Third Jettribe World Finals Update

      Greetings from high above the planet.  This update was started on the way to the final Asia Beach Games meeting before the actual event in November.  This is one of those trips where it is 19 hours of travel to get to a destination for 25 hours before turning back around and taking a 26 hour trip back to IJSBA headquarters in California.  Good times.  It is planned for the update to be finished on the way back to the United States and posted as soon as the plane lands in San Francisco.  Well, it didn’t exactly happen that way.  Ria, who handles membership and paperwork, has been sick all week and the office has been slammed with entries, questions, and the regular workload.  So rather than delay this any longer, here is the typical request to share the following information with your friends and colleagues in the PWC Racing industry:
      1. Logo-World-Final-194px-x-194px-Flight tip from your friends at IJSBA.
      In the olden days, before the internet, your IJSBA Membership used to come with things like discount auto rental coupons for pricing that was often worse than the walk-up counter price.  Those benefits faded with the onset of website wholesalers who were able to provide consumers with low prices sans IJSBA membership.  We have discontinued most of those “perks,” however, your IJSBA Membership Card does provide you with 10% discounts, on many items, at Riva Motorsports and Havasu Powersports (something we are surprised to learn isn’t used all that often- read the back of your cards!!!).  Today, we are going to add a special benefit just for being an IJSBA.com visitor: The IJSBA Flight Tip.  This flight tip comes to you from 38,000 above the Pacific Ocean, and will be of extra value to those of you attending King’s Cup for the first time or maybe if you are one of the people lucky enough to be handpicked for one of Jettribe’s PWC safaris to China or Vietnam.  The tip is that no matter how tempting it is to take an emergency exit row seat, do not take it if you are in the bulkhead row where parents attach the bassinets to wall in front of the seat.  The extra leg room just isn’t worth the noise you are certain to hear for most of the flight.  You are better off taking a regular isle seat and hoping that the person in front of you doesn’t recline into your lap for the entire twelve to sixteen hours.  Maybe you can get one of those reclining seat blockers that have received so much attention lately.  If you do, and you are the next person to make national news for using it, and the subsequent altercation with the other passenger, try to mention IJSBA or the World Finals into media coverage and we will send you a t-shirt or something like that.
      1. jettrim-linksJettrim signs as associate presenting sponsor for the 2014 Jettribe World Finals.
      You know them from their multi decade legacy of having the absolute coolest hand stitched seat covers and foot mats for your watercraft.  You know them from creating the Vintage Ski Museum.  You also know them for being founded by IJSBA Hall Of Famer, Gary Hart.  Well, now Jettribe has upped the ante and signed on to be an associate presenting sponsor of the 2013 Jettribe World Finals.  This generous contribution from Jettrim ensures that the necessary amenities will be available for all participants and spectators as well as ensuring that costs can be controlled going into the 2015 season (seriously, can you believe we are talking about 2015 already).  IJSBA extends our deepest gratitude to Jettribe and the Harts (there are two of them now) for supporting the sport.
      1. Final US closed course race is  this weekend September 13 and 14 in Tavares, Florida.
      We mentioned it in the last update, but it is worth mentioning again: Pro Hydrocross will host the final closed course event of the year in Tavares, Florida.  The event is THIS WEEKEND: September 13 and 14.   For more information, visit http://hydrocross.com/.
