The Xterra Triathlon is a form of triathlon, or three-sport race, which includes mountain biking and trail running. It began in 1996 on the island of Maui as the Aquaterra. It consisted of an open-ocean swim, a mountain bike race and a trail run. Since then it has evolved into the Xterra.

The Xterra has two primary divisions, Professional and "Sport". In the professional division athletes compete for cash prizes and sponsorships and race greater distances. The Sport division was created for those who still want to compete but have no aspirations to become professional athletes.

As an off-road race, the distances can vary widely depending on the terrain available. The target distances are as follows:

• Professional: 1.5 km Swim, 30 km Mountain biking, 11 km Trail Run
• Sport: 500 m Swim, 15 km Mountain biking, 5 km Trail Run

In the United States the sport distances are often used as miles yielding a 1/2 mile (804 m) Swim, 15 mile (24 km) Mountain Bike, and a 5 mile (8 km) trail run.

Events and Locations

The majority of Xterra Triathlons are held in the United States. Even with a current total of over 40 races held between the first race in March and the international championships in October an ever increasing number of races are sanctioned each year.

Some previous race locations and general dates have include:

Major events include:
XTerra Saipan Championship: April - Saipan, MP
Nissan XTerra East Championship: June - Richmond, VA
Nissan XTerra Central Championship: July - Keystone, CO
Nissan XTerra West Championship: August - Big Bear, CA
Nissan XTerra USA Championship: September - Lake Tahoe, NV
Nissan XTerra World Championship: October - Wailea, HI