Wakeboard nat’ls at new Republ1c

THE BEST local riders will vie for top honors in the various categories of the sixth Philippine Wakeboard Nationals which starts today at the new Republ1c Wakepark at Nuvali in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.

The event celebrates the grand opening of the facility that has been getting rave reviews from both local and foreign riders since it opened its doors in October last year.

The event starts with top foreign riders giving spectator demonstration rides. Among those invited were American wakeboarding stars Shawn Watson, Shane Bonifay, Bob Soven and Collin Harrington.

Competition proper starts Aug. 18 with the qualifying round, while the finals will be held on the next day.

The categories on tap are girls, boys, groms, junior women’s, amateur women, open women’s, veterans 1, masters women, veterans 2, women wakeskate, amateur men wakeskate, master men, junior men, pro women, men’s 1, men’s 2, pro wakeskate, obstacles-only and pro men.

Over P250,000 in cash and kind will be given away.

Vying for top honors are top local wakeboarders Frank Corpus, Edwin Tipones, Arthur King, Celina Sembrano and Jesy Alto-Ocampo.

Other foreigners coming for demo rides are Daniel Grant of Thailand and James Windsor, Masty Hasler and Angelika Schriber of Australia.

Under competition rules which conform to World Wakeboard Association (WWA) rules, one or a combination of two formats will be used in competition, the traditional heat format and/or a head to head format.