New 2020 XTERRA America Tour format for age groupers

The 2020 XTERRA America Tour features 15 events from coast-to-coast across the US, each offering points towards tour titles and qualifying spots into the XTERRA World Championship off-road triathlon in Maui.

With the new format, regional boundaries have been removed and the points chase is now nationwide. Amateurs will count their best three scores, which must include what they get at the XTERRA USA Championship race on September 19th in Utah. The athlete with the most points in their age group after nationals will be honoured as the XTERRA America Tour Champion and receive an exclusive racing jersey.

In addition, for the first time ever, each stop on the tour will award qualifying spots into the XTERRA Worlds. XTERRA Oak Mountain, Beaver Creek, and the USA Championship races will continue to award 51 spots to the top finishers in each division, while the remaining 12 events will award 26 qualifying spots, one to each age group winner.

“2020 marks our 25th year of XTERRA racing and 20th year of the XTERRA America Tour, and we’re excited to celebrate it with this great collection of events,” said XTERRA President, Janet Clark. “The 2020 XTERRA America Tour represents our shared commitment to building a sustainable lifestyle brand – one that delivers a consistent, high quality, festival experience for participants and their families.”

The season gets underway at XTERRA Iceman on February 29, a new event on the outskirts of Phoenix, Arizona. In April, the tour heads to Austin, Texas, for the first of three races in the Lone Star State.

May marks the return of XTERRA Oak Mountain in Pelham, Alabama, which XTERRA adds is ‘home to perhaps the world’s most perfect XTERRA course.’ In June, XTERRA hosts a ‘classic at Cameron Park in Waco, Texas and XTERRA Lory, a 10-year-old gem in Bellvue, Colorado.’

“XTERRA Lory offers some of the most stunning views on the front range of Colorado, while also annually selling out by mid-January,” said Lance Panigutti, Race Director of XTERRA Lory. “This course is designed as the perfect off-road experience for triathletes trying something new, or those mountain bike lovers looking for a different challenge. We even added a stand-up paddleboard option for all those athletes who love to bike-run, but don’t float so well.”

As summertime rolls on in July, XTERRA ventures to Navasota, Texas for XTERRA Magnolia Hill, over to the mountains of western Maryland for the 17th year of XTERRA EX2 at Rocky Gap State Park, up to North Liberty, Indiana for XTERRA DINO, and back to the Rockies for XTERRA Beaver Creek.

“We’re proud to continue to host XTERRA every summer at Rocky Gap,” said EX2 owner, Andy Bacon, who was a racer himself at the inaugural XTERRA EX2 in 2004.

There are four events in August – XTERRA Indian Peaks high up in the mountains of Colorado, XTERRA Portland at Hagg Lake, Oregon, an iconic race around the Flume Trail above Incline Village, Nevada, and an island-style XTERRA on the Big Island of Hawaii.

In September, XTERRA Laguna Beach is back and then the tour titles are decided at Snowbasin Resort, just up the mountain from Ogden, Utah.

 
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