Half Wheelin' Podcast

Welcome to a new format that Burgess is playing around with. 

The goal of this is to bring people from the cycling world to you, but in a format that is less formal. So why this? Well, often when I watch interviews with pro cyclists, they’re very focused on stats, or training, or diet, and to be honest, I find this a bit overdone. So I want to have a crack at something a bit different.

Each episode, I’ll be bringing you a personality from the cycling world. I’ll be working with them as a co-host, as opposed to as someone I am interviewing. Hopefully this provides you some insight into who they are as a person, and what they’re like in a more casual and less manufactured setting.

I am aware that there is a lot of growing to do. This is the first episode of this nature, and it’s my first episode solo, but I think that Josie Talbot, my guest today, offers some cool insight and really comes into her own as this conversation develops. I had a lot of fun recording this, and I hope that you have some fun listening.

We start by eulogising Pog's career, and paying our respects to what he gave us and the sport. Yes we're all grieving, deeply sad, and grateful at the same time. Big feelings, big meaning.

We then shift into a conversation with Nick Owen!

Nick’s a sports scientist and cycling coach, based in Melbourne, Australia. He works with road and track cyclists at Olympic, Paralympic, and World tour level, the top domestic pro's in Australia’s newly formed ProVelo Super league, and also masters guns and emerging junior talent.

This conversation goes deeper into the coaching, training, sports science and performance aspects of cycling, and really is a rare chance to hear from the horse's mouth on the ins and outs of top cycling performance and what it takes.**

We also discuss recent races from more of a spectator point of view, and what us non-elite cyclists can do to bring out our best on the bike.**

Enjoy!

**See chapters for more detail and episode navigation

Nick Owen Website: https://nocsportsscience.com

Nick Owen Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickowen5/

How far should you go? Is better, actually better? What’s your favourite home tool? Your best buy?

If you’re even just a little bit into cycling you’ll know how much of factor “gear” is.

Bikes, components, clothing, add ons, tools. A world inside a world.

From being a critical determinant at the highest levels, to causing middle-aged weekend warriors delusions of salvation and grandeur, cycling gear is synonymous with the sport.
  
How much should you spend?
What’s worth it?
New innovation or new marketing?
  
In this @HalfWheelin’ episode #38 “Get on the gear (not that gear, ya muppet!)” Half Wheelin cover all the burning gear issues - materialism and social exclusion, emerging high quality Chinese products and even the pro choice/ pro life debate of rim and disc, it’s all here!

Please enjoy (and then tap there, when you're ready)

  
  
 *Click here to purchase Half Wheelin’s scientifically proven carbon fibre, aero suit for your skeleton bones, NOW!

In 2016, Keagan Girdlestone was an 18 year old, super promising pro with Team Dimension Data for Qhubeka. The physiological watts/kilo indicators were there, as was his ability to produce results.  

Then he had a horrific racing accident with his own team car. Things were touch and go for days, and for a period of time, he actually died. 

The next couple years never really built  much racing momentum, and showed him it was time to truly heal. His career racing bikes had come to an end. 

But now, years later, he's going again! And wants to see how high he can go!

We speak to the man whose type of journey is normally associated with Hollywood movies, and he does NOT disappoint.

Strap in, we're goin deep.

Credit: The incredible music closing this episode and in Keagan's statement is "Uncovered" by Joseph William Morgan.

What would it take to go Pro these days? And what’s it like once you’re racing in Europe on the start of your journey?  What’s a typical day like? Harder than being on the tools?
 
Well you asked and we delivered! (Well, Aidan did). He brought in Hugh Harvey, from the World Tour Arkea BnB Hotels development squad. The young Pro from Sydney, Australia, told us about things like:

• HIs winning start in racing, unique pathway into pro cycling, and eventful first UCI race
• His track record of blowing his equipment to pieces    
• The differences between a junior European and Conti-World Tour teams
• Keys skills for European racing, when raw watts don’t help
• Advice for aspiring pro’s & what you’ve got to be able to cope with
• A day in the life & maintaining the love amidst the grind 
• The unexpected quality that comes with racing at the top level 

 
And of course we include a few other options on the menu:

• Aidan has a vent about Strava that actually turns into therapy
• The boys discuss their current riding, most brutal training sessions and those annoying riders who keep asking about your bike tech

So get it from the horse’s mouth, and giddy up!

So the highly coveted UCI Annual Half-Wheelin Awards* have been run and won, and weren’t we treated to a feast of celebrating the beauty of road cycling!?
 
