Cozumel Ironman- NOV 29, 2015 .....PRE-RACE
Preparations
We had a week of resting up, eating well, scoping out the course and getting prepped.
I got great advice from a professional: "Eat, sleep."
Ok, I can do that!
TriSport Bike Transport flew in our bikes. We picked them up a few days early, tuned them, slapped on new tires and explored the ride portion. It's gorgeous!!!
In the days before the race, we packed (and repacked) our various bags many times. This was our first Ironman and we were paranoid about forgetting something critical.
Our paranoia paid off - everything went perfectly.
The crazy pile on the far right is the 10,000 calories of CRAP that you end up eating on race day. All high cal, high sugar with some electrolytes and minerals. Overall nutritional value: close to zero.
Someone has to come up with a better diet for endurance athletes. This stuff many be profitable to sell, but its mostly crap.
I have hypoglycaemia and can't eat high sugar foods, so most of my intake will be dried fruit and nuts with a few bars. But few people can digest that during the race.
Scoping it Out
Friday we went for the practice swim at Chankanaab park.
Its also gorgeous!
My pre-race jitters abated... somewhat. I was still intimidated by the distance.
Saturday we were back. Dropped off the bikes, gear bags got body markings, walked the T1 area to get the layout. By now, we were in high spirits, energy bursting and ready to GO!
We were well acquainted, prepared, psyched up.
And in bed by 8 pm.
Oh crap...
3am, the doors start banging, the curtains are flying. It's a major storm outside.
I roll out of bed, close the windows thinking "with this much wind, that ride is gonna SUCK!"
Sunday, 4:15 alarm
Auto-pilot...trudge to the kitchen, slap the coffee maker, start pulling on clothes. Force down as much food as I can without throwing up.
Grab the swim bag, last minute check of all needs and hike from our rental house to a hotel, it's pitch black out.
Hey wait! No wind, no rain....awesome!
Eager triathletes are milling around the hotel, all Spanish speaking, but they have a big van and take us along. The driver picks up the vibe, flies through the empty town at top speed while cranking some insane Mexican/Alpine tunes. Taxis are everywhere, the entire island is on the move.