Philadelphia
Your Guide:
Ricardo Urbina
I am an International insurance executive highly specialized in High-Risk Management, Commercial Programs, and Employee Benefits for International School and Educational Institutions overseas. Focused on optimal performance in endurance sports, he has dedicated the past 15 years to training, racing, coaching, bike fitting and participating in World Championship level endurance events, such as Triathlon, Running, Open Water Swimming, and Prone Paddling. Driven and disciplined, I approach challenges by setting goals and committing to comprehensive training plans. I qualified and raced the Ironman World Championship in Kona 4X and had prone paddled across several channels and large bodies of water, including the Catalina Channel 4X (California), Channel of Bones (Hawaii), and Monterey Bay 2X (California). He has also guided some of the best open-water swimmers in the world during their record-breaking long-distance endeavors. Most recently he had dedicated his training to freediving and big wave surfing.
The City
Philadelphia is notable for its rich history, on display at the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall (where the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were signed) and other American Revolutionary sites. Also iconic are the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, immortalized by Sylvester Stallone’s triumphant run in the film "Rocky.” Philly is also well known for its proximity to New York City as well as Washington DC.
Run Routes
Our ambassadors have spent years logging in thousands of miles around their cities. Often routes you will never find anywhere else. We have asked them when they can throw in some more untraditional routes, routes that only the locals know.
Workout & Recovery
At Pressio we know all about recovery, our compression tights will cover your recovery for even your toughest workouts, however, if you need a little extra like massage or ice baths, we have our local recommendations.
Eat & Stay
The locals know what’s good, and we want something that will nourish us but also be substantial to fuel us through our workouts. We asked our runners to pick out places where the locals eat.
Hotels- great gym, maybe a lap pool, and comfortable beds, and of course good runs nearby.
5 Questions with Ricardo Urbina
Greatest achievement to date?
I had never DNF in any event
What's great about running in Philadelphia?
The city of Philadelphia offers all different types of terrain for running. You can do flat intervals on Kelly Drive or Hilly and Trail runs on Wissahickon Valley Park
Favorite Philly Loop?
I love running from the Philadelphia Art Museum along the Schuylkill River. Usually, take Kelly Drive on the way out of town cross the river at Falls Bridge and run back to the Museum on Martin Luther King Dr.
What motivates you or gets you pumped up?
Doing things that seem to be impossible at first glance gets me excited. I love looking at a big project and coming out with a plan to make a goal a reality. The grind of endurance events is something that turns me on.
Are there any significant experiences you've encountered as an athlete or coach that have made an impact on you?
Living and training with some of the best professional triathletes in the world really shaped the way I approach big projects. I learned to always give 100% and pay attention to detail.