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Race IntelligenceSanta Margherita di Pula, Italy

Challenge Forte Village

Know your day before you race it.

Enter four numbers you already train with. You get a likely finish range, target paces and watts, and how I would race this course.

Race day
25 October 2026
Swim
1.9 km
Bike
90 km
Run
21.1 km

Published route evidence. Final 2026 route pending. Checked 15 Sept 2026.

01 Race Card

Build my Race Card

Your first range uses conservative assumptions. Add optional evidence to make it more specific. It is calculated in your browser and saved only on this device.

Your numbers
Distance unit
Weight unit
You and this race
Sharpen your range with more detailOptional. Recent swim, bike and run results, equipment and transitions.

Add only the evidence you have. Every control changes a discipline range, its uncertainty, or an execution-risk explanation.

Swim evidence

Replaces the broad pool-to-open-water assumption.

Bike and equipment

These replace broad mass, aerodynamics, tyre, and power-to-speed assumptions.

Run evidence

A recent effort and honest durability/acclimation answers refine the post-bike run.

Race execution

Transition proficiency changes the T1/T2 range and how wet conditions are treated.

02 The course

What Forte Village actually gives you

You swim one calm loop off Forte Village Resort's beach, ride a closed, technical 90 km loop through four southern Sardinian municipalities including a long 7 km descent on one of the region's most scenic coastal roads, then run two laps along the coast past Cala d'Ostia beach back into the resort. The bike carries real climbing and a genuine descent to manage. Handle both with discipline and the finish inside Forte Village is a formality.

Show distances in

Swim

1.9 km

Sea

Layout
1 loop
Setting
Forte Village Resort beach, Santa Margherita di Pula

A calm, one-lap resort-beach swim in clear water keeps this leg straightforward.

Source: current course description

Bike

90 km

Closed-road, Technical, With One Long Descent

Layout
1 loop
Setting
the municipalities of Pula, Domus de Maria, Teulada and Sant'Anna Arresi, southern Sardinia
Elevation
1075 m published profile difference

A closed, technical road with a long descent rewards control on the descent as much as power on the climbs.

Source: current course description

Run

21.1 km

Coastal, Finishing in the Resort

Layout
2 loops
Setting
the coast past Cala d'Ostia beach, finishing inside Forte Village Resort
Elevation
145 m published profile difference

Moderate elevation and a two-lap coastal course reward pacing discipline over the second lap.

Source: current course description
Where these course facts come from

These facts come from the organiser’s latest published material: swim, current course description; bike, current course description; run, current course description. They describe the character of the course. They do not confirm the final 2026 route.

03 Race plan

How I’d want you to race it

One job for each part of this course. The distance markers tell you when the job changes. The course tells you why.

Swim

Keep the resort swim calm

  1. 0–1900 m

    One loop off the resort beach

    Use the calm water to settle early

    A single loop in clear, sheltered resort water gives you a straightforward swim. Settle into rhythm early rather than fighting for position you don't need.

    • Settle by 300 m
    • Sight off fixed landmarks, not other swimmers

Bike

Earn the descent, don't chase it

  1. 0 km–30 km

    Into the municipalities

    Get organised before the terrain changes

    The closed road moves you through Pula, Domus de Maria, Teulada and Sant'Anna Arresi. Use the early kilometres to settle position and start fuelling before the technical sections begin.

    • Start drinking before the terrain changes
    • Check effort before average speed

  2. 30 km–60 km

    The technical middle section

    Ride the technical terrain for control

    This is a genuinely technical route. Ride it for control on the turns and climbs rather than chasing a split you can't safely hold.

    • Brake early on technical sections
    • Hold planned power where the road allows it

  3. 60 km–90 km

    The 7 km descent and the coast road

    Recover on the descent, don't race it

    The long descent along one of the region's most scenic coastal roads is a chance to recover, not attack. Use it to finish your nutrition and arrive at T2 ready to run.

