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AlohaClassic-final day
14th November – Final day
The Chilli Aloha Classic has provided a magnificent climax to the PWA season for 2000. From day one the action in waves and race has been none stop and the competitors have delivered everything that was expected in the world tour final.
The final day was a highly charged day of race action at Kanaha where Kevin Pritchard repeatedly blistered past everyone taking first in every round, leaving no doubt of his rightful place as a champion. The surf and strong winds made it an exciting end to the competition and provided a number of thrills and spills as sailors pushed themselves and their equipment to the max to try and gain maximum points in the closing hours of the 2000 PWA world tour.
Micah Buzianis US-34 (Drops, North) continued to chase hard but was not able to match Kevin’s board speed. Speed together with blistering starts gave Kevin the edge necessary to win and take victory. Bjorn was also showing excellent form but took a big spill in the second final of the day, catching a rail and disappearing in a wash of white water.
Kevin’s outstanding consistency made it easy to work out who had won the day the event and the overall championship. It was an emotional moment on the beach for Phil McGain KA-7 (Gaastra) and the rest of the Team when the realisation of Kevin’s result rang home.
Phil: ” It still hasn’t sunk in. We’ve been aiming for this for so long and whenyou finally get there it’s an incredible feeling. Kevin has had a big year and with the sails all together things have gone to plan. There was nothing else we could have done to prepare and tonight we’re going to be celebrating!”
Kevin: ” Nobody was going to let me walk away with it today. I kept the hammer down kept pushing hard and to come out on top is definitely a good feeling.”
In the women’s racing Junko Nagoshi J-11 took two firsts and had a great final day of the competition. However the real battle of the day was between Daida Moreno E-64 (Mistral,North) and Colette Guadagnino V-711 (V2 Max, Neil Pryde) in the race for third place. Karin Jaggi Z-14 (F2, Arrows) was also hot on Daida’s heals in several of the rounds. For Daida to take the overall title she needed to hold on to at least third in racing overall. In the second round of the day Colette rattled Daida taking a win ahead of her. However Daida ‘s consistency taking second in every round gave her the result she needed.
Despite finishing third in two of the rounds Lucienne Ernst H-444 (Mistral,Arrows) retained the lead in the contest, ahead of Daida who finished in second and Junko who made it in to third following her excellent work on the final day.
The wave contest has received some of the best results of the winter and many of the sailors have felt comfortable sailing at Ho’okipa which many refer to as their ‘backyard’.
Francisco Goya A-211 (Fanatic, Arrows) won the first round after a couple of tough heats and demonstrated the skill and style that has given him the championship. Rush Randle US-321 (Fanatic) has returned from injury to fight off many of the seasoned world tour competitors and take second place.
Josh Angulo US-11 (RRD) has continued to show the world what he is capable of and finished the year with a good result in his hometown finishing third and moving him up to second in the overall wave ranking. Josh’s achievement is spectacular.Josh: ” Sure I’m happy it’s a great result for me. It’s strange, when you get so close you just want more and all I want know is to take first. I’ve had a great year and next year should be even better!”
Nik Baker K-66 (Mistral,North) has had a less than perfect event. Entering in second place overall Nik went out early in the first round. Despite a bad knee injury at the start of the second round Nik progressed through several tough heats but was unable to recover his position.
Angela Farrel US-21 (Simmer) sailed hard and used her local knowledge and experience to take first place in the event. Followed by Daida Moreno E-64 (Mistral,North) who had a tough final but still demonstrated her hard hitting style throughout the contest. Third was Motoko Kobayashi J-0 who was just one of a strong female Japanese fleet competing in the Chilli Aloha.
With superb conditions and some of the most spectacular action of the season the Chilli Aloha Classic has brought together the worlds best sailors in one of the most intense and demanding contests of the season.
Tomorrow night PWA sailors will all gather for the Awards Ceremony and presentation of trophies and prizes for Chilli Aloha Classic and the season.
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