posted Apr 14th, 2009 - The 12 best sequences of only Random Formations in Round 4 of the World Challenge 2009 have now been uploaded and can be viewed on YouTube NSL-TV.

It is quite a feast, as only one of these 12 teams scored below 40 points within working time. The whole 12-pack combined for a total of 557 points, which makes it a 46-pointer for the average team of this group.

It also means that these teams scored one point per 0.75 seconds in average. The highscorer of Round 4, Perris Fury, was still much faster than the average team. The Fury members managed to move, stop, grip and show a scoring formation in 0.59 seconds per point.

Most amazingly, the same 12 teams combined for a total of five infringements. 557 points were awarded, and five points were deducted at a breathtaking pace on the very top. The four teams in the 50s all had clean scoresheets. Arcteryx lost two points, Satori one, and Aerokart Deep Blue had the other two point deductions.

The NSL-TV camera had already captured the tunnel action of Round 4 from the up close perspective in the chamber. The video of the same performances from a different angle was posted with the story on 4 April 2009 and can still be reviewed by clicking here.

The same story already commented how Perris Fury had all of a sudden caught up with Airspeed. After a bad Round 2, where Fury had lost four points in the judging room and was now seven points behind Airspeed, the Perris team came back with a sole highscore in Round 3 and then even took the lead after the 59-pointer in Round 4.

Airspeed came back strongly, as well, and eventually won the meet clearly by 11 points over Fury. However, Airspeed's top challenger, besides Spaceland Force XP, got exactly the meet experiences that the Fury members are out for this year: coming from behind, catching up, dealing with leading and trailing, plus high pressure from the beginning to the end.

How do the results at the World Challenge 2009 relate to the race for this year's gold medals at the USPA Nationals? The NSL News story on 9 April 2009 had already compared Airspeed's scores with France Maubeuge's goal to win the World Meet 2010 in Russia.

The story on 26 March 2009 had provided the latest update after the FSL Shamrock Showdown 2009. Perris Fury had managed to get a little bit closer to the reigning 4-way world champions from Arizona even though the 15-point difference in DeLand didn't really indicate this.

The situation after the World Challenge 2009 is very similar. Airspeed won clearly and without a doubt, however, the numbers show once again that Perris Fury is still on the right track from the team's perspective. The floating chart shows that the Perris team has moved closer.

There are even more good signs for Perris Fury. The challenger did not win a single round over Airspeed at the Shamrock Showdown after two highscores at the Valentine's Meet 2009 in February. Now Fury won three of ten rounds over Airspeed, more than ever before at a meet with the original lineup. Fury also tied Airspeed's score in one more round in Bedford.

Will it impress the world champions? Most likely not at all, as Airspeed is ready to be challenged more and harder in the future. The live interview with Airspeed in Bedford gave enough evidence that the 4-way veterans are prepared for tough races at any time.

It still is Fury's job to get even closer, and the team members are highly motivated to do so. They see the success of their efforts to collect more competition experiences, and they will continue to work hard until the last minute. The next opportunity to butt heads again with the defending champion is probably the Indoor Skydiving Championships at Paraclete XP in June.