What is the Morgan’s Little Miami Triathlon and How to Train For It

When many people think of triathlons they think of the most famous one which is the Iron Man triathlon in Kona, Hawaii. The first one was held in 1979 and soon after that event, some people in Cincinnati Ohio decided to have their own version of a triathlon creating Morgan’s Little Miami Triathlon. It involves running and biking but instead of swimming, it has a canoe or kayak leg. Both Cincinnati bike repair and Cincinnati bike dealers in Ohio offer great deals on all of the equipment you may need to train for this event. This article will describe more details about this race as well as how to train to be able to finish it successfully.

Morgan’s Little Miami Triathlon is the oldest and biggest triathlon of its kind in the United States celebrating it’s 30 year this season. The course starts out with a 6 mile canoe for two person teams or kayak for a single racer, a 5.5 mile run that includes some trail running, and an 18 mile bike ride. It has always been a competition for two person teams but just recently they added the single person event that may use a kayak to race instead of a canoe. They offer two identical races, one in June and one in October in the Cincinnati, Ohio area. It has been a longtime tradition for many fitness and adventurous spirits.

In order to complete such a challenging athletic event, it is imperative to be physically ready for the race. You should spend at least 2 months of steady training to complete this event with quite a bit of cross training. Most people know how to run and ride a bike but many are unfamiliar with the correct way to canoe or kayak. There are several canoe and kayak outfitters in the area especially along the Little Miami River where the race will take place. Find out which one may offer canoe lessons and have your partner and yourself take a few lessons to be comfortable with maneuvering the canoe.

Once you are comfortable in how to handle your canoe or kayak it is time to do some conditioning to get ready for the long triathlon. You should be exercising 6 times per week with one day of total rest. A good plan to follow would be to run 3 times a week, bike 3-4 times a week and to do canoe or upper body strengthening exercises 3 times a week. The key is to start out slowly and developing a good base of endurance. To get a good base in your training it is important to train well below a certain heart rate for at least 2 weeks.

Since the majority of people that do this race are doing it with a partner, try to train with your partner as much as possible to know what type of shape and pace they will be able to maintain. You want to be able to stay strong as a unit, not just individually.