Step Up Activator series helping prepare Xterra participants
Step Up Activator series helping prepare Xterra participants
ROTORUA 08 .02.11: Training advice from an experienced triathlete is being offered to Rotorua people wanting to be well prepared for taking part in this year’s Paymark Xterra Rotorua Festival on Sunday 29 April.
Xterra is regarded as New Zealand’s premier multisport event with a range of options including 11 and 21 km walking and running trails, a 29km bike ride and the Xterra triathlon (1km swim, 11km trail run, and 29 km mountain bike ride).
Rotorua District Council is offering people professional training advice through the Step Up Activator series before they join the 3000 expected to participate in Xterra events in just under three months time.
Coordinator for the Step Up Activator series, Kylie Lang, says registration numbers for Xterra are up again this year and rising quickly as the countdown to the festival begins. She says the Step Up programme is a great way to ensure participants are well prepared before fronting up at the start line.
“Step Up is an eight week training programme aimed at providing all the skills needed to negotiate some of the best trails in the country. Mark ‘Cabin’ Leishman, one of Rotorua’s top multisport athletes, will be guiding participants through a well planned journey of preparation.
“Every Tuesday from 15 February, Cabin will share his experience of competing in the event, teaching people how to ride, swim and run correctly as preparation for competing in whichever Xterra event they choose take part in.
Ms Lang says she is looking forward to again seeing the results that people invariably achieve after participating in the Step Up Activator series.
"Last year we had over 30 people taking part in the programme, all with different skill levels, and many of them went on to successfully compete in Xterra events. It was really rewarding to see expressions of triumph and achievement on the faces of competitors as they crossed the finish line."
ENDS