Approved by the Half Wheelin’ ethics committee, categories were:

• Biggest Local Bunch Muppet
• Most "Fuck he’s Better than Bloody Good" 
• Never Thought We’d be Admiring Them! 
• Most Ferocious Shredding of a Race by One Team 
• Best Example of 2024 Racing Tactics by a Rider Not Named Pogacar
• Most Truly Beautiful Moment
• Most Ridiculous Mic Drop
• Weirdest Advertisement Promo by a Superstar
• Biggest Mens Rivalry Hurt Feelings
• Biggest Tech Pisstake
• Best Venn Diagram for Tires for Super Cool People

Coupled with some brilliant 2025 tech predictions, and an attempt to ease our anxiety about Julian Alaphillipe’s next phase, it was a huge night on the red carpet!
 
Tune in to find out who won what!
 
 *Awards proudly brought to you but the MAGA-Donald Trump Cycling Foundation 

Ok Half Wheelers, time to get real. 
 
The Slovenian "Year of the Pog" continued at the final monument on the calendar, where Tadej won his fourth Il Lombardia IN A ROW. Predictable, simple and seemingly with unfettered ease, his dominance has moved into a new phase, and reactively, so have his opposition. 
 
It's been the most dominant individual men’s season in history and everyone knows there's PLENTY more left in the tank. Other legends have had more wins than Pog’s 25, but no-one ever did it with so many minutes in hand across all types of races. So what’s to be done about this situation!? Co-host Aidan-the-early-adopter has already had enough, and he's a blue chip litmus test for cycling punter passion. And what of the mindset forming in even the very best of Pogi's competitors? Things are brewing.

This includes the UCI and ASO scrapping the Tour's redundant white jersey for the "Pog Prize"- awarded to the 1st loser after Pog crosses the line each race. We flesh out the details. 

Anointing co-host Ross “UCI God-for-a-week”, we call out opposition team tactics, and challenge them to accept reality. Do they actually see how different they gotta be?

Within this new world of men’s road racing, we also discuss one team and rider, who perhaps did stumble on a template for racing with honorable intent, and it might surprise you. 

The boys cover the ongoing decline of Ineos and it's handling of Pidcock, and while the British outfit famed for marginal gains, desperately need maximal ones, they've seemingly accepted where they're at in the big boys club. It remains to be seen if other teams follow suit, stop playing it safe, and embrace their ultimate job of truly competing.

Well the Worlds in Zurich have come and gone, and weren’t we all left scratching our heads. Of course in this Chinese Year of the Pog, TP did normal TP things, but what about Belgium and The Netherlands? Seemed like they did almost no things. The boys also square up on the race prominent Dutch women’s team for demonstrating their recent reputation of being a team of champions rather than a champion team, and how they not only confused themselves, and everyone watching, but even the winner of the race. And finally, the 2 standout Australian performances get a celebration, where winners are grinners, and we were always with 'em.
 
In case you weren’t sure, the absolute key requirement for Zwift racing is discussed, and it’s lets just say there’s not a lot wriggle room. And in a grand philanthropic gesture of societal generosity and community building, Half Wheelin also outlines local racing, for those considering it for the first time.

And what about your beliefs, biases and thinking on "doping suspicious" riders? Do you ever examine yourself? Tune in for a how-to-construct-your-attitude-to-the-inevitable-narrative-that-keeps-on-keeping-on. 

In a watershed moment, Aidan discloses his recent epiphany, that there’s actually a 5th monument in cycling. Yo! Did ya know that?! It’s only been around for 120 years so you can’t really blame him. Tends to be hidden by leaves anyway… The boys tell you how Pog will and won’t win. Take it from them.

Finally, some of the big home bike mechanic stuff ups are covered - from team half wheelers and hosts alike, but the best Scott could offer was a Tom Dumoulin inspired “lightening of the load” climbing scandal. So this is a call! Share with all the Half Wheelers, more of your DIY bike blunders! Extra points for crazy, radical, dangerous and funny.

Pull a turn ya dog!

It took us a while, such was his impact. 

But don't worry Half Wheelers, we'd never let you down. We just needed time to make sense of what his dazzling time in the peleton meant to us all. Yes Peter Sagan has finished with road cycling, and after an incredible career, with an incredible win rate, will return to his MTB roots and perhaps where his soul has always been. Rosco and Scotty cover his career, the key moments that captured them, and what it was about him, that made him so popular and impossible to take your eyes off.

The heir apparent is next, and Pog's recently released 2024 race schedule, was instructive as it was decisive. Doing the Giro and the Tour, but not the cobbled classics. Liège but not Amstel and Flèche earlier in the week. And his primary goal isn't the Giro or Tour, but the Worlds! What does this mean and what does it say about the Peter Pan of cycling?

Finally, to cap things off, Ross has a bit of personal news about a new opportunity to attract thousands of new Half Wheelers to our global movement. 

Allez! Allez!