Cozumel Pre Race

We arrived safe and sound here in Cozumel. With 9 cruise ships docking at the island every day I think we are the more rare ones to see the island in a different way. When the ships are docked there are drunks on the street and all the merchants are out canvassisng the tourists. When the cruise ships sail motor away then the island resets back to a casual calm place where nobody tries to sell you anything, everyone looks you in the eye and smiles, and there is an easiness of normal life.

We decided to rent a little house through VRBO instead of staying at an all inclusive resort. I looked at both options and the all inclusive was probably a little bit cheeper, but Troy and I just didn't want to get asked to buy a timeshare. Our little house is 4 blocks off the main road and Troy and I have yet to see a tourist (other than ourselves) more than 1/2 a block off the main road. It's locals only back here. The neighbor kid slept on his roof last night...with his two dogs.

As I sit here there is a local bar two doors down..like I mean "a bar for the locals," and there is live music right now. I can feel beat of the cow bell through the cushions of the couch. Honestly...it is awesome! Our place is cozy and fun and we get to cook for ourselves, which has been an adventure! There is an Annie sized swimming pool that she has been living in. It's cute, she's cute.

Today I got in the water on the swim course. I got stung by just 1 jellyfish. They are phantom jellies, you don't see them, but then you feel them. It's like 1/2 of a bee sting, not bad at all. The current today was the opposite of what everyone says it usually is, it was easy out, and hard coming home. They say it switches all the time. I'll deal with whatever happens.

They had the athlete meeting today as well. This has been the first Ironman that I really needed to attend the meeting. I had a ton of questions, and luckily I got them all answered. My favorite was asked by a friend:

"Do you mark the course in miles or kilometers?"

"no"

"no? You don't mark in miles or K?"

"no, no markers"

Okay! Got it.

For anyone in the future who plans to race IM Cozumel, the one thing that's been difficult about this race is finding all the places you need to get to. The packet pickup, athlete meeting, and athlete dinner are all in difference places and it was confusing for us to find all those places, especially on foot. So just ask a friend who has done it before (like me) before you head out.

I went for an hour ride today as well. It was one of those rides where you don't want to turn around because you want to see what is around the next bend. I guess I will see it all eventually since I will ride on pretty much every road this island has by the end of the week. I love that every one of the locals gave me a kind smile and head nod. You can tell that the locals really like having the athletes in town. In fact, even though the drivers are crazy here, I am seriously not treated this well on the roads in the US. Here nobody is on their phone and they give the cyclist the right of way, you can tell they are looking out for you. Complete opposite of home where we are detested.

I didn't know if it was a big fat joke, but sure enough...to follow in the footsteps of PIC at Kona, my number is #111. You know what is sad, and what says a lot about me? The numbers were assigned in order of how quickly you signed up for the race. Oh, so Sonja is the #111th nerd? Um...nope, because the PROs get the numbers under 100....so I am officially the 11th geek to hit "submit payment." Yes, yes, quit your laughing. Wanna know the most rockin' thing about athlete registration (other than the fact that they photocopy your passport)? They give you a sweet cycling jersey in your packet. Long sleeve, and AWESOME!

This evening I am starting to get my feet under me. I have been unusually drained feeling the past few days, not my usual Type A self. I've been trying to rest as much as I possibly can. I tried to nap today, but ended up just laying in bed. I did sleep really well last night. The race is on Sunday so I still have two good sleeps to get in before it's go time. I think it's probably just a factor of finally being here, I've been thinking about this race for a year (okay, stop laughing about the #111 thing again) and I finally get to see what all the people who rave about this race are talking about. Let's just hope my feet are under me on race day.