Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast

Stephen Roche has accomplished what only one other rider has done: won the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and the road world championships in one year. (The other is Eddy Merckx.) This season, it seems Tadej Pogačar could match the Irish rider’s feat from 1987.

In this episode, Roche looks back at the challenges he faced during that historic season: the tumultuous Giro with the split within his team and the Italian public seemingly out to get him; the Tour, which was not only a physical contest but a psychological one, too; and the world championships where the rider got himself into “a fine mess” in Villach, Austria. Roche is a great storyteller. He also brings his cycling insights and analysis to the current day. Ahead of this year’s Giro, which starts May 4, Pogačar is the favourite to take that Grand Tour. He’s won two Tours de France in his career and, at 25, is a top contender for the 2024 edition. The hilly worlds course in Zurich looks to be a puncheur’s playground—a place where the winner of Il Lombardia (three times), Liège-Bastogne-Liège (twice), the Tour of Flanders and the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal could take the rainbow jersey. Roche breaks down just what has to happen for Pogačar to make history.

This episode of the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast is supported by MS Bike. Register and start fundraising at msbike.ca. Also, check out MS Bike-specific training advice and tips from Canadian Cycling Magazine experts.

With the final Nations Cup of the season nearing, Sarah Van Dam was in Milton, Ont., with the Canadian squad getting ready for the event. Since the Olympics are only a few months away, the Nations Cup is a key part of the qualification process for Paris. Van Dam and the other riders on the team pursuit squad are after a top-eight place at minimum. But they’re really expecting a better result. In 2023, the group took bronze in the event in Milton.

Van Dam uses road cycling to support the track, however, she finds the track work doesn’t actually add to her racing on tarmac. Still, she’s continuing to balance both disciplines this year as she did the previous season. Last year, she took on a serious block of road racing in Europe, which she found overwhelming at first. She didn’t even eat during a 140-km stage. In March, she was back on the narrow, twisty routes of that continent, making improvements. Following the Olympics, Van Dam is planning to mix it up once again on the roads of the one-day Egmont Cycling Race Women and seven-stage Tour Cycliste Féminin International de l'Ardèche.

From serious racing, and serious splinters from crashes on the track, the discussion in this podcast episode also moves to dancing. Van Dam and her teammate Maggie Coles-Lyster create dance numbers for social media. Van Dam discusses that process, and how they roped in a reluctant Champions League rider, one who’d go on to win the event, into one of their clips.

This episode of the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast is supported by the No. 22 Bicycle Company, makers of fine titanium bikes. Founders Mike Smith and Bryce Gracey check in to discuss their unique approach to bike construction, which is all done in North America, and their hands-on approach to getting you the best bike.

Mel Webb, who has taken on such challenges as the Atlas Mountain Race and the Alberta Rockies 700, can weave the zany and the serious tougher almost effortlessly. Take her snooze in an outhouse this past summer. It’s kind of gross and funny, but in this episode of the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast, it also leads her to discuss ideas of safety and what roles a public amenity should play in a self-supported event. Throughout the interview, she tackles big topics, like the lack of gender parity within cycling and sharing personal struggles online, and more whimsical subjects, such as what to listen to during a multi-day cycling challenge. Webb is also the co-host of a podcast called Detours, which takes listeners on deep dives into all things ultra-cycling.

Recently, track cycling legend Gordon Singleton passed away. Editors Matthew Pioro and Matt Hansen remember and pay tribute to the world champion and world-record holder from Niagara Falls, Ont.

This episode of the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast is supported by the No. 22 Bicycle Company, makers of fine titanium bikes. Founders Mike Smith and Bryce Gracey check in to discuss their unique approach to bike construction, which is all done in North America.

Kevin Field is back on the pod. Longtime listeners will remember Field as Mr. Moneyball of Canadian Cycling. For years he’s been analyzing data to help riders perform at their best at the top levels of the sport. Today, he’s the chair of the board of directors at Bridge the Gap, an organization that works with riders as they progress toward their pro cycling careers. He’s also on the board of Team Ecoflo Chronos, an under-23 outfit that supports young racers.

Field looks at some commonly held ideas about road cycling in Canada, and then takes a look at the numbers. The data shows interesting, and sometimes startling, trends. Is road racing really dead in North America? With our nation’s pros winning Tour de France stages and a Monument, is Canada truly in a good spot within the pro circuits? Finally, is road cycling all about the young superstars? Junior to pro—it’s the only way to go? Find out what the ever-insightful Field has to say about these topics. 

This episode of the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast is supported by the No. 22 Bicycle Company, makers of fine titanium bikes. Founders Mike Smith and Bryce Gracey check in to discuss their unique approach to bike construction, which is all done in North America.

