Providing four solid days of epic conditions, Hood River, set the stage for an action packed week of competition for the 2012 US Nationals.  Phil McGain yet again put on a solid performance, taking 1st place in both formula and slalom to become the 2012 Overall US National Champion!  Phil's stellar performance on the course coupled with his inviting enthusiasm and general stoke throughout the event on the beach also earned him the coveted Corpus Christi award for 2012. 

Casey Hauser also sailed well, racking up a string of 2nd place finishes and one 1st place to secure him 2nd place in the Men's Slalom behind room mate Tyson Poor, and a well deserved 4th overall for freestyle.  In the women's division Ingrid Larouche, recovering from a serious knee injury, secured herself 2nd place in the women's slalom and first in women's freestyle, and Tamara Bockius from Maui locked down 1st for the women's  grand master division.  Jack Lundquist, a formula sailor from the San Francisco bay area, put on an impressive show against a very talented fleet, and with a 5th place overall finish in one race, secured himself 1st place in the Men's formula division. 

Formula = Phil McGain.  First at the start and the finish line for every race, Phil did what it took to get the job done each and every time.  Always aware of not only the slightest change in wind direction but also the strength of the current at different parts of the course, Phil flawlessly executed perfect tacks and jibes to keep him in front of the pack around the course, securing 8 bullets in a row.  In the marginal winds the TR-8XT 11.0 provided all the low-end grunt Phil needed, and as the week progressed and got windier, Phil's unmatched board speed on the TR-8XT 10.0 allowed him to leave the fleet in his wake.  Jack Lundquist got quickly acquainted to the Gorge conditions from his usual bay area stomping grounds and absolutely killed it in the Men's division, in the last formula race of the Day 3 he came in 5th place right on the heels of Steve Bodner, Xavier Ferlet, and Bruce Peterson.

Slalom. Contrary to the forecast for light winds, the gorge delivered three days of solid afternoon thermals for high octane slalom racing.  Though day 2 started out light, by 4pm the wind had filled in enough for most competitors to be on 7.0-8.5.  Armed with his TR-8 7.6, Phil hit the slalom course and added two more bullets to his streak on the day after three consecutive wins at formula.  Tyson Poor edged out Phil on the last race of the day, giving Tyson the official lead after day one, with Phil only .3 points behind, with Bruce Peterson just behind him with two 2nd place finishes and one 1st place.  Casey Hauser, on a TR-8XT 7., had a solid first race with a 2nd place finish, but got caught in the footstrap in the next two races mid-jibe, and finished the day with a 4th and 5th place.  Ingrid Larouche also sailed well on Day 1 with a 6th place finish in her first race of the day!

The wind picked up intd towards the final two marks and finish, everyone was up in the air as to what size sail to take. Phil, sticking with his 7.6, had perfect starts, blistering board speed, and smooth jibes that resulted in two more 1st place finishes out of three races, but Tyson was still right there with him.  Casey, with new footstraps, had no problem getting out of his straps, and on his TR-8 7.0 took a 1st place and two 2nd place finishes on the day, bringing him right back up to the top with Phil, Tyson and Bruce.  With 6 races in the bag and everyone so close together, all eyes were waiting on the last day of slalom to settle the score.

On the final day of racing the wind came in with a bang!  By 9am it was already averaging 16-18 and by 11:30am after two more formula races it had picked up to around 20-25mph.  Again, with diminishing winds throughout the course, it was tricky to decide which sail to take.  Either be lit out of your mind at the start to the first mark, or risk being underpowered or dumped later in the course.  With most of the male competitors on 5.6-7.0s, Phil and Casey both opted to take their 7.0s just in case it lightened up.  The call was made for 2 more rounds of slalom, so 6 races total for each competitor.  Just like the two days before, the battle for first place came down to Phil vs. Tyson. 

Both Phil and Tyson were on fire, exchanging first place finishes all day.  At the end of the day and event, with 12 races completed, after three throw outs both Phil and Tyson had nine first place finishes, a dead tie.  The tiebreaker ultimately came down to the throw outs, and Phil, throwing out three 2nd place finishes against Tyson's two 4th place finishes and one second, was declared the winner and Slalom Champion.  Casey Hauser also sailed exceptionally consistent, finishing with five 2nd place finishes on the day, and an overall record of one 1st place finish and eight 2nd place finishes to wind up 4th overall, and 2nd in the Men's Slalom.  Ingrid Larouche, holding down a 5.9 for the day, came in at 2nd place in the women's, and Tammy Bockius sailed herself into 1st place for the Women's Grand Master's division.