MAUI SPEED CHALLENGE OFF TO AN EXCITING START

Maui, Hawaii (USA) – For the second year in a row, the Navman Maui Speed
Challenge Series, presented by Naish Sails, is off to a competitive start on
the North Shore of Maui. This year’s event is presented by Hawaii-based water
sports giant Naish.  Approximately 50 competitors of all ages and skill levels
turned out on Sunday to have their speed sailing skill recorded on Navman’s
Sport Tool GPS unit.  “I’m stoked that so many people showed up and are
interested in speed sailing and in trying out our gear, said Michi Schweiger,
Naish’s Product Manager for Surfing and Windsurfing.  In addition to providing
prizes, Naish also offered competitors the opportunity to try out some of their
cutting-edge windsurfing sails and boards.  According to Schweiger, the event
fits in nicely with Naish’s commitment to speed windsurfing.  “We have speed
sailing events in Japan, France, the UK, South America, and other places.  It’s
great to see a variety of ages out here competing on Maui.”  

The top speed of the day was recorded by windsurfing legend Alex Aguera, who
reached the impressive speed of 36.5 knots.  Aguera was joined on the water by
his daughter and wife, making the day at Kanaha Beach Park truly a family
affair.  “The conditions today were really good, but the high tide makes
sailing really challenging,” noted Aguera.   Also recording impressive speeds
in the open division was Jaques Pauvert, who was in hot pursuit of Aguera
throughout the day, and came in a very close second with an average speed of
35.47 knots.  Former world record holder Erik Beale came in third in the
division.  Earlier in the week, Beale hosted a speed clinic to help competitors
prepare for Sunday’s event.  He was pleased with the results that his students
were showing.  “It’s great to see my students sailing faster than they have
been,” Beale noted.  “The kids are doing especially well; some of them have
made gains of 3 knots or more!”  Beale plans to hold another speed sailing
clinic during the series. 

The next generation of windsurfing legends also made an impressive showing at
the event.  Young waterman Kai Lenny led the pack with an average speed of 29.5
knots. Kalani Hunt and Nique Vetrimile came in second and third in the Youth
division.  The Super-Youth division, comprised of youth who weigh more than
100lbs, was won by Skyler Haywood, with Baker Grant and Jordan Reid rounding
out the top three.   

This  year’s event drew more women, with six women competing in two categories.
In the women’s division, Karla Aguera took top honors, with Ashley Baxter
coming in second and Norah Hunter in third.  Also showing an increased presence
were the kiteboarders, who recorded incredible speeds while catching enormous
air.  The Richman brothers continued to show their dominance in the sport, with
Shawn Richman coming in first, and his youger brother Jesse coming in third.
Italian Alessio Marcelli celebrated his countrymen’s victory in the World Cup
with a second place finish.

Once again the Master’s division proved to be a group of tough old guys. 
Michael Warmuth took the top spot, with Ted Hunter and Mike Yasak close behind.
In the fun division, Ken Orth, Bill Kaser, and Tim Sawyer took the top three
slots.  Ken Orth did best his daughter Kristen, who competed in the Youth
division, by a few knots, but she’s in hot pursuit!  Mark Boersma came in first
in the Men’s division with an average speed of 33.4 knots.  Andy Church fared
well in his first ever speed sailing competition, coming in second in the men’s
division.  “I’m hooked!” said Church, who said that prior to this event, he
hadn’t competed in over a decade.  Event director Marc Lefebvre came in third. 


Overall, the day was fun and exciting for competitors and their families.  The
new location at Naish Beach proved perfect for excellent sailing conditions as
well as spectators.  Maui Sports Net was on hand to record all the action and
the beautiful location.  “We got some great shots of the competitors today,”
said Robert Novoselic, who was the chief videographer for the event.  

The next event in the Maui Speed Challenge Series will take place at Kanaha
Beach Park on July 30, 2006.


