posted Apr 29th, 2010 - XL has been a well known team name for almost 15 years now. It has changed its meaning though. It was standing for British world class 4-way training and competition and a serious commitment of the team members. The name still reflects world class 4-way competition and the XL members are still very committed to 4-way competition. However, the name XL now appears only once a year at the World Challenge 2010.

The NSL News has explained the history of the team and introduced the members of the last XL lineup in 2003 several times and has looked at the team from all kind of different angles. The topic still comes back time after time, this year once again after the indoor competition in Bedford.

The story of the competition is well known by now, and the last judging videos of Round 10 will be uploaded very soon. It is still almost mysterious how XL manages to threaten the best trained 4-way teams in the world year after year at the World Challenge. Only one single point separated Aerodyne Cypres Maubeuge and XL this time after ten rounds, one single point after 304/305 points...

XL at the World Challenge 2010

The NSL News has met with XL team members at several occasions over the years, including interviews and live reporting. It is still a very special situation though when more than one or two XL members are at the same spot at the same time.

Pete Allum and Steve Hamilton are in Italy with Sinapsi. Thomas Hughes trains and competes with Spaceland Force and works everywhere in the USA and on this planet. John McIver trains and competes with Satori in the United Kingdom. XL videographer Rob Stevenson lives and works in Sebastian.

It happened this week that Steve Hamilton, Thomas Hughes and Brian Johnson were all in DeLand at the same time. Steve Hamilton was first working with Polaris from Norway and then with FastAir from Ireland, as he was waiting for his Sinapsi team mates to arrive for a training camp in DeLand.

The volcano in Iceland interfered with travel plans and the Italian training camp, and Steve Hamilton was still in DeLand when Thomas Hughes came back from a coaching job. Brian Johnson happened to be in Florida and close enough to DeLand, as well.

The NSL News saw a golden opportunity to spend more time with the XL members and to explore the background of the XL mystery. The XL 3-way accepted the invitation for a new NSL Talk in the NSL office, which took place this Tuesday.

It was a rare opportunity, and the NSL News took more time than ever before for this special NSL Talk. The video is as long as a whole 30-minute TV show. However, it is worth going through the whole length, as it includes a few special features.

NSL Talk with XL members Steve Hamilton, Thomas Hughes, Brian Johnson

The NSL News found XL videos in the archives that show the team in its last year. XL competed at the April meet of the Florida Skydiving League 2003, just a few months before the World Meet 2003 in France where XL lost another battle with the DeLand Norgies for the bronze medals. XL still competed at the UK Nationals the same year and then retired from outdoor competition.

Steve Hamilton commented that those videos from 2003 looked actually pretty good, even compared to current standards. No surprise, as XL tied DeLand Majik in a few rounds and gave the upcoming world champions of 2004 a good race.

This NSL Talk video also includes Round 2 at the World Challenge 2010, as the XL members in DeLand commented the meltdown at the end of the working time. They also compared the sequence with other fast rounds, including the world record sequence at the USPA Nationals 2009. The video of the 45-pointer, with Thomas Hughes in the Center Outside slot, is a part of the NSL Talk video, as well. Enjoy the XL show.