{"id":61467,"date":"2026-01-28T14:52:27","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T14:52:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.skydivemag.com\/new\/?p=61467"},"modified":"2026-01-28T14:52:33","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T14:52:33","slug":"vs8-lessons-from-the-first-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.skydivemag.com\/new\/vs8-lessons-from-the-first-year\/","title":{"rendered":"VS8: Lessons From the First Year"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Kim van der Horst\u2019s look at the first VS8 competition and what comes next<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes it\u2019s a good thing that we don\u2019t know what we are saying yes to. When I was asked to set up a new competition discipline<\/a> last year, I didn\u2019t think long before accepting, and there were many moments afterward when I questioned my life choices. But last week was not one of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before my eyes, I saw free routines being built in four days (four hours), groups of eight individuals becoming a team, teams inspiring and motivating each other, and, most importantly, cheering each other on. I have to agree with one of the competitors who said that this was one of the most satisfying weeks of flying of his life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did I underestimate the work? Yes.
Did I drive my captains and all the people who helped too hard? Most definitely.
Were the days too long and the schedule too tight? For sure.
Does stress have a new meaning for all of us? Yup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But man, to see four 8-way free routines being built in only four hours and flown in the biggest wind tunnel in the world…that was magic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Team UAE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The Concept<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The concept was simple: four 8-way teams came together at CLYMB Abu Dhabi during a workshop week. Each team received four hours of training time to build and train a free routine. On competition day, eight rounds were flown: five free routine rounds and three compulsory rounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal, beyond testing the concept, was to bring free routines back, bridging the gap between dynamic and vertical flying while giving the teams a level playing field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More Than Just Flying<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This competition didn\u2019t just test flying skills, but also creativity, teamwork, time management, and leadership. In my opinion, this format fills a gap in the current competition landscape.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strong, professional flyers who love to compete in artistics, but don\u2019t necessarily want to dedicate four years (or more) to competition, can get their free-routine fix here. The free routine length was 2:00. As the week progressed, we adjusted the time range from 1:45\u20132:00 to 1:30\u20132:00. The compulsory rounds were 1:30, with the goal of gathering as many points as possible within the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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European team flying together <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Judging: Learning as We Went<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Beforehand, there was a rough concept for judging. In my head, we would keep it low-key and figure it out along the way, following the judging criteria for 4WD Free Routine. However, judging each other\u2019s free routines turned out to be much more work than expected, especially since our brains were already taxed by creating and training the routines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eventually, Olivier Longchamps and Max Martin, both athletes competing in The Race<\/em>, longtime competitors in several artistic disciplines, and with Olivier also serving as a judge, helped establish Difficulty and Presentation scores. Execution scores for the free routines and compulsories were judged by the captains after the competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Difficulty and Presentation scores were close enough that the compulsories could still decide the competition, and they did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Free Routine Scores<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n