World champion Aaron Hadlow of Great Britain leads the powerhouse international cast of riders fighting for the overall crown in the Wind or No Wind Board Jam kite boarding competition now ongoing at the Camsur Watersports Complex in Pili, Camarines Sur.
Hadlow copped the Best Overall Performance award in last year’s
inaugural run after bagging the Best Kite Rider plum and placing second in the Best Cable Rider category.
Out to challenge Hadlow—a five-time winner of the Pro Kiteboard Riders’ Association World Championships—in the extreme sports event are compatriot Samuel Light and American Brandon Scheid.
Scheid, a nominee for the 2011 AWSI Kiteboarder of the Year, bagged the Best Cable Rider title last year.
Britain boasts a strong cast with veteran boarder Tom Court also seeing action along with top kite surfing instructor Chris Simpson and extreme sports lensman Christian Black.
Leading the US campaign are Billy Parker, champion of the 2010 Jupiter Kiteboarding Invasion in Florida, along with David Blair, Eric Raiestra and Patrick Wieland.
Dominican Republic’s Suzi Mai, who has earned kite boarding’s |highest female honor as Queen of the Air, remains a favorite among the women along with Boracay-based rider Paula Rosales.
Canada’s top bets are 2008 X-Cup and 2008 Wake Lab champion Olivier Derome and Wake Up Call and
KiteJam titlist Craig Cunningham.
Other contenders are New Zealand’s Jamie Barrow and
Antigua’s Andre Phillip.