Coaching

Training Plans

All plansSprintOlympic DistanceHalf Distance / 70.3Full DistanceHalf AquabikeFull AquabikeOff-SeasonPregnancy

Articles

All articlesTraining PhilosophyAthlete Life & LongevityRace Strategy & ExecutionMental PerformanceThe Technical Lab
Race CalendarAboutContact

Race IntelligenceAcapulco, Mexico

IRONMAN 70.3 Acapulco

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
1 November 2026
Swim
1.9 km
Bike
90 km
Run
21.1 km

Published route evidence. Final 2026 route pending. Checked 13 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 Acapulco actually gives you

You swim a rolling-start 1.2 miles in Acapulco Bay from Playa Majahua, ride a point-to-point 56 miles that opens with a 600-metre climb out of Marina Cabo Marques before a bumpy descent along Blvd de las Naciones and Viaducto Diamante to Pierre Mundo Imperial Hotel, then run a flat, fully paved 13.1 miles along Avenida de las Palmas in tropical heat. Heat management matters more here than terrain.

Show distances in

Swim

1.9 km

Bay Swim, Rolling Start

Layout
1 loop, rolling start
Setting
Acapulco Bay, Playa Majahua next to Marina Cabo Marques

A rolling-start bay swim at Playa Majahua lets you self-seed and settle rather than fight a mass start.

Source: 2026 current route

Bike

90 km

Point-to-point Coastal Roads With an Opening Climb

Layout
1 loop, point-to-point
Setting
Blvd de las Naciones and Viaducto Diamante, Acapulco

A 600-metre opening climb out of the marina followed by a bumpy descent sets the tone; the rest of the ride along Blvd de las Naciones rewards the watts you actually planned.

Source: 2026 current route

Run

21.1 km

Flat, Fully Paved Out-and-back

Setting
Avenida de las Palmas, in front of the Pierre Mundo Imperial Hotel

A flat, fully paved run on Avenida de las Palmas removes terrain as an excuse, so tropical heat and pacing decide the day instead.

Source: 2026 current route
Where these course facts come from

These facts come from the organiser’s latest published material: swim, 2026 current route; bike, 2026 current route; run, 2026 current route. 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

Self-seed and settle

  1. 0–300 m

    The start

    Self-seed honestly

    A rolling start rewards realistic self-seeding over fighting for position in the bay.

    • Self-seed honestly
    • Settle into rhythm

Bike

Climb to plan, then hold the number

  1. 0 km–0.6 km

    The opening climb

    Climb to your number

    The first 600 metres out of the marina are a real hill climb straight off the swim. Don't chase watts you haven't warmed into.

    • Ease into the climb
    • Save the legs for the descent

  2. 0.6 km–90 km

    Blvd de las Naciones to T2

    Hold the number to the hotel

    A bumpy descent then flatter coastal roads carry you to Pierre Mundo Imperial. Finish your nutrition before the flat run in the heat.

    • Stay steady on the descent
    • Finish planned nutrition and fluids

Run

Manage the heat

  1. 0 km–10.5 km

    First half, Avenida de las Palmas

    Manage the heat from the first aid station

    A flat, shadeless run in tropical heat punishes anyone who treats the early kilometres as easy just because the terrain is.

    • Take every aid station
    • Check pace against effort, not the clock

  2. 10.5 km–21.1 km

    Second half to the finish

    Use what the heat plan saved

    Only progress if hydration and cooling have held up through the first half.

    • Stay on the fuelling plan
    • Choose the last move late

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
23.6–29.2°CDew point centred on 23.1°C
Wind and gusts
6.8 km/hGusts up to 33.8 km/hPrevailing direction W
Rain likelihood
Up to 80%Wet-surface uncertainty retained

Historical baseline, 2019–2025 · Open-Meteo historical archive · Updated 2026-09-13.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 Acapulco 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 durability this course asks for.See the plans Personalised routeWork with me on the whole buildCoaching when you want the plan and race decisions joined up.See coaching

Further reading

ArticleHow to pace a 70.3 so you can still runThe longer version of the pacing logic behind this Race Card.ArticleHeat adaptation strategies for triathletesUseful preparation for Acapulco's tropical heat and humidity.

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 2026-09-13.