Europeans lead Kiteboard North American Championship

Published on October 8th, 2014

San Diego, CA (October 8, 2014) – After light winds on the opening day of the Kiteboard North American Championship limited racing, today offered just enough… 7-8 knots … for the formula boards to finish four races and the kitefoil boards to complete three races. Oliver Bridge (GBR) tops the formula class while Julien Kerneur (FRA) leads the foilers. Racing continues through Friday, October 10. Event website.

Additional report by event media…
Though the winds may have improved over the first day, competitors found that most of the challenge was coming from underwater. A contestant in both fleets, Nico Landauer explains that although the kelp and weeds in the water were tough for Kitefoilers, it was far more brutal for Kiteboarders. “You are lower down so it just gets tangled up in your legs,” Landauer said of the board fleet. In fact, navigating around the kelp turned out to not only be a challenge, but became a prominent factor in who ended up as the scoreboard leaders. “The key is to stay in pressure, but clear of kelp. Whoever did that won the race,” Landauer said.

It would appear that ambition pays off, with the three pack leaders that have emerged after the second day of racing each competing in both fleets. Currently sitting in first place for the Kitefoil class and second place for the Kiteboard class is French kiter Julien Kerneur. Only one point separates Kerneur from Oliver Bridge, the current leader of the Kiteboard class and forth place position in the Kitefoil class. The third scoreboard leader is Nico Landauer, currently sitting in third place for Kiteboards and second place for Kitefoils. Rounding out the top three positions for the Kitefoil class is Bryan Lake.

With four races completed in each fleet, the competition is officially considered a regatta according to the racing rules. The Kitefoil class became eligible for a throw out score at the completion of the fifth race, and the Kiteboard class needs one more completed race to toss their worst score.