Australian Nationals, WA 2005 -your input required.

WA will be hosting the Australian National Kitesurf Championship in late January or early February 2005. The WAKSA committee is seeking membership suggestions on location, dates and format of the event prior to a planning meeting due to be held in two weeks.

This is your opportunity to have a say and help this to be an awesome event. We require your input by Monday 5th April. Please email [email protected] or write to WAKSA, PO Box 275. Scarborough. WA 6922 with your suggestions on the following:

1. Where should the event be held? Why?
2. When should this be? Why?
3. What disciplines should the championship include, ie freestyle, wave, race, big air?


The aim of the championship is to determine the Australian Kitesurf Champion(s) in a safe event that provides the best chance of superb kiting for the competitors. In order to achieve this, the following factors need to be considered:

Location
· Safety of spectators, officials and competitors
· Sailing conditions: wind, waves, space
· Access, local support and infrastructure. This is perhaps secondary to the first two points, but important in ensuring sufficient support from volunteers upon whom the success of such an event depends.

Dates
· It is proposed to run the nationals the week following the Rottnest Kitesurf Classic (race only). Note Australia Day public holiday is Wednesday 26th January
· A national championship typically runs for 7 or 8 days.

Kitesurf Disciplines
· Given there will be 64 competitors, which disciplines should be included. From a timing and organisational point of view, it may only be practical to include two.

Finally, please contact the committee if you would be willing to help with the running of this event, either in the planning/organisational stage, or during the event itself.

We look forward to receiving your ideas.

WAKSA
Committee

I met with AKSA representatives, nationals organisers and a lot of the competitors when I was in Sydney during the nationals.

The main point to come out of my various meetings was the fact that the nationals should be for the riders and not ( as they have been in the past) for the spectators and media.

As has been put forward by other threads apart from seeking the best conditions, we also have to consider the logistics i.e. who is going to organise it, what format and where will the social functions be, how will judging be done, transport (especially for guys from the east), etc. etc.

Some people have already emailed to the WAKSA committee (at [email protected]) with suggestions and offers to help run the event.

To help us with planning, if you are able to help during the event, please send us an email so we can start building up a database of volunteers.

So drop us an email and let us know what you can do to make it the best nationals ever.

Thanks,

Ian Grose
[email protected]