Portuguese triathlete Pedro Gomes is also known as Klep and Krepe, but more recently he got in the news with his runner-up finish at the 2010 Ironman Florida. We had a few words with the very outgoing Pedro Gomes.

Slowtwitch: So should we call you Pedro, Klep or Krepe or some other name?

Pedro: Whatever works best. In Portugal, people call me Klep or Krepe (my nick name from chats and forums since forever) but strangers and foreigners always use Pedro.

ST: How did the Klep or Krepe thing get started?

Pedro: It has to do with Chinese food. When I was about 15, a Chinese restaurant opened on the way to my school and every time I walked home I would stop by and ask for to Chinese crepes, those fried veggie rolls they have as starters. Since then my friends called me (and introduced me) as Krepe. My life is all about food!

ST: Are you enjoying food right now or are you back at working out?

Pedro: I’m currently in Berlin enjoying some time off triathlon. Since Ironman Florida I haven’t moved a muscle more than requested to get some food or have a good laugh. It was a long season (53 weeks!) and I was in deep need of decent vacations.

ST: 53 weeks is a very long season.

Pedro: It is indeed. I tend to get my season going as long as I can be focused on training. The hard part is to keep motivated the first few months, as November through February is very rainy in Portugal. I try not to freak out with the lack of triathlons and switch to road running. But even so, it is never until my real goal that I really kicked in. 12 months after the start of season, the 53rd week was the one prior to Florida. On race day, it was a mixed feeling of wanting to perform well and getting past it.

ST: Well, you performed well in Florida, but I think many folks watching the race had no idea who you were.

Pedro: Thanks. I don’t race often in the US and when I did – I raced California 70.3 in 2005 and 2009 – I was never in real good shape. Racing in March is hard as I always struggle with training in January and February due to the bad weather and lack of motivation from the lack of racing. That is most likely why people never real heard of me in the USA.

ST: Even some of your competitors seem to have wondered about that Gomes guy.

Pedro: I believe only Romain and Dirk really had heard of me. I’ve raced Romain at Lisboa International Triathlon in 2008 and Dirk is a regular at the training center in Font Romeu, France.

ST: Were you at all surprised to be in the lead there?

Pedro: Definitely. The run, after a long bike has always been my strength. My best results to date came from the long distance events whenever I get my nutrition right and manage to top most of the guys with me on T2. So I knew I was good as long as I got my nutrition right. This was only my second Ironman being the first a month ago in Challenge Barcelona.

ST: What was your expectation going into Florida?

Pedro: As I said, this was only my second Ironman and just one month after my debut. Yet I had a 12-month focus to this race and had high expectations when I first started preparation in November 2009. However, I lost my coach after the ITU World LD Champs in Immenstadt and have been on my own since then. I love to race and since then I’ve competed a lot (I did 4 half-ironman races, 1 Ironman) from September 4th until October 5th. So even though all my season was focused on IM Florida, the last months didn’t go exactly as expected and I even considered not starting the race. I wanted to debut the Ironman distance in Florida but since I had already raced Challenge Barcelona a month prior, the 'thing' of the first IM was already gone and thus felt no pressure at all to perform or even race. But as I had the trip booked and was going with 8 other Portuguese athletes who were also racing. So why not race it to finish off the year? So I filled my late entry.

ST: Talk a bit about your race.

Pedro: Once I got to PCB, I got really excited. Everything went smoothly on the days prior to the race and I got to race day feeling happy and anxious to get it done and have vacation after. The swim was rough, the water was very choppy and it was hard to find the buoys. I lost the front trio but manage to keep up with a large pack that included Markus (Fachbach) and (Swen) Sundberg. The bike was the most challenging. I feared my body’s response after so many races. It was so cold on the first hour that I could barely remove my gels from my pockets and eat. I struggled to keep warm with only my short top on. The course is mostly flat but it was a bit windy and it would eventually form a big pack of guys chasing Romain who had made a break from the start and had 8 minutes on us at half point. I had no idea Romain was so much in front until the first turnaround point. From then on and once I finally got a bit warm, I tried to work a bit in front along Chris and Esben to close the gap. I was feeling great and really focused on my nutrition. Somewhere on the ride I had was shown a yellow card for blocking Esben on a pass so I arrived to T2 with the big pack of guys but was last out since I stopped in the penalty box. I also took my time on T2 to be comfortable. I felt amazing out of transition and over 4 miles I passed most of the guys in front and was running in 5th place. After my debut IM marathon of 3h05, I wanted to run this one in under 3 hours but I knew I was running way faster than that. I then remembered a friend back at home that asked me please if I could lead the race for 1 second. Of course he never ever imagined his request was that close to becoming true but it was my motivation at the time. Once in the lead, I knew I was way over the line, but I was loving it, and when you lead, you have an extra boost. I started to struggle around mile 18 and James caught me not long before. I felt done and didn’t hesitate to encourage James by saying just that. My body was struggling and I had nothing left to fight. I had a bit or margin over Dirk and took one or two miles to recover. Had my visit to the bathroom, my gels, was focused on maintaining my second place to the line and was overwhelmed by it. I can’t state in words what I felt at the line. So happy.

