Ironman Cozumel 2020 – Part 2: The Race

At 4:30 am, the alarm went off.

Nadia, our awesome sherpa, went down to get me coffee and pick up my lunch/breakfast box I ordered at the hotel the night before. I started my morning routine and changed into my All3Sports race kit. I sat on a couch and took several deep breaths as I looked out the window of darkness as I ate my breakfast. I felt calm and ready for the race.

I was organized from the night before and my morning bag, drinks and nutrition for the bike were all packed so our morning was easy, uncomplicated, and without issue. Our racing crew, my training buddies, Stephanie & Bethany, Bethany’s husband, Martin, Devon, Addie and I left our hotel about 5:30 in a cab since the official shuttle was not scheduled to come in until 6pm. The ride to T1 seemed long but maybe it was 30~40 min. Once we got there, we all went separate ways to our bikes to set everything up. One thing I found interesting was that it’s ok to hang the bike on the saddle or handle bars since it’s governed by the Mexico version of USAT.

Since my bike is too small for the front wheel to touch the ground when I hang my bike on the saddle, I like this option. I took about 10 min to set everything up, went to the bathroom and met up with everyone to get on the shuttle to the swim start. Stephanie wasn’t feeling 100% the day before, so I said my prayers for her to have enough energy to enjoy the race and for everyone’s safety. It took maybe about 10 min when we were all let out to the start of the race. The sun was starting to come up and there was not much wind! It’s incredible to think just 48 hours before it was too windy for big boats to cross from Cancun to Cozumel and now the sea was inviting us to swim 2.4 miles. It was a gorgeous morning and I felt calm, clear minded and present.

The Swim: It was a self seeding by time to line up for the swim. There were 4 people across and circle stickers were placed to maintain social distance. Everyone was wearing masks and very respectful of keeping their distance, and I was very impressed how well it was organized and how respectful racers were to the safety procedures. Once the race started, the line was moving up at a nice pace. 2 athletes were jumping into the ocean every 2 seconds. I secured my googles, walking up to my turn, took a deep breath, started my Garmin and jumped into the ocean. Oh, the water was so clear and that made me smile! This swim is a straight 2.4 mile shot along the shore. Someone told me there is more current on the right side of the buoys away from the shore, so I navigated to position myself there. My strategy was to keep this swim as a warm up for the long day ahead of me. Also, to not race the swim so I won’t have breathing issues like I had in the past races. There were some swells but it was very easy to manage. Not many people were around me even though I was trying to find fellow athletes to draft off their feet. I kept passing people but I noticed very few people passed me. About just about midway, ZAP! I felt on the left side of my chin and another one on my right. I was so glad Stephanie and Bethany who did this race 2 years ago warned me of jellyfish because at a instant that happened, I knew that it was a temporary condition and didn’t panic. I felt some more on my arms but luckily, the pain did not linger. There are 2 huts at the end of the swim, so as soon as I sighted them, I started to swim closer to the shore. When I got out of the water, I couldn’t help to say, “That was Awesome!” I LOVED the swim.

The Bike: It is a 3 loop course that is flat but there is a section of 12 miles that is along the Southeast shore of the island that gets very windy. Again, Stephanie and Bethany warned me to prepare my mind for the windy ride, so I knew that was coming. Nadia yelled at me as I started my bike that I was 2nd place out of water, so I was happy that I positioned myself well. First 13 miles to that shore was very nice and smooth so it was easy to settle into the pace and take some nutrition. The road was very smooth and athletes were pretty spread apart and there was no drafting. Stephanie played her favorite running song when we woke up and that song kept playing in my head helping me to set my tempo. I was feeling pretty good! Then, I hit this windy section as I turn left after about 13 miles. Boy, they were not kidding. The view was gorgeous but the head wind was very strong. To me, it felt like I was climbing up a hill even though there was very little elevation. I told myself, “You got this. I climbed Hogpen, and this is much easier, and it’s only 12 miles”. I focused on keeping it steady by not paying attention to the pace but my power and heat rate and made sure to hydrate frequently. The aid station volunteers handed out ice cold water in a sports bottle so as temperature rose at each loop, it was very nice to drink and pour over my body to cool myself down. My heart rejoiced when I made that final turn at the end of the windy section back into town to get off my bike.

The Run: T2 was all self-serve, so I needed to rack my own bike and transition from bike to run. This is also a 3 loop course. As I was running out to the course, Nadia found me and said, “Izumi! You are in 2nd place and 1st place lady has 20 min (it was actually 23 min) on you! But, she is not a runner. Tisha and I are tracking her!” 20 min! Later I found out Tisha, another one of my big supporters, was on the computer in the command center back in Atlanta busy tracking, researching and texting to Nadia who was on the course. Thanks to Ironman Tracker app! How amazing is that! I told myself, “Anything is possible! She might bonk out and walk. I just need to keep a steady pace to run the whole way”. My goal before the race was to stay at conservative pace in the first half and do a negative split. But, when you know you have a 20 min gap to the 1st place, it was very hard to pull myself back, so it was a constant battle to keep it conservative. I love this 3 loop course because I got to see my friends so many times which gave me a boost every time. As I started my 2nd loop, Nadia said the gap was down and I could pass her on this loop. I made a rule then to allow myself to walk through every other aid station which was setup every 1km to take in enough hydration and cool myself down with ice. When I hit the 13 mile mark, I was getting very tired and dizzy wanting to walk but I stuck to my rule to finish the 2nd loop. When I saw Nadia, I just had to walk but she told me to run over the lap strip so she can give me the latest update on the tracker. As I turned round the corner, she said, “you passed her and have 3 min on her!” I wanted to ask her if I could walk, but she said, “I’m sorry you can’t walk. She started to move, so keep running!” I think I gave her a dirty look unintentionally. And, I wish I knew what she is wearing to spot her but because they eliminated body marking, we had no age on our calves for me to spot her. I was feeling dizzy and my energy was totally depleted, but I was not going to give up, so I sucked down my last caffeinated Huma gel and looked up at the sky and asked the universe for me to receive the energy. I had to walk through every aid station but kept running and counting down the mile, 7 more, 6 more, 5 more and so on. I was so happy when I could see the finish line and even happier when I heard Nadia saying, “You did it girl! I’m so proud of you!” Oh, that feeling of crossing the finish line is just priceless. When I saw Nadia, I broke down in tears and cried like a baby. I was feeling so many emotions but so happy this dream to go back to Kona became true! Before the race, Stephanie, Bethany, Nadia and Tisha told me they believed in me to win the age group and to punch the ticket to Kona so that they can come to support me and celebrate Stephanie’s milestone birthday there. Talk about the pressure! But, then that same pressure force fed me more motivation to leave every ounce of my effort on the course, and so I did.

Our mental state plays so much in endurance sports because it affects our physical body. When we allow our mind to check out or give up, we never see the potential of our physical body. I’m still amazed how a switch flipped on the last loop for me to be able to stay focused and keep running. I’m still soaking in the emotion and cannot believe I actually won this race.

I love the course and the climate of this race. I will love to do this race again in the future.