II09 Islamorada Invitational Event Information

[b-rad]

Islamorada Invitational 2009
Kiteboarders in Paradise
Friday March 6 – Sunday March 15
Whale Harbor Marina, Islamorada, Florida Keys, USA
www.islamoradainvitational.com

Back by popular demand, the Islamorada Invitational Kiteboarding event returns to Islamorada this year. The first event in 2002, drew spectators and riders from around the globe and helped shape future events for the young sport. After a three year hiatus, the riders have spoken and the tradition continues for 2009!

Competition Format
This year’s event will be comprised of two main categories: Freestyle and Racing.

Freestyle Competition will focus on two disciplines: 1) Park competition including a kicker, rail and a fun box and 2) Traditional freestyle format consisting of qualifying heats.

***Official heat times, qualifying info etc… will be detailed at the rider’s meetings. You all know how the freestyle comps go down…judges will be looking for variety, technical difficulty, tricks on both tacks, and most of all STYLE. All athletes must wear helmets on the rails!***

Race Competition will be comprised of two disciplines: 1) Course racing, better known as boardercross and 2) Distance racing with courses ranging from 10 to 12 miles depending on the conditions.

***Boardercross will take place on the large flats in front of Whale Harbor. We will have a race diagram on the beach displaying the course. Riders will race all over the flats rounding inflatables, markers and boats. The course is awesome! Get ready for some great action!
The distance race will be a 10 mile downwind sprint from Whale Harbor to Anne’s Beach!!! Many of you have done this awesome flat-water downwinder over the years…and know how much fun it is. If the conditions allow, the next distance race will be approximately 12 miles from Whale Harbor to Alligator Lighthouse and back. With the right conditions, there will be some nice waves out there!***

There will also be awards for the following: Big Air, Kite Loop, Best Trick, and Best Photo.

Depending on registration, there will be a masters division (35 and over) and a minor division (17 and below).

Event Dates
The event date rage is from Friday March 6, 2009 through Sunday March 15 giving athletes a nine day window for optimum weather conditions. Specific event disciplines and start times will be called with as much notice as possible based on forecasted conditions. The first possible start time for any event is Saturday March 7th immediately after the morning rider’s meeting. All events will be held “one at a time” allowing athletes to compete in every possible event.

Event Schedule
All the following will be held at Whale Harbor on the beach unless otherwise noted.

Friday March 6th
9 am – 5 pm Final early registration, warm-up and practice day
5 pm - sunset Opening party at Whale Harbor Beach

Saturday March 7th – Saturday March 14th
Rider’s Meetings will be held each day at 9 am with the first possible start time at 10 am. Rider’s meetings are not mandatory, however, we strongly recommend athletes to attend so you know what is going on! The rider’s meeting will be cancelled (or postponed) if it is an obvious non-wind day. An example of an obvious non-wind day is a forecast of “variable” or “5-10 and dropping” etc….(free day!) If the rider’s meeting is cancelled or postponed, we will have other activities available for athletes, friends and spectators to participate in. If the wind is forecasted to come up later in the day; the rider’s meeting will be held prior to the beginning of competition. Riders can call 305-853-KITE (5483) each day for the latest info on rider’s meetings and event information.Freestyle and Race events may be held on the same and/or different days. We will run multiple rounds of both Freestyle and Race events as the wind allows. The official event schedule will be updated continuously and posted online.

Wednesday March 11th
Full Moon Kite Ride
Sunset / Moonrise - ?
All participants who wish to participate in the Full Moon Ride must register separately from the other events. Registration is free, but must be done prior to the night ride.

Friday March 13th – Sunday March 15th
Event Finals

Sunday March 15th 9 am Rider’s meeting
10 am Competition
3 (or 4) pm Award Ceremony


Event Parties and Gatherings
Friday March 6th
7 pm - ? Opening Party at Wahoo’s

Saturday March 7th
7 pm - ? Hog Heaven

Sunday March 8th
7 pm - ? Full Moon Party at Morada Bay / Pierre’s

Wednesday March 11th
5 pm - ? Beach Party at Whale Harbor and Night Ride!

Thursday March 12th
8 pm Zane Grey’s Lounge at Worldwide Sportsman

Friday the 13th
8 pm - ? Morada Bay

Saturday March 14th
7 pm - ? Wahoo’s
10 pm - ? Hog Heaven

Sunday March 15th
3 pm (or 4) Closing Ceremonies and Awards @ Whale Harbor Beach

Event parties are subject to change! Stay tuned!

