posted Jan 8th, 2010 - It is getting dangerously close to the first 4-way scores in Dubai. The 4-way teams have completed their training jumps, and the competition draw has been published. Arizona Airspeed's Craig Girard kindly sent it quickly to the NSL News, "hot off the press". The event pages have been set up, and the first scores will hopefully follow soon.

Airspeed's Eliana Rodriguez also contributed to the event coverage. She used her own camera to provide a panoramic overview of the competition site and commented what can be seen on the short video clip.

It is a very special and unique event site, as the video shows. CYPRES rep Rob Kendall explained it with his own words in the latest blog: "Because the view is so breathtaking from the top, there had been some talk about forgetting the swoop comp and instead taking turns in building 4-way stacks with their velo’s, so three of them could just enjoy the view (as the guy on the top of the stack can control all canopies)..."

Craig Girard reported from Dubai that Airspeed made the first training jump yesterday. He said that the Bell 212 helicopters are much easier to exit from, compared to the helicopters at the World Games 2009 in Taiwan:

"First of all, it is a left hand door, and there are more hand holds on the aircraft than in Taiwan. We also talked to the pilots yesterday, and they agreed to fly with 80 knots jump run speed. So we made the practice jump yesterday and had a great exit. We exited a Stairsped Diamond, and it felt very good. The helicopter is very fast and the pilots are really good."

However, the teams were still working on the exit. Craig Girard said that some of the other teams mentioned that they had some contact with either the back of the door or that they hit the skid during their exits. It seems like the exit will once again play a significant role in the competition.

Craig Girard also confirmed what others had already mentioned earlier about the scenic view of the competition site: "It was truly amazing how beautiful the scenery was during the jump. I hope to get some photos from the air."

Then he turned to the actual 4-way competition and said that the 14 teams on site all made their training jumps yesterday, except the French and the Russian teams. He added that Julien Degen of the French national 4-way team barely made it to Dubai. His passport was stolen in France, and he wasn't able to make the trip together with his team. Eventually he got an emergency passport and arrived last night.

Aerodyne Cypres Maubeuge will jump with coach Marin Ferre who fills the slot for Mathieu Bernier. The French Point is currently training with the French 8-way team in Eloy. Mathieu Bernier is the only French competitor who trains and competes in 4-way and 8-way this year.

Dubai Championship
Who will win the 4-way Open Class?	Arizona Airspeed Hayabusa Defence Canada Evolution France Aerodyne Cypres Maubeuge
	Current Results