I think the AKSA has just realised what I've known for sometime......that there are two distinct sports happening now.
Kitesurfing and Kiteboarding, each with specialised gear and skills.

Ideally, the former needs side-shore bearaway down-the-line waves and the latter requires butter-smooth flatwater with space....all with good consistent wind.

Geraldton is a freak of nature that satisfies these requirements of both sports. Oh, and let's not forget about the nukin winds.

Gero may be the yardstick to gauge all future Nationals, but try replicating those same conditions anywhere on the East Coast.
That's a hard act to follow!

'slave the soul-kiter.

... if the STATE championships have a great deal of hype... sponsorship ...prizes, and good planning .... they really will set the scene and get people looking foreward to the NATs

There is more to the decision to hold 2 competitions, and while I still think there are locations that would be ideal to run both, for now that does not seem like it is going to happen.

The only 2 responses that AKSA received for the 2005 Nats were from Vic and a group on the Gold Coast.
Andrew Regan, AKSA VP, dropped in to see me yesterday, and explained the reasoning behind the decision to have the 2 comps.
Its pretty simple really, Vic has a strong group of volunteers based in Melb and some sponsors, so does the Goldy group. If one or the other was chosen, the potential was to lose a great sponsor, and if Vic was chosen, then there would be no wave event. The decision was finalised at the recent AGM, and there was a lot of notice given about that meeting

My suggestion to Andrew was to create 2 separate comps now, one freestyle based, and the other wave based, simply because the sport has evolved into these 2 directions, each with specific water and wind conditions. Many other aspects of the 2 disciplines are unique to each of them, even the judging will be quite different.
Its the same in other sports, why not kiteboarding.

The complex and contentious issue of combining the events to produce an overall champion is something no-one seems to want to tackle, and I wonder if that is really because everyone believes that there are now 2 distinctly different variations to the sport of kiteboarding.?

The overall results at Gero did not really reflect a popular ranking of Best overall, simply because of the weighting of freestyle over waveriding, and that argument will never end, waveriders are always going to believe their discipline is more important, and vice versa.

I remember when some of the more vocal people in this thread were 100% freesyle riders and now they are almost the other way, they live for riding waves, and the change was not that long ago.

After talking to Andrew for quite a while, it was very obvious that he and all the other committee members gave this issue of splitting the comps very serious thought and in fairness to them they made a difficult decision with the future good of the sport firmly in mind. This is a decision for the future and I think we all need to calm down a little (me included) and consider that we will now have 2 separate titles, Australian Freestyle and Australian Waveriders, and possibly an overall title, if the weighting issue cane ever be resolved !

The AKSA committee are a passionate and hard working bunch of kiters, they do seriously consider our needs, and I did mention the need for greater transparency to Andrew and I am sure he and the committee will be giving more thought to how this can be achieved. "Trants" idea of putting the minutes of every meeting on the AKSA website, is a good one and a simple link put here by Laurie, when he gets notification from AKSA would solve a lot of problems IMO.

There have been some great ideas in this thread, and the AKSA committee have some excellent ones of their own too, lets give them a break to see what else they can do to improve an already very productive, functional and relevent AKSA.

The issue of travelling to events in Oz is a bit of a furphy, we live in a country that is several thousand klms wide, has 30,000 klms of coastline, travelling is just part of life here. I found the trip to Gero much easier to do than the trip I made to the Gold Coast Nats. No-one is being forced to enter comps, and its not like going to these places is not fun, we are getting to go kiting and meet with all our friends. The extra expense involved for those that truly want to try amd win the Best Overall title, is just par for the course and it is ultimately their choice. If it were not for the dedication and lots of hard work by large groups of volunteers, then there would be no comps at all.

Cya and

Goodwinds

Steve McCormack

quote:

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Originally posted by Kiting Monkey

So the locations were selected beacuase of the volunters!!that makes sense. What happened to all the cash AKSA had? Well according to the news letter they spent it on themselves Admin fees and sh#t!!!

Heaps of location in OZ have some flat and wave. Moorocydore on the sunny coast has sick river mouth for the flat and waves within walking distance.

AKSA clearly dont have the public or kiters in mind.

we need a new association its that simple.

BOYCOTT AKSA or see the further demise of kitesurfing in OZ

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So your going to organise a new association and get it off the ground, and then oversee it and ensure that 100% of the people are happy 100% of the time?
If not then shutup

I fully understand an event can't be run unless someone or some group volunteer to do it. I've also seen first hand what a thankless task it is being on the natioanl and state committees. Everyone needs to remember we all want wants best for the sport, but like anything, different people have different views.

