Colleen Blair has been tackling some of the world's toughest open water swims for the past two decades. She was the youngest swimmer to cross the English Channel during the 1998 season, and later completed open water swimming's Triple Crown by completing the Catalina Channel and Swim Around Manhattan events. 

Earlier this year, she became the first person ever to swim across the Minch, a twenty-five mile journey across the treacherous waters between the Outer Hebrides and the Scottish mainland. Despite water temps as low as 48F, swarms of jellyfish, and seas so rough that her kayaker got sick, Colleen managed to make the crossing after 19 grueling hours. 

Some topics we covered included:

Training: how much in open water, how much in the pool

Nutrition during swims

The involvement of her crew (and her family) in her swims

How she deals with adverse conditions and stays focused

Her experiences at SCAR Swim in AZ (4 lake stage swim)

Some of her favorite places to swim

Some of the worst water she's had to swim in

Her upcoming plans

Peter Migun ran for Bearden High School (TN) and Eastern Kentucky University. After graduation, a desk job and a love of beer caused him to gain nearly 50 pounds in two years. Trail running provided the perfect mix of exercise and beer to get him back to a health weight and lifestyle. 

We talked about: 

Some of the world-class athletes he trained with at EKU

His discovery of the extensive beer culture in Knoxville

His career in Fire Protection Engineering

Races he's done, and races he'd like to do

The Barkley Marathons (we basically tried to spoil the documentary for anyone who hasn't seen it)

Follow Peter on Instagram @KnoxBeerRunner

Clay Murfet is a recently-retired pro cyclist who transitioned into a second career as a cycling coach and licensed massage therapist. 

We chatted with this colorful Tasmanian about his pro career, what brought him to the U.S., why tough crits were always his favorite, and the strangest thing he ever saw riding his bike. 

We also covered what life is like as a recently-retired pro (he's at about 500km of riding on the year and has logged at least that much distance driving a golf cart around his new home in Peachtree City, GA) and the coaching, massage business and eight-month old child that keeps him busy!

Follow Clay at this website, and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

With Andrew Talansky racing his first Ironman at IMCanada this coming weekend, we thought it would be a good time to revisit our conversation from February as he looked back on his cycling career and forward at his first full year in triathlon. 

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Andrew Talansky spent nearly a decade grinding the gears with Cannondale-Drapac Pro Cycling. In that time, he won U.S. Time Trial Championship and the Criterium Dauhpine, as well as top-10 finishes at the Tour De France, Vuelta, Tour de Suisse and Tour of California.

 

The schedule of a UCI-level pro cyclist is daunting. Up to 80 days a year of racing, weeks of travel, living in multiple locations, training camps, you name it.

After becoming a father, Talansky wanted to reclaim his time while taking on a new challenge. So, in the fall of 2017, he announced his retirement from pro cycling, donned a wetsuit and took the plunge into triathlon.

We talked about several aspects of his transition into the sport, including:

Why Ironman races seemed like a better fit than ITU

How things unfolded at his first (and so far only) triathlon

How his approach to cycling has changed with the addition of two other sports

How he's attempting to balance his training to become competitive quickly, while also not overdoing it and getting injured

How his approach to in-race nutrition might change (especially with having to run at the end of a triathlon)

The differences in being a member of a UCI Team (an employee) and being a pro triathlete (an entrepreuner)

How he and his family have adjusted to his new career

His goals for 2018

Follow Andrew at his website, on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

XTERRA Discounts!

Lost in Transition sponsor LB Endurance has partnered with XTERRA WETSUITS to offer you exclusive savings on their best gear.  Use discount code CO-LBENDURANCE for 55% off the best-selling VORTEX full wetsuit, shipping now, in time for whatever your summer has in store.  Code CO-LBENDURANCE will also unlock serious discounts, including Velocity Smoke Swim Goggles for just $12, regularly $29, Lava Pants, the secret weapon for a faster swim for just $99, regularly $250, and the 10-foot Cloud White SUP package for only $479, normally $1200.  

Check out these discounts at XTERRA today and use co "CO-LBENDURANCE" at checkout!

We watched Jonny Brown attack the breakaway with a lap and a half left at the 2018 USA Cycling Pro Championships in Knoxville, TN and knew we had to get him on the show.

A Tennessee native and current Knoxville resident, the 21-year old Brown is the youngest rider ever to win the "Stars and Stripes" jersey for the U.S. national champion. His cycling history started early. His dad was a former pro, and his brother Nate was the first Tennessean to race in the Tour de France with EF Education First Drapac.

