| Bruno Sroka and Nayara Licariao lead early stages of the 2009 PKRA Brazil at Barra Do Cunhaú |
| Friday, 14 August 2009 10:38 |
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Fresh from a ten-day rest after the Germany Tour stop, the Professional Kiteboard Riders Association (PKRA) – the world renowned kiteboard riders association is back in Brazil for a 5-day Tour stop. Organized by the Gest Group led by Eduardo Piloni as General Coordinator, Kite-Racing Brasil 2009 will run until August 16, featuring world-class kiteboard racers and some of the best Brazilian racers the kiteboarding world had ever seen. Yesterday’s registration drew a ton of participants from different nationalities including the largest delegation from Brazil with 18 male competitors and 3 women racers. The local racers will get a chance to test their skills against the experienced and the best racers in the world. Before the start of the races, gloomy weather conditions dominated the area with occasional rains pouring in, turning into cloudy, overcast sky between 9:00 am and 10:00 am. However, the sun finally showed up in time during the afternoon to end a perfect day. The PKRA crew did an excellent job in setting up an interesting course for Day 1, with short upwind sailing, some tight reaches and some broad reaches. The mandatory riders’ meeting was held at 1:00 pm and the first race of the day hit the water at 2:00 pm. The wind averaged between 16 and 22 knots produced a combination of flat and choppy waters which made the races more exciting to watch. A total of four adrenalin-pumping races were held with a combined time of 2 hours and 50 minutes. Hundreds of delighted people lined up at the beach, mostly cheering for the local riders who rode on their 9-meter and 10-meter kites using mostly standard line setup, although there were two riders on slightly longer lines. The Brazilian riders dictated the pace and were charging in every race, including Brazilian champion Pedro Montenegro (Best) who ended up second overall after finishing three 2nd places. German Tour stop course racing champion Bruno Sroka (Cabrinha, FRA) who was on a 34-meter line finished the day unchallenged, finishing all four races ahead of everyone else. The French champion is now on top of the leaderboard with 2.1 points overall. Fellow Frenchman Sebastien Salermo (Gin Kites) capped the day in third place overall with two 3rd place finishes and a 2nd place finish in the third race while finishing 4th in the final race of the day accumulating 8 points. The only Argentinian racer in the event, Martin Franco finished 11th place overall. The women’s division was dominated by local rider Nayara Licariao (Best) who crossed the finish line ahead of the rest of the women earning a total of 2.1 points. Wanessa Cruz (Naish, BRA) finished in 2nd place while Carol Homsi (Best, BRA) came in third. Tomorrow’s riders’ meeting is set at 11:00 am with first possible start at 12:00 pm. Kite-Racing Brasil 2009 is organized by the Gest Group – the leader in global entertainment sports and tourism. Visit their official website at http://www.gest-group.com.
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