If you have ever spotted a blur of running shoes on campus in the early hours of the morning, there’s a good chance it was Alejandro “Bicho” Soler López, training for a triathlon, a second-year health and human performance major at Point Loma Nazarene University.
What started as a way to get physical education credits to graduate high school led to joining cross country, a first-place finish in the Mission Bay Triathlon and a California State Champion title in the 20-24 year age range.
A friend had told Soler López during high school to join cross country. He went on to do many running workouts and ran a 10 km with his mom and got first place.
“I just liked it because I was just getting better every time, and it was addictive to get better,” he said.
Soler López said his cousin got him into a triathlon. They competed in their first race together as a challenge for themselves.
“I was on a borrowed bike, which was a mountain bike, which is not for going fast, it is for going up,” he said. “From there, I’ve just been grinding for three years, almost four.”
Soler López said he estimates that he has competed in around 15 to 18 races, including running races and triathlons. His most recent race was the Mission Bay Triathlon on Oct. 12, which was a 1,000-meter swim, a 34 km bike and a 9 km run. The swim took place in Ventura Cove. Competitors then had to bike around Fiesta Island from the Bahia Hotel and end with a run near West Mission Bay Drive and Bonita Cove Park.
As a health and human performance major, Soler López said he is passionate about sports nutrition and the science behind it. He said he quickly learned how to fuel the body well for doing intense work. The night before a race, he eats chicken and rice, and the morning before, he will drink black coffee and electrolytes and eat bread.
Before the triathlon began, he said he was in the mental headspace for wanting to win this race.
“I jump in the water and I confidently go to the first buoy,” Soler López said, recalling the first event of the race. “I get to the buoy, and I’m probably third or fourth in the line. I get on the bike and I get on and I go as fast as I can out of transition.”
The race wasn’t smooth sailing the entire way for Soler López.
“Some guy passes me, let’s say 5 km into the 34 km [bike], and I get really mad,” he said. “I was like, ‘No way you’re passing me; I’m trying to win this thing.’”
When he began the run, the cold morning temperatures took their toll.
“My feet were numb. That was an interesting feeling, to stomp on numb feet,” Soler López said.
The run course had two laps, and the encouragement from other racers had pushed him forward. But nothing motivated him more than hearing his mother’s voice from the sidelines.
“My mom, immediately when I passed her, was like, ‘You’re in first place in your age group.’ That hyped me up. OK, I’m in first, no one can stop me now,” he said.
A little while later into the run, another competitor had caught up to Soler López. He said he wasn’t sure if the other runner was on his first lap or second. He could hear the footsteps closing in behind him.
Soler López said the two ran side by side for a while until the other runner broke the silence and asked which lap he was on. The other competitor confirmed that he was a lap behind him.
“I was like, ‘No way, I was literally about to fight you for this first place spot.’ I finally breathed a sigh of relief — I got really happy. I got faster and faster because I was getting happier,” he said.
When the finish line came into view, he pushed with everything he had left, running around a 5:30 pace. He could hear his mom tell him he had gotten first place. It confirmed what he had worked hard for, leading his division.
“My dream is to become a pro and win that [Ironman] race,” he said. “If I won this one, it meant I was getting there. There are little checkpoints. I’m ready to go again and to aim higher.”
His family had come to support him in this race: his brother, mom and dad.
“It was so nice … to see my mom scream, ‘You’re in first place,’ was everything. She trusted me and believed in me,” he said.
His brother had run the first mile with him to support him, and his dad picked up his gear from transitions during the race.
Soler López found out that the person who won second place was 10 minutes behind him.
“I earned this one,” he said. “Overall, I got sixth, so I got some work to do to catch up to everyone else. But I am very proud that I got first in my age group. I am the California State Champion.”
Cade Michaelson