This offroad tri is one of the toughest on the XTERRA circuit, and really shows off Austin at it's best. Held entirely within Emma Long City Park, this course favors mountain bikers who have practiced the rocky ledges of the motorcycle trail at Emma Long.

The swim is 1,000 meters in Lake Austin - a two loop course with a short run on the beach in the middle. The mountain bike is 16 miles, with a short stretch of uphill pavement followed by easy singletrack, a dirt road through the archery range, and then onto the motorcycle trail. If you haven't mountain biked this before, it's very technical, don't be afraid to put your foot down. Coming back the same way you got to the motorcycle trail, you hit T2 to do the run. The start of the run is nice, along the grassy banks of Lake Austin, and then it turns and goes straight up a cliff - hold onto the rope if you have to to get to the top of the cliff. Keep going up to the top of the bluffs overlooking Lake Austin and admire the view to your left. The trail here gets a lot easier by the first aid station, without any major hill climbs. It loops around for a while and then heads back down another cliff, this time you have a choice, either try and go down the cliff from tree to tree, or just hurdle down like a crazy person and hope you don't smash anything. This really gets the blood flowing, but you still have half a mile to go in the sun through the campground before hitting the finish line.

After you're finished, there's beer from NXNW, and Lake Austin to jump into. Bring a lawn chair and make it a day.

Run course map
Bike course map