Townsville had 3 consistent days of wind for the Coconet Classic which was run at Pallaranda.

Plenty of media coverage saw a reasonabel crowd show up for the finals on Saturday of the free ride.

Results were
1Drew Mcpherson forn Tvlle
2Zebb Peters - Brisbane Wello
3Ryan Griffiths -Brisbane Wello
4Mat Payne - Tvlle

A very strong field of 6 masters rode but still waing for results.

Today is the kicker and slider event at Alva beach

- I am now back in the office very sunburnt and tired.
Great to catch up with the usual suspects and meet some new up and coming riders .

Bruce
Its Extreme

Yeah, congrats on a well run event Matt.

However, not as many riders attended as was hoped... Those who didn't missed out on a great event. Make sure you get there next year, well worth it.

Plus Matt's powered kiteloop to flat 3 that he almost landed was the sickest thing I have seen in a long time. No doubt one big set required...gutsy rider.

Local guy Mario won the masters.

Well done.

Joe

fk yeah, & its not just the competitors you need to look out for,
loose kite + lines = spectator injury. There should be 2 first aid persons at the very least, and they should be decked out with lots of happy gass and stuff. Also maybe a few cute nurses who professional massage in their spare time.

Enjoyed watching the event on Saturday afternoon. I think most of the people seated around me seemed to be having a good time. Nice way to spend an afternoon. But... I think in the future there should be a temporary barricade set up at least 10 or so meters from the shore when there is an onshore wind. Toddlers, babies in prams, kites & lines don't mix. Not a problem until a rider stacks it and the kite comes crashing down on the beach (which happened a couple of times). Look mummy, look at the pretty kite..... whomp.

Hey Zac,
glad to hear that you're ok. About the ambulance at the event, well i informed Queensland Ambulance of the event days before it was on. I told them exact lcoation details and that there was access to the beach for a 4WD. They told me they were going to get a 4WD Ambulance in Townsville that weekend for the event. The first aid kit we had on hand wasn't a K-Mart cheapy, it is the same kit carried by truck drivers all over oz and is sufficient to treat minor injuries at car accidents. We had 3 senior first aid officers on the beach, including myself and from my understanding another one of our first aid officers treated you very well until the ambulance arrived. We would have liked to have had ambulance officers on hand at the beach all day, however we simply couldn't afford it. They charge $58 and hour and require you to pay for an extra hour for set-up and packdown. With only 20 registrations for the event there is no way we could have afforded this!

I hope your finger fully recovers from what happened.

Matt

-Townsville is full of rednecks
yeh, Townsville is in Queensland

-no medical staff hired for the day
unfortunately Dr Patel had to leave QLD, lucky no emergency amputations were required huh? well....

-no 1 had a clue what was going on
Queensland

-dudes wear cowboys hats there
Again, Townsville is in Queensland

+Townsville has some ripping rednecks (QLD)

Hey Bill and all those that posted positive remarks on the event, thanks for your kind words. Being our first attempt at something this big, we expected that things wouldn't run smoothly, even with the months of organisation that went into it. We're taking on board all of the positives and negatives from this years event though and hopefully this will make next year's event bigger and better. For the minority of people who continually try to bring down the massive efforts that people put in to organise these events for the benefit of the Australian kiteboarding community here's a few facts to set you straight on the Townsville event:

1) Yes we did advertise $10,000 in cash AND prizes, and we had this to give away. However, we only received 13 entries in the Pro mens, 1 entry in the Pro womens, 1 entry in the Groms, 2 entries in the Amateurs and 6 entries in the Masters. We had expected to receive at least 40 entries in total, especially with a $1500 cash prize on offer for the Pro mens. As a result of the lack of entries we had no choice but to drastically cut back on the prize money to make up for the 1000's of $$ we didn't receive in entry fees so that we could cover the running costs of the event.

2) Riders rigged, launched and landed their kites in the designated launch/land area which was clearly marked out and was NOT in the same area where the spectators were. Anyone who was actually at the event would be able to tell you this.

3) As far as safety goes, the local ambulance authority was notified of the event in advance. A 4WD Ambulance was apparently being brought down to Townsville for the weekend of the comp should it be needed. They did, however, say that they couldn't promise that this would be the vehicle that would respond to any calls, as it would depend on whether it was available at the time of the call. There were 3 senior first aid officers present at all times during the event and there was a first aid kit present that was suitable for dealing with minor car accident injuries.

4) Yes, local riders were officials and judges. We couldn't afford to pay for anyone to come up to judge the comp, so we had no choice. KBM riders judged the comp in Cairns earlier this year, and one of them was in the final - i didn't hear of many complaints about this. I'm sure anyone who was actually at the Townsville comp will agree that the people in the final were the better riders on the day.

5) Yes we had hoped that this would be one of Oz's biggest comps, largely because we thought that by offering a huge cash prize we would attract a massive field of competitors. Unfortunately we didn't get many competitors at all, but i'm sure all of those who attended he event had an awesome time.

6) Yes, we didn't hire any medical staff for the event as we simply couldn't afford it. Queensland Ambulance charge $58 an hour per officer at the event and then charge an extra hour for set-up and then pack-down.

7) Yes the officials did have a clue what was going on during the event - i realise it may not have run as well as some more established events, like the It's Extreme Kite Week, but all involved gave there best efforts. I would like to thank everyone who helped out during the event, no matter how big or small their contribution was.

8) Yes, dudes do wear Cowboys hats up here. What the f*ck do you expect? OUR TEAM IS IN THE GRAND FINAL!

Matt

Matty as we had disscussed earlier people who dont organize an event have no idea on the inner workings of putting one together and how much work it takes.All of a sudden you hear the whingers who werent even there taking a swipe.Matt hold your head high for a first event you and your MOB did pretty well.Still a little way from being as good as tannum though,but i suppose you have to aim high.as for insider mate pull your head in you have no idea so shut up.