Last Updated on June 27, 2024
Hirschau, Germany – Good news for all sandboarding fans: the SandSpirit, an annual sandboarding competition, is set to take place at Monte Kaolino in Hirschau on July 12th and 13th.
This year, the event will be held as the European Sandboarding Championship, drawing international attention and featuring a significantly increased field of young athletes through cooperation with Snowboard Bayern.
Event Information
The SandSpirit is a unique snowboard race on sand, offering competitive sandboarding fans the only opportunity in Europe to compete under professional conditions.
The event will feature three disciplines: Parallel Slalom, Boarder-Cross, and Water Slide.
The qualifying runs for the duel slalom and boarder cross will begin on Friday, July 12th, with the knockout finals taking place on Saturday.
The highlight of the evening on Friday will be the water slide competition under floodlights, where the last person to cross the water hole wins.
There will also be an opportunity to win the Old School Award for the craziest outfits.
The award ceremony will take place on Saturday evening at around 8 p.m. after the participants have had their refreshments.
Monte Kaolino’s unique ski lift and challenging sand conditions will demand everything from the participants, making this event a must-attend for sandboarding enthusiasts.
Competition Rules and Regulations
Any sand and/or snowboarder is eligible to compete, but participants under the age of 18 must have the written consent of a parent or legal guardian or a person authorized in writing by a parent or legal guardian (e.g., coach).
The three disciplines of the SandSpirit2024 will be judged for men and women and in the age groups U16 (born after 11.07.2008) and adults. Depending on the number of participants, we will try to combine the age groups in the finals. If there is a sufficient number of participants, we will also try to realize a classification for U12 (born after 11.07.2012).
Duel Slalom
1.1 Start Command
After the start has been cleared, the starter asks the two riders if they are ready: “Riders ready?” If there is no objection from the riders, the command “Attention!” follows, whereupon the starter opens the start system within a time window of approximately five seconds at his own discretion and without any further command. This also triggers the timekeeping.
1.2 Qualification
Each participant has the chance to qualify for the dual slalom via one run each on the red and blue course. The fastest of each participant’s two qualifying runs will be counted towards the starting field for the final. In the event of a gate error, the run is invalid and will be canceled. The starting order is shown in the posted starting lists and is determined at random.
1.3 Final
Depending on the number of valid qualifications, 2, 4, 8, 16, or 32 finalists start in each classification. In the final heats, two participants compete against each other in each round, both once on the red and once on the blue course. If a competitor does not start in a final round, the other competitor must still complete their runs to progress to the next round. However, the running time is irrelevant.
Third place will be decided in the ‘small final’ between the two riders who lost in the semi-finals. Places 5 to 8, 9 to 16, and 17 to 32 are ranked within the round reached based on the start number (= qualification result) of the riders eliminated in the respective round.
The time difference of the slower rider is measured in each case. In the first run of a round, the slower rider only receives the penalty if their gap is bigger than the penalty.
This gives them the chance to catch up in the second run. The actual time difference is recorded in the second run. The total difference between the two runs of a round is taken into account for progressing to the next round.
1.3.1 Equal Time (no difference)
In the event of an equal time (i.e., no time difference) after both heats of a round, the winner of the second heat advances. If both heats were equal in time, the lower starting number advances.
1.3.2 Penalty
The penalty is two seconds. If a rider does not start the first run of a round (DNS), does not finish it (DNF), makes a scoring error, or impedes their opponent (DSQ), they receive the penalty. If a rider does not start (DNS), does not finish (DNF), makes a scoring error, or impedes their opponent (DSQ) in the second run of a round, they are eliminated, and their opponent advances to the next round.
1.4 Gate Error
The gates with their flags are each aligned diagonally upwards towards the center of the turn and must be driven around on the low side. If a rider passes a gate on the wrong side, it results in a gate error.
Boarder Cross
2.1 Start Command
After the start has been cleared, the starter checks the readiness of the four riders: “Riders ready?” If there is no objection from the riders, the command “Attention!” follows, whereupon the starter opens the start system within a time window of approximately five seconds at their own discretion and without any further command.
2.2 Qualification
Each participant has the chance to qualify for the Boarder Cross via one individual timed run. In the event of a gate or obstacle error, the run is invalid. The starting order is shown in the posted start lists and is determined at random. For individual timekeeping, each participant triggers the timekeeping themselves after the start release. The water hole will not be crossed in the qualification.
2.3 Final
Depending on the number of valid qualifications, 4, 8, 16, or 32 finalists start in each classification. Four participants compete against each other in each round.
The two winners of each heat advance to the next round. The four participants eliminated in the semi-finals determine places 5 to 8 in the ‘small final’.
Places 9 to 16 and 17 to 32 are ranked within the round reached based on the start number (= qualifying result) of the drivers eliminated in the respective round. The finalists choose their starting box for each run again based on their time achieved in qualifying.
The rider with the best qualifying time (= lowest start number) has the first choice, the second fastest qualifier (= second lowest start number) has the second choice, then the third. The fourth person gets the last free starting box.
2.4 Waterhole & Finish Line
The finish line of the Boarder Cross is after a water crossing. For a participant’s run to be counted, they must cross the finish line completely. If a rider falls into the water, one foot may be removed from the binding to make it easier to get out of the water. However, one foot must always be fixed in the binding until the finish line is completely crossed; otherwise, the participant’s run is invalid.
2.5 Gate or Obstacle Error
All gates must be driven around correctly, and any obstacles marked with them must be driven over. If a participant cuts short, drives around an obstacle, or drives around/over/jumps over a gate, this will result in disqualification.
However, if the competitor returns to the course before(!) the disregarded gate or obstacle and continues their run without errors, their run is valid.
2.6 Contact between Riders / Fairness
While contacts between participants in a round are inevitable, all active contact such as pushing, pulling, shoving, and the like is absolutely prohibited. Such behavior will lead to immediate disqualification.
The organizing team emphasizes sporting fairness, as we all want to end the SandSpirit together and unharmed in the evening.
Read also: Sandboard World Cup Is The Olympics Of The Desert
Your n°1 source of information on the world of sandsports and desert adventure travel. Our articles are the result of extensive research, personal experience, and knowledge-sharing within the global sandboarding community.
