Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast touch on some of the key points from the recent duel between Wout van Aert & Mathieu van der Poel at the CX World Championships and what their performances mean for the coming road season.
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Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast rifle through a few off-season topics, like the rise of Jumb-Visma and decline of Ineos (including the continued fall of their disgraced former team Doctor Richard Freeman) and Wout van Aert's domination over the rest of the Big 3 so far this Cyclocross season, as the 2023 WorldTour road racing kicks off at the Tour Down Under.
Please remember that any discussion of potential doping infractions is based on pure speculation and assumption.
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Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast sit down with Patrick Broe, founder of the Lanterne Rouge cycling media network to talk about the major looming questions and storylines for the upcoming 2023 season, along with touching on high performance, team dynamics, and race strategy inside the professional peloton.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast are back from a COVID-induced break to catch up on the Cyclocross season, which is quickly heating up with superstars like Wout van Aert, Mathieu van der Poel, and Tom Pidcock kicking off their campaigns, before breaking down which team Mark Cavendish could end up on for the 2023 season.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast chat with Scott McGill about his incredible 2022 season, culminating in making the breakaway at the 2022 World Road Race Championships, along with his plans to step up to a full European calendar with the Human Powered Health team in 2023.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss the news that UAE signed Jay Vine for the upcoming season before taking a look at the 2023 Tour de France route and breaking down why they think the course favors and what major stars will be present.
2023 Tour de France Route Breakdown
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss what the future holds for gravel cycling as it gets more and more popular before debating if there is a viable business future for North American professional road racing.
Read Andrew's recent essay on the 'spirit of gravel'
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast preview the upcoming Gravel World Championships before diving deep into what this means for the nascent discipline, where it is going, and what it means for top-level road races.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast give a few closing thoughts on the World Championship Road Race before breaking down why the Remco Evenepoel to Ineos transfer rumors might not be crazy.
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In this week's post-race minisode, Spencer Martin breaks down the blow-by-blow action from last weekend's World Road Race Championship and digs into how exactly Remco Evenepoel walked all over the world's best riders.
Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss the favorites for the upcoming World Championship Road Race before getting into the weeds on the reasons behind the technical choices of certain riders/teams and if Keegan Swenson, who is making his professional road race debut at the biggest one-day race of the year, has a shot of contending for the win.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss what we can take from Remco Evenepoel's recent overall win at the Vuelta a España, why there are so many great young riders flooding the sport, and what to expect at the upcoming World Championships.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss the GC fight at the ongoing Vuelta a España as the main contenders head into the final weekend of racing before going through how pro cycling appears to be melting down towards the end of a hard season with the promotion/relegation system getting more absurd by the day with September's World Championships struggling to attract a full start list due to the high-stakes points battle.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast ask and answer big-picture questions about what has happened during Remco Evenepoel's reign of terror at the Vuelta a España, as well as going a little bit off book to discuss all things on-bike nutrition and sports science.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast ask and answer big picture questions about the final grand tour of the season, la Vuelta a España before getting into the news of Nairo Quintana's recent disqualification from the Tour de France due to the use of a banned substance.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast ask and answer big picture questions about what was potentially one of the best editions of the Tour de France in the modern era and where each favorite (plus Tom Pidcock, who we can't stop talking about for some reason) goes from here.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast try to break down Jumbo-Visma's Total Cycling approach and what the heck is going on with the sport of professional cycling as we officially enter the Cycling 2.0 era and leave the bygone days of conservative GC racing behind.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast break down a show of force from UAE and Tadej Pogacar through the first difficult stage in the Pyrenees before discussing if Jonas Vingegaard can hold off the surging Slovenian over the next few stages, and much, much more.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast take stock of the last two stages of racing and dig into what to watch over the coming stages in the notoriously difficult and wild Pyrenees.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast take a step back after two impressive stage wins to ask the big questions about this race's GC picture: Does Andrew believe Geraint Thomas has a chance of winning this race more than his Ineos team and did Burning Man peak in the early 2010s? They then give some spicy hot takes regarding Tom Pidcock's and Wout van Aert's standing in their proverbial battles with parallel superstars Remco Evenepoel and Mathieu van der Poel.
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast try to understand the action-packed first mountain stage at the Tour de France that has turned the race on its head before drifting off the beaten path to discuss if Pogacar has COVID, what is going on with the climate protests and does Geraint Thomas have a chance to turn back the clock and win this race?
