UCI Puerto Rico MTB Cup: Rincon, PR

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is a small Caribbean Island, roughly 1000 miles from the southern-most coastline of Miami, Florida. Puerto Rican weather is pretty amazing; the temperatures are somewhere between 75 and 85 degrees, it rains an average of 3 to 4 inches per month, and the average humidity is somewhere around 77% almost every single day of the year. With the exception of hurricanes and tsunamis (which are not small things), the consistency of their tropical weather was completely surreal to me. As in staring blankly at my husband, shaking my head and informing him that, “... the race director just told me that the weather we are having today is the year-round norm. I’m never leaving.” Meanwhile it was snowing in Boise, again.

Reading up on the tumultuous history of Puerto Rico is dizzying. Originally inhabited by Taino Amerindians until it was colonized by the Spanish in 1493, Puerto Rico has since been home to German, French, Irish, Italian and Corsican immigrants (in addition to its own tribal lineages) for centuries now. Puerto Rican food and culture definitely reflects a very unique and tropical blend of many international flavors, especially for such a small island in the middle of the Caribbean. And it is small - we flew into the capital of San Juan on the far east side of the island, and drove to Rincon (located on the far western shore) in a little less than 3 hours.

The city of Rincon is a true paradise. Globally renowned for its big wave surfing, our race took place just 2 weeks before one of the World Tour Surf Series events was hosted on the very beaches that we warmed up next to. It was a lot of travel to get to Puerto Rico, but when we pulled up to our little apartment rental and I was able to pick a sun-warmed starfruit right off the tree next to me, I knew we had come to a very good place.

The race course was filled with tall cyprus and palm trees. The further up the steep jungle hillside we climbed, the more roots there were to be had- keeping it fun and always interesting. March is technically the dry season for Puerto Rico, so trails were surprisingly loose and dry. Whether it was up or down, everything was pretty steep out there. Actually it was REALLY fun riding, but I wouldn’t want to try some of those A-lines without my KS Lev-Ci 100 mm dropper post. The loose, steep and rooted terrain was so much easier to maneuver through while maintaining higher speeds when I could get my body position lower and centered over the bottom bracket without sacrificing my steering position.

On the course walk we noticed a fair amount of sharp glass shards, and even a few nails which threw we threw safely off-course. As a result of this discovery, I opted to run the Kenda Kozmik II tires with SCT (sidewall protection). They weigh a few grams more than the TR (trail) version, but they are my absolute go-to for courses where a few extra grams are worth avoiding a “long-walk” to the pits with a flat. The Kozmiks also excel in sand and loose conditions so it was a win-win pick for sure! Combined with some light, responsive and incredibly resilient Rolf-Prima Alsea Wheels, we were definitely ready to go.

Race day was a blast. With the heat and humidity already at full-strength by 9 am, I opted for a really early breakfast to make sure my body had plenty of time to digest. Hydration was going to be key for everyone out there, but especially for someone like myself who hadn't seen temps above 40 degrees (or trails for that matter) for the last 4 months. CarboRocket was the perfect solution, both before and during the race. Between ice cold dump bottles and paying attention to regular hydration intervals, I was able to avoid much of the “greatly-feared” heat-bonk. To be fair, hydration for a race in this kind of heat starts the week before, and I spent the previous week toting a water bottle filled with some flavor of CarboRocket Acqua+ everywhere with me. It felt great to nail the nutrition on the first race of the season. With it being so early into a long season, it's all about dialing in the little things and building on them.

After one last float in the Caribbean waves, a delicious Lobster Mofongo dinner (Mofongo is the local specialty, made with savory fried green plantains, garlic and spices, usually served in a savory clear broth) and a “made-from-scratch” Pina Colada (the national cocktail, indisputably invented by a Puerto Rican bartender in the 60’s, according to the locals) it was time to pack up and head back to home to winter. After 2 back to back weekends of travel, I was grateful to be en route to my own bed but admittedly sad to be leaving such a lovely place behind.

So what’s the next adventure, you ask?

Up next will be my first experience doing a stage race. I will be driving down to Moab, UT for the the TransRockies Moab Rocks Stage Race! Please feel free to email me with any questions you might have about that area or stage racing in general, and I will be sure to include them in the next blog.

I will also be joined in Moab by Coach Mike Durner from Mindright Endurance and Mountain Air XPT, Brad Keyes from CarboRocket, and Engineer Bill from Rolf Prima Wheels so send any questions you might have for them too!