Why our Ohio Skating & Biking tour is the ideal training — and the perfect vacation — for skaters racing the NorthShore this September.
Ask most inline skaters how they train for a marathon and you’ll hear familiar stories: stolen miles on local paths, early mornings in parking lots, solo long runs squeezed between work and life. Effective? Sure. But there’s a better way — and it happens to involve five days on the most extraordinary paved trail network in America, farmhouse ice cream, a small city on a river, and a quirky arts town in southwestern Ohio.
In 2026, Zephyr Adventures’ Ohio Skating & Biking Adventure doubles as a perfect NorthShore Inline Marathon training week — and the combination is one of the most compelling things we’ve ever offered serious skaters.
Why Ohio, of All Places?
Here’s the thing about Ohio that surprises everyone who shows up: it is genuinely extraordinary for skating. The greater Dayton region is home to more than 330 miles of connected, paved, largely car-free trail — converted rail trails and river paths that are flat, smooth, and purpose-built for exactly the kind of long-distance aerobic work that matters before a marathon.
Zephyr founder Allan Wright made a bold claim back in 2017: Ohio has the best paved trails in the world. He’s since discovered a worthy rival in Germany’s Flaeming Skate — but Ohio and Flaeming trade the top two spots, and no other destination is close. For a week of serious marathon training, there is arguably no better place on the continent.
What a Training Week for the NorthShore Marathon (aka Vacation) Actually Looks Like
Over five days — September 11–15, 2026 — participants can log the equivalent of up to five marathons. The routes follow the Great Miami River Trail, Little Miami Scenic Trail, Mad River Trail, and Creekside Trail, among others. Terrain is consistent, surfaces are excellent, and daily mileage is flexible — shorter options are always available, either way it is ideal training for the NorthShore Marathon.
This is not a boot camp. It’s structured, supportive training in a small-group environment — the kind of steady, purposeful mileage that builds both fitness and race-day confidence without the pressure of a competitive training camp.
After the Ohio tour ends September 15, you’ll have three full days to travel to Minnesota — arriving rested, trained, and ready for the NorthShore start line on September 18.
The NorthShore: Worth Every Mile of Preparation
The NorthShore Inline Marathon celebrates its 30th year in 2026. The 26.2-mile course follows the stunning north shore of Lake Superior from Two Harbors to Duluth, Minnesota — smooth pavement, fast terrain, and an electric race-day atmosphere that draws skaters from around the world. For serious skaters, it’s a bucket-list finish line. Doing it on the back of a full week of purposeful training is a different experience entirely.
The Perks of Combining Both
• 20% off NorthShore Inline Marathon registration — a meaningful discount on one of the sport’s premier events.
• $50 gift card to Inline Warehouse, our trusted partner for inline skating gear.
• No single supplement for solo travelers new to Zephyr — a $500 value, making this accessible for skaters traveling alone.
And It’s a Genuinely Great Vacation
The training is real, but so is the experience of being somewhere beautiful. Dayton is a small city with a thriving food and arts scene on the Great Miami River. Yellow Springs — where you’ll spend two nights — is the kind of rare small town that earns the word ‘charming’ without irony: a walkable main street, independent shops, the Yellow Springs Brewery, and the legendary Young’s Dairy just up the road.
All dinners and breakfasts are included. Lodging at the trailside Fairfield Inn & Suites in Dayton and the historic Mills Park Hotel in Yellow Springs is included. All the skating routes and ground transportation are handled. You bring your skates. Zephyr takes care of the rest.
The Bottom Line
If the NorthShore Inline Marathon is on your calendar this September, the Ohio Skating & Biking Adventure is the ideal way to make that race weekend into something bigger. A full week of purposeful training on world-class trails, a real adventure in an underrated corner of America, and one of the sport’s most iconic events waiting at the end.
It’s a rare thing when the smart training choice and the memorable vacation are the same trip. This is that.
Ohio Skating & Biking Adventure · September 11–15, 2026 · $2,750/person
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