France’s Dauliach, USA’s Malone and Warner top qualifiers In Pro Classes Saturday at 23rd IJSBA Dos Equis World Finals

Over 1,200 entries part of Dos Equis Desert XX
At Crazy Horse RV Resort & Campground

LAKE HAVASU CITY, Ariz (October 9, 2004).—France’s Steven Dauliach in Pro Ski and USA’s Eric Malone in Pro Freestyle and Craig Warner in Pro Runabout 1200 were the fastest qualifiers Saturday, setting the stage for Sunday’s championship finals at the 22nd International Jet Sports Boating Association (IJSBA) World Finals of personal watercraft racing. The event is being held through Sunday on Lake Havasu.

Dauliach, who was also this year’s European Champion and the defending IJSBA Pro Ski World Champion, rode a Kawasaki watercraft in eight minutes, 36.38 seconds, the quickest time of the two, five-lap Pro Ski qualifying heat races.

Malone, Duncansville, Pa., a four-time IJSBA Pro Freestyle World Champion, maneuvered a Polaris to an amazing top qualifying score of 49.9 out of 50 possible points. Five of the seven judges awarded him the maximum 10 points for his one-minute, plus one wake trick, qualifying set.

Warner, Riverside, Calif., was actually third in his Pro Runabout 1200 five-lap qualifier on a Sea-Doo, but race officials penalized both apparent winner Dustin Farthing, Port Lucie, Fla., and runner-up Chris MacClugage, Baldwin Park, Calif., for each missing a buoy. Farthing’s time of 7:09.60 was the fastest of the two heats in Pro Runabout 1200 and the penalties moved Warner into the top qualifying spot.

Featuring over 1,200 entries from nearly 40 U.S. States and over 30 nations, the IJSBA Dos Equis World Finals is the premier pwc racing extravaganza in the world. IJSBA World Championship titles are being contested in 22 closed-course racing classes as well as Pro Freestyle and Amateur Freestyle. IJSBA National Championships were decided in 12 Novice classes during the first three days of the event.

Starting at 9 a.m. tomorrow at the Crazy Horse RV Resort and Campgrounds, three Pro, the final three Pro-Am and the final two Amateur World Champions will be decided. The featured Pro Ski and Pro Runabout 1200 classes will run three motos on the 1.6-mile closed-course. The Pro-Am and Amateur classes will run two motos.

Also at stake this weekend is the IJSBA Nation’s Cup, awarded to the country whose top riders record the best finishes in the world championship classes. The USA has won every IJSBA Nation’s Cup this decade, although last year required a tie-breaker to defeat England while France was third.

General Admission tickets are $20 for Sunday. Pit passes are an additional $20 each Sunday.
Special IJSBA Super Passes, which include both a general admission ticket and a pit pass are also available at the gate for $40.

England’s Jordan Fielder won the other Pro Ski qualifying heat with a time of 8:46.07 on a Kawasaki.

France’s Nicolas Rius, who trains in Lake Havasu City and has six IJSBA Pro World Champion crowns, won the second Pro Runabout 1200 with a time of 7:37:44 on a Yamaha.
Second and third behind Dauliach in the fastest Pro Ski qualifying heat were Masaharu Takanoshita and France’s Vincent Villat. Both racers rode Kawasaki watercraft.
Second behind Fielder in the other Pro Ski qualifier was France’s Brice Lopez, on a Kawasaki and Las Vegas’ Rob Flores was third on another Kawasaki.

After Farthing and MacClugage’s penalties pushed them back to eighth and ninth place respectively, credited with second behind Warner in the fastest Pro Runabout 1200 heat was Japan’s Minoru Kanamori on a Kawasaki and third was Thailand’s Chokuhit Molee on a Sea-Doo.

Behind Malone’s sterling performance in Pro Freestyle, Brazil’s Alessander Lenzi, the 2001 IJSBA Pro Freestyle World Champion, qualified second with a 49.0 score on a Yamaha, while last year’s Slovenia’s Rok Florjancic, the 2002 IJSBA Amateur Freestyle world champ, qualified third with a 48.6 on another Yamaha.

Finishing behind Rius in the slower Pro Runabout 1200 qualifying heat were Kenneth Ritchie, Fullerton, Calif., on a Sea-Doo and France’s Francky Zapata on a Kawasaki.
Leading the three Pro-Am qualifiers was Kuwait’s Ali Al Shamali, who was timed in 8:05.00 on a Sea-Doo.

