Why I did this race
After completing IRONMAN Ottawa, I was looking for my next high. I was scrolling on Ironman’s website looking for my next Ironman to conquer when I stumbled upon IRONMAN SAN SALVADOR. I honestly did not expect to see an Ironman in El Salvador. I was excited for this one. My parents are from there and I have never been there in my life. I made the decision to race there, bring my bike on a plane (something I’ve never done), take my parents with me, and finally see my roots. I was born in Canada and I have never met family from there. This was going to be a very special but very exhausting trip since I knew I would be visiting a lot of family along the way. I registered as soon as it was announced around September. This race sold out. For a country to get this company to come to El Salvador, this seemed massive and exciting.
Fitness Background
This was going to be my 5th Ironman (3 full + 1 half). I wanted to do really well on it. I started training in October. I was thinking first place. In November, I tore my right calf muscle (from soccer) and did not recover until the end of December. First place was no longer on my mind. Through rigorous stretching and listening to the medical professionals, I healed in 6 weeks. Throughout the injury, I kept swimming until I could run and cycle again.
After I was completely recovered, I ran a ton, still swam, and did short cycling sessions. Cycling is my strongest and I wasn’t too concerned about that. I trained everyday. additionally, lifting weights was also part of my training as always.
Things I had to consider for this trip
Traveling with my own bike has held me back a lot when it comes to racing internationally, specifically on a plane. It has always been a scary feeling transporting a lot of expensive equipment and not knowing what could happen to it. To counter this mentality, I ordered a very expensive cycling case. I also got my mechanics to show me how to dissemble and reassemble my bike about a month before the race. I bought an expensive case because I thought about using it in the long term if I continue to race in another country (which I will 100% do now). Additionally, I also booked the trip a week before the race to acclimatize to the weather, let my parents enjoy their country, and explore. I packed my own protein, and slowly prepared for this journey.
1 week before the race
For the first week, I stayed 2 hours away from San Salvador for my parents to enjoy their country before going to San Salvador (the capital of the country). I rode my triathlon bike around Acajutla, ran through their very local streets, and swam in the beach for practice. The beach’s sand was black from the volcanoes.
They were also very hot. I did very relaxed sessions to get acustomed to the heat. That heat was no joke. I did not take it lightly when training. My workouts started in the morning. The temperatures ranged from 32-40 degrees celicius. I was in one of the most hottest regions of El Salvador. The first airbnb I stayed at was at a private beach club. It screamed wealth. I found out to buy a beach house in that private area, the cost was around $300,000 USD. They were stunning.
Unfortunately I got sick. I don’t know if it was from something I ate, something I drank, or maybe something I may have swallowed from swimming. I was told not to drink the water and to be careful with the food. I tried but I wasn’t careful enough. I hoped it would go away before the race. It did not. Unforuntely in these beautiful countries, sanitation is a bit of an issue. I tried to use bottled water for everything. It wasn’t enough.
The day before the race
I had to go to the Hyatt hotel in the morning for the transition 1 bike drop off. If you don’t know what this means, it just means dropping off your race equipment at destined race stations. This happens before the race. At the hotel, all racers had to get on a bus with our bikes that would then drive us down to ilopango lake. After that, the bus would then drive us to San Salvador’s central area to drop off the Transition 2 run bag station. Lastly, the bus would then take us back to the Hyatt hotel. I bought a new tri suit at the Hyatt hotel as a souvenir for myself and to race with. I then went home and rested. I was going in with some sort of stomach flu and accepted my fate. At least, I was wearing a cool new tri suit from Mauna that I will review. It was a fantastic tri suit.
Morning Race Day
what I brought for the race
- Scott plasma premium bike with di2
- Decathlon helmet (I like white helmets)
- sidi road shoes
- Mauna Sam Salvador tri suit
- Santini wind breaker vest
- Gatorade powders
- 3 El Salvador Ironman bottles
- 1 bottle with tools in case of flat
- Nike alpha fly 3 runners
- San Salvador Ironman hat for run
- NY IRONMAN Lake placid socks
- Running belt for bib number
- speedo goggles
- Garmin forerunner 955
- shimano sunglasses
- my parents
The morning of the race. I get up at 3:00 am and take my energy drink to clean my system. The same uneasy feeling I get before a race made me throw up immediately. I arrived around 4:45ish am at ilopango. At this point, I went to the washroom at least 7 times from that cursed stomach flu. This will sound gross but it’s a human thing when you’re stomach sick. I was crapping out liquid and it was not fun. It was scary. At that moment before the race, I knew lots of hydration was lost from my body. Not good, I was very worried. I did not want a DNF but I also didn’t want to die. Horrible but true, I was going to race. I trained and sacrificed too much for this. If I died, I was ok with that. I’m joking. Sort of.