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Spencer Martin of Beyond the Peloton & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast take stock of the GC picture on the Tour's first (real) rest day and wonder if Tadej Pogacar and his UAE team should be taking the competition a little more seriously and if their uber-aggressive riding style will come back to bite them later in this race. They also get into the macho culture on French teams, break down if Thibaut Pinot will win a stage and why riders/teams go all-in for top ten overall finishes instead of chasing stage wins.
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Following two consecutive stages of Tadej Pogacar domination, Andrew and Spencer ask if anyone can stop the Slovenian terror, and if so, how? They also discuss if he and his UAE team are making a mistake by riding so aggressively this early, break open a clue about the Wout/Tom Pidcock Red Bull helmet mystery & the relative fairness of the Tour's hotel room distribution.
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BTP host Spencer Martin and Andrew Vontz from the Choose the Hard Way Podcast sit down to dissect the action-packed Paris-Roubaix edition Tour de France stage, a stunning performance from Wout van Aert on stage 4, and much, much more. Including, but not limited to, the inter-country transportation methods of the teams, why cycling TV coverage is bad/confusing, and why the sport's top stars aren't more effectively promoted.
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BTP host Spencer Martin and Andrew Vontz from the Choose the Hard Way Podcast sit down to dissect the major storylines as the Tour de France leaves its opening weekend in Denmark and gets back into action on French soil for Tuesday's 4th stage. We get into everything from EF's mustaches, what we already know about the GC picture, why Ganna keeps flatting in time trials, and if Wout van Aert will ever win a stage again.
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BTP host Spencer Martin and Andrew Vontz from the Choose the Hard Way Podcast kick off a special Tour de France edition of the BTP podcast where we will be both breaking down the racing and larger storylines of the sport's biggest event multiple times per week during the 2022 Tour de France.
In this inaugural episode, we discuss who will win the opening time trial in Copenhagen to take the race's first Yellow Jersey, how the GC favorites will fare in the tricky opening week, why the police keep raiding the Bahrain team's hotels/homes, and much, much more.
This week I go over some surprising recent Tour de France selection news and what it will mean for the race before (07:08) breaking down some key performances at the recent Tour de Suisse & Tour of Slovenia.
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Listen to Kristen Faulkner's appearance on the BTP podcast during his first pro season
This week I briefly break down how their dominant Dauphine performance raised potential Tour de France leadership for Jumbo-Visma, as well as go over a few things worth watching as the Tour de Suisse GC battle heats up.
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This week Andrew Vontz from the Choose the Hard Way Podcast comes back to talk about the recent Giro d'Italia (07:40). We discuss what went right for Jai Hindley and what went wrong for Ineos/Richard Carapaz before touching on Peter Sagan's decision to race the upcoming Unbound Gravel Race and what challenges await him in Kansas' Flint Hills (1:03:35).
Breaking down what we've seen from the GC battle so far, why the margins in grand tour GC battles seem to be getting smaller and smaller, and what to expect as the race enters its final weekend.
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Listen to my new daily stage prediction podcast OŪTCOMES with Johan Bruyneel
Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast comes on to talk about the major storylines through the first two weeks of the Giro d'Italia, then we talk about what we expect to happen to the GC battle when the race hits its final, and most important, block of high mountain stages.
Popping on to break down what we've seen from the simmering GC battle so far at the Giro d'Italia as well as the individual brilliance of riders like Mathieu van der Poel and Biniam Girmay.
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Listen to my new daily stage prediction podcast OŪTCOMES with Johan Bruyneel
This week I go over the key takeaways (01:55) from Tour de Romandie, Vuelta Asturias & Eschborn–Frankfurt before (15:30) Twitter sensation and Lanterne Rouge podcast co-host Benji Naesen comes on to talk about going from YouTube gamer to a highly respected pro cycling analyst.
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This week I break down how Remco Evenepoel won Liège-Bastogne-Liège with a solo attack when everyone knew it was coming and if he should focus on one-day races and stages going forward, or continue to chase a career as a stage racer. Then I give a few quick thoughts on Thibaut Pinot's win at the Tour of the Alps and the opening stages at the Tour de Romandie.
This week I go through a few notes from the recent amazing edition of Paris-Roubaix (0:36) before bringing on Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast to discuss our major takeaways from the race and just how much cycling has changed and advanced over the last few seasons (08:09).
