XTERRA Americas

Time to wake the Giant. Three triathlons, three trail runs, one duathlon, all stacked into a one-day off-road festival in Thunder Bay, Ontario. Aug 16 is the date and the endless miles of purpose-built singletrack of Trowbridge Forest and the Shuniah Mines trail system will be the stage. Come ready for a taste of proper deep-wilderness racing with a community that knows exactly how good it can be. Link in comments to get started.

And how Friday ended. Closing a day of easy runs, social rides and watching the best in the game go head to head with festival tunes and good times. Thanks to the local community, the crew, the athletes, and all the friends and fam for making this atmosphere world-class. Two more days to soak it all in. Link in bio for everything still to come.

How it all started on Friday. Customary ritual when the off-road crew comes together: Coffee, trails, and banter with faces old and new. The weekend shaping up just fine.

World Cup Short Track story of the women’s race:

This was just the second fast-format of the series, and it came with the added points of a regional championship. It also brought out a number of speedsters with their eyes on the maximum 90 points, including Isla Hedley and Emma Ducreux, who have both taken gold already this season.

At the sound of the gun, Hedley and Ducreux both got to work in their strongest discipline. Hedley took the lead up front to be the first out of the water in 00:05:33, with Ducreux just 3 seconds back. America’s Amanda Felder got the crowd cheering as she exited in 3rd, while the reigning World Cup champion Marta Menditto left herself some work to be done in 6th.

On the bike, Hedley didn’t give an inch. The Brit locked in the fastest split of the day in 00:19:18 to keep her place at the front. But it was on two wheels where Australia’s Hannah-Lee Young and Marta Menditto changed the shape of the race. A power performance from Young saw her put in the second fastest ride of the day as the opportunity for a first-ever podium started to grow, while Menditto carved through the field to make her way into the lead pack.

In the final leg, Menditto did what she does best on her feet and laid down the fastest run to put the pressure on the lead. But it was never enough to worry Hedley, who had carved out a lead just shy of a full minute. Hedley finished with ease to make it 3 golds in a row. Menditto keeps her place near the top of the leaderboard with a strong 2nd, while Young will be celebrating her first ever World Cup podium.

The pros now take a day’s break to recover, before going to battle once again in Sunday’s Full Distance.

Link in comments for results, splits, and updated leaderboard standings.