ST: Where does that 2nd place finish rank in terms of your results so far?

Pedro: I’ve had a few solid results on World and European LC Triathlon Championships and was really happy with my debut at the distance (6th at Challenge Barcelona in 8h25) but none of this size. It was definitely my breakthrough performance and just hope I can continue to improve.

ST: You mostly race ITU events but have raced some longer stuff including some Challenge events and ITU Long Course over the years. Talk about stepping up longer.

Pedro: I started to take triathlon more seriously when I got picked for the National 2012 Olympic Project. However, I always struggled with my swim and you need to be with the best right in T1. My love for long course was always present and so I slowly move to the longer events. I did my first ITU Long Course in 2007 but didn’t come to the Ironman until now because I didn’t feel like I’m yet done improving with the shorter events.

ST: A few years back I remember seeing you as a spectator in Kona in absolute awe of the race there. How much longer before we'll see you at the start there?

Pedro: It’s has become a goal since my trip to the Island in 2005. I would love to race it already in 2011 but it’s hard for a European triathlete to focus on such a race. Either you are competitive enough and get back with a good result that pay back your supporters or it becomes a very expensive investment of time and money and that can used for other races where you don’t have to race all the best athletes on the planet.

ST: Some of the same folks who were with you in Kona then, also were at the start line in Panama City. Is that just how you roll?

Pedro: Oh yes! I’ve a big side of tourist and sightseeing in me and love to have company for it. I always try to go along the Portuguese “mafia” - as we kindly have been called - so we can split costs and have our fun on the days prior and after the races.

ST: What is next on your calendar?

Pedro: It’s hard to say as I’m still in shock with the way things went over the IM distance. Still, I would love to go to Abu Dhabi to start the season in March. It’s always an expensive destination, it will always be a very deep field of established pro triathletes but the destination itself I’m sure it’s worth it. I will also aim more for the IM distance in 2011 but haven’t yet decided which races. I just love to race and I will try to fit at least two or three Ironman events in the near future.

ST: What is going on for you in terms of sponsorships?

Pedro: Well, you don’t get sponsorship agreements in Portugal as a long distance triathlete. You get supporters that give you the best of their lines and services. Yet I can’t thank them enough for the support giving as of without it I would struggle to stay in the sport. Token bikes, Compressport, Zerod, Mulebar, Selle Italia and Sailfish have given me the best of their products that kept me moving in 2010.

ST: Did you receive new sponsor interest after Florida?

Pedro: Honestly no. I did however receive congratulations from all my supporters and friends and that is a huge motivation for me to keep working hard to achieve greater results.

ST: Rumor has it that you are considering a move to the USA. How much of that is wishful thinking versus reality?

Pedro: It’s a life changing decision and will never be a consensual one (they never are). I will travel to the US on January and try to get a part-time job where I can manage to keep training hard and one day make a living out of it. I love the sport, love to race and I love the country so I just need things to workout in January and it’s a wish becoming true. I have nothing holding me in Portugal, I just need to find a way to make a living.

ST: Nothing holding you in Portugal? Sounds though like it won't be easy.

Pedro: Moving to the USA means leaving the High Performance Training Center and my current training group. I was invited to the Training Center by the Portuguese Federation three years ago, and it has changed my life. Food and lodging are fully supported by them and it has permitted me to train with the best athletes in Portugal, share room with World Class triathletes, given me the best medical support, access to great training facilities and most of all made me believe I could achieve great things in the sport. If they once believed in me, why shouldn’t I? It will never be consensual for them or myself leaving from day to night, but although they have provided me with the best, Portugal isn’t the place to be if you want to become a professional triathlete on long course. Moving to the USA – and even if it sounds lame - would be my own “pursuit of happiness”. I would also be leaving behind friends, family and a job as web designer. It’s not very often that we Portuguese move, we are people very attached to our small and forgotten country.

ST: Tell us about your favorite and least favorite food items.

Pedro: It’s my biggest weakest. Most triathletes suffer from a sweet tooth but I’m world class on the subject. I love donuts, bread and most cereals. I could live on these three items forever but they aren’t very good for you when you are trying to lose weight. I’m not a big fan of spaghetti or rice, so I try to avoid them most of the year and then make an effort to eat some prior to any race.

ST: What music do you like?

Pedro: Tiesto and Armin Van Buuren are my best friends when running. I switch to Damien Rice and Justin Nozuka at night when at home and go for a Muse or Within Temptation session when I feel the need to wake up. I listen to everything... even opera and classic.

ST: What was the last book you read?

Pedro: PHP for dummies. I’m a web designer in Portugal so most of the books I read are web related.

ST: Is there anything else we should know about you?

Pedro: I don’t have a sports-related past. I was a sedentary fat child that spent most of his childhood playing PlayStation, Nintendo and chatting online until the age of 14 when my dad dragged me to swimming classes and made me run in the park with him. I was doomed to spend most of my teen years on the couch. Also, I have a thing with jelly fish (and moving things underwater in general). If they are present it’s likely I will only roll into water with 500 other guys in neoprene along.