This week I talk to Larry Warbasse about his now-out GCN+ documentary 'The Slow Pro Tour' as well as his path to professional cycling and how he became fluent in French over the course of a month.
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Going through my Ronde van Vlaanderen (Tour of Flanders) race notebook to break down a wild finish at one of the season's biggest one-day classics.
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This week I chat with Choose the Hard Way podcast host Andrew Vontz (01:36) about what we are watching for at the upcoming Tour of Flanders before sitting down with AG2R's Oliver Naesen (35:25) to talk about his new GCN+ documentary 'How to Win the Tour of Flanders' before digging into what it is like to actually compete in the race, what it means to the Flanders region & the inside scoop on life as a pro cyclist.
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This week I touch on a few key points that decided last week's Milano-Sanremo (01:08), before breaking down takeaways from the ongoing Volta Cataluyna (12:22) and then finish by going through the first real Cobbled Classic on the season, E3, (29:02) and if the dominating performance we saw from Wout van Aert & Jumbo will be par for the course throughout the Spring.
This week I tie up some loose ends surrounding last weekend's fantastic stage races (01:18) before getting into (22:04) why Tadej Pogačar will have a harder time winning Milano-Sanremo than most pundits think and who could emerge victorious instead.
Listen to my appearance on Andrew Vontz's fantastic Choose the Hard Way Podcast
This week I give my extremely late thoughts on Tadej Pogačar's Strade Bianche win and if this means he is now the hands-down best rider in the world (01:24), why more wins are coming from breakaways post-2020 (13:03), Paris-Nice stages 1/2 (17:52), Tirreno–Adriatico stages 1/2 (25:43), before getting to today's action at both races (36:03).
Ten Takeaways: Strade Bianche, Paris-Nice & Tirreno-Adriatico
This week I break down who will come out on top on Saturday at Strade Bianche and then dive into the great sprint and GC battles waiting next week at Paris-Nice.
This week I break down the standout performances so far from the UAE Tour and how all signs point to yet another season of living under the reign of the great Tadej Pogačar. I also touch on how Mark Cavendish's might affect the ongoing sprinter battle with Fabio Jakobsen at his QuickStep team before touching on the upcoming big weekend of racing.
This week I break down the highlights so far from the Tours of Algarve and Andalucia before stopping to ask what any of these results actually mean in the big picture and in the context of the rest of the season (09:36).
With so many of the major GC contenders still holed away at their high-altitude training camps, the biggest takeaway so far is Richard Carapaz's poor performances so far, and if this means he will struggle to be a real contender at the Giro d'Italia in May (11:14). I then break down the modern training trends of grand tour winners, which have them coming into races at full fitness, versus the more old-school, race-into-fitness, strategy (21:27).
This week I break down the sprint action from the Tour of Oman (01:58) before diving into the Tour de la Provence (09:22) and whether Ineos is using the incredibly talented Filippo Ganna in a way that maximizes his vast potential.
This week I break down the early-season racing action from the low-key cool Saudi Tour (01:30), the spicy action from Etoile de Bessèges (09:22) before getting into the best race of the season so far, the Volta Valencia (13:25). I also dive into how the relegation battle is already affecting the racing (22:30) before briefly discussing what Tom Pidcock can achieve this Spring (28:24).
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Video clip breakdowns & trying to find Tom Pidcock's road racing ceiling
This week I break down Tom Pidcock's decision to travel to the USA for the upcoming Cyclocross World Championships, Wout van Aert's altered spring schedule, QuickStep's decision to bench Mark Cavendish and take Fabio Jakobsen to the 2022 Tour de Frane and touch on the newly released 2022 BTP NET Ratings.
This week the Queen of in-depth rider profiles and world-famous Roglic-whisper Kate Wagner joined me for a wide-ranging conversation touching on everything from the recent wave of Slovenian dominance, the Primož Roglic/Tadej Pogacar rivalry (along with house to properly say their names), the inside scoop on the Bahrain team, and what it is like to spend an afternoon at Matej Mohorič’s house.
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Kate's fantastic Primoz Roglic profile
This week I break down the possibility of Wout van Aert being suspended by the UCI (02:27), the chaos at EF and their pursuit of Mark Padun (07:36), and then (18:11) PEZ Cycling's Richard Pestes interviews me for his site's new YouTube series.