    • Treat the descent as recovery, not a second effort
    • Finish the bottle you planned

Run

Hold the second lap

  1. 0 km–10.55 km

    Lap 1

    Find your legs past Cala d'Ostia

    The first lap along the coast past Cala d'Ostia beach gives honest early feedback on how the bike's climbing and descending cost you. Run the pace you have.

    • Shorten your stride out of T2
    • Take the early aid stations deliberately

  2. 10.55 km–21.1 km

    Lap 2, back into the resort

    Hold the second lap, don't just survive it

    The second lap repeats the same coastal ground before finishing inside Forte Village Resort. Use lap 1 as evidence before deciding whether to push.

    • Compare lap 2 to lap 1 honestly
    • Save the finish push for once you've earned it

04 Race week

What I would keep an eye on

There is no useful 2026 forecast this far out. For now, past race dates give us a point of reference. Closer to the race, the forecast will tell us whether the plan needs changing.

Forecast statusToo early for a forecast

A race-day forecast is not meaningful yet; check back closer to the event.

Temperature
17.4–24.0°CDew point centred on 15.7°C
Wind and gusts
14.4 km/hGusts up to 54.7 km/hPrevailing direction ENE
Rain likelihood
Up to 85%Wet-surface uncertainty retained

Historical baseline, 2019–2025 · Open-Meteo historical archive · Updated 2026-09-15.Historical comparison only. This is not a forecast for 2026.

05 Method

What goes into your range

Your CSS, FTP, weight and run threshold create the first range. Open-water, bike, run and execution evidence can replace broad assumptions. Course data and the historical conditions baseline shape every simulation.

  1. Your numbersCSS · FTP · weight · run threshold
  2. This raceDistance · water type · elevation · exposure
  3. Your Race CardFinish and discipline ranges, with target paces and watts

Confidence is built from four inputs

Athlete evidence
Builds with recent open-water, bike and run efforts
Bike setup
Builds with equipment, mass, aero and tyre detail
Course evidence
Partial while the 2026 route is unconfirmed
Race-week conditions
Historical baseline until a forecast is useful
How the model works

It starts with the targets in your Race Card, then samples the parts of a 70.3 that vary: open-water pace, transitions, bike speed at the planned power, and the drop in run performance after the swim and bike. Repeating that calculation produces a likely range rather than a single heroic number.

The current time calculation uses this race’s published distances, or standard 70.3 distances where none are published, with the available course headings, elevation and exposure evidence. Weather scenarios vary temperature, dew point, wind, gusts, rain and water conditions together. Unknown route detail stays visible as uncertainty rather than false precision.

It is not predicting your exact finishing time, placing, or race-day weather. It answers a narrower question: given the plan and the information we have, what range of day is plausible, and where is the uncertainty coming from?

Confidence is not a permanent “low”. It is recalculated across four separate inputs:

  • Your evidence: consistent inputs and recent race-like swim, bike, and run results.
  • Bike setup: measured or specified aerodynamics rather than a broad prior.
  • The course: verified distance and route character, including elevation and technical sections.
  • The conditions: a current forecast is more useful than a historical comparison.

It starts low when those inputs are broad. It can become moderate or high as the evidence improves. A narrower range means better information, not a guarantee.

06 Next steps

If Forte Village is your race

Your range is built on today’s numbers. The months of training before race day decide what those numbers become.

The work from here.

Self-guided routeHalf-distance training plansTraining plans for the fitness and durability this course asks for.See the plans Personalised routeWork with me on the whole buildCoaching when you want the plan, feedback and race decisions joined up.See coaching

Further reading

ArticleHow to pace a 70.3 so you can still runThe longer version of the swim-bike-run pacing logic behind this Race Card.ArticleBig gear done right: a guide to low-cadence strengthUseful preparation for a technical, hilly bike course with real climbing.

Evidence

Sources and verification

Course status: Partially verified. The organiser’s descriptions and latest published route profiles are in use. The final 2026 route is not yet confirmed. Last checked 2026-09-15.