This just in from the IJSBA Affiliate in Canada:
The beautiful Belle Vista Inn on Lake Huron in Caseville, MI, successfully hosted their first watercross event with Rounds 3&4 of the CWA's CanAm Tour last weekend. Once again, Mother Nature did not disappoint the CWA racers and offered up warm sun, bright blue skies, and water so clear you could see the bottom on the back straight. The weekend was kicked off with a Racer Clinic hosted by legendary World Champion Tera Laho, who shared her racing tips and tricks. Tera spent one on one time in the water with all 18 participants, and left them thinking about the importance of reaction time, staying focused, nutrition, preparation, and appreciation in addition to the technical aspects of racing.
The races started off on Saturday with the water smooth as glass and ended with challenging chop Sunday afternoon that made for some exciting racing over the weekend. The new SeaDoo Spark continues to gain popularity, with seven riders competing on Sparks. In the Rec Lites class, Toronto's Paul Green and Eric Gabriel Sr., of Oak Park, MI, swapped wins, and are tied for overall points. Rookie Kaila Gabryel took the top spot in the newly added Women's Rec Lites class, followed by Mary Kay Heckman and Sandra Gabryel. Jake Zier joined the Tour at Round 3 and was leading the ProAm Ski GP class before sinking his Hydrospace on Saturday, leaving the door open for Dave Davidson, the 2013 CWA Tour GP champion, to take the win. Dave also dominated the ProAm Ski Stock class both days ahead of up and comer Shane Riley. The amazing ironwoman, Anne Bigsby, raced Masters Ski, ProAm Ski Stock, and Women's Ski on Saturday, finishing on the podium in all three.
In the 1000 SS class, veteran rivals Rob Vlcko and Russell Ververka traded #1's, with Kyle Holmes and Larry Letke each taking turns on the podium. Hannah Hulett pulled off wins for the weekend in Junior Girls Ski and Junior 10-12 classes, while Cooper Stevens maintained the points lead in the Junior 13-15 class. The ongoing battle between Larry Letke and Biz Stevens continued in the Naturally Aspirated Runabout class, with Larry earning his first win of the season, but Biz Stevens maintaining the points lead. Full results can be found at www.canadianwatercraft.com.
Rounds 5&6 will be held on July 19&20 in the racer favorite, Belle River, ON, in conjunction with the Sunsplash Festival. Join the facebook group "CWA Watercross and Freestyle Tour" for information and regular updates on the CanAm Tour.
The 2014 CanAm Tour is sponsored by Sea-Doo, Yamaha of Canada, Hydro-Turf, Mazak Corp, Unique Tool and Design, Belle River BIA, Keystone Lawn Service, Amy Green, and Mai Tiki Resort.
