Puerto Rico Sports And Recreation

Baseball. Forget soccer: Puerto Ricans shed their Latin American ties and choose baseball as the island’s most popular sport. Every year from November to January, six regional teams (Santurce, Bayamón, Carolina, Caguas, Mayagüez, and Ponce) play five to six games per week in competition for the series title. In February, the winning team participates in the Caribbean Series, playing against the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Mexico. Most of the top Puerto Rican baseball players eventually head to the US to play in the major leagues. The result: this little island has had an enormous impact on American baseball. Orlando Cepeda, Carlos Beltrán, Bernie Williams, Carlos Delgado, or Iván Rodríguez are all Puerto Rican, along with over 200 other players in Major League Baseball history. The trend has become so strong that in the 1997 All-Star Game a Puerto Rican either scored or batted in every single run.

Puerto Rico’s most famous baseball player of all time, hall-of-famer TRoberto Clemente, also had a long and illustrious career in the Major Leagues. During his 18 years with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Clemente led the team to two World Series and was the National League MVP in 1966, the World Series MVP in 1971, and the National League batting champion four times. Although Clemente was killed in a plane crash over 30 years ago while taking medical and food supplies to earthquake-stricken Nicaragua, Puerto Ricans still hold him in high esteem.

Cockfighting. Though it’s illegal in most of the US, cockfighting continues to be a popular tradition in Puerto Rico. Almost every city on the island has a cockfight arena, and fights are typically held every weekend, with as many as 40 to 50 games per day. Hordes of locals, primarily men, gather to watch and bet on the fight between two spur-wearing roosters. Though the tradition is primarily rural and private, San Juan does have one cockfight arena open to the public.

Boxing. Puerto Rico has produced some of the world’s best professional boxers. In the 1930s, Sixto Escobar became the first Puerto Rican world boxing champion. Most recently Felix “Tito” Trinidad ruled the ring as the champion of welterweight and middleweight boxing after he beat superstar Oscar de la Hoya in 1999. In 2000, John “The Quietman” Ruíz, raised in Massachusetts and Puerto Rico by Puerto Rican parents, became the first Latino heavyweight champion. Miguel Santana made boxing history in 2006 by becoming the first world champion to claim his title 18 years after winning it: judges reviewed his 1988 International Boxing Federation match with Greg Haugen, lost in an 11th-round technical decision, and decided to award Santana the title. Over the past 70 years Puerto Ricans have won six Olympic medals in boxing.

Basketball. Puerto Rico also has an active basketball league, with 16 amateur and six professional teams. Internationally, the island has not fared so well since their gold medal at the 1991 PanAm games. However, several Boricuas have played for the National Basketball Association, including Ramon Ramos, José Ortíz, Butch Lee, Carlos Arroyo, and Daniel Santiago.

Golf. Golf is the chosen sport of many tourists, and manicured green courses are spread across the island—most often with luxury resort complexes in tow. Both the ladies and senior Professional Golfer’s Association tours end at one of Puerto Rico’s magnificent golf courses. However, tourists don’t have all the fun; 90% of the active members of the Puerto Rico Golf Association are Puerto Rican. Puerto Rican golfers have also made their name internationally: the PGA Hall of Fame inducted Boricua Juan “Chi Chi” Rodríguez in 1992 after a long career. Kitty Michaels is a well-known female golfer.

Water Sports

With over 700 mi. of coastline and year-round water temperatures of 74-80˚F, Puerto Rico is a paradise for water sports lovers. From scuba diving to deep-sea fishing to surfing, Puerto Rico offers it all, with world-class conditions. Even beginners can dabble in the many activities listed below.

Sea Warnings. Puerto Rico has its share of fearsome sea creatures. The ones you are most likely to encounter are jellyfish, sea urchins, and sea lice (tiny jellyfish). While encounters with them may be painful, most of these animals will do little permanent harm. When spending extensive amounts of time in the water (diving, surfing, windsurfing) it’s best to wear spandex or a wet suit. There are sharks around Puerto Rico, but attacks are extremely rare. If you don’t bother them, they most likely won’t bother you.

Scuba Diving And Snorkeling

Many people visit Puerto Rico exclusively for its superb diving and snorkeling. Numerous reefs surround the island, providing an arena in which to swim with hundreds of fish species. Puerto Rico’s best snorkeling is on Culebra , closely followed by Vieques and the small islands off Fajardo , but there are many snorkeling spots around the island.

