It stands to reason that being a little lighter will help you get up Columbine and Powerline a little bit easier. Dr Kyle Pfaffenbach joins the show to give great guidance on how (and whether). You'll also want to be sure to listen in to our Fatty's Finishing Tips segment, where Fatty gives you 4 practical pointers for doing well on the hike-a-bike portions of this bike race.

It is new bike day on the show. We went to the Sea Otter Classic, roamed the expo, in hopes of finding a bike – or bikes – that are Leadville worthy. We found four. One that spares no expense, one high value full suspension, one hard tail with a recent Leadville win, and one that promises not to break the bank. For sure there are other brands and models that would make a great choice for Leadville but this was fun exercise and one we hope can help you narrow the field as you search for that Kevins, Sugar Loaf, Columbine, Powerline eating machine. 

Every Leadville racer has the same question: "What will be my finish time?" And there was a time when that question was a real mystery. Now, however, if you are willing to fill in the variables, Best Bike Split can give you an astonishingly accurate prediction. In this episode, Best Bike Split ambassador Dave Schell joins us to explain how. And be sure to listen to Fatty's Finishing Tip in this episode: he's emphasizing a crucial part of your your training and preparation that you otherwise might be neglecting.

Ray Landry is quite simply the friendliest and most Leadville-knowledgeable guy you could ever ride with. He obsesses about this race every bit as much as Hottie and Fatty do, and has absolutely top-notch advice for Leadville racers. He's shared his wisdom at the Leadville Camp each year for several years, so we jumped at the opportunity to ask him what he hears as the most common questions and concerns. Enjoy the episode! 

An interesting — and confusing — story came out in the Leadville Herald Democrat late last week. In this episode, we untangle the story and lay out our best guesses for what significant changes are actually in store for the 2024 LT100. Then for our main feature we bring back show favorite Dr Justin Ross to talk about what it really means to dig deep, and how understanding this very real phenomenon can help you have a successful day on the course. There is a TON of info every racer needs in this episode; don't miss it!

If you're 40+ years old and racing the the Leadville 100, you're in good company: a LARGE majority of folks lining up this August are Masters racers, and our podcast survey at the beginning of this season shows that 80% of our listeners fit in this group (it goes without saying that both of the hosts are). So we're very excited to have two true experts join us for this episode: Joe Friel -- the author of The Cyclist's Training Bible and Fast after Fifty -- joins us for an incredibly valuable discussion on how we can stay (or become) fast even as we age. Selene also joins the program to give us tips for Masters women racing this course. Finally, Fatty turns over the "Fatty's Finishing Tips" baton to Hottie for guidance on getting through the hair-raising first three miles of the course. Don't miss this episode!

Without question, the Leadville 100 is about the location. And it's about fitness. And it's about nutrition. And it's about the people. But really, when you think about it — before, during, and after the race — it's about the climbs. Face it, your reaction and conjured mental image when hearing the words "columbine" and "powerline" are already vastly different than 99.99% of the people in the world. So in this episode, we talk about climbing, with the person who literally wrote the book on it. Selene Yeager's got practical, personable tips and guidance you will not want to miss! 

Your race day nutrition plan is a crucial part of your race training, and this episode Hottie's got a great interview with Bill Armstrong of NeverSecond about setting up a one-company nutrition ecosystem. Meantime, Fatty's got a tip on keeping the rubber side down. This is a great episode; don't miss it!

This episode is all about numbers. First off, Fatty says there are four key numbers you must know when racing the Leadville 100, but they aren't the ones people put on their top tubes. Next, Jonathan Lee of TranierRoad joins to help you get ininto the zone -- your training zone, of course -- and how to understand and incorporate zones into your training. And finally, Hottie has a chat with USWE about their newish pack and we discuss who will (and won't) benefit most from it.

We're excited to have Coach Hunter Allen—who has worked with Jeremiah Bishop and dozens of the Leadvilles—join us to talk about a crucial (and often overlooked) component to your success in leadville: pedaling. Trust us, it’s more than just turning the cranks. In Fatty's Finishing Tips, Elden tells you to lighten up...but in a good, non-judgey way that will make a real difference in your race. And finally, we're outrageously excited to announce our new jerseys and t-shirts, all of which you can pre-order now at https://store.dnacycling.com/lt100/