Post link: Would Mark Padun Be a Good Fit at Ineos?
This week I talk to Andrew Vontz, Vice President of communications and a member of the executive management team at Strava, who is also the creator/host of Choose the Hard Way, a podcast about peak performance and the obstacles people overcome to do great things. Andrew, beyond being a pro cycling superfan, spent the first decade of his career as a freelance journalist. Outside of cycling, he wrote features, interviews, and profiles about people, places, and things at the limits of human experience that regularly appeared in the country's top outlets. A cyclist himself, he has twice placed second at the 100-mile Unbound Gravel Half Pint race.
In this conversation, we discuss Andrew's career path from getting an MFA in creative writing at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) to being an executive at the most influential company for the fitness of recreational athletes, along with the evolution (or lack thereof) of cycling in the United States and where we see things heading in the future.
Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast can be found at iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify & Google Play
This week I break down the four most interesting teams so far in the transfer market (01:30) and then discuss Movistar's odd decision to bring in two extremely controversial former dopers to help manage the team going forward (34:01) and why this is likely a bad idea.
Post Links: Weekly Rider Transfer Analysis: Astana, UAE, DSM & Movistar
This week I breakdown the 2022 Tour de France route (1:31), go through the end-of-season UCI rider and team point rankings (12:37), talk about what is going on with the management shakeup at Ineos (43:26), and then touch on why Remco Evenepoel is making a trip to Kansas for the Belgian Waffle Ride (50:43).
Post Links: A Season in Review: Breaking Down the UCI Point Rankings
Initial Impressions From the 2022 Tour de France Route Reveal
This week I break down Pogačar's dominant win at Il Lombardia (01:20), how his long-range attack capitalized on a tactical shift in modern racing (24:30), why he isn't taken more seriously as a one-day contender by the media and other riders (29:20), and then measuring how Pogačar stacks up against the all-time great Eddy Merckx after three full professional seasons (43:07).
This week I break down Sonny Colbrelli's stunning Paris-Roubaix victory (01:28), unpack why riders with such little experience fared so well at the extremely difficult race (25:38), discuss how much equipment choices affected performances (26:28), and then preview the upcoming Il Lombardia one-day race (36:02).
Post Link: Paris-Roubaix: Breaking Down the Chaos on Cobbles
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In a special bonus episode, pro rider Sarah Gigante comes on to break down the recent Women's World Championship Road Race (01:41), as well as giving her thoughts on the Women's inaugural edition of Paris-Roubaix (33:00).
Post Link: Balsamo's Worlds Win Confirms a Changing of the Guard
This week I break down how Julian Alaphilippe played the stacked Belgian team to win at the World Championships (01:50) and then preview this weekend's much-awaited return of Paris-Roubaix (22:32), along with my favorites for the win and who to stay away from (30:35).
This week, I break down the thrilling duel between Filippo Ganna & Wout Van Aert at World TT Championships (01:30), what we should take from Remco Evenepoel's third-place finish (13:17), what to make of the supersonic average speeds from the top riders (20:28), Ellen van Dijk's victory in the Women's TT (29:07), and what to expect in the upcoming road race (31:00).
This week I breakdown what we learned from Wout van Aert's overall win at the Tour of Britain (1:56), Sonny Colbrelli's win at Euro Championships (4:10), how Remco Evenepoel's lack of race awareness could cause problems for Van Aert at Worlds (8:35) if Mathieu van der Poel's win at the Antwerp Port Classic means he can race Worlds and Roubaix (11:45), and then sit down with 20-year-old phenomenon Sarah Gigante (14:58) on the difficulties of breaking into pro cycling and moving abroad as an Australian teenager, highlights of her career so far, and joining the powerhouse Movistar team for 2022 and beyond.
Sonny Colbrelli's Euro Performance Showed Us He is a Legitimate Threat for World Champs
This week I go over the key takeaways from Roglic's Vuelta win (01:25), why time trialing is the key to winning grand tours in the modern era (15:20), what is going on with Movistar & Miguel Angel Lopez (22:30), will the emergence of formerly unknown talent like Jack Haig & Jonas Vingegaard have teams looking down their own roster for 'new' talent (31:50), and who is looking good as we approach the road race world championships (33:32).
