Kite Foil League - KFL competitors fight for control on Day 1 of Ledbetter Classic

Kite Foil League Ledbetter Classic Day 1 © Kite Foil League

To be the fastest in league, you need to push the limits of control in the face of an ever changing playing field. Today, Santa Barbara served up a variety of challenges for the KFL racers that tested even the top riders, both technically and mentally. Saturday dawned with uncharacteristic clouds and drizzle leading to a long postponement ashore. Throughout the early afternoon the breeze built and died several times, teasing riders with almost race-able conditions. In the late afternoon a line of blue sky began creeping towards the race course from offshore, brining with it more stable breeze for a 1600 first warning.

Immediately out of the gates, the tone for the day was set when a tight sprint to the top mark saw Kai Calder round first, only to stumble in a patch of kelp, allowing Markus Edegran to take the lead briefly before finding the same speed bump lurking under the surface. Evan Heffernan, who barely managed to escape a tangle on the starting line was able to tack and sneak across a starboard tacker, picking up seaweed early in the beat, but hanging on to a position in the top four until he could clear his foils around the top mark. After the race Heffernan commented,

"It's a pretty normal Santa Barbara race course - I mean the right is definitely working well - but on top of that I think there's a lot more kelp than we normally see just because there's been a lot of swell over the last couple of days, so there's a lot of loose stuff. So you really have to be eyes up and looking for that."

Around the race course, current lines collecting kelp made for difficult strategic decisions. Amongst the whole fleet, it was easy to see an evolution of strategies throughout the day, evaluating factors such as wether to go right for extra pressure, or tack out early to avoid sailing through the deadly kelp patches on the current line.

Kai Calder, who won the US Open event in San Francisco last weekend came out of the gates strong, rallying back in race one after taking a spill in the kelp, to win the race. For the Bay Area local, showing that he can play the game on the 21 meter kites - not just the small, heavy air gear - is an important milestone. To be the best in the fleet, you need to be able to prove it in all conditions, and the 21's are a different beast as many of the competitor's noted on land.

"The kites turn so much slower," commented Tyler Karaszewski, "You turn the kite and then wait for the foot switch - sometimes it's hard to know when to actually move your body because it takes so long."

Again, Will Cyr is showed the power of consistency today, keeping all scores in the top five and letting many of the top kiters take themselves out. Good speed and consistent boat handling sees the San Diego local five points off of the lead with a good chance to win it all tomorrow. The slow and steady approach has definitely given Cyr the opportunity to win going into the last day, but we'll be looking tomorrow to see if he continues the consistent approach, or takes more risk to try to seal the deal.

Markus Edegran was untouchable at the Seabreeze Invitational last month, but stumbled in the first few races of the day today. Playing the long game, Edegran took DNF's in the second and third races to focus on improving specific skills. The practice clearly paid off in the final two races of the day with two bullets. The question now, is whether the late rally will be enough for Edegran to get back to the top of the leaderboard. With another throwout on the horizon, Edegran will be able to throw out both DNF's after race 9, but that leaves him with a razor thin margin for error.

Santa Barbara native, Ryan Satterberg showed the power of local knowledge and experience in the challenging conditions, taking fourth in the first two races of the day - his best finishes of the KFL Triple Crown series so far. The scores put Ryan in contention with the top of the fleet, as he currently sits in a tie with Xantos Villegas for fourth.

It was the other Santa Barbara native, Evan Heffernan who navigated the challenging race course best today, proving that consistency was about technique - not luck - by keeping all of his finishes in the top three.

"You've got to find the opportunities to clear the kelp when you can," he noted. "Depending on what foot you're pushing with, I think that if you can leave a little bit in the bank to save yourself when the kelp hits, you can push a little bit harder, and work through the downforce of the kelp on your foil. You've got to be ready for it when it does hit."

Tomorrow's forecast is slightly better than today, so be sure to tune in to our social media channels to follow racing as we gear up for the final day of the 2021 California Triple Crown series!