrate the spinning tops, which since first released had also turned into an animation franchise.
‘‘I (chose) a Sunday because I didn’t want it to clash with sports, and everyone is busy on a Saturday,’’ Taupe said.
People wanting to take part in the tournament need to have their own launcher and three Beyblade X with different parts.
A tournament stadium would be used, but others could bring their own for casual play, he said.
Taupe was keen to see what interest there was in town and long term hoped to host monthly events.
People can keep up to date via the Beyblade Ashburton Facebook page.
â– Beyblade Ashburton Clash X social tournament at Flashbacks, 173 Burnett St, on March 23 at 1pm. Free entry. Spectators welcome. All Beyblade generations welcome for casual play but only Beyblade X will be in tournament. To compete bring launcher, and three Beyblade X with different parts.
