What have I done?

I just officially signed up for Ironman Cozumel in November 2021. I can't believe I actually did it.

So what led me to do this in 2021? 

It started when I noticed a swimming friend who announced on Facebook that she had signed up for Ironman Arizona and I commented on her page that I was going to ponder about that race too. That got me really thinking that since I am going to be training for the Aqua-Bike worlds which will be the same swim and bike length as an Ironman, so why not take advantage of all that bike training and just complete and Ironman too. But as I have well documented on here, my running is a BIG problem, especially with injuries.

So that meant a conversation with my coach. I laid out that my only goal was to FINISH the Ironman race, and I would basically just plan on doing a lot of walking during the marathon. My coach felt confident that with my swim and bike where they are, I could bank of walking the marathon and still making the cutoff time, so he agreed to the plan.

The next step was to sign up for Ironman Arizona which was going to open for registration a few days later. Less than 24 hours before it would open up to general public, it was closed as full. I suspected this might be the case because IMAZ had been cancelled just a couple of weeks prior so I assumed many of those that had signed up would just transfer their entry to the following year.

So CRAP. Now what was I going to do. Nothing else in the US worked in my schedule or was open, then I noticed that Ironman Cozumel was open. We had been to Cozumel on our last cruise a few years back and went on an amazing snorkeling tour. I then had to discuss this with my wife as I am sure she would want to come with.

She was all excited about the possibility of going to Cozumel and we found an all-inclusive resort just a few blocks away from the finish line and on the bike course. So she gave the green light. I just needed to decide if I wanted to do a hot and humid race, that was in a foreign country as my first Ironman experience.

I spent a couple of days reading race reports and everyone seemed to really enjoy their experience in Cozumel, both the race experience and the post-race snorkeling and diving. I was really worried about the hot and humid conditions. I don't do well in that weather and I don't experience much of it where I live. It is still my biggest concern about the race aside from the run.

So after much internal conflict I did it, I signed up for IM Cozumel. My wife and kid are going to join me and we plan to stay a few days after the race to enjoy the sights and relax. I have almost 12 months to train, and as long as I can stay healthy, I will be ready. I am excited and nervous, but I plan to enjoy every minute of my training and racing in 2021.