posted Dec 29th, 2012 - There were times with real winter breaks in the history of skydiving competition, but that was long ago...

US teams went south if they really wanted to train in the winter, and European teams traveled across the Atlantic Ocean for their winter training.

The earliest competitions of the new skydiving season in the western hemisphere were the Valentine's Meet at Skydive Arizona in February and the Shamrock Showdown - now the Paraclete XP Outdoor Championship - at Skydive DeLand in March.

The wind tunnels have changed the meet world with the painfully long winter breaks, and the 2013 season will begin with several indoor meets before the first outdoor events will be held.

Teams in the Czech Republic will post the first 2013 scores on January 10th at the Sportflight Arena in Prague, and SkyVenture New Hampshire follows up a week later with live NSL News coverage.

Paraclete Indoor 2012		Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	AA Class	C,20,13	B,18,O,8	K,A,16,Q	H,F,J,4	2,11,10	M,E,21,22	P,L,3,12	14,6,D	G,1,19	N,5,9	Total	Avg
1	Chocolate Friction	14	14	17	22	11	17	15	12	14	16	152	15.2
2	Monster XP4	7	15	17	14	12	15	15	13	14	12	134	13.4
3	Levity	7	10	9	13	8	9	8	10	3	9	86	8.6
4	Mass Alliance	7	6	2	11	6	11	5	4	5	9	66	6.6
5	Airtight	3	6	5	9	4	8	5	6	6	4	56	5.6

Then it will be time for the annual Paraclete XP Indoor Championships on February 2 - 3, also once again with live NSL News coverage.

Organizer John D'Annunzio, Paraclete XP4 and XP8 member himself, said that he will continue with the colorful combination of categories that made the event so entertaining and competitive in the past years.

He will also once again include the 8way competition, which was very successful last year. His new and very strong 8way lineup will probably have its first showing at the event.

However, John D'Annunzio emphasized that he wants to encourage more participation in the AA/Intermediate Class competition.

The Paraclete XP Indoor Championships have been famous for the first high-profile competition of the new year where the best US teams usually had their first showdown and could win serious prize money.

This year, there will also be more attention on the AA/Intermediate Class competition, and John D'Annunzio wants to show the appreciation for the teams in this category, as well, by offering some attractive prizes.

Only the AAA/Open Class teams won the 4way prize money in the past and will again this year: $4000 for the winner, $2000 for the team in 2nd and $1000 for the 3rd place.

However, John D'Annunzio also has a special treat for the AA/Intermediate Class teams. The winner gets four plane tickets to the USPA Nationals 2013 from anywhere in the United States, with a maximum of $500 per ticket. The team in 2nd place wins one hour, the 3rd place team 30 minutes of free tunnel time.

Five teams competed in this category in February 2012. It was the first time that the Paraclete XP Indoor Championship included a competition for the AA/Intermediate Class teams.

There were no prizes offered for this category, and the free trip to the USPA Nationals this year will most likely motivate more AA Class teams to give indoor 4way competition a try.

The NSL News will be at Paraclete XP in February to report who will travel for free to compete at Skydive Chicago later in 2013.