The swim
Time: 38 minutes
This was my fastest swim ever. Without a wetsuit. The temperature of the water was 27.5 degrees Celsius. Every other triathlon race I’ve done was with a wetsuit which helps massively. Wetsuits were not allowed on this race and I was very afraid of this. I have never swam this amount without a wetsuit in a race. Fear made me wear a wetsuit. The fear of not being fast enough to finish the swim. People talk about this in every race I’ve been in. I was about to take this fear head on with this race whether I liked it or not. This was very scary to me.
I absolutely crushed it. The route was a triangle, my line of sight was good, and i just focused on my breathing and strokes. i just kept my head down and looked at the swimmers infront of me. I was in the zone. I also kept thinking of the countless pool swim sessions I did all winter and how much I felt in sync at that moment. It was a really cool feeling. I felt like I was in my gym’s pool. It was pure pleasure. I came out of the water and was amazed at what I had just accomplished. My lats were super sore. My heart rate’s highest during the swim was 192 beats per minute. The wetsuit would have definitely made it higher and probably been dangerous. I can’t believe I did that. OceanMan has been on my mind after that win.
The Bike
Time: 3 Hours, 46 Minutes
This was my most painful bike ride of my life. This was also probably my slowest 90km ride ever in terms of racing. The first part of the race is a climb that is about 200 metres of climbing, it’s the same climb that brings you down to the lake. After that, the climbing isn’t as steep but they are long. The descends were also really fast and beautiful. The tarmac was perfect for riding. As you’re riding, almost every few blocks, El Salvador’s military is present. The security for this race was insane and it was something I’ve never encountered in a race or my life. It was very cool. Riding and seeing the power of their military and the majestic volcanoes surrounding the country was awesome. I fell in love with their volcanoes. There was something about them that made the country feel special. It felt like an entity watching over me.
Everything was going well until I made it to the second 2nd loop of the ride. My quads cramped so hard, that it was too painful to pedal, I tried to unclip but my legs could not move from the pain. I crashed on the ground just trying to unclip from the shear pain. Someone asked if I needed help, I said no, I just had super painful cramps. I stretched and it finally went away. I also lost a water bottle from the crash. Not good. The fear of not fininshing this race set in. Also, the heat was climbing as the sun rose. I knew I was too dehydrated from the stomach flu which caused all of this. I then went into survival mode. Finish this race.
I got back on the bike and pedalled. Every pedal was pain but it also meant I was closer to the finish line. Every pit stop I would drink massive amounts of everything they offered. i devoured bananas. I used all my powders of sodium, salt tabs, Gatorade powder, and everything I had. I was trying to mitigate the pain and cramps by adding more to my system. I had to stop every few kilometres to stretch as the pain would return. It was not looking good. Oh, and my chain fell off the front cassette at one point. The day before the race, I met a fellow Ironman from the states who provided me sodium packets that he swore by. He gave me two. Those saved me. Thanks Alonso, I owe you one.
I finally finished the bike portion. I could not believe I did it. I knew the timing was garbage but I did it. I was damn proud of it. On to the run. It’s these types of things that you are forced to do in dire situations that help you reflect on what type of person you were and what you then become. Becoming resilient and acknowledging what you are truly capable of doing.
The run
Time: 2 hours, 24 minutes
I started the run and the first 2-3km I had to walk from the groin muscle cramps. I then walked and iced my legs while also drinking absolutely everything I could.
I was then able to run with minimal pain. The temperature went up but luckily a nice breeze took over. Additionally, the Spanish music kept me going and all the people cheering was definitely a plus. I was so close to finishing this race. I had to finish it. It was where my parents came from. I travelled for the first time ever with my bike. My parents were with me. Failure was not an option. I finished the run. These races make me so proud of myself. I’m also lucky to have a family who supports me.
FINAL RESULTS – I FINISHED
Final time: 6 hours, 55 minutes
If I wasn’t sick, this race would have been amazing and my timing would have been much better but unfortunately I had to go into Survival mode. I had to fight my mental thoughts, my muscle cramps, the intense heat, my chain, and the climbing while sick. I will remember this race for the rest of my life. I had thoughts of quitting but I couldn’t do it. The race that tried to destroy me but I resisted and finished it. I’m so glad I did this race. This race makes me want to get stronger, faster, and better in my life.
August 2026 UPDATE: I was hacked and had to rewrite all of this, sort of. Luckily I had a backup but I added more information. I was recently hit by a car and have been off work recovering from the injuries. I am alive and more ambitious than ever. Next year will be the most emotional race I will probably ever do from my second near death experience. Stay tuned for an update on my life and what I’ve been going through. Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment!