posted Jun 12th, 2015 - The Sun Path Products NSL News switches back to outdoor competition before the 4-way teams in Southern and Northern California will post scores this weekend. There is an interesting topic that has not been given much attention recently.

Today's update begins with a quiz question for the 4-way experts: "Which team was the last one posting only 20-pointers and higher at a 10-round outdoor competition?" Of course, the question includes naturally when and where it happened the last time.

It was a topic that was covered on a regular basis at a time when it was impressive to see how the best teams in the world were pushing the limits. The progression has continued, even though the numbers have not really changed that much in the past years.

The story of the "Elite Club" of 4-way teams began with the 20-point average, when the Sun Path Products NSL News reported on July 8th, 2007, that Germany and Canada had 4-way teams with 20+ averages after meets on their home turfs.

However, the "4-way Elite Club" soon lifted the required membership standards. It was not the 20-point average any longer that brought the special attention. Teams had to score 20 points or higher for each round to earn the club membership, as the story on September 6th, 2009, explained. DeLand Majik was retroactively the first team in the new 20-pointer club after the scores at the Malevsky Cup 2002.

Arizona Airspeed, Team Fastrax and the French national 4-way team of 2009 were the next club members before the 21-pointer level became the next goal.

World Cup 2011		Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	4way Open Class	C,22,19	E,M,1,2	12,9,16	O,8,10	Q,14,5	P,17,K,18	21,L,J,13	3,11,B	20,G,H,4	N,F,A,7	Total	Avg
1	Aerodyne Aerokart	22	27	23 (-1)	22	26	25 (-1)	25	24	24	37	255	25.5
2	NMP-PCH Hayabusa	22	27	23	21 (-1)	24	25 (-3)	21 (-4)	23	24 (-1)	39	249	24.9

Arizona Airspeed was the first team on this level after the 25.0 average performance at the Valentine's Meet 2011.

It did not take too long until the French national team of 2011 (Mathieu Bernier, Guillaume Bernier, Julien Degen, Manu Sarrazin, with Olivier Henaff on camera) started a new elite club level with only 22-pointer and higher at the World Cup 2011 in Germany. NMP-PCH Hayabusa used the 10-round draw of the same event to move up to the 21-pointer level.

Airspeed's world champion lineup of 2012 (Thomas Hughes, Niklas Hemlin, Josh Hall, Mark Kirkby, with Bill Schmitz on camera) joined France on the same 22-pointer level at the Mondial Dubai 2012, where Hayabusa missed it by one point in Round 4.

Mondial Dubai 2012		Rd. 1	Rd. 2	Rd. 3	Rd. 4	Rd. 5	Rd. 6	Rd. 7	Rd. 8	Rd. 9	Rd. 10	Total	Avg
Rank	4way Open	5,12,E	6,D,B,K	O, 8,7	N,13,18	10,21,M	19,H,11	C,G,1,A	20,9,15	16,F,P,Q	2,J,4	Total	Avg
1	Arizona Airspeed (US)	27	34	27(-1)	22	23	23(-2)	32	25	40	26	279	27.9
2	NMP-PCH Hayabusa (BE)	25(-1)	34(-2)	27(-1)	21(-1)	23	24(-1)	32(-1)	27	40	25(-1)	278	27.8
3	Aerodyne Aerokart (FR)	26	30(-2)	27	21	23	25	29(-1)	23(-2)	37	24	265	26.5

It took only a year until NMP-PCH Hayabusa followed up with only 22-pointers at the World Cup 2013. That's also the event where Russia's Barkli lineup finished a 10-round meet with only 20-pointers and higher.

It has been quiet ever since, and the competition draws at the major 10-round meets did not allow the top teams to make waves and move up to higher club levels.

In fact, no team has even been close to make it to the 21- or 22-pointer level since the World Cup in Banja Luka, which raised the poll question.

There have been no new entries into the "4-way Elite Club" either, or were there...?