The 2004 Tige U.S. Open Wakeboard Championship will bring together the world’s top wakeboarders for two days of competition at one of the most scenic spots in the world: Kaua‘i from November 13-14. Included in the competition is seven-year-old Kapa‘a
The 2004 Tige U.S. Open Wakeboard Championship will bring together the world’s top wakeboarders for two days of competition at one of the most scenic spots in the world: Kaua‘i from November 13-14.
Included in the competition is seven-year-old Kapa‘a boy, Justin Poskin, who will be defending his home turf in the amateur division.
The event will be held at the 1000-acre Wailua River State Park, on the Wailua River, a beautiful body of fresh water that stretches down from green mountains into the Pacific Ocean. This exquisite scenery will be a backdrop to the world’s top wakeboarders competing for $25,000 in cash at the Tige U.S. Open Championship sanctioned by the American Wakeboard Association.
All of the top names in the sport are scheduled to attend highlighted by Parks Bonifay, the two-time defending Pro Wakeboard Tour Champion who is currently ranked No. 1 in the world in the current Wakeboard World Cup standings. Bonifay will be joined by the defending Tige U.S. Open Champion Tino Santori, fresh off his victory in the Vans Wakeboard National Championships.
Also on the list of attendees will be the rest of the top five riders in the World Cup standings including Danny Harf, Daniel Watkins, Jeff Weatherall and Chad Sharpe. The 2001 Pro Wakeboard Tour Champion Erik Ruck has also been extended an invitation to bring the total of invited riders to seven. One more rider will be selected as a wild card after the Vans Wakeboard World Championship.
While these riders receive an automatic bid into the Tige U.S. Open and a first round bye, there are still eight available spots to be filled by competitors in an open qualifier on Saturday, November 13. After the qualifier on Saturday morning the 16 remaining riders from the invited list and qualifiers will compete in a head to head format throughout the weekend where one rider competes against another.
The round of 16 competing on Saturday will be a seating round with all riders gaining entry into Sunday’s final rounds. From there the head to head elimination rounds begin with the winners moving on and the losers going home. The final round will be a two-man competition for the Tige U.S. Open Championship.
Women will also be a part of the mix, so expect the world’s best to make the trip to paradise to compete.
Tige has developed a reputation for taking competitions to the extreme, holding events in other scenic spots including Brazil, South Africa, and Australia. Tige presented the hugely successful 2002 U.S. Open at Cranes Roost in Altamonte Springs, Florida in partnership with the American Wakeboard Association. Tige and the AWA will be partners again in 2004.
The sport of wakeboarding has skyrocketed in popularity over the past ten years making it the fastest growing watersport in the world. Pro Wakeboarding is much like snowboarding with a similar style of board and bindings. Athletes (called riders) perform Big Air tricks behind the Tige wakeboard boat, a special boat with weight in the back to create a gigantic wake for riders to do flips, twists, turns and inverts. There will also be a “jib park”, or floating skate park out on the water so that competitors can add to their performance by sliding and grinding on rails and performing flips off various ramps.
For more information go to tige.com.
