Go High or Go Ho!me : The Freestyle Nationals
30th Nov/2nd Dec, Westward Ho! In association with Flexifoil, Expix and BeachBreakLive
With Prizes From: Flexifoil, Expix, BeachBreakLive, Kitemare, Blast Kiteboarding, Bracklesham BoardRiders, King of Watersports, Madison, TeamPlayers, Braddicks Holiday Centre, Maverick Slacklines, and The New Devon Army

More pictures at www.expix.co.uk

Oh my. Another weekend of bikini's, beaches, and kitesurfing. Or something like that. Last weekend saw the return of the Student Nationals, a jam format competitive event which saw 50 riders, from those just cruising upwind, to the cream of our kitesurfing crop, battle it out at Westward Ho! for the title of Student Freestyle Champion. Sounds effortless doesn't it? However, on Saturday morning, whilst leaving footprints in the frost as we set up the beach and acknowledging the complete lack of wind, we made the difficult decision to lay on another Sports Day. We informed the riders at 9.45, and, like the fickle mistress that she is, less than 15 minutes later the wind swung around 180 degrees and started blowing 15-20 knots. Taken a little by surprise, we rushed into action, sent the intermediates to get ready, and asked the Pro’s to show off whilst we readied the judging and commentary vehicles. A slightly wobbly 45 minutes later and the competition was in full swing.



26 Intermediates took part in their first competition this weekend, scoring points for any tricks that don’t involve unhooking or loops, although most were rocking the classic hand drag that was described by James Boulding at the last Student Nationals as a move that “looks sexy anywhere in the world”. After 3 heats of 9, 9 and 8 riders, our judges Jon Bleiker (Flexifoil) and Richard Burton (Victor of 2010 Nationals) released their list of finalists. One intense 15 minute final later, and the results were in:

Intermediate Men's:
1st Sam Evans – Exeter
2nd Oliver Rubinstein – Exeter
3rd Cedric Bontemps - Southampton

Next up, the advanced category. Ready to entertain the 50 strong crowd of spectators with their mastery of unhooked freestyle tricks, up to and including kiteloops and blind landings, a further 16 riders donned their vests and entered the water. This time, two heats of 8 narrowed it down to 6 finalists. Desperate to walk home with top place, these aspiring young men pulled out all the stops, drawing huge cheers from the crowd and making it exceptionally tough for our judges. After some consideration, we announced the following:

Advanced Men's:
1st Martin Hayes – Swansea
2nd Tom Shaw – Bath
3rd Tim Wrinch – Bristol

2 down, 2 to go! Having made the decision earlier to run a reduced schedule and make the most of the wind, things were looking good for both the ladies and the pro’s. We were delighted to see the ladies class so well represented. 7 women, the majority of whom had never competed before, entered the water to take part in an all or nothing 20 minute jam to decide the victors. Despite this being the broadest class of the day in terms of ability and experience, all performed brilliantly for the full 20 minutes. Here are our winners:

Ladies:
1st Ros Jury – Southampton (Flexifoil)
2nd Pip Grundy – Plymouth
3rd Kate Ross - Cardiff

Finally. The Pro’s. With the wind holding out, hopes were high for an exciting final and these boys delivered in spades. We had our suspicions that a final between Liam Proctor, Ali Barrett and Jon Deibel would be worth getting out of bed (and getting frostbite) for, and we were absolutely right. A spectacular 20 minute final saw all three proving that it looks as good in real life as it does in the videos. Alas, there could only be one winner:

Pro Men's:
1st Ali Barrett – Southampton Solent (Slingshot)
2nd Liam Proctor – Exeter
3rd Jon Deibel – Cardiff

Later that evening over 140 people gathered for our Black Tie awards party where we awarded an unprecedented £5,000 of prizes. After much suspense, the overall Student Nationals Title for 2012/13 went to Exeter University. So that’s it. A massive thanks to our clubs and our sponsors, we couldn’t have done it without you. Next up, it’s our intermediates clinic in Portland Harbour, on the 22nd - 24th February.

We’ll see you at the beach,
The SKA
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