I have re-read all the AKSA newsletters and have always been aware location volunteers were being sought. However no where except in the final decision was splitting of the event mentioned. I'm certain had it been raised as a possibility publicy this mess of conflicting opinions and interests could have been avoided.

I also think the sport is too underdeveloped to stand up to a splitting of disciplines, for goodness sake we can't even agree amongst ourselves what's 'cool', 'legitimate' etc. let alone expect a wider public, media, and sponsor market to take our disciplines seriously.

I guess the main trouble I'm having accepting AKSA's decision regards the 2006 Nationals is that the AGM (for those who aren't aware that stands for Annual General Meeting, an event that happens ONCE A YEAR ONLY and in most contexts is a big and important event) only lasted 25 MINUTES. Opened at 12:45pm and all the highly relevant criticial decisions facing the body for the year were discussed and sorted by 1:10pm!!! Look up the minutes on the AKSA website dor yourself to verify.

As mentioned before I understand it's a hard task but do you really expect me to take your decision seriously when it's all done and sorted in 25 MINUTES?

I hope a workable solution can be found. Competing riders ought to receive the accolades they deserve as AKSA acknowledges yet splitting the disciplines up cheapens them and devalues the rider. Yes kiteboarding is a water sport with some similarities to windsurfing but it is a unique sport as we all know and should not be forced down the same competition path of windsurfing. Create our own system, don't lets mimick other sports and sell ourselves short.

Jess

As my last post on this topic for the time being, I would like to know 2 things.

1. The price of lodging in Melb. and Gold Coast?

2. Will there be room for kiters (like volunteers) other than the competitors?

Coming off a trifecta....3 early sessions in a row at PT. Why would I even consider going anywhere else to kite than my own backyard.........I must be stupid.

Hmmmm.....lots of things sneaking into this topic that need to be elsewhere.

It's great to see that a few have opinions about the nationals and it's suggested format and are not afraid to voice them.

On the surface I feel that it is a bit sad that the Nationals is to be split into "disciplines". As taking something apart is always going to devalue it to a certain extent. No matter what it is.

However, there are logisitical things and volunteer support which dictate decision making and lead to "restrictions" creeping in. It is very difficult to run waves and freestyle together at the same competition and it was just awesome what the volunteers achieved in Geraldton. To be able to repeat that somewhere else in Australia is a very, very big ask. (pat on the back for all of those involved) All we wanted to achieve was shift the focus more to kiteboarding being bigger than just freestyle.

Location of an event where two disciplines are combined such as wave riding and freestyle doesn't mean that you have to have flat water and waves. You really only need to have waves.

Freestylers parking their kites at 45 and doing tricks on flat water will produce the "big moves", that a small minority seem to be focussing on as the "cutting edge" of our sport. Some even think that "wave riding" is the only go.

It's not about splitting things up into disciplines in my opinion.

It's about having a location where the best rider can win and be National champion determined by his OVERALL kiting ability. As I see a National Champion as a KITEBOARDING national champion. That means he uses a kite and a board to show what he can do in the environment given. If that location is a wave breaking beach break then so be it. Show us how high you can do your tricks off a wave ramp, show us a handle pass, show us a bottom turn, use the conditions to show what you can do all round. I personally think that is what kiteboarding is.

I even think going fast ie "racing" whether it be a down winder, up winder, time trial...whatever. Should be included as that is what a lot of people like to do too. Kiteboarding is so young that their is no "New School" cutting edge stuff. we are simply doing what is already out there in other sports or other expressions that someone did ages ago. There is no way you can say one trick is worth more points than another. Kitelooping is really the only thing that makes our sport a bit different from other sports as we do something with the kite rather than just doing something under the kite.

It's how a kiter demonstrates what he can do smoothly. If that's a board off and a handle pass and a nice couple of turns on a wave and getting into orbit doing a deadman all in the same run then that is good kiting.

So what am I saying?.

I'm saying the event steering committee needs to have a good hard look at what kiteboarding actualy IS and take into account what the membership actually does, and that's everything....wave riding...freestyle....wake style.....and....going quickly (racing).

To determine a National Champion all of this,......again just my opinion.....needs to be judged.

You can do that all in one location, all you need is water with waves. It doesn't have to be the "BEST" location for one style or the other, it just needs wind. We are kiters, not wakeboarders, not surfers, we are all of that together but in essence we are kiters. I will never bitch about locations and choices of locations, because I am spoilt and I know it. We are lucky to have such a big country where we can kite and enjoy. Where it is we choose to play and enjoy is dictated by economics. If everyone could affford to travel we would.