Scuba diving involves swimming underwater for longer periods of time with a tank of oxygen attached to your back. Today all divers must be certified by Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI), National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI), or Scuba Schools International (SSI) before they can dive alone. A certification course runs $150-600 and usually entails written work and up to four practice dives. Professional instructors can accompany non-certified divers on an introductory dive, called Discover Scuba or a resort course. This provides an excellent way to try diving before investing in a full course. It is possible to get certified in Puerto Rico, but this takes a significant portion of vacation time. Many travelers do the coursework at home and then get a referral to do the certification dives in Puerto Rico.

For information about the island’s dive sites, see In the Sea. Scuba diving requires a lot of equipment, and many shops have a hidden surcharge for equipment rental. Others do not rent equipment at all, so divers must purchase it. If you plan to do a lot of snorkeling or diving in Puerto Rico, it may be a worthwhile investment to buy your own gear; otherwise, it costs about $10-15 per day to rent snorkel and fins.

Diving Discerningly. Puerto Rico has over 40 certified dive shops that send expeditions to countless sights. In choosing a dive shop, it is important to consider several criteria. Divers prone to seasickness may prefer large boats that remain more stable in the water. The majority of dives are done from boats, but some shops also do shore dives, where divers simply walk into the water—a bit difficult with cumbersome equipment and strong shore currents, but typically less expensive. It is also a good idea to investigate how the trips are organized. Some shops take divers and snorkelers out together, which means that divers get most of the attention, leaving snorkelers to fend for themselves. Others have one divemaster for both certified and resort divers, which means that the experienced divers will have to go to a shallower site. Explore these possibilities before you head out on a trip, and you’ll be most likely to get what you expect from the experience.

Surfing

Puerto Rico ranks among the best surfing destinations in the world, and is certainly the best in the Caribbean. Ever since the 1968 World Championships in Rincón, surfers from around the world, and particularly the US East Coast, have been descending upon the Isle of Enchantment to catch some world-class waves. Puerto Rico again saw some of the world’s best competitive surfing in 2007, when Rincón hosted the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Masters Championship. Rincón continues to be the island’s surfing paradise, with almost 20 breaks in a relatively small area; it is closely followed by Isabela’s Playa Jobos. It is possible to surf almost anywhere along the north coast, but the southern Caribbean coast does not have many waves. The prime surfing season runs from November to mid-April, when a combination of low pressure systems and cold fronts creates excellent conditions. During the summer hurricane season, waves tend to be inconsistent but still surfable, especially on the east coast. For current live-cam images of surf on the island, check www.surfline.com. Private individuals in Luquillo, Dorado, Isabela, and Rincón teach lessons to surfers of all levels. Unlike many other surfing destinations, Puerto Rico has a fairly local-dominated scene. Visitors should respect the local hierarchy and be careful not to break into the line.

Fishing

Both the ocean and the many lakes and reserves of Puerto Rico provide ample entertainment for fishermen. Deep-sea fishing is popular, but expensive, with half-day boat charters starting at $150 per person or $400 per boat. Fishermen frequently return with mahi mahi, tuna, mackerel, sailfish, dorado, or blue marlin. Most standing water in Puerto Rico is manmade, but the DRNA fills these with a variety of fish, including tilapia, catfish, sunfish, and largemouth bass. Few charters supply equipment and almost nobody on the island rents supplies (except some deep-sea charters), so fishermen should bring their own poles. Fishing licenses can be obtained from the Puerto Rican Port Authority.

Boating

The largest recreational ports are in Fajardo and Salinas, while San Juan, Mayagüez, and Ponce have the primary commercial ports. Many boats in the Fajardo area take small groups out for day-long expeditions to nearby islands. Salinas is the best place to go if you’re looking for passage on a boat through the Caribbean. Several companies scattered throughout the island rent sailboats, but usually require that renters have some sailing experience. Kayaking is a popular activity on many of the island’s freshwater reserves and in the bioluminescent bays in Fajardo and Vieques.

Windsurfing

In recent years windsurfing has exploded in popularity in Puerto Rico. The island’s largest windsurfing shop, Velauno, rents equipment, teaches lessons, organizes events, and pretty much dominates the oceans around Punta las Marías in San Juan. Other popular windsurfing areas include La Parguera and Guánica. For more information and current wave reports, check www.windsurfingpr.com.