photo by Nils Nilson, xterraphotos.com
On October 25 the Xterra Triathlon World Championships took place in Maui, HI with 550 racers from 22 countries around the world. The World Champs is the culmination of the 100 race off-road triathlon series that takes place around the world each year and from what I’ve read the competition is pretty fierce. We’ve all heard of the Ironman Triathlon and this is sorta the off-road equivalent.
Then again, the Xterra Triathlon isn’t nearly as long as the Ironman. Here’s how the two stack up:
| Xterra World Championship | Ironman World Championship | |
| Swim | 1-mile ocean swim | 2.4-mile swim |
| Bike | 20 mountain bike course | 112 mile road course |
| Run | 7.5-mile trail run | 26.2-mile road run |
| Top Finishers’ Times (men) | 2 hours, 30 mins | 8 hours, 20 mins |
2009 course map
Sure, technical riding, steep climbs, choppy waters, and running over uneven terrain will take a bit more out of you than a smooth Ironman course but in the end, the Xterra is a much shorter race. Strange, in my opinion, since multi-stage, 24-hour, and 100-mile mountain bike races are becoming more and more popular among pros and amateurs alike. The upshot is that even mortals should be able to finish the Xterra with a reasonable amount of training.
The prize money for Xterra is pretty big ($105,000 total purse) and more than 75 pro athletes turned up at this year’s event. Eneko Llanos of Spain took the men’s title while Julie Dibens took the women’s; it was the 3rd win for each racer. If you also like to swim and run off road, add this one to your race calendar for next year!
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