posted Apr 8th, 2015 - It was not really a big surprise that SDC Rhythm XP once again increased the team record average for a 10-round indoor competition at the World Challenge 2015. In fact, the Sun Path Products NSL News concluded on 24 March 2015 that this could somehow be expected:

"Rhythm's next opportunity is coming up next week. Arizona Airspeed will not compete at the World Challenge 2015. However, Rhythm can do once again what the team has been doing patiently year by year: increasing the performance level and meet average.

26.6 is Rhythm's new indoor team record average. There is more than enough top level competition in Bedford to create a peak performance environment, including NMP-PCH Hayabusa, and the next ten Rhythm rounds will show whether Airspeed has to be concerned or not..."

Paraclete XP Indoor 2015		Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Class	D,2,8	4,J,B,17	14,19,P	1,L,20	11,21,G	Q,C,H,22	3,12,5	M,E,16,9	N,10,6	K,7,O,15	Total	Avg
1	Arizona Airspeed (US)	25	30	22	26	25	36	25	39	27	32	287	28.7
2	SDC Rhythm XP (US)	23	30	22	24	26	33	21	34	23	30	266	26.6

Whether they were or are concerned or not - Arizona Airspeed had the opportunity to look at the scores of both opponents last weekend. SDC Rhythm XP (26.6 - 27.3) and Golden Knights (25.4 - 26.2) both finished with higher meet averages, compared to the Paraclete XP Indoor Championship 2015, where they competed together with Arizona Airspeed.

Both US teams in Bedford maintained the distance between each other (1.2 - 1.1) almost exactly. One of the main questions is behind the competition draw. Were the higher meet averages caused by ten faster sequences or by an improved performance level?

This topic will be discussed in the three team rooms in Raeford and Belgium, and the teams will find their own conclusions. However, the Sun Path Products NSL News will once again take a closer look at the numbers from a different perspective.

World Challenge 2015			Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	AAA Class		15,K,E,F	11,22,A	16,H,M,19	3,10,D	17,18,P	4,12,O	5,N,L,G	14,B,C,20	2,1,21	J,Q,6,13	Total	Avg
1	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	BE	40	24	32	25	29	26	38	30	24	33	301	30.1
2	SDC Rhythm XP	US	36	24	28	22	28	23	34	26	23	29	273	27.3

An earlier story on 2 February 2015 used a special equation to compare the performance level of Arizona Airspeed and SDC Rhythm XP indirectly with each other after the results of the 5th Dubai International Parachuting Championship 2014 and the Wind Games 2015.

This time, the scores of the indoor meets in Raeford and Bedford can also indicate the current situation between NMP-PCH Hayabusa and Arizona Airspeed, even though Airspeed was watching the competition only from the distance.

SDC Rhythm XP competed at both most recent indoor meets, and the Rhythm scores provide the mathematical foundation for a qualified guess how Airspeed would have finished in Bedford. The correlated numbers would have Airspeed with a 29.5 at the World Challenge, which would make it seem like not too much has changed since the Wind Games, where Hayabusa and Airspeed were both on competition site and finished with a similar difference (30.4 - 29.4) after ten indoor rounds. Hayabusa's lead (30.1 - 29.5) has only slightly decreased, and the equation does not consider the potentially increased Rhythm performance, disregarding the competition draw. The races continue...

Wind Games 2015		Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	4-way Open	C,17,6	3,4,M	F,11,15	D,2,5	J,13,N,K	Q,1,O,P	19,22,B	10,7,9	14,G,H,16	L,E,8,12	Total	Avg
1	NMP-PCH Hayabusa (BE)	33(-1)	28	31	32	32	36(-1)	28	29	29	26(-1)	304(-3)	30.4
2	Arizona Airspeed (US)	32(-1)	30	30	29	34	32(-5)	24(-3)	30	29	24(-3)	294(-12)	29.4