Ben Hoffman goes offroad this weekend at the XTERRA World Championship. After a valiant effort and 4th place finish at the Ironman World Championship in Kona, he returns to Maui hoping to improve on his previous 10th place finish at the event.
Last year the American took home the Outrigger Double award for being the sole finisher to have done both Kona and Maui. This year he faces competition from 2012 awardee Sebastian Kienle of Germany as they seek to achieve the fastest combined times from the two races. Kienle finished Kona in 8:10:02 while Hoffman crossed the line in 8:13:00.
“It’s always fun to mix it up with the off-road guys, and you can’t complain about a race in paradise,” Hoffman says. “Although I really went to the well in Kona, I think the body will come around in time to have a solid race, and I am motivated to push hard again and see what I can get out of myself on the day.”
Meanwhile, Fredrik Croneborg returns to racing at the inaugural Challenge Thailand for the first time since becoming a father at the beginning of October. The Phuket-based Swede says, “I don’t have too much expectations for this race since I’ve just started up my training again, but I hope the home court advantage with the race being in Thailand will give me a shot at a podium.”
