Mario Kart mavens unite and compete. Here’s how Pasco is bringing e-sports to the Tri-Cities

Dozens of children and parents huddled around large screens waiting as colorful cartoon characters darted across whimsical tracks.

Outside the low hum of people talking quietly, the Mario Kart soundtrack filtered through Pasco’s community auditorium.

Then as Bryscis Valencia turned through the last corner of the last race, her mom, Melissa Yanez, let out a loud cheer and clapped.

She won her first heat in the city’s first Mario Kart video game tournament. The King of the Kart tournament drew 32 contestants between 8 and 18 to compete. The first rounds pit four players against each other in a series of four races.

Yanez and Valencia came dressed for the event. They each had a shirt with Mario characters, and Valencia had Yoshi socks and a Mario Kart hat.

For Marco Yanez, Valencia’s father, he enjoys the competition of playing, but for Valencia, she likes getting a chance to test her skills against other people.

“I just play by myself at home,” Valencia said.

Providing a place for people to play

This is part of a larger trend sweeping recreation programs across the nation, said Brent Kubalek, the recreation services manager. From Arizona to Florida, city recreation programs are adding e-sports offerings right along with their more traditional sports offerings.

“In general, parks and recreation has been averse to doing this because it’s all about get children out in parks, doing something active like sports; but especially for tweens and teens it’s harder to get them out,” he said.

The allure of an e-sports tournament can attract those groups to city facilities and get them involved.

As the youngsters get more familiar with the city recreation program leaders, it becomes easier to get those same kids into other programs.

“It helps them even if they’re just participating in these programs. They’re not at home by themselves or just remotely speaking with people,” Kubalek said.

In some cases, kids were already participating in Pasco recreation programs, including Samuel Boothe, 10, who rode his Mario Kart 8 skill to a win in his heat.

His dad, Jeff Boothe, heard about the program because Samuel had participated in a Pasco basketball program.

“He likes Mario Kart and thought he might want to try something new,” Jeff Boothe said. “It’s always good to keep kids active, so it’s another activity for them.”

What’s next?

After holding an in-house practice tournament, Pasco’s Parks and Recreation leaders were ready to roll out their first tournament.

While not as popular as other e-sports headliners like League of Legends, Dota 2 or Starcraft 2, Mario Kart 8 only required the Nintendo Switch that the city already owns.

The city saw plenty of interest. Pasco officials opened up spots for 32 people on Monday, and by Thursday they already had a waiting list.

“We were hoping that this is what would happen,” Kubalek said. “It’s something that is not uncommon that people sign up and get involved in things like this. ... We’re glad to see what a success it was.”

City officials don’t plan to stop with Saturday’s tournament. While the next one is not yet planned, they are already thinking about holding another tournament, and possibly incorporating adults.

Marcos Yanez is hoping this won’t be the end of the gaming fun. The 43-year-old Pasco man’s gaming history dates back to the Atari, and he still has his vintage Nintendo Entertainment System console.

“They’ve got to do this again,” he said.