For the record, yes the water, both by the start and finish areas, looked rather calm. But it was definitely not the case over the whole course. We saw that very clearly while on the bus taking us to T1.
I was in Cozumel as well. I was pretty angry and upset about the cancellation, but seeing the water on the drive over, you could tell there would be a huge percentage of people DNFing on that swim. The buoy lines that were out there were all over the place. And from Leon Chevalier’s instagram post, it seems like despite it looking fairly calm at the start, a start pontoon couldn’t be held in place - If the things required for the race can’t be held in place, it’s probably too rough out there.
It’s actually quite amazing that the one Ironman that is held in what is widely known as a sometimes wildly current prone area (I’ve had dives where I went literal miles in the current) has not until now in 15 years been cancelled .
The Port Captain closed the Port. The two days leading up to the race, the port was closed due to the conditions. That morning it was still closed.
It sucks, but the Port Authority knows what they are doing when closing it. There’s things under the surface that could have impacted it as well - maybe it was too unsafe for the safety divers to be out during that time? Maybe there were things out of sight or predictions for it to get worse?
Someone heading out on a SUP from their resort is taking their own risk, but the port authority can restrict boats from leaving the Marina - which means there is nothing on the course - no safety boats, no safety divers. That is a safety issue.
If you’ve ever gone diving in Cozumel you’d know just how strong the currents can be under the surface. I went a few years back and we drifted under the swim course along a ridge for an hour, hardly using any oxygen. It may look calm from the shore, but the current can be very strong beneath the surface, which affects buoy’s, rescue boats, divers, etc. Then again some people have a really hard time understanding a world exists beyond the small empty space between their ears.
How many of you were in Cozumel on Nov. 19th?? I was. The “safety†issue is BS. There were boats out by the swim start already. There were no waves. No current. A 10kts wind. Ironman is lowering itself race-by-race.
It is not a matter of “put up with whatever race format the RD thinks ofâ€. That is not an ironman triathlon. Is not a crossfit competition to see how much weird stuff can you do running up and down. If it rains in Wimbledon they don’t just change the game to an indoors frontenis or pingpong game… if triathlon wants to be taken seriously, it just can’t change its format for whatever reason and then in a very Slowtwitch fashion, blame the athletes who say an Ironman is an Ironman: swim, bike, run. Not a “ if that ocean is not flat†we do a bike-run. If it is not safe to swim, then it is not safe to do the triathlon. Period. But in Cozumel there was no severe winds/thunderstorms/swells… it was FLAT. A little choppy. A little. And if you want to see it by yourself, check the link posted a few post before, and then express your opinion. We are not talking about if it is a safety issue. We are taking about that there was no REAL justification for canceling the swim. The mexican navy guys that said they didn’t give permission did not support their opinion on any weather reports of forecast. Come on, there were even people doing SUP a few minutes later! Although they probably were not “ironman athletesâ€, just some random tourists washing up the hangover…
IN Cozumel you can’t tell the swim currents from the chop, I did it in 2021 and I thought the water was dead calm until I say the buoy line under water and then again at the finish line with a record swim time on what felt like a float.
So if it was a current into the swimmer I can see them concern as I had 2 swimmer in 2021 that swim 1:30 regular IM swim do 58 min there, so if that current was the other way. they may not make the first bouy before needing a break and now you have 1000 athletes packed up against a current and no one moving ahead and a ton of issues even swimming backwards???
Imagine IM cali but an upstream swim, No one is signing up for race just like the no swim race and all the safety issues with crowds and if someone stops swimming they float backwards into swimmers.
now those two athletes I mentioned did do a swim day prior to the race were they said one way was 3:00+ per 100 m and the other way 1:10 per 100 m. swimming at the hotel.
10 years ago or so Coz had a real bad current along a certain path that 50 feet on either side didn’t exist. So the poor bastards that got stuck in that current looked like they were swimming in an endless pool while people 50 feet away were swimming as normal. Kind of like a rip current but unlike a rip current you can’t see it.
Video was posted here back in the day.
I was snorkeling near Isla Mujeres a few years ago and several people got stuck in a similar current and it was terrifying for them. The excursion folks, me, and a couple other strong swimmers rescued half dozen people out of there. There was one lady that would’ve died had I not got to her.
I live four miles from the ocean and swim and play in it all the time. There are times it looks calm as can be and you get in and voom away you go.
Agreed. Just because you can’t see it doesn’t mean it isn’t there.
I was there too, and I wholeheartedly agree. I believe it was more than just the water conditions. The infuriating rumor I heard was that the kayak safety crew was holding the event hostage, re-negotiating on the spot until their demands were met. It was an absolute disaster trying to get to those buses, and waiting under the scorching sun for hours was a complete mess. To top it off, my Special Needs bag was lost. What a horrendous experience after dedicating a whole year to prepare; I feel like I’ve lost the one thing I worked so hard for. To add insult to injury, this was my second full Iron Man, having successfully completed several Half Iron Man races before. The frustration and disappointment are beyond words.
I remember being in Monteray one year and some out of shape guy rents a kayak. Launches off the beach right in front of us. 50 m out flips it and the tow started to take him out to sea. he had a wetsuit on. There wasn’t much shore wash and 50 out none. Couldn’t get back in the kayak. We ran up the beach for the kayak place to rescue him. The guy was totally gased by hanging onto the kayak for maybe ten minutes. The water was 55 and I didn’t have a wetsuit so I couldn’t go in. If we had not seen him he might have died.