VeloNews Podcasts

This week's episode is sponsored by Whoop. This year, Whoop is providing rider data from the race, including heart rate data during the stages and sleep data after them. Hugh Carthy (EF Education-EastPost), for instance, only got 5.5 hours of sleep on the big transfer day from Hungary to Sicily, according to Whoop. The Giro d'Italia is reaching its mountainous conclusion, and team Ineos looks primed to win the Maglia Rosa with Richard Carapaz. A victory would bring Ineos its fourth Giro win in five years. Why does the team and its "Froome train" strategy still work in Italy, while it falters in France and Spain? On today's episode we dive into this big question, and explore what a top Giro finish would mean for the three men in the hunt for the final podium: Carapaz, Jai Hindley, and Mikel Landa. Then, the U.S. cycling scene is still reeling from the murder of gravel star Moriah Wilson. We discuss the gravity of this story, and why it now occupies its own tragic realm in the history of pro bike racing.

U.S. track cycling phenom Ashton Lambie has traded in the velodrome for dirt. Lambie, 31, is embarking on his first full campaign in gravel and mountain-bike racing in 2022, and he's racing the Life Time Grand Prix events and other off-road races. Lambie shares his opinions with Ben Delaney on what it's like to return to 100-mile gravel events after spending years spinning circles around a velodrome. How does the four-minute effort of the individual pursuit compare to a daylong race? What are the biggest tech differences between an aero bike and a gravel rig? Lambie takes us inside his experiences in this wide-ranging interview. This week's episode is sponsored by Whoop. This year, Whoop is providing rider data from the race, including heart rate data during the stages and sleep data after them. Hugh Carthy (EF Education-EastPost), for instance, only got 5.5 hours of sleep on the big transfer day from Hungary to Sicily, according to Whoop.

The Giro d'Italia kicked off this year with three stages in Hungary, followed by a big travel day down to Sicily for a stout mountain stage up Mount Etna. How does all this travel affect the racing? Riders often say different things, depending on who they are speaking to — or whether it's on the record. This year, fitness wearable company Whoop is providing rider data from the race, including heart rate data during the stages and sleep data after them. Hugh Carthy (EF Education-EastPost), for instance, only got 5.5 hours of sleep on the big transfer day from Hungary to Sicily, according to Whoop. U.S. national time trial champion Lawson Craddock is racing the Giro in support of Simon Yates, who won the time trial in Budapest. Andrew Hood spoke with Craddock about racing in Hungary for an Italian stage race, as well as his thoughts on the long road ahead at the Giro. Host Ben Delaney chats with Hood from the press room on Mount Etna.

The racing was high-intensity and high-drama around the world last week, from Belgian Waffle Ride to the Tour de Romandie. What did we learn from covering these races? Ben Delaney, Betsy Welch, and Daniel Benson talk through the hot spots. Watching Lauren De Crescenzo win a stage by five minutes and the overall at the Tour of Gila while Mo Wilson won BWR by 25 minutes has us looking forward to a showdown between these two powerhouses at Unbound Gravel early next month. Speaking of Unbound, can anybody beat Keegan Swenson? Daniel was in Switzerland for Romandie, where Aleksandr Vlasov executed a TT-to-road bike swap in the final time trial, and blew past jersey-wearer Rohan Dennis to capture the overall. Are these type of stages gimmicks or legitimate racing? Dan and Ben discuss. And why was Ben hanging out of a car window at BWR? Tune in to this week's episode of the VeloNews Podcast.

Amy Charity is the driving force behind SBT GRVL, one of VeloNews' five Monuments of Gravel that exploded onto the scene in 2019 and now sells out its 3,000 spots within minutes. SBT GRVL was invited to join the UCI's new Gravel World Series, but Charity declined. On this episode of the VeloNews Podcast, Charity and host Ben Delaney discuss a variety of things, including the intersection of pro racing and recreational gravel riding, why she is happy to have SBT GRVL as an independent entity, the community of gravel race promoters, and that time she and Life Time vice president Kimo Seymour worked together racing at Unbound Gravel 200.

It was a hell of a weekend in France with Paris-Roubaix Femmes and Paris-Roubaix, and Ben Delaney and Jim Cotton discuss the highlights and lowlights of both the men's and women's races and the gear that was used to varying degrees of success. What is your favorite type of Roubaix? A wet and muddy edition, or a dry and dusty version? Ben and Jim argue about that, too.

