2018 US National Indoor Skydiving Championship Wrap-Up and Final Results

For the second consecutive year iFLY Va. Beach hosted the 2018 US National Indoor Skydiving Championship. The three-day event had 84 teams and 112 athletes participate in 14 different events, with the first place team/individual from five events – Dynamic 2-Way Open, Dynamic 4-Way Open, Freestyle Junior Open, Freestyle Open, VFS 4-Way Open – qualifying for the 2018 FAI World Cup of Indoor Skydiving (WISC) in Bahrain. International athletes and athletes below age qualifications were allowed to participate in events, however, only qualified athletes were allowed to advance to the WISC.

Brother and sister Kaleigh, 14, and Noah, 11, Wittenburg led team iFLY Aspire to a dominant showing in the Dynamic 2-Way Open posting a perfect score of 600 in the six-round event. Despite the victory, the siblings will not be allowed to compete at this event in Bahrain, due to the 18 years or older qualification. 

Kaleigh went on to take first place in the Freestyle Open as well with a score of 64.8. Kaleigh just edged out Reese Willson who posted a score of 64.5. Kaleigh will be representing the USA in the Junior Freestyle Open at the 2018 WISC, an event she took silver in last year’s World Championship of Indoor Skydiving(WCIS). 

Team SDC Core claimed a one-point lead in the first round of the VFS 4-Way Open and refused to let it go, winning with a final score of 301. In rounds three and four SDC Core was masterful putting up scores of 37 and 41, the two highest scores of the competition. Dusty Hanks, Jason Russel, Steph Strange and Rook Nelson will all be competing at the 2018 WISC. SDC Core claimed gold in this event at the 2016 WISC in Poland, and silver at the 2017 WCIS in Canada.

Canadian Malachi “Chewie” Death took first place in Freestyle Junior Open, posting a score of 61.4 in seven rounds. Malachi posted a score of 8.9 in three of his final four rounds, while no other competitor reached that score the entire event. Sydney Kennett placed second in the event with a score of 60.0, and claimed the title of USA Champion in the 2018 Freestyle Junior Open. Elijah Diamante, who placed fourth with a score of 58.7, will be going to the 2018 WISC as he was the only athlete that met the qualifications in this event. 

In the Dynamic 4-Way Open, team Prana Vayu emerged victorious winning five of six rounds for a final score of 590.7. The team is comprised of Jeff Dimock, Timmy Hunckler, Dave Retzlaff and Cole Fehr. This team calls iFLY Portland their home tunnel and will be taking their talents to Bahrain. 

"We had a blast at the U.S. Indoor Skydiving Nationals at iFLY Virginia Beach!  Excellent organizers & staff, always great to fly with friends from all over the country, and we were honored to take home gold in 4-way Dynamic,” Dimock said.  “When we created this team three years ago, I dreamed of competing on the world stage.  My teammates have more than stepped up to the plate, humbling me with their level of commitment and dedication, and they've become some of my closest friends.  This October, we'll be going to our second World Championships, and you bet we'll be going for gold!"

Making his National Indoor Skydiving competition debut, 11-year-old Parker Davis was impressive finishing second with teammate Ben Roane in the Dynamic 2-Way Advanced, and first in the Freestyle Junior Intermediate. Davis started off strong in the freestyle competition and didn’t look back, posting a score of 9.0 in the first round of the event which proved to be the highest one round total of any competitor. This isn’t the first sport Davis has excelled in, as he’s also a competitive motocross racer.

“He works very hard at achieving whatever his goal sets out to be,” Said Parker’s father Steven Davis. “When he started motocross at four, there was a lot of training, and nutrition watching that went into it. With tunnel flying its been full force as well.”

The younger athletes in this tournament certainly did impress, and that makes the future of indoor skydiving all the more exciting. 

“We had 19 athletes in the junior category this year,” stated Bob Pizzini, US Indoor Skydiving Executive Director. “We hope to more than double that in the 2019 US National Championship as children represent the future of this great sport”

iFLY Virginia Beach will be hosting the US National Indoor Skydiving competition once again in 2019.

2018 US National Indoor Skydiving Competition Final Results:

* All teams and athletes in bold have qualified for the 2018 (WISC)

Dynamic 2-Way, Advanced

1. Team Taurus, CAN, 590.7
2. 65 Time, USA, 546.5
3. Shred Sisters, USA, 531.7 
4. Team Ray-J, USA, 517.9

Dynamic 2-Way, Open

1. iFLY Aspire, USA, 600.0
2. Atmosphere XP, USA, 552.9
3. Crucible, USA, 548.8
4. Wing It, USA, 522.1
5. Pickle Ricks, USA, 496.3

Dynamic 4-Way, Open

1. Prana Vayu, USA, 590.6
2. Collective Pitch, USA, 554.6
3. Direct Current, USA, 516.7
4. VA Beach 4, USA, 499.7

Freestyle, Intermediate

1. Doug Wilson, USA, 58.1
2. Nicholas Barto, USA, 57.4

Freestyle, Junior Intermediate

1. Parker Davis, USA, 60.2
2. James Rogers, USA, 55.6
3. Isabell Concepcion, USA, 50.5
4. Charlie Bomar, USA, 50.5

Freestyle, Junior Open

1. Chewie DeAth, CAN, 61.4
2. Sydney Kennett, USA, 60.0
3. Regina Rueda, MEX, 59.1
4. Elijah Diamante, USA, 58.7

Freestyle, Open

1. Kaleigh Wittenburg, USA, 64.8 (Qualified in junior category)
2. Reese Wilson, USA, 64.5
3. Austin Crandall, USA, 62.1
4. Blake Cullen, USA, 59.6, Tie Guillaume Boileau, CAN, 59.6

5.    Amberly Brown, USA, 55.3

Vertical Formation Skydiving 2-Way, Rookie

1. Arizona Double Trouble, USA, 72

Vertical Formation Skydiving 2-Way, Intermediate

1. Pink Glitter Unicorns, USA, 130
2. Built Overnght, USA, 122
3. Stop Touching Me, USA, 107
4. Epic Air, USA, 65

Vertical Formation Skydiving 2-Way, Advanced

1. Cunning Stunts, USA, 113
2. Va Beach 2, USA, 92
3. Heavy Metal, USA, 87
4. Tactical Unicorns, USA, 69

Vertical Formation Skydiving 2-Way, Open

1. Touch and Go, USA, 134
2. Roanes, USA, 124
3. 14K, USA, 93
4. iFLY Denver FlyGirls, 86

Vertical Formation Skydiving 4-Way, Advanced

1. STF, USA, 182
2. Vertical Fusion Shakedown, USA, 178
3. Scoop’s Angels, USA, 125
4. Not Fast, Just Furious, USA, 102

Vertical Formation Skydiving 4-Way, Open

1. SDC Core, USA, 301
2. GKVP, USA, 289
3. Collective Pitch, USA, 197
4. SDMW Chemtrails, USA, 174

Best Trick

1. Reese Wilson, USA