      1. Final day for early entry fees is September 15.
      Folks, don’t say we didn’t tell you.  Early entry fees end at 11:59 PM, PST, on September 15, 2014.  If you enter after the clock strikes midnight in California then the price per class goes up $10.  There are no exceptions.  So, if you want to save a couple of dollars, please enter right away.  Sometimes, people ask why the entry fees go up.  The quick answer would normally be: they don’t, the actual entry prices are the post September 15 prices and they are discounted to encourage people to enter early.  That is more-or-less the way it is, but, here is the way it works.  When the week of September 16 rolls around, there is only two weeks left before the office relocates to Lake Havasu City for the World Finals.  This two weeks is spent finalizing all of the last minute details for sponsors, picking up printed materials, chasing down items that have not shown up yet, doing final accounting, loading the truck for the road, arguing with Blake over expenses, making contingency plans based on the weather outlook, assisting with Athlete Visa issues, helping resolve snags in customs, and so on and so on.  This pushes processing entries into the evening which means more work hours.  When we get to World Finals, additional staff must be available to accept new entries and then those forms must be entered into the scoring computer in the evening.  There is less time between the point the entry is taken and the event which means more labor must be expended to ensure everything is properly processed before racing starts.  The $20 per class on site fee is well accounted for and we would rather have the entry ahead of time.  So, with that tirade out of the way, please enter early.
      1. Asia Beach Games meeting in Phuket.
      The final preparation meeting for the Asian Beach Games was a very successful event.  The meeting began with an address by the Governor of Phuket, The Honorable Maitri Inthusut.  You really get the commitment that the Thai Government makes to host sports in their country (the top treatment PWC Racing gets for the King’s Cup has been a shining example of this for many years).  Conceptual layouts were approved, including the purpose built stadium for the PWC Racing events, and will soon be constructed on Pattong beach.  The temporary stadium environment was modeled after the infrastructure used for the World Finals.During this meeting, IJSBA revisited the doping policy we have used for past Asia Beach Games.  After this version of the Asia Beach Games, inspections for performance enhancing drugs will make its way into the IJSBA Rule Book for use by National, and International events.Competitors, participating in the Asia Beach Games, should heed two important notes for 2014.  First, persons who are a citizen of a nation other than their country of birth must have been a citizen for three years to represent that country in the Asia Beach Games.  Second, more scrutiny will be applied to the PWC of competitors to ensure compliance with Asia Beach Games policies on brand advertising.   Competitors who are bringing their PWC straight from World Finals should be aware that sponsor decals may not (probably will not) be permitted to be displayed.  PWC will be inspected and many decals and company logos will need to be covered up.  It is advised that you remove any branding labels prior to arriving in Phuket to ensure compliance and to avoid your watercraft being covered with duct tape.This is the biggest Asia Beach Games in their history (going back to 2009).  PWC Racing is going to get a large audience in Phuket!!!IJSBA will bring you more information about the Asia Beach Games after the Jettribe World Finals have concluded.
      1. Blake Corning arrives in Havasu next week.
      As one of the largest signs World Finals is about to start, Blake Corning arrives, next week, to start preparing the grounds.  Did you know Blake is inducted into the IJSBA Hall Of Fame this year?  Stop by Crazy Horse and congratulate him.  Make it a quick pat on the back, though, please- he is on the clock.
      1. 2014 Jettribe World Finals poster about to print.
      Thank you (well, some of you) who finished all of your paperwork early so that we can finalize the poster and all of the logos on it.  The poster should be up a week earlier than normal.  Many of you like the poster so much that you remove it from the windows of stores and restaurants as a keepsake.  IJSBA reminds you that we sell about 100 of these posters at the IJSBA sales tent during pro weekend.  Posters are only $1.00.  Please come by the booth and buy a poster so less people complain that there are no posters hanging anywhere.
      1. blowsion-logo2Blowsion Under The Bridge Show is one month away.
      One month from today, the Amateur titles will be settled, Pro racing will be half over, and we will be finding spots on the shores of the London Bridge Resort for the start of the Blowsion Under The Bridge show.  There are going to be a lot of great products demonstrated this year.  We will some very big announcements on this soon.  In the meantime, go down to the sporting goods store and buy a lawn chair because the show is going to be amazing as we see amazing Freestyle stunts, Sea-Doo competitions, Bombard demonstrations, and the latest airborne products from Zapata Racing.This conclude this week’s update.  Please email any questions to info@ijsba.com.  We look forward to seeing you in just a couple of weeks.[fblike]