Race series are nothing new, but a series that combines cross-country mountain bike and gravel events absolutely is. How will this play out? Will mountain bikers or gravel racers have the advantage overall? The Life Time Grand Prix kicked off Saturday at the Sea Otter Classic with the 80K Fuego XC race, and the day before, Betsy Welch sat down with a number of the racers to talk about the six-race series format, their hopes for the events, and what they were nervous about. Betsy spoke with Kaysee Armstrong and Crystal Anthony of Liv Racing, fresh back from Cape Epic in Africa, then spoke to Amity Rockwell and Lizzie King, and then finally was joined by Colin Strickland, John Keller and Laurens ten Dam. Moriah Wilson and Keegan Swenson won the Fuego, slotting them into the overall lead for the points-based series that is calculated on each rider's top five finishes.

When was the last time you saw a Tour de France champion defining a race at a cobbled classic? Go on and think a while; we’ll wait. Tadej Pogačar raced the Tour de Flanders for the first time Sunday, and he wasn’t just perusing the event as a tourist - the two-time Tour champ rode to win. And while he didn’t pull off the victory, he absolutely did force every rider in the field to play on his terms until the final meters. In the women’s race, defending champ Annemiek van Vleuten rode similarly in many ways to Pogačar — defining the race, chasing down the break, and forcing the critical selection. And, like Pogačar, she came up just a bit short as SD Worx had the numbers. On this podcast, Ben Delaney and Andy Hood break down both races, taking a look at the tactics, the contentious points, the power numbers of Mathieu van Der Pole, and the gear used at the classics this year.

In winning Gent-Wevelgem, Biniam Girmay made history by becoming the first Black African to win a classic. While he and his team were delighted with the win, Girmay isn't necessarily comfortable with the limelight. "I don't like to be the famous guy," Girmay said after the race. Recording in Belgium between Gent-Wevelgem and the Tour of Flanders, Sadhbh O'Shea and Ben Delaney discuss what Girmay's win means for cycling, and what it means for the young rider from Eritrea. Sadhbh and Ben also talk top prospects for the women's and men's Tour of Flanders this coming Sunday, where the eagerly awaited battle between Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel has only been enhanced by the presence of Tadej Pogačar on the startline. And finally, Ben chats with WorldTour mechanic Raf Wittenberg of Human Powered Health about the differences and similarities in gear for pros and everyday riders — not just what they should use but how they should maintain it. But first, Sadhbh has a musical interlude...

Matej Mohorič was not the strongest climber or the fastest sprinter at Milan-San Remo. But he was strong enough to bridge the the front group over the decision final Poggio climb. And then, as his race will forever be remember, he dropped his dropper post and the best cyclists in the world on the technical descent and then held off his chasers on the flat 2.2km run-in to the finish. In this episode, Jim Cotton and Ben Delaney analyze Mohorič's power numbers at each critical section in comparison to those of Mathieu van der Poel. This power analysis comes courtesy VeloNews training columnist Zach Nehr. Jim and Ben also discuss Mohorič's tactics at the decisive points of the race, and talk about the specifics of the dropper post he used, how he used it, and whether we will see others using the technology in future races.

In 2020, VeloNews created the Monuments of Gravel by polling elite gravel racers and race organizers for their top 5 picks of the most import gravel races. The Mid South, put on by Bobby Wintle in Stillwater, Oklahoma, was a near-unanimous selection, as was Unbound Gravel, SBT GRVL, and BWR California. The fifth Monument, Rebecca's Private Idaho, was decided in a reader vote. This year, some 2,500 people signed up for one of the many events at The Mid South. Betsy Welch and Ben Delaney were among them, and on this podcast they discuss why The Mid South is such an important event in the North American gravel scene.

VeloNews editor in chief Daniel Benson got a scoop on Netflix's planned docu-series on the 2022 Tour de France, including the eight teams that will be showcased. Daniel walks us through how the series could come together, and what it will mean for fans and the teams. But first, Jim Cotton and host Ben Delaney catch up on the highlights and hot takes from Strade Bianche, from Tadej Pogačar's dominant performance to the ongoing debate on gravel's place in professional road racing. Strade Bianche is a relatively new race on the pro scene, certainly a baby amongst the Monuments like Paris-Roubaix and Milano-Sanremo. But where does it rank in our hearts? Jim and Ben boot a number of Monuments out of the way in their lists to make room for Strade.

The classics season officially kicked off with four races packed into two days: the men's and women's Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne, and Omloop van het Hageland. VeloNews' Sadhbh was in Gent, Belgium, for the weekend, covering the races and talking to the riders. Jumbo-Visma's Wout van Aert rode away with the big prize of the weekend, and Fabio Jakobsen saved face for Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl on Sunday. Has the balance of power at the classics shifted? O'Shea also recounts the most recent battle in the ongoing clash of titans in women's racing between Annemiek van Vleuten and Demi Vollering. Tune in for five hot takes from Opening Weekend - what the big stories were, and what they mean for the next few months of racing.