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This week I breakdown why La Vuelta's final week will most likely be more bark than bite (01:47), touch on if Odd Christain Eiking or Guillaume Martin can actually win the race (12:04), Ineos' bizarre GC strategy so far (16:11), why sprint fields at grand tours have been so bad (19:49), and then go over who should lead the Belgian team at the upcoming World Championships (29:30).
This week I break down why La Vuelta will be the best grand tour of the year and why Primoz Roglic will be almost unbeatable in his quest for his third-straight victory (01:07. I then go over the major rider transfers and what to make of UAE signing seemingly every rider in the pro peloton (21:15).
This week I unpack Neilson Powless' incredible win at San Sebastián (01:15), if Deceuninck-QuickStep made the right decision not riding for Julian Alaphilippe (11:15) and Sagan's move to Total Direct Energie (13:30). I then break down what Adam Yates and Egan Bernal crashing at the Vuelta a Burgos means for Ineos' Vuelta a Espana plans (and why that race could be the best grand tour of the year) (18:37), before attempting to figure out where Roglic stands as a rider after his impressive Olympic Gold performance in the TT (22:32).
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This week I attempt to contextualize Wout van Aert's absurd achievements in the final weekend of the Tour de France (02:50), the future of sprinting (5:55), unpack Van Aert & Van der Poel's Tours (13:26), try to understand what Ineos was doing at this Tour and where they go from here (17:58), and break down where Pogacar won this race and what that could mean for strategy at future Tours (29:57).
This episode is brought to you by Idahoan Foods. Use the discount code 'BTP30' during checkout at shop.idahoan.com to save 30% on every order during the Tour de France.
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This week I talk about why rival GC teams are having such a hard time challenging Tadej Pogacar and his relatively weak UAE Team (03:11) and then (22:00)Tokyo-bound Jamaican Olympian and cycling superfan Aisha Praught-Leer comes on to talk about her love of pro cycling, ask me seven questions about this Tour de Franc, why the transition to Japan might be more difficult than the cyclists are expecting and how that should affect their preparation.
This episode is brought to you by Idahoan Foods. Use the discount code 'BTP30' during checkout at shop.idahoan.com to save 30% on every order during the Tour de France.
The Tour starts up again with a bang after the first rest day and today I talk about Cavendish's win on stage 10 (02:15), the race for the GC never taking a day off (15:02), if Ben O'Connor can hang on for a podium finish in Paris and how, despite being touted as having the strongest team in the race, Ineos is failing to impress so far (19:57).
I then do a quick preview of tomorrow's stage, which features a double ascent of Mt. Ventoux (34:00).
This episode is brought to you by Idahoan Foods. Use the discount code 'BTP30' during checkout at shop.idahoan.com to save 30% on every order during the Tour de France.
In this minisode, I unpack the totally bananas Tour de France stage 7 & touch on what the mountain stages this coming weekend mean for the fight for the overall classification.
This episode is brought to you by Idahoan Foods. Use the discount code 'BTP30' during checkout at shop.idahoan.com to save 30% on every order during the Tour de France.
Unpacking Mark Cavendish's incredible stage win and if he can do it again at this Tour (02:14). Also, I break down the race for Green (11:25), where the GC stands after a few action-packed opening stages, and what we should expect in tomorrow's time trial (13:02).
This episode is brought to you by Idahoan Foods. Use the discount code 'BTP30' during checkout at shop.idahoan.com to save 30% on every order during the Tour de France.
This week I breakdown the opening few stages of the Tour de France (02:18), dive into who the main GC contenders will be (04:41), how the somewhat subdued route could help Ineos (15:16), try to forecast how the race dynamics will shape the day-to-day racing tactics (21:18) and then take a look at how the battle for Green will affect the race for the GC (23:26).
This episode is brought to you by Idahoan Foods. Use the discount code 'BTP30' during checkout at shop.idahoan.com to save 30% on every order during the Tour de France.
This week I go through Ineos' just-released Tour de France lineup (01:10), talk about the pros and cons of their selection, why they left Rohan Dennis at home, and if Richard Carapaz should be the team's main leader after his performance at the recent Tour de Suisse (14:10). Then I get into how to avoid falling into the trap of thinking second-tier riders will win the Tour (20:07) if Julian Alaphilippe is flying under the radar as a GC contender (22:47), if Jumbo-Visma is just a bad team now (30:30), why ISN made a mistake in sending Chris Froome to the Tour as a road captain (33:41) and then a few notes on the upcoming US Road Race Championships (37:51).
