Spin Cycle

Today on the show: The UCI is throwing its weight around once again in Holland, teams are folding and merging all over the place, Cian Uijtdebroeks’ Movistar dream team is falling into place.

Click here to become a member and find out how Dane put a phone thief in jail from the back seat of a cop car. 

Today on the show: carbon monoxide is back in the news, the Dutch love to chase each other, and Pogacar got beaten by a guy!

Today on the show: Geraint Thomas is entering his bland PR era, Intermarché and Lotto’s merger may be on the rocks, and you’d never have guessed it but we’re heading down Ayuso alleyway once again.

In the latest installment of our special edition podcast, Orogenesis Dispatches, Josh Weinberg talks with adventure cyclist Kurt Refsnyder, who is riding the entire trail from the US border with Canada all the way to Mexico.

Kurt checks in from Bridgeport, California, about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) into the 5,000-mile (8,000 km) route. From there, with it being nearly halfway through the route, he reflects on challenges that have included substantial sections of deadfall in Oregon, smoke and fires in Idaho, and unexpectedly hard sections like a soft rail bed in Northern California. He also reveals a feeling of relief being in California, where the trails are more established for bikes, and deadfall will hopefully be less of a concern.

The bulk of the conversation addresses reader/listener-submitted questions that span a multitude of topics, including using an electronic drive train over a mechanical one, riding without a chamois pad, how he chooses camping spots, the daily joys of waking up on the trail, and what lies ahead.

Today on the show: Movistar is the new destination team, Kristoff crashed out, and we’re headed back to Ayuso Alleyway.

Today on the show: Alexander Kristoff may miss his milestone, UCI points really matter for the next couple of weeks and there are more people leaving Ineos this off-season.

Today on the show: We have new world champions, but there are many more fun things to talk about from the road races in Rwanda. Meanwhile, breaking news, Juan Ayuso is already causing a ruckus at Lidl-Trek.

Juan Ayuso has a new home, Chloe Dygert has a sticker printing machine, and there are also some World Championships happening in Rwanda. 

Josh Weinberg recently checked in with Kurt Refsnider, a bikepacker attempting the first full ride of the Orogenesis Trail. At roughly 5,000 miles, the route begins at the Canada–US border and travels through Washington, Oregon, and California to the Mexico border, then onto the Baja Divide.

At the time of recording, Kurt was in Paisley, Oregon, about 1,100 miles in, nearing California and the halfway point through the U.S. section.Kurt details how challenging the ride through Washington was, with nearly 120,000 feet of climbing and descending over rugged moto trails and non-motorized singletrack near Mount St. Helens. He faced detours due to land closures, and construction added to the difficulty.

Once in Oregon, Kurt has primarily followed the Oregon Timber Trail. Using elevation gain as a metric for daily effort, he explains how climbing has taken priority over daily mileage, aiming for 7,000 to 8,000 feet of climbing per day.He also dives into gear maintenance and resupply strategies, which have been tough, with dust wearing down his suspension and brake pads, and unpredictable provision availability. He’s already swapped out some wear items and explains how opting for battery packs over a dynamo hub for power has worked out.Along the way, Kurt has been fueled by strong community support.

Folks following along are tracking his progress, offering lodging, bringing food, and sharing real-time trail conditions. Looking ahead, he faces a tough, deadfall-heavy section in southern Oregon. Once he crosses into California, he’ll encounter faster ATV trails before taking a rest near Quincy and heading into long singletrack sections through Truckee and Tahoe, where we plan to catch up with him again.

Today on the show: Remco made it three in a row as he passed Pogačar by, SRAM is suing the UCI and we have an update on the Israel-Premier Tech situation.