Ironman 70.3 Ohio will take place in Sandusky this year

SANDUSKY, Ohio — This summer, people from across the country will make their way to Sandusky, but not only for the roller coasters. 

On July 24th, the city will be the host of the Ironman 70.3 Ohio. The city will host the event for the next three years.

Ironman races are held in different cities around the globe. 

This long-distance swimming, biking and running event already has athletes like Mike Swanson excited. 

Getting ready to compete in an Ironman takes a lot of training and dedication. 

“Training is pretty constant and consistent,” Swanson said. “I’d say (I train) six or seven days a week.” 

Even though the triathlon is months away, he is constantly working out by himself and with trainers and coaches. 

He swims, bikes, runs and does strength conditioning several times each week. 

“You know Ironman, it’s a yearlong cycle,” he said. “You are always doing something.” 

With a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike ride and a 13.1-mile run, the total distance of this Half Ironman race is 70.3 miles. 

While those numbers can seem intimidating, Swanson is a pro at the sport and has been competing for around 10 years. 

He got into doing triathlons when he found out he was going to have a daughter. 

“I knew age-wise for a dad, I was going to be a little bit on the older side of the spectrum. She is 10, I’ll be 47 in a little less than a month,” he said. “I wanted to be active, I wanted to be able to run and play with them.” 

Now, a decade later, and he said he’s in the best shape of his life. 

“My favorite part about doing Ironman is the feeling you get from the accomplishment of doing it,” he said. 

Even in the bad weather, this triathlete still spends several hours a week prepping for the triathlon both indoors and outside. 

His goal for this summer’s race is to be faster than he was during his previous Ironman races. 

“It is so much about mental toughness,” he said. “I mean, yeah, there is a physical side to this for sure, but the mental side of is 90% of it.” ​