FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE JULY 31, 2007
TEAM CABRINHA DOMINATES COMPETITION WEEK IN SAN FRANCISCO
The first ever US National Championships for Kite Racing took place on
July 25-27th from beautiful Crissy Field, at the foot of the Golden
Gate Bridge in San Francisco, CA. The event is of particular interest
to the kitesurfing world as the discipline of kite racing has exploded
onto the scene over the last few years. Cabrinha took notice of the
potential for this new discipline and established the Cabrinha Race
Series in San Francisco in 2006, and in Corpus Christi, TX in 2007. The
St. Francis Yacht Club, the well organized hosts of the event, have
established the rules and an official class for kite racing to be the
de facto template for kite racing throughout the world. St. Francis
Yacht Club is a world class club that is famous for running
championships both on the National and World level. They currently run
racing events for windsurfing, kitesurfing, all kinds of sailboat
classes, and even America’s Cup. US Sailing has now recognized Kite
Racing as a class, so all the hard work has paid off and the time to
get involved in racing is now!
San Francisco is world renowned for its summer breezes at Crissy Field.
This event was to be no exception. Through three days of fog, winds
averaged between 17 and 22 mph making for perfect racing conditions.
With tidal speeds of up to 4 knots in either direction, racers were not
only challenged by the rules and the blustery winds, but also strong
currents. The Fleet went through a qualifying round where it was split
between Gold ad Silver for the final championship. All Cabrinha riders,
including Jeff Kafka, Jesse Richman, Jon Modica, Damien Leroy, Shawn
Richman, Kent Marinkovic, Nils Stolzlechner, Kevin Steen, Todd Gréaux,
and Clarissa Hempel qualified for Gold fleet out of the top 35 spots.
Cabrinha riders Jesse Richman, Jon Modica, and Shawn Richman swept the
Junior Division with all the top spots, respectively. Cabrinha Riders
Kafka, J. Richman, Modica, Leroy, and S. Richman snagged five of the
six top places overall utilizing Crossbows, Switchblades, and Contra
kites. In the Masters Division, Nils Stolzlechner grabbed 2nd place,
and in Womens Division, Clarissa Hempel brought home 3rd. There is no
question that the Cabrinha Race Series held at Crissy Field played a
major part in determining the overall champion as the top three
finishers were regulars in the series. It should be noted that young
Kevin Steen of Cabrinha was racing on a strapless board and was
photographed riding unhooked on the hair razing downwind runs. Once
statistically eliminated from a top three finish, Steen was seen doing
a shovit 360 over the weather mark, and stomping a huge ollie to cross
the finish line.
With nearly 60 competitors from as far away as Germany and Tahiti, the
event was a huge success and we look forward to many more successful
years of championships to come! Thanks to all the riders and the St.
Francis Yacht Club for making this first ever National Championship
possible.
Overall:
1 Anthony Chavez
2 Jeff Kafka (Cabrinha)
3 Jesse Richman (Cabrinha)
4 Jon Modica (Cabrinha)
5 Damien Leroy (Cabrinha)
6 Shawn Richman (Cabrinha)
Junior:
1 Jesse Richman (Cabrinha)
2 Jon Modica (Cabrinha)
3 Shawn Richman (Cabrinha)
Masters:
1 Chip Wasson
2 Nils Stolzlechner (Cabrinha)
3 Mark Bosta
Women:
1 Christine Boese
2 Sandy Parker
3 Clarissa Hempel (Cabrinha)
Meanwhile, on the 28th and 29th at Crissy Field was the Big Air Wind
Jam. The skies parted way for the sun for the first time since Tuesday
and the wind was pumping. The concept of the event was to have a
boardercross competition and have a 30 + foot high floating ramp with
streaming water to simulate a massive wave that the riders could use to
boost the sickest airs ever in a competition. When the floating ramp
less than dazzled the riders with its low take off height and safety
concerns, mother nature took over delivering 25knot winds, perfect for
a big air competition!!! In light of the obstacle problems, Saturday’s
format was changed to a hangtime competition as 2000+ spectators lined
Crissy Field. While several riders turned in 7+ second hang time
scores, 15 year old Cabrinha rider Jesse Richman silenced the crowd
with a 22 second jump caught on two separate video cameras that later
confirmed a new World Record!!!
Jesse launched what looked to be like your average jump on the inside,
started back down from the apex, then hovered just over 10 feet above
the water throwing seven kiteloops that kept him afloat for 22 seconds
and sent him nearly 800 feet downwind!!! Congratulations Jesse Richman
on your World Record Hangtime!! It should also be noted that Jesse
turned in the second longest jump at 15 seconds – way to go! Clarissa
Hempel of Cabrinha took the Womens crown for hangtime. She beat out a
slew of other women in the gusty conditions.
Sunday’s competition switched gears to Boardercross. This differs from
course racing in that there are no upwind legs, a more slalom oriented
course is set, the starts can be from the beach (they were in this
case…), contact with other participants it likely, and obstacles must
be navigated in order to properly complete the course.
The finals heat pitted Cabrinha riders Damien Leroy, Jon Modica, Kent
Marinkovic, and Shawn Richman along with Ovi Banuto in a five man
battle royale!! As the finish line approached, Leroy stayed in control
with Modica at his heels, but not within striking distance. Ovi was in
position to follow Modica, but Marinkovic and Richman weren’t through
yet!! With a short distance to go, Marinkovic and Richman, just feet
apart, closed in on Ovi. In a horrific crash, Marinkovic lost an edge
and Richman bailed out but not in time to avoid a collision between his
knee and the back of Marinkovic’s head!!! Leroy and Modica, already
finished, circled around to give aid to a stunned Marinkovic, who
turned out to be just fine, albeit disappointed that he wasn’t able to
catch Ovi!! Congratulations to Damien Leroy and the whole Cabrinha team
that took 4 of the top 5 spots in boardercross!! In the Womens
boardercross, it was Clarissa Hempel of Cabrinha, Melissa Gil, and Gail
Zaccai in the finals. Hempel rocketed to a championship finish powered
by her Switchblade kite followed by Gil and Zaccai. Here are the
results:
Boardercross Men:
1 Damien Leroy (Cabrinha)
2 Jon Modica (Cabrinha)
3 Ovi Banuto
4 (tie) Kent Marinkovic (Cabrinha)
4 (tie) Shawn Richman (Cabrinha)
Boardercross Men:
1 Clarissa Hempel (Cabrinha)
2 Melissa Gil
3 Gail Zaccai
Hangtime:
King Jesse Richman (Cabrinha)
Queen Clarissa Hempel (Cabrinha)
Sportsmanship:
Awarded to Cabrinha Team for Shawn and Jesse Richman teaming up to
bring teammate Jeff Kafka back together with his kite after he got
separated well off the beach. Way to have team spirit!!
What a great week for the Cabrinha Team!! More information and official
results can be found at: http://www.stfyc.com
http://www.bigairwindjam.com
To get involved in racing, contact Todd Gréaux
This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
|
|
