The TriMuskokan Short Course Championships made its debut last year. It is a short-distance and super-short distance triathlon being held in Huntsville on June 26. Like Band on the Run, it is a home-grown event that is gaining in popularity.
According to Dr. Rich Trenholm, one of the organizers, the short course triathlon is offered to attract people to the sport of triathlons in a non-intimidating manner.
“We put it on simply because there was a void within the walls of our community which is so well known for triathlon, in that short distance and the super short distance with the Try-a-Tri. Almost everybody starts at the Try-a-Tri level when they get into the sport. Most of the time it is for personal goals or fitness. This is a distance that people who are active or aren’t active can have as a carrot and a goal to improve their overall fitness.” The Try-a-Tri distance is a 400M swim, 10K bike and 3K run.
Rich says the laid back Huntsville atmosphere lends itself perfectly to the course.
“The whole element of the event is fun and an experience rather than it being uber competitive. It’s meant to be a fun and supportive environment and is something that is attainable by anybody. The roads aren’t closed but there’s basically no traffic on a Sunday morning. It’s really very safe and very friendly for someone who might be worried about traffic or congestion being an intimidating environment. It’s a quiet course in a quiet area.”
And you don’t have to worry about having an expensive road bike to compete. According to Rich, mountain bikes are welcome, in fact encouraged. “Almost everybody who comes for the Try-a-Tri distance comes on a mountain bike. Don’t feel like you need to have a fancy bike to do it.”
Last year’s event had 149 participants. Choosing quality over quantity, organizers say this year’s TriMuskokan will be capped at 300 people.
Registration has been running well ahead of last year, and in order to keep this event a ‘quality over quantity’ triathlon where the focus is on the race experience, our organizing committee has decided to put a cap of 300 registrants for the event. This will allow us to grow the event in a much more manageable fashion, and will allow us to expand the event year to year while maintaining the quality of the event.
Event organizers
The Huntsville event features a number of race options including the Try-a-Tri, a short course, and short course duathlon or relay.
Visit the TriMuskokan website here for all the information you need including distances, race routes, registration and training plans.
Check out these training plans:
The TriMuskokan 8-week Couch to Try-a-Tri training plan
The TriMuskokan 8-week beginner short course training plan
Photos courtesy of TriMuskoka
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