Top qualifier in Pro-Am Women Ski was Japan’s Seiko Ozawa on a Kawasaki. Her time of 9:44.88 was less than three seconds faster than defending class champion Janelle Barr, Renton, Wash., who won the other Pro-Am Women Ski qualifying heat race in 9:48:47 on a Kawasaki.

Amy Green, of Escondido, Calif., won the fastest Women Runabout qualifying heat in a time of 9:44:88 on a Yamaha.

Winning the other Pro-Am Runabout 800 SS qualifier was Thailand’s Molee, riding a Sea-Doo.
The Dos Equis Desert XX features the world’s largest and most prestigious PWC race in a sports and lifestyle festival that also includes demos by action sport stars from BMX and Skateboarding on half-pipe, a Freestyle Motocross air show, a Mini-Moto Grand Prix, live concerts, and the colorful Performance Alley.

The 2004 Dos Equis Desert XX, featuring the 23rd IJSBA Dos Equis World Finals, will be televised as three one-hour segments on Fusion TV, airing on Fox Sports Net from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. on three consecutive Wednesdays (Oct. 27, Nov. 10 and Nov. 17). The shows will re-air on FUEL TV (dates TBA) and in 90 countries worldwide via international syndication.

Title Sponsor of the Dos Equis Desert XX and JSBA Dos Equis World Finals is Dos Equis.
Co-sponsors of this year’s Dos Equis Desert XX and IJSBA Dos Equis World Finals are Accutron (Bulova), Kawasaki and Sea-Doo. Associate sponsors are: Fly Racing, Skat-Trak, Jet Pilot, Nintendo, Atlas Insurance, Rockstar and Arizona Road Runner.

The official website of the IJSBA Dos Equis World Finals is www.ijsba.com. The site is providing daily results, photos and updates along with LIVE broadcast of the public address dialogue through audio streaming.

IMG Action Sports is handling sales, marketing and producing this year’s massive, internationally televised event with a small army of nearly 300 staff and volunteers.
Based in Los Angeles, IMG Action Sports is a division of IMG, the world’s largest company dedicated to the marketing of sport, leisure and lifestyle. The division produces more than 25 events per year. For information regarding IMG: www.imgworld.com.

The IJSBA, headquartered in Costa Mesa, Calif., is the worldwide sanctioning body for personal watercraft racing, with affiliated associations, organizations and members in over 50 countries across the globe. For more information, contact the IJSBA at 714.751.8695.

FOR SCOREBOARD:

Top finishers from Saturday’s qualifying for Sunday’s Pro and Pro-Am finals at the 23rd International Jet Sports Boating Association (IJSBA) Dos Equis World Finals. With Class, Position, Name, Hometown, Manufacturer (five-lap top time).

Pro Ski, Heat 1 – 1. Jordan Fielder, Nottingham, England, Kawasaki (8 minutes, 46.07 seconds); 2. Brice Lopez, Vauvert, France, Kawasaki; 3. Rob Flores, Las Vegas, Nev., Kawaski; 4. Chris MacClugage, Baldwin Park, Calif.., Kawasaki; 5. Nicolas Rius, Marseille, France, Yamaha.

Pro Ski, Heat 2 – 1. Steven Dauliach, France, Kawasaki (8:36.38); 2. Masaharu Takanoshita, Hiroshima, Japan, Kawasaki; 3. Vincent Villat, Marmanne, France, Kawaski; 4. Chris Fischetti, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., Kawasaki; 5. Jeff Troegner, Newport Beach, Calif., Kawasaki.

Pro Freestyle Qualifying (maximum score 50) – 1. Eric Malone, Duncansville, Pa., Polaris, 49.9; 2. Alessander Lenzi, Picarras, Brazil, Yamaha, 49.0; 3. Rok Florjancic, Maribor, Slovenia, Yamaha, 48.6; 4. Masao Fiujisawa, Nara, Japan, Yamaha, 48.5; 5. Masahiro Kamesaki, Osaka, Japan, Yamaha, 47.9.

Pro Runabout 1200 SS, Heat 1 – 1. Nicolas Rius, Marseille, France, Yamaha (7:37.44); 2. Kenneth Ritchie, Fullerton, Calif., Sea-Doo; 3. Francky Zapata, LeRove, France, Kawasaki; 4. Chris Heinrich, Buena Park, Calif., Sea-Doo; 5. David Pulley, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Yamaha.