I go through my notebook from the Criterium du Dauphine (01:30), talk about the flaws in Ineos' confusing multi-leader strategy (04:12), if it is a problem that Mark Padun thoroughly outclimbed the team on both Saturday and Sunday (17:40), who they should back for the Tour (21:14), the incredibly exciting racing at the Tour du Suisse (26:20) & how many early Tour stages Mathieu van der Poel could win (32:40).
This week I break down where exactly Egan Bernal won the recent Giro d'Italia (01:16) before diving into what we've learned so far at the Criterium du Dauphine (24:20) and what it means for the upcoming Tour de France.
In this minisode, I go through my race notebook from today's Giro d'Italia stage 19 (01:00) before Team BikeExchange Performance Director Marco Pinotti joins (13:30) to talk about the looming final time trial on stage 21, DQS' potential mismanagement of Remco Evenepoel, how Joao Almeida is emerging as the strongest rider in this race and his thoughts about how this pivotal final weekend will play out.
This week I talk about the Giro d'Italia's abridged stage 16 (01:10), preview tomorrow's stage 17 (21:07), and throw out a crazy theory about how Egan Bernal should lead Ineos at the upcoming Tour de France (29:05).
This week I go through my notes from stages 9 (01:50) & 10 (06:37) before sitting down with 6-time Italian time trial champion & current Team BikeExchange performance coach Marco Pinotti (21:10) to talk about what the heck is going on with the recent trend of riders like Remco Evenepoel coming into grand tours with tip-top form after long layoffs from racing and how he sees the rest of the Giro playing out.
In this mini-episode, I break down Ineos' strategy from yesterday's Stage 6 (01:44), go through the big takeaways from the race so far (18:57), and dive into the rationale behind Ineos' decision to invest so much energy into breaking up the race mid-stage on Thursday (21:19).
This week I go through the big takeaways so far at the Giro d'Italia (02:04), who the GC winners are (06:26), Deceuninck-QuickStep's strange tactics on stage 4 (09:33), why the GC outcome at the Giro is so hard to predict (16:39), the curious case of Remco Evenepoel (19:50) and previewing tomorrow's stage 6 (27:53).
This week I touch on why so many of the big-time GC riders skipped the Tour of Romandie (01:27), go through my notes from the race and touch on what Geraint Thomas' definitive victory means for his position at Ineos (05:09) and discuss if Chris Froome's continued struggles mean ISN will leave him off their Tour team (24:20). Then I jump into the Giro d'Italia and discuss the route, the health issues plaguing the favorites, and, ultimately, who will win (27:07).
I go through my race notebook for Tadej Pogacar's incredible win at the Men's Liège-Bastogne-Liège (01:40) as well as SD-Worx's flawless tactics in the Women's edition that delivered Demi Vollering to her first major WorldTour victory (29:14). Then I dive into the interesting intra-team battle brewing at the Tour de Romandie (42:55).
This week I dive into my race notes on what the heck happened on the final stage of the Tour of the Basque Country (01:31) and what I got wrong about Jumbo's tactics leading into it (09:00).
This week I go through my race notebook from the Men's (02:25) and Women's (19:05) Tour of Flanders. Then Tibco-Silicon Valley Bank rider Kristen Faulkner comes on (27:11) to give us her Flanders debrief after riding to an impressive 10th place. Then I dive into a few key points from the ongoing Tour of the Basque Country (56:50), where Tadej Pogacar and Primoz Roglic are giving us a sneak preview of a looming Tour de France showdown.
This week I go through my race notebook from E3 & Gent-Wevelgem and what this tells us about the upcoming Tour of Flanders. Then (24:00) Tibco-Silicon Valley Bank rider Kristen Faulkner comes on to talk about her breakout European road season, (1:04:40) how her background as a VC investor has helped her bike racing career, (1:10:36) her struggles to get on the US National Team for the upcoming Olympics and World Championships, (1:16:04) challenges Women face in the sport, and grills me about why BTP doesn't cover Women's cycling.
This week I go through my race notebook from Milano-Sanremo, discuss Adam Yates looking like one of the best riders in the world at Catalunya, where this leaves Ineos' Tour leaders like Geraint Thomas and Richard Carapaz, and touch on the sad news that Paris-Roubaix has been canceled for the second year in a row.
