MONTREAL — Old Montreal hotels are currently adorned with the flags of Boggle, Scrabble, and Apples to Apples announcing the return of the F1 – Keyboard Championship and the 18th annual QWERTY Cup.
“We love typing in Montreal,” said Spanish ACER typer Enrique.
“Every city has something new to offer the typer,” he said through an interpreter. “Here we love the long sentences that let us build steam going into the commas. With fewer semi-colons, as compared to some of the European competitions, you can really get into a rhythm and push the keyboard.”
When asked about this year’s changes to the race, Jonathan Quimbo representing DELL1 welcomed changes to Typer safety.
“This year’s organizers made the decision to move to ergonomic keyboards,” said Quimbo. “There is too much medical evidence of the long-term aftereffects of typing, like carpal tunnel syndrome or general limp-wristedness. We at Dell are only too happy to comply.”
Some fans of the sport have lamented the absence of Apple inc. in the competition, who on principle refused to make the ergonomic changes required to stay in the circuit.
One of this year’s highlights is the return of the Word 2000 paperclip, the official mascot of the event. A teenager, dressed in a large foam costume, will be handing out flyers in front of Palais des Congres for discounts on Windows XP software at the concession stands.
Champion typist, Pierre leMer from France is back in the city attempting to break his previous record of 203.2 wpm.
“I’m so excited to be back in the city for F1,’ said leMer. “But I’m not here for the women, or the booze or the drugs — I’m here to type.”
