posted Aug 4th, 2009 - The national championships are also in full swing in Russia. The first two rounds have been completed, and Skylight Barkli has a surprising 2-point lead over Black Cat.

The three Sky Panthers with Leonid Kazinets benefitted from a 4-point deduction for Black Cat in Round 2.

Black Cat actually outscored Skylight Barkli by two points but did not show the first four formations clearly on camera. Skylight Barkli had two clean rounds.

Kaktus Hunter, the Russian shooting star team, lost four points in the same round - but for a different reason. The center points of the pieces crossed each other each time Block 1 (Snowflake - Offset) came around, and the judges didn't like the team's technique.

The painful deduction of four points keeps Kaktus Hunter in 4th place at the moment. Cross Road had two clean rounds and will have to defend the 3rd place against Kaktus Hunter tomorrow. Gradient Alpha, at the team's 5th outdoor competition this year, is also in the race for the bronze medals.

Wolfhound, the only female lineup in the competition, lost two points in Round 1 in the judging room and additional time after a bad exit. Trouble with Block 5 (Opal - Opal) left Wolfhound with an 11-pointer in Round 2.

Team 2 by 2 competes for the first time in the AAA Class and keeps up with the other more experienced teams. Nursky in last place is a guest team from Kazakhstan.