Going through my race notes from Tirreno-Adriatico & Paris-Nice and breaking down if Wout is now a legitimate GC contender, if Mathieu van der Poel is the best one-day rider in the world, why unwritten rules don't really exist, if Jumbo is a bad team and Ineos' horrible week.
Breaking down Mathieu Van der Poel's impressive victory (not Wout van Aert's, despite what the intro says) at Strade Bianche, a few notes from Paris-Nice and looking into the case of the missing Marc Hirschi.
I go through my notebook after spending all weekend glued to the TV watching the first two 'real' races of the year, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, and briefly touch on and talk riders to watch for Strade-Bianche.
This week I talk about the Pogacar/Yates showdown at the UAE Tour and what it means that the Tour champion looks even better than he did in 2020. I also answer a listener question about the emergence of a possible new Ineos superteam and quickly preview this weekend's coming one-day Classics.
This week I talk about (01:50) Wout van Aert & Mathieu van der Poel's showdown on the beach at CX Worlds, (14:00) what to take away from early-season road races GP La Marseillaise & Etoile de Bessèges and (31:54) talk through Ineos' decision to send 2019 Tour Champion Egan Bernal to the Giro instead of the Tour de France in 2021 and who will have to step up for the team in his place.
This week I talk about Tom Dumoulin's shocking decision to unexpectedly leave his Team Jumbo-Visma training camp to take an indefinite leave from the sport, my BTP NET Team Ratings, upcoming rider previews, the confusion around the Olympic Games rumored cancellation, and where the heck to watch cycling now that NBC Sports is gone.
This week I talk about Marc Hirschi's shocking premature exit from Team DSM and where he is likely headed next. Then Keegan Swirbul comes on to talk about how he went from living in an RV to racing professionally in Europe in the span of a week.
This week I talk about the possibility of Wout van Aert going to Ineos for the 2022 season, if Mathieu van der Poel's overloaded racing schedule means he is hurtling towards disappointment in 2021, and why a salary cap will never work in pro cycling.
I talked about Wout van Aert's shady podium exchange with a soigner at a recent CX race, dive into opportunities presented by the early 2021 Tour de France odds and break down what Rod Ellingworth's possible move back to Ineos means for the team in 2021.
This week I break down who will lead Ineos at the 2021 Tour de France and why the team with endless resources seems to be struggling to produce a top-level GC contender. Also, Tao Geoghegan Hart is still looking for a job for 2021, NTT gets a new sponsor, and strange EF rumors.
This week I breakdown where and how Roglic won an incredibly close Vuelta a Espana and give an initial analysis of the recently released 2021 Tour de France route.
This week I discuss the Vuelta GC battle heating up with Roglic & Carapaz tied on time in the second week, ask if Mike Woods is over or underachieving, and briefly review last weekend's Giro d'Italia.
The GC band is back together again at the Vuelta a Espana, but this time the racing is actually exciting! Also, the Giro d'Italia gets ready to enter a brutal few stages in the high mountains. Also, we got a taste of the future Tour of Flanders and I talk about if this new rivalry is actually good racing.
This week I break down the first few stages of the Giro d'Italia, talk about an exciting Liege finish and then bring on superagent João Correia, who represents Giro d’Italia leader João Almeida, on the young rider’s rapid rise, Portuguese cycling, and his view on how to nurture young talent. Also, an easter egg for BTP listeners is Laurens ten Dam piping up in the background.
This week I discuss World Championships, break down the Giro d'Italia route and go over why Aleksandr Vlasov should be considered a potential winner for the overall.
Email your questions to Beyondthepelotonpod@gmail.comI break down what went wrong for Jumbo-Visma at this year's Tour and if there is anything Primoz Roglic could have done to avoid his crushing Stage 20 defeat to Tadej Pogacar. I then talk about the surprise news that Nairo Quintana's hotel room was raided after Stage 17 and then play some roadside audio from Stage 20 sent in by Kevin in Basel.
I review a brutal stage 15 at the Tour de France, talk about where Ineos goes from here, and if anyone can derail the Jumbo train. Then EF Performance Manager Nate Wilson comes on to talk about their pre-Tour camp process, training theories, the incredibly fast climbing speeds at this year's race, and how he sees Roglic and Pogacar handling the high Alpine climbs in the third week.
In this week's episode, I go over the first week of the Tour, take a look at the looming Stage 20 TT and go over why it is going to be difficult for Egan Bernal to shake Tadej Pogacar and Primoz Roglic in the Alps.