Pro Runabout 1200 SS, Heat 1 – 1. Craig Warner, Riverside, Calif., Sea-Doo (7:09.60); 2. Minoru Kanamori, Irvine, Calif., Kawasaki; 3. Chokuthit Molee, Pattaya, Thailand, Sea-Doo; 4. Jay Edworthy, Hamburg, N. Y., Sea-Doo; 5. Timothy Neff, Melbourne, Fla., Yamaha.

Pro-Am Runabout 800 SS, Heat 1 – 1. Ali Al Shamali, Kuwait, Sea-Doo (8:05.00); 2. Tony Smith, Palmdale, Calif., Sea-Doo; 3. Eric Lagopoulos, Longboat Key, Fla., Sea-Doo; 4. Frank Silva, Fort Pierce, Fla., Sea-Doo; 5. Corey Heimann, Argyle, Tex., Polaris.

Pro-Am Runabout 800 SS, Heat 2 – 1. Chokuthit Molee, Pattaya, Thailand, Sea-Doo (8:12.06); 2. Blaine Spires, Minden, Nev., Sea-Doo; 3. Chaowalit Kuajaroon, Pattay, Thailand, Sea-Doo; 4. Nungskol Thanettrakool, Samootprakarn, Thailand, Sea-Doo; 5. William Stoehr, Westlake, Ohio, Sea-Doo

Pro-Am Women Ski, Heat 1 – 1. Janelle Barr, Renton, Wash., Kawasaki (9:48.47); 2. Audrey Dujardin, Aix les Orchien, France, Kawasaki; 3. Kelley Eichman, Colorado Springs, Colo., Kawasaki; 4. Maria Ines Pereira, Lisbon, Portugal, Kawasaki; 5. Lark Schmitt, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., Kawasaki

Pro-Am Women Ski, Heat 2 – 1. Seiko Ozawa, Shizuoka, Japan, Kawasaki (9:44.88); 2. Kelly Kantola, Henderson, Colo., Kawasaki; 3. Carla Klippenstein, Fort McMurray, Canada, Kawasaki; 4. Kathy Micali, Henderson, Nev., Kawasaki; 5. Leeanne Falvey, Seabrook Beach, N. H., Kawasaki.

Women Runabout – 1. Amy Green, Escondido, Calif., Yamaha (8:19.53); 2. Nelly Slegelmiha, Riga, Latvia, Sea-Doo; 3. Panida Yimlamai, Samootsakorn, Thailand, Sea-Doo; 4. Stephanie Malocca, Hesperia, Calif., Sea-Doo; 5. Jenelle Terwilliger, Stockton, Calif., Sea-Doo.

Amateur 14-15 Ski Ltd Heat 1 – 1. David Redinger, Yakima, Wash, Kawasaki (9:38.43); 2. Jesse Thompson, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., Kawasaki; 3. Edouard Menguy, France, Yamaha; 4. Conrad Cole, Canada, Kawasaki; 5. Eric Hewitt, Placerville, Calif., Kawasaki.

Amateur 14-15 Ski Ltd Heat 2 – 1. Joshua Irwin, Melrose, Fla., Kawasaki (10:03.13); 2. Mitchell MacClugage, Naples, Fla., Kawasaki; 3. DJ Masters, Yakima, Wash., Kawasaki; 4. Klete Kinser, Bothell, Wash., Kawasaki; 5. Dustin Charrier, Noblesville, Ind., Kawasaki.

Amateur 14-15 Ski Stk, Heat 1 – 1. Mitchell MacClugage, Naples, Fla., Kawasaki (10:23.46); 2. DJ Masters, Yakima, Wash., Kawasaki; 3. David Redinger, Yakima, Wash, Kawasaki; 4. Edouard Menguy, France, Yamaha; 5. Joshua Irwin, Melrose, Fla., Kawasaki.

Amateur 14-15 Ski Stk, Heat 2 – 1. Eric Hewitt, Placerville, Calif., Kawasaki (10:33.28); 2. Matt Goldberg, Lake Elsinore, Calif., Kawasaki; 3. Jake Zier, Carmel, Ind., Kawasaki; 4. Mike Perry, Calimesa, Calif., Kawasaki; 5. Klete Kinser, Bothell, Wash., Kawasaki.