If you’ve thought about doing a triathlon, but are intimidated at the prospect of first training for and then completing a race, the annual TriMuskokan is the perfect event for getting your feet – and the rest of you – wet.
It’s billed as an event, and not a race, because it’s more about achieving a goal than beating someone else to the finish line.
“The TriMuskokan is a way to challenge yourself and work toward a target at the end of the winter,” says Rich Trenholm of TriMuskoka, the local triathlon club that organizes the event. “It’s a safe, fun environment for first-timers but also challenging for those that have experience with triathlons.”
The club has drawn on its experience with the longer Ironman Muskoka and Ironman Muskoka 70.3 races to develop an event that has all of the excitement with a personalized feel, just on a smaller scale. Registration – which opened today (November 25) – is capped at 300 to help alleviate some of the nervousness for first-timers. There are fewer swimmers in the water, and fewer athletes to navigate around during transitions.
For those who participated last year, the event will be familiar with just a few tweaks to enhance the experience. “Some asked us if we could flatten out a few of the hills, but we couldn’t make that happen,” laughs Trenholm.
What will be different? Because the try-a-tri course takes less time to complete, participants will start after the short course participants next year, instead of before, to offer them more of an audience to cheer them on at the finish line.
In addition to the try-a-tri, back are the individual short course, duathlon, swim/bike and relay options, including the Corporate Relay Challenge – Doppler entered a team last year and we can assure you that it’s loads of fun.
Because the Muskoka Ironman 70.3 has been moved to the same venue – the Canada Summit Centre – for July 2017, the TriMuskokan is likely to be a popular event as those athletes come to check out the terrain. If you want a spot, be sure to register early. Once you do, you’ll find training plans here: try-a-tri or short course.
For more information about the TriMuskokan, visit trimuskoka.ca.
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