Margarita Island Half-Iron Triathlon "L" - Triathlon1/2 Ironman

The whole group took off together. My goggles were foggy, so it was initially difficult to see the 4 bouys.

I felt better in the first lap than in the second. I thought I had a good pace but had a hard time reaching the shore. My friend Carlos from the pool helped me, and we drafted from each other. He was nice enough to wait for me in both laps.

I wanted to exit the water in about 50 minutes. So I was sad to find out that I was 5 minutes behind my plan. I forgot to start my stopwatch. Luckily, Félix was there to tell me my times.

I felt bad, but I knew that there was still a lot of race to go. Later, I realized that with only 6 months of swim training, just completing the course was good.

T1 was a little far from the water and we had to run on sand, pavement and through the hotel. I drank half a can of Ensure as I put my shoes and helmet on. The staff was really cool and helpful.

The only little mistake was that I had forgotten my sunglasses, but I just realized after a couple of hours on the bike. I knew I was missing something!

I would be a little more careful. Maybe I would pass on the Ensure and would stick to gels.

In the first 11km through the city, I got lost for about 2 minutes because I missed a turn. A little kid shouted to show me the right way. Then I managed to pass my friend Carlos.

Once on the highway, I fell into pace and hit a comfortable cadence that I could hold for the 90k. I also forgot to reset both my stopwatch and bike computer, so I didn't know how I was doing.

I had told Felix before the race that I didn't want to know what position I was in. So I found out I was second after passing a girl in the beginning of the second lap. I had seen her in training before and she was very intimidating then, a really good runner. I began to wonder if I was going too hard.

Towards the end of the third lap, one of the strong cyclists passed me. I had no idea she was behind me after the swim. The return through the town was pretty fast; I tried to stay close to the girl who had just passed me, the cyclist, but she was riding really hard. So, I just kept my pace and tried to get some distance on the other girl, the runner.

Not much really, probably ride with my own bike (I used Felix's). I beat my projected time by 8 minutes and held a good pace even on the climbs.

I had only trained in the aero position for about a month, but never on the downhills. This time I didn't hesitate to go aero at all times.

The volunteers were excellent again, and I got through it very fast. Got some sponges and water splashed on me. I forgot something this time around also: my race belt and number.

Luckily, organizers weren't strict and I received my number for the remainder of the run and was not disqualified.

This was my best part of the race. I had planned for 2:30 since my previous best stand-alone 21k was 2:06.

When the run began, second place was 3 minutes ahead and fourth place had not arrived from the bike. Again, I didn't know what was going on and Felix told me the times.

My strategy was to fall into pace on the first lap and see where second place was and keep a good distance on the fourth place girl, whom I knew was a good runner.

On the return of the first lap, I realized that the second-place girl had picked up the pace and had about 8 minutes on me. And I knew I was another 8 minutes ahead of fourth place.

I tried to keep my pace and make sure I saw the other girls at least in the same place every lap. I drank a lot, used the sponges and got showered with water at every aid station.

I really liked the fact that I felt so good that walking never crossed my mind, not even on the big climbs. In the last lap, I picked up the pace and didn't want to get caught so close to the end.

As I approached the finish line, the longest part for me was the final 300 meters from the hotel entrance. I ran fast because I wanted to see if I had beaten my goal of 7hrs.

My favorite and most exciting moment was to look at the official watch to see 6:37!

I don't know. I'm officially a triathlete. It was a perfect race for me.

As soon as I finished, I began to notice that I was really tired, but never felt it during the race.

I received a wonderful massage that brought me back to life. Then a refreshing dip in the pool and a great pizza dinner with Felix's family and my first beers in about six months!


Swim: Need to improve my speed. I know that I can cover the distance and swim in open water.

Bike: I'm getting better. More kilometers on the road bike.

Run: I had a good run, but can always improve.

I realized that the persons who one usually sees at the head of the pack are human and not entirely out of reach. I never felt down because it was my first time. I learned to race and am coming back next year.


This is the sixth edition of this race. And it is probably up to international standards. I highly recommend it. People from Argentina, the US and Germany have raced here before.

I would like to thank Felix, who is my soon to be husband and trainer because he makes me get up in the morning to train, is patient with me and has made this journey the most exciting race ever. This is not a hobby for us anymore; it is a lifestyle. This achievement is his as much as mine.

By being consistent, anything is possible.