.png)
By Kai Taylor, MCP Sportswriter
MADISON, WISCONSIN – This September 14, two recent graduates of Mason County Central completed their first full Ironman race in Madison, Wisconsin.
Drake McKay and Colton Sanders, who graduated in 2024 and 2025 from MCC, first started with a half Ironman the year before.
The pair were coached through their journey by their uncle, Scott Sanders.
Scott Sanders started his Ironman joruney in 2012, racing the half Ironman in Benton Harbor. Sanders got into Ironman because “a good buddy bet me I couldn’t do it,” and the rest is history.
“It’s been a great lifestyle so I’ve been living that for about 14 years or so,” Scott Sanders said.
“He gave us pointers from time to time and told us what we should be doing and sort of when to do it,” Colton Sanders said. “Not really like weekly or monthly training just kind of checks in and see how we’re doing.”
The Ironman race itself is a combination of a 2.4 open water swim, followed by a 112 mile bike and ends with a marathon. To add to the difficulty, the course the two raced at in Madison has “one of one of the hardest full-distance courses” on the Ironman calender, according to bestbikesplit.com.
The duo started training for their half Ironman in December of 2024. Once the race ended, the two set their sights on the full, taking a full year to train for it.
“We try to train just about every day,” McKay said.
“It was maybe like an hour-ish a day from January to maybe May,” Colton Sanders said. “But then as soon as you get deeper into summer and you’re two or three months away, you want to start kind of training an hour and a half a day or two hours a day.”
Some of the longer bike rides can take “up to 3-5 hours” as race day becomes closer, according to Colton Sanders.
“I do think if you have a training partner, it is easier and you guys kind of push each other to be a little bit better,” Colton Sanders said.
The day of the race saw a little rain, but was mostly a “great day,” according to McKay.
“The day prior I was really nervous, McKay said. I’m sure even the pros still get nervous the day before, but the day of a walk up, I was wide awake, ate some food, drank some water and when I got there and I was pretty confident.”
The first event of the Ironman is the 2.4 mile swim.
“The mental aspect is probably the most challenging,” Scott Sanders said. But swimming 2.4 miles is a pretty, pretty big task on paper.”
McKay “felt great” on the swim, but the biking portion would present challenges for both cousins. McKay lost four water bottles throughout the race, with one of his cages snapping off his bike as well. One of Sanders’ elbow pads broke off as well.
“I couldn’t really get aerodynamic on the flats in the downhills comfortably,” Colton Sanders said. “So that stressed me out.”
After a combined 100+ miles, the last task for the race is a 28.2 mile marathon.
“When I finished, I wasn’t in total pain and agony,” Colton Sanders said. “It was a surreal moment.”
Sanders finished with a time of 10:55:17, placing 97th overall in the race. McKay finished with a time of 12:31:11, placing 74th in the men’s 18-24 group.
“The rule of thumb is take your half Ironman time and double it, and then add on an hour and a half,” McKay said. “So with that, I actually beat what my supposed time was by over an hour, which I was very happy about.”
As for the future, Sanders and McKay have a “couple of courses that we’re looking at,” according to McKay, but will probably stick to half Ironmans this year.
“We’re looking at possibly trying to qualify for the half-iron man championships next year,” McKay said. “We’re going to try and do the half course there before the World Championships.”
“I’m so proud of the boys just to take that kind of journey at their age. It’s just amazing.” Scott Sanders said. “Hopefully we’ll be able to race one together.”
___________________-
Please Support Local News Coverage
For generations, local newspapers were supported by subscriptions. Today, while Mason County Press and Oceana County Press remain free to everyone, the cost of producing quality local journalism continues to rise.
If you value independent local news coverage, we invite you to help sustain it by subscribing to the MCP/OCP Daily Briefing for $12 a month — about 40 cents a day — or $120 a year.
Your subscription helps support the reporters, photographers and editors who cover local government, schools, community events, sports, breaking news and the stories that matter most to Mason and Oceana counties. In return, you’ll receive the MCP/OCP Daily Briefing each morning with the day’s headlines, along with occasional breaking news and special email editions.
Monthly subscriptions are available for $12 per month.
Click here to subscribe monthly.
Annual subscriptions are available for $120 per year.
Click here to subscribe annually.
If you prefer to pay by check, mail your $120 annual payment to:
Media Group 31, LLC
P.O. Box 21
Scottville, MI 49454
Please include your name, mailing address, email address and telephone number so we can activate your subscription.
Subscription payments must be received before service is activated.
Whether you choose to subscribe or continue enjoying our free content, thank you for reading Mason County Press and Oceana County Press. Your readership—and your support—helps ensure that independent local journalism remains available to everyone in our communities.
This story and original photography are copyrighted © 2026 by Media Group 31, LLC, P.O. Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454. All rights reserved. No portion of this story or its images may be reproduced in any form, including print, broadcast or electronic media, without the express written permission of Media Group 31, LLC.
As a news organization, Media Group 31 maintains published content as part of the public and historical record. Accordingly, stories are not removed after publication. At the editor’s discretion, stories may be updated or corrected as new information becomes available. Updates may be made by revising the original story or by publishing a follow-up story. Media Group 31, LLC reserves the right to modify this policy at any time. Please refer to our Use Policy for additional information.
.jpg)