Respect needs to be given to AKSA and to all membership by respecting that when a location has been chosen, you come, you kite, you do your best and you deal with the conditions that are there.

The determination of how that is achieved in terms of judging is what the focus needs to be on. Not splitting the disciplines, keeping it all together.

One location.....judge according to the location. What happens if you organise a wave event and there's no swell?. Do you run a freestlye?. Damn right you do. You judge the event to see who is the best, at that given point in time in that location. Riders just need to deal with it and do their best.

Another thing, One state association each year organising. Under guideance from AKSA....bring the associations closer together by helping each other out, build up the local associations by supporting and encouraging. Set it up so that it is a locked in tour of the country year after year. Let the state association choose where they want it based upon who they can get to help from their membership.

SA
WA
QLD
NSW
VIC

That will give each state association 4 years to get it together before it comes back around. This sport is here to stay and we need to think that way if we are to grow.

Ok, now I need to go and continue supporting my stressing fiance' and work out how I am going to find a baby sitter for her friends children when they fly into Frankfurt Germany from the US for the wedding who speaks English. Then send my Dad some maps so he can learn the route to the Airport so I can have him pick up arrivals. Translate my wedding speech into German and learn it off by heart. I'm stressing far more than when the nationals where looming up 40 days away I can assure you.

Hope what I have said helps this sport move morward a little more smoothly.

God Bless

Keep our sport open and free to change, don't pigeon hole it by splitting it up so early.

Im sorry if anyone has already said this but its to much to read lol. Why dont we just copy the PKRA and have the nats at one convinient surf location. the wakestyle riders might not like it but surely its takes more skill to pull powered moves in the surf than on flat water. That way the best all around riders and most complete kiteboarders will stand out.
DONT SPLIT THE NATS
DONT SPLIT THE NATS
DONT SPLIT THE NATS
DONT SPLIT THE NATS
DONT SPLIT THE NATS
DONT SPLIT THE NATS

So Gav, you want....

A party contest that's freestyle in waves or (if it's flat) freestyle in ripples and B.Y.O. wind ^^

You can't have a National KiteSURFING Champ who's crap in waves.
That's gay.
That's oxymoronic.

IMHO again.
Apologies to all AKSA 'volunteer' officials if my earlier response seemed overly critical. I know how thankless these tasks can be & it wasnt personal - at all.
Having read all the responses to date I am tending to think that Chopper (just above)+ others are heading the right way.
Perhaps we are a sport of divided disciplines. Kite'surfing' & Kite'boarding' should perhaps be separate titles. I'm still not at all comfortable with THE NATIONALS being held 1000's of ks apart but it does seem appropriate to drop the whole idea of a national champ having to excel in both 'sports'. For sure they are different. A top rate freestyler (handlepasses etc etc) is sure to have developed some skills in waves as a matter of course.
Not necessarily the reverse but. There are plenty of 'kitesurfers' out there already who couldnt give a frogs doodle about handle passes or fancy wake-style moves but who could rank themselves up with the best on any wave on any day.
Perhaps it is the time to separate the emphasis and run separate comps. A National Freestyle Kiteboarding Comp. and a National Kitesurfing Wave Comp.
If this is a reasonable concept then the stage is certainly set for it the way things are planned at the moment for 2006.
So then theres the problem for us 'spectator only' types
sunny QLD for the Kitesurfing wave nationals
OR
St. KILDA beach for a week of freestyle - (OMG Im not going there verbally or in person either )
Give me QLD & Waves - if its Either/Or - easy pick 4 this spectator.

Let the debate continue .........................

Four pages to this topic thus far and counting.
AKSA should pay a premium for all the ideas and brain-storming happening here. $23,000 in the bank.....rich AKSA.

How about a free AKSA T-shirt to all members, no rephrase that, to all posters, cause I won't join a club.

It's simple really,

Either drop the overall National champ thing and have seperate events ie National kite SURFER and National kite BOARDER held on different dates in different locations

OR

Run the event in waves and as others have said Free Style with waves and board offs and handle passes and kiteloops and and and etc etc.

We've done it in the two nationals prior to Gero, it was only the judging that was whinged about and the organisation, not the conditions. There is flat water between the waves and if it truly is 'wake' style, then the closest thing you have to real wake is surf, so why all the bitching. Just add the 2 rider priority bouy system to a wave location and announce "FREE STYLE" and let everyone go for it, everything counts and add a style multiplier. Easy!

I still reckon seperate locations bite if there is to be an overall champion!

The debate is interesting if nothing else.

Or we could all just go kiting and all declare ourselves winners and be done with it