After an anticlimactic IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship at the end of August, I set my sights on IRONMAN 70.3 Cozumel three weeks later. I flew to my southern training base in The Woodlands, Texas where I channeled my frustration from 70.3 Worlds into one of my most focused training blocks ever. The hellish heat and humidity of southern Texas made it an ideal proving ground for the notoriously brutal conditions in Cozumel.

I toiled alongside my training partners Matt Hanson and Balazs Csoke under the watchful eyes of our coach David Tilbury-Davis and swim coach Tim Floyd. There’s a satisfying symmetry to training with those two since we each bring complementary strengths to the group. Matt is one of the most dominant runners in Ironman, Balazs can lead any swim pack, and I can make them hurt on the bike. We’ve all benefited from our friendly rivalry in training (we rarely race each other), open knowledge sharing and mutual support.

I had to settle for a bittersweet second place in Cozumel after a long chase brought me within seconds of the win. It stung to lose that way but, for once, I wasn’t left second guessing my effort. Here’s my video recap:

 

Close, but no cigar. Bittersweet 2nd at #IM703Cozumel. #laneone #DTDcoaching

A photo posted by Cody Beals (@cody.beals) on

 

The top ten are below and full results are here. I also did a pre-race interview with TRS and race recaps can be found on Slowtwitch and TRS.

 

70.3 Cozumel results 2015

Thank you to…

 

Cozumel 2015 bike
Photo: Ricardo LC
Cozumel 2015 finish
Photo: Ricardo LC
Run 2
Photo: Marianka VC
Run 4
Photo: Marianka VC
Run 1
Photo: Marianka VC

Post-race

Post-race lounging with Canadian pro Taylor Reid (and an awesome fan). Photo: Marianka VC

Cozumel bike
Disc wheels are banned at Cozumel, so I chose a set of 3SIXTY5 FAT 88 carbon clinchers. The code “CODY-2015” saves you $50.

 

 

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After crashing on couches for many races, the Park Royal all-inclusive resort was a big step up!
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I could get used to swimming at the Park Royal private beach!
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