Andrew Hood is just back from Ruta del Sol, and he checks in with five key takeaways about some of the riders and trends for the 2022 season he picked up on while following the race around southern Spain. At Ruta, Andy also caught up with Pat McCarty, who is directing the American team Human Powered Health (formerly Rally Cycling). Hear Andy's take on his conversations with 19-year-old American Magnus Sheffield, who won a stage riding in his first year for Ineos Grenadiers. Andy's other Ruta revelations involve volcanos, specialized handlebar set-ups, and changes of plans with the impending 'opening weekend' of the classics in Belgium. Tune in to hear them all — plus his interview with American Pat McCarty, who raced for teams from U.S. Postal to Rock Racing before moving into team management.

Having twice coached at the Olympics, Rob Stanley is a performance scientist and men's endurance track cycling coach at USA Cycling. Previously he was performance scientist at the Japanese Cycling Federation. And he is currently wrapping up his PhD at Leeds Beckett University — in bike racing. Stanley joins host Ben Delaney to talk about the merging of his academic work and his coaching of athletes like Gavin Hoover, who just won the inaugural UCI Track Champions League. Stanley's PhD title is a mouthful: Exploration of determinates of performance in the Elite Men’s Track Cycling Omnium. The Omnium is a four-event, points-based competition at the Olympics as well as in track cycling competitions around the world. And the new Track Champions League used a condensed format of it for its fan-friendly nighttime series that was held in Mallorca, Lithuania, and London, Stanley talks about breaking down races into more manageable chunks for riders, and making the summations of data from past racing accessible to them to help guide choices in the heat of racing. He says he wishes he could see inside rider's minds during racing, because the feedback afterwards is always the same: "That was hard!" Before speaking with Stanley we catch up with James Startt in Paris, who is just back from covering the Tour de la Provence, where he managed to photograph the winners' bikes from all four stages — before they won the stages.

Veteran cycling journalist Daniel Benson is the new editor in chief of VeloNews. Daniel comes to VeloNews after 14 years at Cyclingnews, where he was editor in chief for the past seven years. On this podcast, Daniel and host Ben Delaney talk about the 2022 road reason, rider salaries, the best races to watch, and why early season races matter. Daniel's sports journalism career of more than two decades includes experience reporting from a dozen Tours de France, several world championships, the Tour Down Under, multiple spring classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. While at Cyclingnews, Benson ran the global editorial team and helped establish the brand as a leading website for professional road race coverage. Now he's in the driver's seat at VeloNews. Hear what he has to say about the intersection of his job and pro cycling.

Was Marianne Vos right to play cat and mouse with her compatriot Lucinda Brand in pursuit of her record eighth world title? What did Tom Pidcock think about the course and his competition? The cyclocross world championships came to the United States for only the second time in history, and fans and racers traveled from around the world to attend. Host Ben Delaney and VeloNews web editor Greg Kaplan covered the weekend's racing in Fayetteville, Arkansas. On this episode, Ben and Greg discuss the highlights and scuttlebutts of the racing, and bring you the thoughts of the top racers, the fans, and the locals in their own words.

Philippe Gilbert has had one heck of a career. His wins include worlds, Paris-Roubaix, the Tour of Flanders, Amstel Gold, Il Lombardia, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Strade Bianche, and on and on. He's won stages in all three grand tours. And now, in 2022, he will race for this one last season before retiring. Can he win the one monument — Milan-Sanremo — that has eluded him? He would love to, of course, but his job there this year will almost certainly be to help his teammate Caleb Ewan. Andrew Hood interviews Gilbert.

America's national champions Clara Honsinger and Eric Brunner are both headed to the world cyclocross championships in Fayetteville at the end of January, but they have chosen very different routes to get there. After they won their respective national titles in mid December, Honsinger returned to Europe for more racing at the elite level in Superprestige and World Cup competitions. Brunner, despite being on a hot streak of winning four races in a row, opted to head home to Boulder, Colorado to reset and focus on training. Both riders join the VeloNews podcast to talk about their seasons, the weight of expectations, and their excitement for the worlds in Arkansas.

The world cyclocross championships are coming to Fayetteville, Arkansas Jan. 29-30. Who are the podium contenders and why? Why aren't Wout or Mathieu coming? How will the course determine the race? And where should fans go to watch, eat, and enjoy the scene? To answer all these questions and more, Ben Delaney is joined by six-time national cyclocross champion Tim Johnson, whose broadcasting career recently included calling the World Cup in Fayetteville on the course that will be used for worlds. Before Tim and Ben get into the racing, chef Biju Thomas weighs in on how Team USA will be fueling in Arkansas. Specifically, Biju and his Feed Zone cookbook collaborator Dr Allen Lim of Scratch Labs will be cooking for all 38 Team USA athletes plus support staff in Arkansas.