Jonny has spent that last three seasons with the Pro Continental team Hagens Berman Axeon, founded by Lance Armstrong and currently owned and managed by Axel Merckx (son of the legendary Eddy Merckx).

We talked with Jonny about:

His level of confidence attacking off the front in Knoxville

The two most important lessons he's learned from Axel Merckx

His initially difficult transition from youth national champion at age 17 and 18 into the pro ranks

His breakthrough 2018 season and what's to come

What he likes to eat after a long ride (what's on just about every athlete's mind)

What he does for fun when not on his bike (he's a bit of a Craiglist addict)

Most flat tires in a single day

Max speed (you'll have to convert from kilometers though)

The strangest thing he ever saw while riding his bike

If he had to enter a criterium races on fat tire beach bikes or big wheel penny farthings, which would he choose?

Follow Jonny on Instagram and Strava

Marcus Barton has made a quite a journey in the off-road triathlon scene. From training on a $50 used mountain bike before his first race to taking podiums at races all over the U.S. and abroad, he's become known as a formidable opponent as well as a friendly face to veterans and newcomers alike. 

He was named "Mr. XTERRA" in 2016 for exemplifying the values of community and volunteerism that off-road triathlon espouses. 

Recently, he's added SwimRun events to his already-busy XTERRA race calendar, and he wasted no time taking on the toughest races available, including Rockman and ÖTILLÖ. 

Check out his blog at SpeedyLizard.com (where you can also find links to his other social media).

Kaysee Armstrong a pro mountain biker with the the Liv Trail Squad team. She won the grueling Trans Andes stage race in 2017 and 2018 and swept the collegiate mountain bike nationals a few years ago. She also helps others get hooked on mountain biking through her involvement in the Bell Joyride Clinics, the Little Bellas cycling program, and the Smokey Mountain Bears middle and high school mountain bike teams.

Some topics covered  include:

Her unusual path into collegiate mountain biking

Her experience of being the only mountain biker on a road biking team

Winning five national titles in two days at the college national championships

Wins at Trans Andes in 2017 and 2018

The unexpected turn of events that got her to race in India in the Himalayas

Cultural differences she experienced as a female competitor

Teaching kids to mountain bike with Little Bellas, Bell Joy Ride and Smokey Mountain Bears mountain bike team.

Upcoming races for 2018

Follow Kaysee on Facebook and Instagram

In this impromptu roundtable, one-and-done Ironman Derek Tingle quizzes host Chris Gerard at the eight-week-out mark from his first 140.6 at Michigan Titanium. 

Many topics were covered, most resulting in incredulous laughter on Derek's part. 

His questionable training choices swimming and biking last winter

How a different  approach helped in the first 70.3 of the season

How he's adjusting to the calmer, slower pace needed for the 140.6

How his training has changed to tackle the full

How he can put up with the most repetitive of courses

For the first time on the podcast, Chris tells "The Mountain Bike Century" story. If you do nothing else, skip to about the 35 minute mark and revel in the naivete and stupidity of Chris's first century ride. 

XTERRA Deals!

Lost in Transition sponsor LB Endurance has partnered with XTERRA to offer you exclusive savings on their best gear.  Use discount code CO-LBENDURANCE for 55% off the best-selling VORTEX full wetsuit, shipping now, in time for whatever your summer has in store.  Code CO-LBENDURANCE will also unlock serious discounts, including Transition Backpacks for just $39, regularly $99, Inflatable Swim Buoys for just $12, regularly $39, and a 10-foot inflatable SUP package for only $479, normally $1200.

Lori Nedescu is a pro cyclist, elite marathoner, and has created quite a buzz on Instagram with her amazing pictures of healthy, portable recipes and her adventures travelling and living out of a retrofitted van. 

In this episode, we talk to Lori about: 

Travelling and living out of a retrofitted van

How she handles nutrition with limited space and cooking facilities on the road

How she's influenced the nutrition habits of teammates on the Welland Racing pro cycling team

Balancing her job with her extensive travel

Breaking the three hour mark (on four occasions) in the marathon

Training for the Rim2Rim2Rim Ultra Marathon in the Grand Canyon

Her foray into triathlon (and why she decided to focus on one sport at a time)

Her favorite race experiences (not the time she got hypothermia during an Alpine descent in France)

 

Follow Lori online at The Cadence Kitchen and on  Instagram,  Facebook, Twitter and Pintrest