Slowly and surely, and perhaps without much notice, the National Skydiving League is beginning to blossom.  It hasn't quite reached the NBA (National Basketball Association) proportions, as its founder Kurt Gaebel would like, but it is quickly becoming one of the largest competition structures our sport has ever seen.  Even the high-profile America's Cup Tour doesn't have the same regional structure, meet frequency or DZ participation as the NSL.  Nor does it have as many repeat competitors; many America's Cp teams compete only one or twice a year, while NSL teams compete four to 10 times a year.

Gaebel started the Florida Skydiving League in unison with the NSL.  Not only was it meant to be a model and test bed for other leagues, but it was also designed to instigate; Gaebel knew other leagues would be more likely to get involved if the leg work was done for them.  And he was right.

In 1997, a few months after the FSL got underway, independent leagues from Georgia and Texas kicked off their first seasons.  They joined the NSL last year.  This year, five new leagues have hopped on the NSL bandwagon, bringing the nationwide total to eight.  Four other leagues ae interested, but have't yet committed.  That means as many as 12 teams - one team from each league - will battle it out for the NSL championships this September in Florida.

Teams from Florida, Georgis and Texas squared off last year for the NSL title.  Gaebel set a precedent then by paying all travel and competition expenses for the Georgia and Texas teams.  He also covered the competition expenses for the Florida team.  Although he hopes to acquire enough sponsorship support again this year to do the same for all league champions, he's not making any promises.

"It is a very realistic goal, in my eyes," Gaebel said.  "But I cannot promise that right now.  But as soon as the money is available I will go out and officially make that announcement.

"But it's the same policy as last year: The NSL is not going to make a dime on all sponsorship monies coming in.  It's all going into the NSL Championships again.  And the goal is, as last year, to raise enough money to be able to cover all the expenses for the teams which will be invited. 

"I'm also positive that I will raise a lot of money again, and hopefully have money to cover all expenses.  But I'm pretty sure that I can at least cover all the jumps or all the travel, or whatever."

Compensated or not, each league winner will be invited to the finals.  This year's NSL newcomers are the Northwest (Washington and Oregon), Ranch (Gardiner, N.Y.), Missouri, Midwest (Illinois), and Northeast (New York and New Jersey) Skydiving Leagues.  Leagues from Arizona, Calfornia, Pennsylvania and South Carolina are straddling the fence.  While the schedules and number of teams vary among the league, their competition formats - rules and handicap systems - mimic the NSL's.

However, the NSL championship will be structured differently.  Gaebel recently published the championship's trial format on his Web site (www.skyleague.com).  It wil combine the IPC's recently proposed format changes with some other ideas from Gaebel and other competitors.  The result is a two-day, 12-round meet.  All teams will compete the first day in a standard six-round meet.  Eight teams will advance to the quarterfinals where they will pair off in a two-round, timed event.  Teams will exit in a star formation, sprint through six block and/or random formations, and then back to a star.

The clock starts when the team breaks the first star -or four seconds after exit - and stops when it builds the second star.  Exit altiude is 6,500 feet; working time is 15 seconds.  The team with the lowest two-round time advances.  The four winning teams then pair of for two more rounds of the same thing.  The winners of that match-up then face off for the NSL Championship, while the losers battle it out for third place.

Skydive Deland will host the competition September 4-5. 
Telephone Gaebel at (904)734-1598.