The All-New XTERRA America Tour

The nation’s leading off-road triathlon series is evolving and expanding with a new look 60+ event XTERRA America Tour in 2009.

Enter the XTERRA Cup Series, replacing the four-race regional championship format with an eight-stop nationwide Cup Series.  Each of XTERRA’s eight regions in the U.S. will host an XTERRA Cup championship race with $10,000 in prize money for pros and 34 qualifying spots into the XTERRA World Championship for amateurs.  Age group competitors will also earn more points at the Cup Series races in their pursuit of winning their region and qualifying for the XTERRA USA Championship.

The new format will open up 136 qualifying spots into Maui and provide age-groupers from across the U.S. with a championship level XTERRA race experience close to where they live.

Confirmed XTERRA Cup locations include:
XTERRA West Cup – Lake Las Vegas (Henderson, NV)
XTERRA Midwest Cup – Fort Custer (Augusta, MI)
XTERRA Southeast Cup – Pelham (Pelham, AL)
XTERRA Northwest Cup – Coeur d’Alene (Athol, ID)
XTERRA Northeast Cup – Sugarbush (Sugarbush, VT)
XTERRA Mountain Cup – Beaver Creek (Avon, CO)

The XTERRA Southwest and Atlantic Cup locations are still pending.

Professionals racing in the XTERRA Cup Series can drop three races from their point total, thus counting five of eight events plus the USA Championship in Utah towards their final score.

The XTERRA USA Championship race will have a $20,000 race purse, and will also award $60,000 to the top overall points leaders in the Series.  Combined with the $105,000 purse awarded at the XTERRA World Championship, there will be more than a quarter-million dollars up for grabs in the U.S. next year.

All told there will be more than 60 XTERRA off-road triathlons in 35 states, the U.S. Territory of Guam and Commonwealth of Saipan in 2009, marking the 13th consecutive year of expansion for the sport.

A PDF of the tentative schedule is attached.

XTERRA IN THE SNOW

After an epic inaugural race that was nominated for the “Best new sporting event of 2008” award by readers of SportsTravel Magazine, XTERRA returns to Snowbasin Resort near Ogden, Utah for the second annual XTERRA Winter World Championship on March 7-8, 2009.   The main event combines running (5k), snowshoeing (5k), mountain biking (10k), and ski mountaineering (8k), and there will also be snowshoe races, a snowboard dash-for-cash, ski-mountaineering and nordic cross country skiing events.

Some of the biggest names in endurance sports and adventure racing are coming to take on the challenge and their share of the $10,000 purse.  Learn more at www.xterrawinter.com.