diff --git a/golang/cosmos/vm/height.go b/golang/cosmos/vm/height.go
index ad5d2e3f18e..c76fd8bede3 100644
--- a/golang/cosmos/vm/height.go
+++ b/golang/cosmos/vm/height.go
@@ -8,6 +8,11 @@ var committedHeight int64 = 0
 
 // IsSimulation tells if we are simulating the transaction
 func IsSimulation(ctx sdk.Context) bool {
+	// If we haven't committed yet, we're still in bootstrap.
+	if committedHeight == 0 {
+		return false
+	}
+	// Otherwise, if we already committed this block, we're in simulation.
 	return committedHeight == ctx.BlockHeight()
 }