Steve Brown, owner and race organizer of ULTRA520K announced Monday that an agreement has been reach with Rick Kent of Austin Texas to host the first ULTRA520K Texas in Marble Falls this September.
“Rick Kent, well known photographer, Ultraman finisher and RAAM Finisher among many other athletic accomplishments is a great fit for this event”, said Brown in a press release. “Rick first expressed an interest in putting on a ultra distance event in Texas right after I established ULTRA520K. We are both very excited to make this announcement as Rick and I have been friends for several years and we both have a passion for the sport.”
While the license will be held and owned by Kent, the race director will be Mario Gonzales, founder of the award winning Marble Falls Triathlon for the past 15 years. “I had a chance to meet Mario on my trip down to Marble Falls this past January and he is a great guy. Our race directing philosophies are very similar and I think we will push each other to make all the ULTRA520K events better”, said Brown.
The event will take place Sept.23-29 with race days Sept. 25-27. The Ultra520K Texas will continue to honour the exclusive nature of the event, by keeping the numbers low and having an “invitation only” application process.
“I am currently in discussions with other event organizers and have managed to find some likeminded individuals in terms of our business philosophy and vision of where the ultra-distance triathlon world is going,” said Brown. “I am very excited about having Rick and his organization in Texas being the first event outside of Canada for the ULTRA5520K Series. This should be a long and mutually beneficial relationship for ULTRA520K.”
Ultra520K Texas is a three-day, 515 kilometre (320 mile), individual event. It features the Texas Hill Country, located one- hour west of Austin and 1 1/2 hours from San Antonio, giving the event two major airports to service it. Entry is limited to 45 solo/individual entries.
Stage/Day 1 –Starts with a 10 km (6.2 mile) swim in Lake Marble Falls which is part of the Colorado River system, followed by a 149.8 km (93.0-mi) bike ride loop around the Marble Falls area ending back in the town, featuring most of the original Marble Falls Triathlon Course.
Stage/Day 2 – Consists of a challenging 275.8 km (171.4 mile) bike ride over the Texas Hill Country.
Stage/ Day 3 – Finishes with a grueling 84.4 km (52.4 mile) double-marathon run. The run course features more of the Texas Hill Country including herds of Texas Long Horn Cattle, Bison and gorgeous scenery.
Time Limits: Each Stage/Day has a 12-hour total time limit. In addition, the swim portion of Stage/Day 1 has a six-hour cut off. Stage/Day 3 has intermediate cut offs of six hours, 42 km and 9 hours – 63 km.
Registration for Ultra520K Texas is open now. Anyone interested in applying can do so by going to www.ultra520k.com or www.ultra520ktexas.com and follow the links to the registration portal.
