posted May 23rd, 2012 - The latest NSL News contribution for the Blue Skies Mag and the "Turning Points" column was written after the Paraclete XP Outdoor Championship 2012 and before the World Challenge 2012.

The results of both events are well known, and the NSL News live coverage brought the web traffic to new peaks during those two most exciting 4way competitions. The article made the point that it seems to be impossible to predict who of the three top contenders from USA, France and Belgium might win the gold medals at the World Meet 2012.

The results of the World Challenge 2012 provided the evidence for this conclusion, as the rankings after Bedford were very different compared to the first outdoor competition in DeLand. The headline after the World Challenge could just as well have been "Did You Know that NMP-PCH Hayabusa is currently the #1 - or not"...

Turning Points: Arizona Airspeed is back to Number One - Really?

It was all speculation so far. Now there is hard evidence after the Paraclete XP Outdoor Championship 2012 in DeLand: Arizona Airspeed is back to Number One in the 4-way world.

This cannot be disputed. Airspeed posted the highest meet average in the history of the sport with a competition draw that did not include a so-called "super sequence." They beat the top rivals from France, Aerodyne Aerokart, and Belgium, NMP-PCH Hayabusa, fair and square at a 10-round outdoor competition with high-quality judging.

What else does it take to make the point? Nothing - Airspeed is currently number one. And that is the other point - currently.

France was number one after winning gold at the World Meet 2010 in Russia, then lost the top spot at the Shamrock Showdown 2011 where Airspeed won with their new lineup. France, with new member Emmanuel "Manu" Sarrazin, won World Cup 2011 and the Third Dubai Championship and took back the top position in the world without Airspeed's presence. Hayabusa moved closer and took the number one position for indoor 4-way competition at the same time. However, France was still the best outdoor team at the end of the 2011 season, with Airspeed waiting for the next opportunity to change the unofficial 4-way rankings. The Paraclete XP Outdoor Championship 2012 was exactly that opportunity, and Airspeed set things straight in DeLand.

Really? Airspeed was happy and confident after winning the meet, and they had every reason to be. But so were France and Hayabusa. Strange, isn't it? Athletes in other sports seem to be disappointed when they miss the top spot after aiming for it. How can you be happy after a meet where you lose to the team that you have to beat if you want to become the world champion by the end of the year?

Paraclete XP Outdoor 2012		Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Open Class	Q,8,H,22	16,19,13	10,14,2	E,C,20,K	5,M,9	A,6,F,17	D,21,N,B	P,O,G,J,1	18,4,7	12,15,3	Total	Avg
1	Arizona Airspeed	25	20(-1)	18(-1)	35	36(-1)	25(-4)	33	31	23(-1)	20	266	26.6
2	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	23	21	20	33	34(-2)	29	30(-2)	30	20(-3)	21	261	26.1
3	Aerodyne Aerokart	23(-1)	21	19(-1)	33	29(-4)	28(-2)	28	29(-1)	23	21	254	25.4

There are simple answers like, "We did our best," or, "This was not the World Meet yet." And then there are the more complicated answers that get closer to the truth and the reality.

France had serious excuses for a performance that was not even close to what they put out in Ger­many and Dubai in 2011. The team had literally no training before the first competition this year; round one was the first outdoor jump for the French team. There's more: Guillaume Bernier, one of the two brothers on the team, arrived at midnight from France the night before round one. The five rounds Friday were kind of tough, and the jetlag was surely not gone by Saturday. However, the French team never complained and enjoyed the meet as much as they could, even though the scores were not su­per exciting...

Hayabusa did not even plan to win at all and said so before the meet began. They had just started to work with coach Gary Smith who has changed some of the Hayabusa approaches to winning meets. They surprised themselves with the best performance in the team's history with the highest meet average ever, including the superfast com­petition draw at the World Meet 2010. Hayabusa reduced the 21-point difference to Airspeed at the last direct competition in March 2011 to five points now. The Belgians surely had their own reason to be happy with the outcome of the first 2012 outdoor competition and the direct confrontation with Airspeed.

What do the more complicated answers indicate? Arizona Airspeed is currently Number One; nothing has changed here. However, "currently" now has a deeper meaning, and the Airspeed members are fully aware of that. They know that there is absolutely no reason to lay back and relax.

The tired French team will recover and be well rested and highly focused at the World Meet in Dubai at the end of the year. They had their moments even during the tough DeLand meet when they outscored Airspeed in four of the ten rounds, and tied another one. Hayabusa is loaded with confidence after moving as close to Airspeed as never before at an outdoor competition. They will trust the new direction with coach Gary Smith and apply their unlimited energy and motivation even more efficiently. Hayabusa will not let Airspeed move further away again.

Arizona Airspeed is Number One in the 4-way world after the Paraclete XP Outdoor Champion­ship 2012. Just as France was Number One after the World Meet 2010. And as Airspeed was after the Shamrock Showdown 2011. Maybe as Hayabusa was after the World Challenge 2011. Or as France was at the end of the 2011 season.

World Challenge 2012		Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Open Class	D,Q,9,10	17,P,11	2,21,7	14,J,O,M	A,L,18,16	N,H,20,G	C,E,19,22	1,8,4	K,6,3	12,F,5	Total	Avg
1	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	34	33	25(-1)	36	28(-2)	35	30(-1)	25	28	30	304	30.4
2	Aerodyne Aerokart	31(-2)	31	25	37	28	33	26(-2)	23	27	30	291	29.1
3	Arizona Airspeed	34	29(-1)	24(-2)	34(-2)	28(-1)	34	29	22	26	30	290	29.0

Winning a meet doesn't mean that much any longer at the moment. It means taking home $3,000 cash (Paraclete XP Outdoor Champion­ship) or £5,000 (World Challenge) and collecting additional competition experience or impressing the direct competition. But that's about it - besides having a lot of fun doing what you love. Other than that, the 2012 season offers a level of excitement on the top level that is unique in the history of the sport. There are three teams who can arguably win a meet at any time. Each team's fan group may see it differently, as they should. However, the numbers and the more complicated answers to some questions indicate that none of the three top contenders will be able to move far away enough to have a walk in the park in Dubai.

Who has the best chance to win in Dubai? Well, according to the records of the past years, the win­ner in DeLand in March becomes the new U.S. or world champion. Winning the World Challenge in April had the same meaning in 2008 and 2010. Winning both events at the beginning of the 2012 season seems to guarantee the gold medals in Dubai. Arizona Airspeed has completed the first step and now travels to Bedford where the same rivals from France and Belgium will be waiting.

However, the pattern of the past could easily become history this year. Each of those three meets could easily produce a different winner. Hayabusa may repeat the indoor victory of 2011 in Bedford, and France could turn out to defend the 4-way gold medals in Dubai successfully. And Airspeed could also win all three events. Arizona Airspeed is currently the best 4-way team in the world. And that's about it...