The Glacier Breaker – our annual season opener in the southeast was the first race run under new ICF Racing Rules in the US. This year is bringing a few substantial changes:

• First, we are going back to “one run race” which means that we will count the better run and slower one will be dropped.
• Second, single pole gates will be allowed.
• Third, starting in 2010, the strongest countries will have up to 5 boat representation in the World Cup races and the weakest ones will be allowed just one boat representation.

The first two changes in the rules will affect individual athletes’ technical and tactical strategies. Being able to count just one of two runs allows an athlete to “stay in the race” after having a bad first run and encourages riskier tactics bringing final scores very close to each other. Single pole gates should lower number of penalties, putting greater significance on a raw time and favoring very fast racers. The third rule change will affect the size of our 2010 National World Cup Team. Our athletes’ World Ranking after the 2009 season will determine the number of boats we will be able to enter in each category for the 2010 World Cups (World Championships Teams stay the same – maximum 3 boats per category). The numbers may vary from guaranteed 1 boat to a maximum of 6 boats per class. Athletes will be able to earn their World Ranking points at designated races over the whole year, some of them being held in US and Canada in the late summer and fall of this year. This rule may have a positive effect (more boats to race in World Cups) on our stronger categories but most likely will lower number of boats on the US World Cup Team in K1 Women and C2 classes. All of these changes will surely increase competitiveness of the sport and, hopefully, make it more attractive for spectators and media.

-Rafal Smolen