Event Registration
Early registration for athletes is open from Friday February 27th 2009 until Friday March 6th 2009 at 5:00 PM. Early Registration costs $80 and includes an official event jersey (to be worn during competition but yours to keep) an event t-shirt, and full time event waverunner/boat support on the water. Late registration is anytime after 5:00 PM on March 6th and costs $100. So register early and save some money! You register and pay by calling 305-853-KITE (5483), tell them you are calling to register for the Islamorada Invitational II09…and use your credit card. Release of liability forms will be signed on-site at the event. We will email confirmation Your registration is confirmed with payment and you will get your receipt when you get down here! Athletes may compete in one, some, or all events as you like. Registration is the same cost and process for all.

Volunteers
Volunteers are always needed during events and are greatly appreciated. If you are interested in being part of our event staff for all or part of the event, let us know by calling 305-853-5483 or email kite@sevensports.com.

Non-Wind Activities
We have some non-wind activities planned: SUP races (bring em if you got em!) , wakeboarding, sandbar trips, and more!


Many thanks to all our sponsors for helping make this event happen:

Seven Kiteboarding, Whale Harbor Marina, Islamorada Watersports Company, Billabong, Rip Curl, Truth, Liquid Force, Naish, Eclipse, GK / Lightwave, Jimmy Lewis, Dakine, Von Zipper, DC.

And most importantly: thanks to all the riders over the years who have supported this great event! You are the reason it happens!!!

Get registered now as space may be limited! And get ready for some fun! See you next week!!! :mrgreen:

[miamikiteboarding]

RIDE ON ! BRAD.
finally a good reason to get fined for speeding when going down to the Fla-Keys !

We 'll be there , racing at least , for the show and for the job itr is to put it back together.
chris

[b-rad]

ha ha...thanks man...

nice job on finishing the masters! See you soon!

[b-rad]

the forecast as of today is E NE 15 - 20 sat and sun

[kent]

wind looks good. sounds like a lot of things going on. so... the event seems to be quite a few days. can you confirm if it is more of a freeride event or an actual competition? if you do freestyle this weekend for example, will the finals still be the following weekend? are riders really staying in the keys for a week?

we have quite a few riders thinking about heading down, but taking a look at the format might eliminate a few due to time constraints. let us know. thanks brad.

[b-rad]

good questions...

The main reason to have a wind window of 9 days is to ensure a few good days of wind. Since it's blowin now and it looks like it will just keep on blowin, we will begin actual competition this Saturday morning after a 9 am riders meeting (sharp) at 10 am. We will run heats all day and through Sunday as well. Based on what got accomplished we will announce the week's schedule. Naturally, we want to do as much as possible on the weekends. So we will work hard to get lots done right away.

As with longer events...the more rounds you can run, the better the results. So, within reason, we will try to run multiple rounds.

The event WILL run the following weekend provided there are good conditions. Results from the first weekend may or may not be combined with the second...based on what seems fair and what events can be run again.

The schedule during the week depends heavily on the wind. We won't fight in very light wind to run multiple boring rounds all week. But, if it keeps honking...we will be running daily events.

Freestyle will be actual competition with heats and elimination formats. Boardercross will be the same...long distance will be everyone at once, but run multiple times.

I hope this helps, sorry I don't have definitave answers. We're trying to stay flexible to maximize the wind and make the sport look as cool as we all know it is!

I say, If you can only come this weekend, come...it is going to go off for sure. From there, who knows!!!

I hope you and your crew can head on down...you have some winners in the pack!

[kent]

sounds good, but will there be a result after this weekend only or will it just continue? i'd recommend letting everyone know what you are looking to get in this weekend so that we know if it can be finished. I.e. if 3 races are run, it is a complete result? Most of us have other plans for the next weekend and can't really stay for the week. Given this, should we sign up or just come to ride and get our gear ready for jupiter?

[windchasers]

The slider's coming along

[ricki]

JP Robinson of Island Fame sent along these recent shots of Whale Harbor in Islamorada ...


da launch



A look NE, up keys across the cut toward Holiday Isle, the old venue. It's going to be a blast!

[b-rad]

Oh Kent...I see what you're saying. It looks like we will run freestyle and boardercross most of the day sat and sun... If we have two days of solid wind, we will have results after this weekend.