Luck stone presents: xterra pro relay team shoot-out

Press Release / 07.06.2014

High Noon at Brown’s Island 

High-performance meets high-technology at this year’s XTERRA East Championship / USA Triathlon Off-Road National Championship media day in Richmond, Virginia as XTERRA pros face-off in a pre-race shoot-out to showcase their talents, the City of Richmond, and the innovation of Luck Stone.  The “shootout” is the first-of its kind and a prelude to the 16th running of XTERRA in Richmond.
 
On Thursday, June 12, fifteen of the fastest professional XTERRA triathletes in the world will split into five, three-person relay teams to take on each other in a micro-sized XTERRA featuring a short swim in the James River, a mountain bike ride over the footbridge and through the pump track on Belle Isle, and a run past the colorful murals along the Canal Walk before finishing on Brown’s Island.  The fastest team should conquer the challenge in about 15 minutes.
 
Luck Stone, presenting sponsors of the event, will equip each team with a GPS tracking device and stream all the action live in high-definition at www.luckstone.com so viewers from around the world can get an up-close (and overhead using an aerial drone) look at world-class athletes juxtaposed against the coolest urban XTERRA venue ever.
 
“We are extremely excited to showcase a little bit of Richmond and a whole lot of our sports’ biggest stars,” said XTERRA managing director Dave Nicholas.  “While the distances are but a fraction of what these men and women will be up against on Sunday, to see them work their way around downtown like human race cars will be something to behold and is sure to get everyone fired-up for race day.”
 
Among the 15 racers competing you’ll find World Champions and Olympians from seven countries, including Conrad “the Caveman” Stoltz and last year’s East Championship race winner Dan “The Man” Hugo – both from South Africa.  Representatives from XTERRA, Luck Stone, & the James River Park System will also be on-site to take in all the action.
 
WHEN: Thursday, June 12, High Noon, Brown’s Island, downtown Richmond, VA
 
XTERRA PRO RELAY TEAMS
BermudAfrica – Dan Hugo (South Africa), Flora Duffy (Bermuda), Brad Weiss (South Africa) 
Honorary Captain: RichmondOutside.com

Da Locals – Alex Modestou (Washington DC), Suzie Snyder (Fredericksburg), Conrad Stoltz (South Africa, but honorary local as seven-time XTERRA Richmond Champion who first raced in the River City back in 2001)
Honorary Captain:  Richmond Times-Dispatch

CanaMex – Karsten Madsen (Canada), Mauricio Mendez (Mexico), Christine Jeffrey (Canada) 
Honorary Captain: NBC12 Sports
 
Stars and Stripes – Craig Evans (Tennessee), Shonny Vanlandingham (Texas), Branden Rakita (Colorado) 
Honorary Captain: CBS6 Sports
 
Pacific Rim – Mieko Carey (Japan), Charlie Epperson (Guam), Takahiro Ogasawara (Japan) 
Honorary Captain: ABC8 Sports
 
Media and spectators alike are welcome to watch the action live on www.luckstone.com or in person on Brown’s Island Thursday, June 12, starting at 12 noon.
 
XTERRA has been racing in Richmond since 1999, and the city has firmly established itself as the sports’ finest urban adventure with a hip city culture that compliments ripping trails and the unpredictable James River.  This year’s 16th annual XTERRA East Championship on June 15 will be unlike any before as it will double as the USA Triathlon Off-Road National Championship race. "We're excited to partner with USA Triathlon and proud to bring a national championship event to our friends in Richmond," said Nicholas. 
 
Amateur racers who win their division will be crowned a USAT Off-Road National Champ and an XTERRA East Champion all while earning qualifying spots to both the 2014 XTERRA World Championship AND the 2015 ITU Cross Triathlon World Championship (see the breakdowns at www.xterrarichmond.com). The XTERRA East Championship triathlon combines a one-kilometer swim in the James with a 20-mile mountain bike in and around James River Park and a seven-mile trail run. There is a $15,000 prize purse for pros as the third of five stops in the XTERRA U.S. Pro Series.
 
The course itself annually attracts racers from across the country and around the world to discover the epic trails in the James River Park System – where they are greeted by a raucous bunch of bike and trail fanatics who annually throw a trail party at the trickiest section in Buttermilk Heights known as “Rock Face.”  They blast music, BBQ, dress in costumes, scream, shout encouragement, and blast on vuvuzela’s to the delight of riders all day long. 
 
As for the run, it has been best described as the "Fugitive 10K" because of its similarity to some of the chase scenes in the movie The Fugitive including river crossings, rock jumpings, the "Mayan Ruins" stair climb, and train track crossings. In addition to Sunday’s main event, on Sat, June 14 the schedule includes the XTERRA Fugitive 10km and 21km trail runs, a free kids run, plus the XTERRA expo at Brown’s Island.
 
Registration for the 2014 USA Triathlon Off-Road Nationals/XTERRA East Champs, sprint race, and trail runs is open to everyone. To learn more and register visit www.xterrarichmond.com

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