Place Sailor Division Heat 1 Heat 2 Heat 3 Heat 4 Top Avg Points
1 Ken Orth Fun 26.6 28.4 27.7 26.8 28.4 27.63 30
2 Bill Kaser Fun 25.7 27.1 26.9 28.3 28.3 27.43 28
3 Tim Sawyer Fun 26.3 25.6 25.7 24.4 26.3 25.87 22
1 Shawn Richman Kite 33.6 34.0 33.4 33.9 34.0 33.83 52
2 Alessio Marcelli Kite 29.9 32.4 30.7 31.4 32.4 31.50 47
3 Jesse Richman Kite 31.5 0.0 30.3 29.9 31.5 30.57 40
4 Dave Dorn Kite 28.8 32.0 29.1 28.2 32.0 29.97 37
5 Reinhardt Elischka Kite 30.6 27.3 27.3 30.6 28.95 35
6 Jamie Donaldson Kite 27.5 27.3 27.5 31.0 31.0 28.67 34
7 Patri McLaughlin Kite 28.3 28.3 27.6 28.3 28.30 33
8 John Willis Kite 22.4 24.3 24.3 23.35 19
9 Nian Sheppard Kite 19.4 22.5 22.5 20.95 12
1 Michael Warmuth Masters 35.5 34.5 32.7 32.7 35.5 34.23 55
2 Ted Hunter Masters 34.3 34.1 32.9 33.1 34.3 33.83 53
3 Mike Yasak Masters 34.0 33.5 31.8 31.9 34.0 33.13 50
4 Greg Thomas Masters 31.7 32.7 31.7 30.3 32.7 32.03 49
5 Jeff Fagerholm Masters 33.2 31.0 30.7 30.5 33.2 31.63 48
6 Doug Hunt Masters 30.7 30.4 30.8 29.9 30.8 30.63 41
7 Mark Williams Masters 27.7 26.6 26.3 27.7 27.15 27
8 Klaus Simmer Masters 27.7 26.8 26.0 26.8 27.7 27.10 26
1 Mark Boersma Men 34.0 33.2 32.9 33.0 34.0 33.40 51
2 Andy Church Men 31.1 31.6 31.0 31.6 31.35 46
3 Marc Lefebvre Men 31.4 30.8 29.8 30.8 31.4 31.00 45
4 George Reid Men 30.8 30.0 30.3 30.8 30.55 39
5 Carl Grundy Men 30.4 30.2 28.4 30.0 30.4 30.20 38
6 Charles Oreve Men 27.6 28.2 28.2 27.90 31
1 Alex Aguera Open 36.5 35.8 33.7 34.3 36.5 35.53 57
2 Jacques Pauvert Open 36.1 35.5 33.4 34.8 36.1 35.47 56
3 Eric Beale Open 33.9 33.5 31.4 34.2 34.2 33.87 54
4 Tom Hammerton Open 30.0 31.3 31.1 30.6 31.3 31.00 44
5 Des Walker Open 31.8 30.1 29.7 31.8 30.95 43
6 Jace Panebianco Open 30.7 31.2 30.6 31.2 30.95 42
1 Skyler Haywood Super Youth 29.3 29.8 28.4 29.8 29.55 36
2 Baker Grant Super Youth 27.2 28.5 27.0 26.8 28.5 27.57 29
3 Jordan Reid Super Youth 24.6 25.4 25.6 24.3 25.6 25.20 21
4 Kai Rou Lovett Super Youth 23.3 23.7 23.4 24.7 24.7 23.93 20
5 Alden Simmer Super Youth 20.7 20.2 20.7 20.45 11
1 Karla Aguera Women 28.4 28.5 27.7 27.1 28.5 28.20 32
2 Ashley Baxter Women 25.9 25.3 27.6 24.2 27.6 26.27 25
3 Norah Hunter Women 25.6 26.5 25.8 24.6 26.5 25.97 24
1 Kai Lenny Youth 25.5 25.4 24.4 26.8 26.8 25.90 23
2 Kalani Hunt Youth 22.4 23.2 22.8 23.0 23.2 23.00 18
3 Nique Vetrimile Youth 21.3 23.4 22.4 22.4 23.4 22.73 17
4 Alexis Aguera Youth 21.3 21.4 20.7 24.6 24.6 22.43 16
5 Kristen Orth Youth 21.6 21.3 20.8 21.4 21.6 21.43 15
6 Bernd Roediger Youth 21.1 21.2 21.1 21.5 21.5 21.27 14
7 Kanza Stott Youth 20.4 22.6 20.5 20.6 22.6 21.23 13

OFFICIAL EVENT WEBSITE: www.mauispeed.com

EVENT INFORMATION:
Dates for the Navman Maui Speed Challenge Series, presented by Naish Sails are
July 9 and 30, August 13 and 27, and September 10 and 24, to be held from Naish
Beach, near Kanaha Beach Park, between the Canoe Hale and Kite Beach. Each
competitor will be provided with a Sport.Tool M300 GPS unit, provided by main
sponsor Navman. The competition is open to the following categories: Open Class
(in which those with specialized speed sailing equipment will compete), Men,
Women, Masters, Youth, Fun and Kite.

This event series is part of the Naish Speed Party.  Naish Windsurfing is proud
to introduce the Naish Speed Party, a series of amateur speed events in
locations all over the world. The first event is in Leucate, France – the Speed
Party then heads to Miura, Japan followed by Kanaha, Maui and finally to
Langebaan in South Africa. Keep checking for new information and possible
additional events on the Naish Sails website.  
http://www.naishsails.com/

For more information on the Navman Sport.Tool M300, visit www.navmanusa.com and
www.sport-tool.com. www.naishsails.com.

EVENT SPONSORS: Navman, Naish Sails Maui, Fred Haywood Realty,
WindsurfingClassifieds.Com, Kanaha Kai, Freestyle, Waki Jaki and THE POINT,
Ocean 7, Maui Sports Net, and Sign Solutions.