It’s love on the run.

And on the bike.

And in the water.

Triathletes Mike and Sandy Ferreira met at a 5-kilometer race in Florida in 2000 and soon became training partners. Three years later, they became life partners.

The married couple is competing in the 31st Tinman Triathlon on Sunday. It’s her sixth and his fifth, with the two using the event to again prep for October’s Ironman World Championship in Kona.

This week’s training has been a little different, as the Ferreiras have had to work out separately. Mike Ferreira, a master chief in the U.S. Coast Guard, has been on Guam for the past week due to work and is scheduled to return later today.

"I’ve been able to sneak in some time on the spin bike, and have gone out for some runs, gone down to the bay for a swim," he said on a phone call earlier this week. "Flying in the day before … I’ll just step up to the line, give it what I got. I didn’t go elite (division) and just hoping to be close to winning my age group.

"It is different this week because we’re used to training together quite a bit. It’s pretty cool having a spouse who enjoys getting out there with me, enjoys training like I do. I’m lucky to be married to my best friend, someone I can go out and play with."

It may not have been love at first sight at that first race in Tampa, Fla., but Sandy Ferreira got her future husband’s attention when she won the women’s division.

"After the race, a group of us hung around to talk and that’s how we met," she said. "Then since we both had qualified for Boston (Marathon), we started training together for that. And we both had PRs (personal records).

"I like training with him, but I sometimes feel bad that I might be holding him back, especially on the bike. I just hang on his wheel. And if I can do that, it makes me a better rider. Plus, I always have someone to change my tire."

Both said they enjoy the Tinman because of the shorter swim, that discipline being what they considered their weakest. Sunday’s first leg is 750 meters; October’s Ironman opens with a 2.4-mile swim.

"We like this race for a lot of reasons," said Sandy Ferreira, an insurance agent in Honolulu. "It’s well-organized. There is great support. We’re lucky to have this race.

"What I like about triathlons is it’s a fun sport. You never get bored and you always have room to grow. There’s so much camaraderie. We’ve made so many friends through the sport."

While the Ferreiras have competing in common, they took separate paths to becoming triathletes. Sandy, who ran track and cross country in high school, started in the multi-sport as a teenager in Florida with her father. Mike, originally from Rhode Island, played high school soccer. He dabbled in triathlons in the mid-1980s, then got back into it after meeting his future wife. They’ve competed in Kona the past six years and both have qualified for their seventh this October. They also plan to do the Western Australia Ironman in December.

Sunday’s race also will serve as a joint celebration, coming in between their two birthdays. Sandy turned 42 on Friday, and Mike will be 47 on Aug. 8.

NOTE

The Tinman was originally scheduled for July 24, but the date was changed because of the monthly box jellyfish invasion expected last week. Officials said they didn’t notice much of a difference in entries due to the switch, with 620 individuals and 30 relay teams entered as of Friday.

Race organizer Olga Caldwell said the biggest change has been in the number of first-timers, which has gone up about 30 percent to 40 percent for individuals competing in their first Tinman.