Half a world away from the snow-dusted peaks she calls home, Pagosa Springs’ Paula Jo Miller woke one recent December morning on the brink of summertime in the South Pacific, readying herself for the final day of an epic journey that began four years earlier.
From an idea that sprang to mind while the U.S. was still firmly in the grip of COVID-19 and she herself was nursing a torn ACL, here was Miller in the 3 a.m. dawn of Taupo, New Zealand, visualizing the gauntlet awaiting her, when she heard a familiar voice.
It was her husband, Lowell Wiles, singing “Happy Birthday.”
And as the couple made the hour’s drive to the site of the Ironman Triathlon 70.3 World Championships, “He held my hand,” Miller recalled.
The gesture was a fitting one for the couple, who, in addition to Miller’s participation in the championships, had arrived in New Zealand to celebrate another achievement, albeit one still requiring endurance: their 20th wedding anniversary.
“Lowell is and has always been my greatest supporter — no matter what crazy things I decide to do,” Miller wrote in an email to The SUN. “This race was no exception.”
Miller would rely on that support as she inched closer to the banks of Great Lake Taupo, where she prepared herself to join some of the most elite triathletes in the world.
‘Just surreal’
More than 6,000 entrants converged on the island country for the invitation-only championships, held Dec. 14-15, 2024, after qualifying at races held during the 12 months prior.
Miller, who turned 60 on her race day, qualified for the championships in May 2024 and was one of 151 women racing in her age group and among more than 2,400 female athletes in attendance.
“It was just surreal,” Miller said. “I kept saying, even if I take last place, I’m still at the world championships. So, I just made up my mind to soak it all in … I just wanted to make the most of every single minute I was in that race.”
Over the course of seven hours, 10 minutes and 42 seconds, Miller swam 1.2 miles over the crystalline volcanic lake — the coldest waters she’d ever faced — biked 56 miles across punchy New Zealand farmlands — windy and hilly — and crossed the finish line after a half-marathon run — her favorite — along Tapuaeharuru Bay.
“I spent the day laughing, crying, and swearing at the wind and hills,” Miller wrote.
Among her competitors, Miller found four other women celebrating their birthdays, too, and described the camaraderie within an age division whose entrants recognized in each other much of the same dedication, pain and good fortune that had carried them all the way to New Zealand.
“In the younger age groups, they want to win,” Miller said. “I think at my age we’re all just like, ‘Oh my God, look at where we are. How lucky are we to be healthy and be able to do something we love?’ I just felt so much gratitude.”
Like any odyssey, Miller’s journey to the world championships was not without its darker turns. Throughout her years of training and preparatory races, she faced inner demons, injury and in Taupo even a missing bike (it arrived from customs less than three hours before the registration deadline).
“Being there, competing with these amazing and kind women from around the world, was beyond any goal I ever imagined setting,” she wrote.
Miller’s 106th-place division finish came little more than three months after she completed her first full Ironman in Madison, Wis. After four weeks spent recovering from the mental, physical and emotional upheaval of that race, she immediately began preparing for the world championships.
By the time she arrived in New Zealand, Miller described feeling a familiar mixture of nerves, doubt and giddy anticipation, but also burnout: By her count, she’d completed 29 triathlons since 2021.
Once home, she was ready for a change of pace.
Saying ‘yes’
Sitting inside a coffee shop back home in Pagosa Springs, reflecting on years of arduous training and competitive racing, Miller suggested 2025 will look a little different than other years in recent memory — when the single-minded focus of a triathlete dominated her life.
“I’m still recovering,” she said. “I’m still tired.”
This year, she’s taking a break from the triathlon circuit to focus on other loves — painting, trail running, community-building, to name a few — and restore her own sense of equilibrium.
“I feel really out of balance right now, because I kind of ignored that relaxing, creative side for the last few years,” she said. “It just [felt] very one-sided, when you’re just focused on beating up your body constantly. I’ve already started painting and I can just feel things kind of melting a little bit.”
To beat the post-race blues — a malaise experienced by many athletes after the big event ends — Miller will be keeping busy running local trails, going on adventures with friends and trying to bring some of that Ironman camaraderie back home.
This Saturday, Miller is co-leading a March for Equality through downtown Pagosa Springs, where she and fellow organizers hope community members can come together to peacefully express what’s on their hearts and minds heading into the new year.
“We want parents to bring their kids, to show them what a peaceful march is, and the importance of expressing what’s important to you,” Miller said.
The procession is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. from Town Park, where Miller’s crew will have supplies available for anyone who wants to make a sign to carry while marching.
“It’s just going to be peaceful, very peaceful and friendly,” Miller said. “Maybe for people who feel like they’re not being heard, it’s a chance to be heard and find others in the community.”
In addition to Saturday’s march, Miller is working with others to build a network of local women who regularly come together for mutual support and connection.
Those efforts, as well as plans to hike the rim of the Grand Canyon and through the Alps, are all part of what keeps life moving forward for the newly minted 60-year-old.
For others hoping to capture some of that same momentum in their own lives, Miller had some simple, yet seasoned wisdom.
“Follow your dreams,” she said. “Just keep moving forward. That’s what I always believe. Follow the opportunities and say ‘yes’ to as many things as you can. And if some don’t work out, that’s OK. But still keep saying, ‘yes’. Try things that scare you.”
garrett@pagosasun.com