FOILBOARDS for COURSE RACES

Open Petiton to the IKA Racing Rules Committee


Rule - C.6.1. Board Appendages
(The shortest distance between the outermost point of the hull appendage and the hull shall not exceed 500 mm)

Dear Members of the IKA Racing Rules Committee

Unfortunately the rule mentioned above excludes foilboards from (IKA sanctioned) course races.
Foilboards have a high potential for course races, as Marc Blanc showed impressively during the European Championship 2009.
Especially concerning Olympics, where competition spots do often have low winds, it would be a real pitty if such highly efficient boards would not be admitted.

Furthermore I don`t think it makes much sense to form an own class because
1. a high spezialication would probably not support our sport (like it happend to windsurfing)
2. there are too few foilboarders (yet)
3. then foilkites would also have to run in an own class some day ?!?

The admittance of hydrofoils for course races would not only present our sport in a more spectacular and varied way, but also support bigger starter fields in races.

Therefore I ask, in the name of all the others who share my opinion to change the rule appropriately.

Kind regards
Mario Legenstein
(race addicted and enthusiatic for foilboarding:-)

this email is sent to:
www.internationalkiteboarding.org
www.kiteracing.com
www.kiteforum.com
www.oase.com

here is the answer to the petition from Markus Schwendtner (IKA- Executive Secretary):

Hi Mario,

I am happy to discuss this further, but for now a short answer.

The idea of having different classes is to have comparable equipment
for the riders, so that it is not the board but the rider who makes
the difference. You also will not have an optimist racing against an
americas cup yacht.

I think we should separate them, as there are not so many at the
moment it will not be an international class but can still be a
class administered by the IKA, and they can race together but will
be scored separately. For the event (like in Douarnenez) there can
be also an overall ranking, and then division rankings. No problem
with that.

Would this satisfy the foilboarders ?

Regards,
Markus