Strong field for this week's XTERRA

Competitors for the XTERRA Mountain Championship event this weekend in and around Snowbasin will include both professional and amateur triathletes who will comprise, officials report, "one of our strongest fields."

Being the last event of four scheduled this summer, it's compete or stumble and fall in the series standings for the serious competitors.

This is the second year for the XTERRA event in the Ogden area.

"Ogden is becoming a recognized destination for adventure travel," said Mike Caldwell, executive director of the Ogden/Weber Convention and Visitors Bureau. "What better venue could there be for athletes and spectators than the mountains, trails and lakes in Ogden Valley?"

Events Friday include a free bike race for kids and a 12K trail run. There will also be a series of clinics related to triathlon swimming, biking and running.

The main event begins on Saturday at 9 a.m. It will start with a 1.5K swim in Pineview Reservoir, then move to a 30K bike race over a mountain course to Snowbasin, and ends with a 10K trail run.

After the top athletes leave for their event, the XTERRA Sport event will start at 9:20 a.m. This involves a 750-meter swim, 16K mountain bike race and 5K run.

The 12K run on Friday will follow the ancient Bonneville Shoreline that offers scenic views of the Ogden township, the Great Salt Lake and Antelope Island. The race will start at the Dee Events Center on the Weber State University campus.

The "Cruise for a Cause" event on Friday is a recreational bike ride that will follow along the Ogden River Parkway. The ride is intended to support Weber Pathways, a nonprofit group dedicated to creating trails for hikers, bikers, runners, equestrian enthusiasts, cross country skiers and snowshoers.

The main XTERRA event draws top athletes for a number of reasons, including cash, prestige and athletic challenge.

Following the swim in 65-degree water, competitors will ride their bikes to Snowbasin, which involves riding a grueling 1,800-foot, uphill course. The run will start at Snowbasin and follow a single track that zigzags through aspen groves, meadows of wildflowers and along the Olympic downhill course.

Among the professional triathletes register in the men's class are Conrad Stoltz of Stellenbosch, South Africa; Mike Vine of Victoria, Canada; Jostan Middaugn of Vail, Colo.; Andrew Noble of Gold Coast, Australia; and Seth Wealing of Boulder, Colo.

Registered in the women's event are Jamie Whitmore of Somerset, Calif.; Melanie McQuaid of Victoria, Canada; Candy Angle of Weymouth, Mass.; Jennifer Smith of Westport, New Zealand; and Amber Monforte of Reno, Nev.