USA Dominates Medals at 2025 World Rock Stacking Contest at the Llano Earth Art Fest
- elafest330
- Apr 18
- 3 min read
After Scotland hosted the 2024 World Rock Stacking Championships, with Italy and Australia stacking the most awards, respectively, the competition returned home to Llano, Texas, USA.
After a few days of much-needed rain, sunny skies and warmth complemented the sunny dispositions and warmth of attendees and competitors alike for the 10th anniversary of the contest during the Llano Earth Art Fest “Reunion.” Llano’s ruggedly beautiful Grenwelge Park on the banks of the Llano River at the iconic bridge swarmed with thousands of folks from all over Texas, and worldwide competitors.
New World Record Set
Dozens of contestants vied to place or beat standing World Records in Height, Quantity, Balance, and one new World Record was set this weekend, according to Tex Toler, Competition Coordinator since the contest’s founding in 2015.
The individual categories allow 20 minutes for contestants to gather their rocks, stack and/or balance, and these are all simple math—measuring height, quantity, and in arches, height, span of the arch and number of rocks used for the total.
Height (Adult Category—18 and above)
First Place, USA: Oregon’s Travis Williams took the gold medal with a remarkable 108” high stack. However, it did not top Denton Machuga’s 110 ¼” win for the USA in 2024 when the European Stone Stacking Championship hosted the event in Dunbar, Scotland.
Silver, USA: Llano’s Denton Machuga 100 ½”. Australia’s Anthony Jucha took the Bronze medal with a 97” stack.
Junior Height
Australian Casper Jucha-Read broke his previous World Record stacking a 66 ½” tower. Chris Schu, USA, of Mountain Home, Texas, took Silver. Chase Blevins, USA, stacked for the Bronze.
Timed Balance
Although the other contests allow 20 minutes, the Timed Balance contest is a mere three minutes. All contestants use all or their choice of the same 12 rocks, chosen by our featured renowned rock stackers. These rocks are different geology, shape, size, texture and color and this contest is typically the crowd favorite and always a real nail biter.
The Balance must remain standing at least 30 seconds in order for judges to quickly count the number of balanced stones, with extra points for degree of difficulty and any artistic element the stacker might add. USA again swept this category with Denton Machuga’s really tall balance for gold. Jason Campbell of Virginia took the Silver, and Bronze went to Arkansas’ North Watt.
Quantity
USA won all top three places, with Ceto Desai’s 31 rocks for the gold medal. Denton Machuga won Silver, and the bronze medal went to Delaney Olsted, Houston, Texas.
Arches
USA again swept the category with Fredericksburg, Texas’ Tom Bowyer gold, Virginia’s Danny Rose; silver, and once again Ceto Desai’s bronze.
Artistic
This category is not so much about the math, and allows contestants the entire day, from morning until judging at the end of the day, to create whatever their imagination allows. The criteria requires their creation use only found objects in the river bed or banks of the river, and must contain at least one rock stack of at least three rocks.
Entries include rocks, of course, branches, leaves, flowers, driftwood, sand, water features and even utilizing the river itself. Artists can tell a story with their creations, and kids and families of all ages participate. Though they didn’t place in the top three, a close fourth that impressed the judges were young Edith Jenschlke and Piper Bowyer of Fredericksburg, Texas, whose rock octopus in the river bed was astounding for their, or any age.
USA’s Danny Rose, a first-time contestant from Virginia, took the gold with his multiple stacks, and explained to the judges how it represented his stacking and balance journey, the essence and the art of the balance.
Once again, the talented Ceto Desai of Llano took Silver with his elaborate stack on a granite dome. Bronze went to the UK, with noted Wales land artist Tim Pugh’s round “LEAF birthday cake” celebrating the events 10th year.
The European Stone Stacking Competition held in Dunbar, East Lothian, Scotland sends the overall winner of their contests to Llano to compete in the World Rock Stacking Championship. Last year’s winner, Italy’s Marco Quercioli did not make the trip to Llano this year to compete.
In past years competitors and artists have traveled to Llano and include artists and stone balancers from Italy, France, Spain, Scotland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Portugal, Wales, Netherlands, Mexico, Ireland, Britain, Switzerland, Australia, Poland and nearly all 50 US States.
The Llano Earth Art Fest Reunion is free and open to the public, and continues through Sunday, March 30. Many of the art installations remain for days and weeks in Grenwelge Park and the river stream and folks enjoy viewing, photographing and especially admiring the astonishing creativity and variety. More information about the annual festival is found on the website, llanoearthartfest.org
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