Dirty Reiver, Migration Gravel Race, bikepacking in the mountains of Turkey and Across Andes—these are some of the big rides that Sami Sauri took on this past year. In this episode, Sauri goes in-depth into how she managed these events. She talks about her gear choices for gravel races, and how she’s adapted to the way gravel racing is evolving. Sauri is also an accomplished photographer who brings her camera along on her rides. Learn why there’s never a conflict between Sauri’s two passions—cycling and photography—except for one time.

Listen to this extended interview with Sauri, presented with the support of YT Industries. Recently, YT released a 30-minute documentary about Sauri’s Migration Gravel Race, “The Wildest Gravel Race in the World.” Check out the doc and her one-of-a-kind YT Szepter gravel bike that she received for the challenging ride in Kenya.

World championship wins in two disciplines, a repeat rainbow jersey on the track, World Cup wins in downhill and cross country, a Tour de France stage win and more—there were a lot of big performances by Canadian riders this past year. In this episode, Canadian Cycling Magazine‘s editors—Matthew Pioro, Matt Hansen and Terry McKall—present their top-five lists. You won’t believe what some of the editors cut, just to whittle their lists down to five top stories from 2023.

You can also listen back to interviews with the year’s biggest newsmakers:

• A deep dive into Michael Woods’s Tour de France stage win
• In-depth interview with Derek Gee on the Giro d’Italia and the seconds that count

Cyclocross nationals is just a few days away. The competition is returning to Victoria as are many of the athletes who competed at last year’s event. In this episode of the Canadian Cycling Magazine Podcast, six riders not only reflect on the significance of nationals, but also look back at their races so far this year, as well as what lies ahead.

There are former and current national champions—some of them multiple-time winners—Pan Am champions, champions in other disciplines and even a world champion. Two are actually not racing in Victoria, but their stories provide important context for nationals.

In all the interviews—with Michael van den Ham, Sidney McGill, Luke Valenti, Evan Russell, Rafaelle Carrier and Isabella Holmgren—the stars of CX reveal what it means to be Canadian cyclocross racers and discuss the challenges they face as they practise that muddy art.

In March 2023, Nick Khattar and five others embarked on a 1,340-km bikepacking trip from Terrace, B.C., to Haines, Alaska. The riders pedalled hardtails and pulled trailers with splitboards strapped to them. They planned to ride, snowboard and record their adventures for a film. Not far into the trek, the team faced harrowing close-passes by trucks on the narrow highway. There was also bad weather, mechanical issues and the fatigue that comes with riding hard with heavy loads in the cold. Then, a true crisis happened in Jade City, B.C., about the halfway point of the trip. Three team members wouldn’t go on to Alaska.

Listen to this extended interview with Khattar as he unpacks the trip. Also, find out what made the difficult journey completely worth it.

Derek Gee reveals a heartwarming story about how he came under the spell of the Grands Prix Cyclistes de Québec et de Montréal. Isabella and Ava Holmgren, two stars of cyclocross and cross country, find themselves with race duties in Montreal. Canadian Cycling Magazine’s photographer takes a hit. Plus, heartbreak for some Canadians at their home races. All these tales and more are mixed with tips about how you can plan your visit to Quebec’s largest cities to take in the races to their fullest next year.

Also, check out Nick Iwanyshyn’s photos from the races.

Plus, scandal! An Israel-Premier Tech rider had St-Hubert ribs in the lead-up to the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec.

Episode Highlights

6:39 13-year-old Derek Gee, a ride from Ottawa to Montreal and Thomas Voeckler’s gloves

14:16 Benjamin Perry on the significance of the GPCQM

29:41 Pan Am champ Pier-André Coté breaks down the Quebec City race soon after finishing

40:31 How the 2026 road world championships course in Montreal is shaping up.

46:51 A few laps in the Team Canada car at the GP Montreal. It’s not a car race!

1:01:17 Charlotte of the Ottawa Bicycle Club and her bottle basketball net.

1:02:49 An old friend of the pod, and former co-host, makes an appearance.

1:06:54 Success for Charlotte!

1:07:28 Ava and Isabella Holmgren have a job to do at the GP Montreal.

1:12:21 In this case, it was No. 1 that affected Derek Gee.

He did it. But man, was it close. Michael Woods won a stage at the Tour de France this past July in a dramatic fashion on the Puy de Dôme. In this extended interview with Woods, the rider from Ottawa gets into the details of how it all came together, and how it all nearly fell apart. Find out about his relationship with Matteo Jorgenson, the rider whom Woods denied a win on Stage 9. Learn why Woods went for a trail run shortly after the Tour. Finally, who is the guy known as Disco and why is he so important to Woods?

Also in this episode, the Matts, Pioro and Hansen, look ahead to the Grands Prix Cyclistes de Québec et de Montréal. The two one-day races return in about two weeks. The Canadian Cycling Magazine  editors break down the routes and likely key riders at North America’s only WorldTour events.