IM 70.3 PUERTO RICO, WHERE CHAMPIONS ARE MADE
Racing IRONMAN 70.3 Puerto Rico, reminded me how much I love racing this distance.
It’s by far my favorite distance and I missed it!! It’s been 17 months since my last 70.3 which was at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Lahti, Finland.
Kicking off 2025 race season in Puerto Rico felt extra special! I am now racing in my new age (AG) 50-54 and the last time I raced Puerto Rico 70.3 I was in my early 40s. Going into this early spring race, I had very specific goals:
Build fitness in the heat for my upcoming A race, IRONMAN Texas.
Test new bike fuel.
Rebuild my run confidence.
Finish top 5 in my new AG.
IRONMAN 70.3 Puerto Rico did not disappoint!
I lead the swim and more than half of the bike course in my AG! I executed my race and fuel strategy. I finished 4th in my AG with a finisher’s time of 5:38hr, only 8 minutes slower than my younger self back in 2019. I am sure there will be a 3rd Puerto Rico in the near future, maybe in my 60s to keep this pattern.
RACE RECAP
SWIM 1.2 MILES (TIME: 0:33:40)
Puerto Rico’s swim course is one of my favorites in the 70.3 circuit after Cozumel. You swim mostly in a protected bay called Laguna del Condado. Water clarity is 100% with multiple chances to spot marine life. On race day, I spotted a sea turtle a few meters before the swim exit and on my practice swim I spotted a huge mantra ray, a few sea turtles, sea stars, and lots of tropical fish.
Water temperature on race day was 81F/27C, making it wetsuit illegal. This is my preferred swim type: ocean water and wetsuit illegal. The swim start is rolling start mode from the beach and you run into the bay 3 swimmers at a time, every 3 seconds.
I remember on race morning as I was waiting my turn to start, feeling a bit breathless. The Puerto Rican national anthem had finished followed by the US and then a local band was playing. I just didn’t feel connected. It was a strange feeling. But then as soon as the countdown began 4, 3, 2… and out of nowhere, my favorite song starting playing, “Lose Yourself” by Eminem, my breath calmed down, my vision tunneled, I pumped my chest, and just like that, I was fucking ready!
As I moved to the front to line up for my turn, I lined up with two male swimmers. The second the buzzer hit, I blew past them as I ran from the beach into the bay and never looked back. I was in total control of myself. I was connected.
The first 700 yards are fairly easy as there is a small tide in favor as you head towards the dead end of the lagoon. Once you turn on the 2nd red buoy and head back towards Dos Hermanos bridge, there is a slight current coming at you. Then, right before going under the Dos Hermanos bridge, the tide is strong and you have to do a bit more of kicking and sighting to get under the bridge. Once you swim under the bridge, these is where the incoming ocean water from the Atlantic connects with the Laguna del Condado. This last 400 meters in this section are always choppy. Strong swimmer get an advantage in this section as they work with the water and not against it.
Once you swim past the last buoy, all what is left is to exit the swim via a man made ramp. The ramp is fairly steep as it has to go over a tall sea brick wall and down onto a waterfront promenade. This ramp is built just for this race as there is no swim exit from this side of the lagoon.
I had a really good swim! I finished 1st in my AG, 19th in my gender and 95th overall out of 731 finisher participants.
T1 TRANSITION FROM SWIM-TO-BIKE (TIME: 5:39)
Puerto Rico 70.3 has one of the longest transitions from swim to bike that I have done. It is exactly a half mile run from where you exit the swim until you enter T1, where our bikes are racked from the night before. It is highly encouraged to leave a pair of extra running sneakers at the swim exit. Jimmie held on to my Oofos recovery shoes and when he spotted me, he dropped them on the the floor so that I could get them. I had never run with them before but it saved my feet from running on the streets of Puerto Rico.
Seeing Jimmie on the swim exit and able to chit chat for a few seconds with him, was very special to me. Having a familiar face on course and encouraging you, truly makes the world of difference! They are brief seconds interchanged in chaos, but those seconds are suspended in time and they help you dig a little deeper, fight a little stronger, and believe in yourself a little harder.
BIKE 56 MILES (TIME: 2:53:11)
The bike course is mostly flat once you reach the beachfront open roads were you do two loops and then coming back you get good quality short and steep climbs. Total elevation gain is 1,234ft and air temperature is 85F/29C with tropical humidity.
My main goal for the bike was to ride it conservatively to avoid overheating and be able to execute a strong off the bike run. The run in Puerto Rico is known to be brutally hot and hilly. If you go out too hard on the bike, you will lose a lot more time on the half marathon. I personally needed a strong run in this race in order to rebuild my run confidence. Last year I had disappointing runs in both IRONMAN Maryland and IRONMAN Cozumel after dealing with a year of foot injuries. I needed a strong comeback.
For most of the bike, I was leading in my AG and I wasn’t even pushing the pace. I had a big swim lead and it took until mile marker 30 for the first female in my AG to pass me. When you are racing it’s very hard to know who is in your age group. Each woman that passes you is fair competition. It does affect me to be passed, as I am highly competitive but my mantra on the bike has always been race your race, stick to your race strategy as the race begins on the run course.
My second goal for the bike was to test out my new bike fuel. I have been racing with Tailwind endurance fuel and Maurten gels on the bike for many years now. But last year, in both IRONMANs my palate has been wanting a change. Leading into Puerto Rico I started using Precision Fuel and Hydration for all my longer training rides and wanted to use Puerto Rico as a tester for my upcoming A race, IRONMAN Texas. On race day on the bike, I took in a total of 90g of carbs per hour, 1200mg of sodium per hour, and water at each and every aid station to cool my body down and to stay hydrated.
I came off the bike in 5th in my AG.
T2 TRANSITION FROM BIKE-TO-RUN (TIME: 2:45)
Puerto Rico has only one transition which makes it easy with race logistics. There is a bit of a run from the bike dismount line into transition but all went smooth finding my bike rack and getting ready for the run.
RUN 13.1 MILES (TIME: 2:03:38)
Puerto Rico’s run course is a tough one. It’s a 3 lap course out and back, no shade and hilly. Total elevation gain is 715ft. Luckily the ocean views are spectacular if you look up and the crowd support is very entertaining! Also, all the aid stations are super well manned with tons of ice, water, Pepsi, oranges and gels.
Coming off the bike, I was expecting my legs to have more punch since I held back on the bike. It took me about 2 laps to finally find my running legs. On the final lap I was able to pick up my pace but wasn’t able to hit my overall run goal.
I did walk through all the aid stations like I normally do on race day to grab ice, water, and Pepsi. I also walked up the steep climb to Bastion de San Sebastián, all 3 times! What kept me going was Jimmie’s energy who I saw multiple times on the run course since its a 3 loop course! At one point, he told me I was only a few seconds behind the 3rd place women in my AG. He told him how she looked and what she was wearing. He said “she has battle braids, looks Latina, and her kit is purple/pink”. Mind you, most women racing in Puerto Rico are Latinas, they almost all have battle braids, and they all have a similar kit from their triclubs. But this gave me something to fight for and to focus my attention on finding my battle braid Latina pink women!
At the end, I finished 3rd in my AG for the run and 4th overall in my AG.
I was happy and satisfied with the outcome and the execution. It gave me hope that my running fitness IS coming back and what I need to work towards for IRONMAN Texas. The final weeks into an IRONMAN are mentally and physically brutal. It is honestly where champions are built! Puerto Rico gave me the confidence that I was needing to head into my last final weeks of IRONMAN Texas!
