Spin Cycle

This week's Performance Process is the first in a series delving into how and why World Tour racing is getting so fast. Year after year we see average records increase and record times tumble.

Alex Dowsett is our guest on this week's podcast. Alex is a former pro, former World Hour record holder, the only known elite professional sportsman with haemophilia, not to mention six time British National Time Trial champion, two time Giro stage winner, and YouTuber. Having been a pro for 12 years, it's safe to say Dowsett is well qualified to talk us through the advancements that have resulted in greatly increasing speeds. 

Dowsett kicks off the discussion on this topic with some direct insight into an accidental analysis he conducted on his own progression throughout his own pro career and how results in an event he has done since he was a kid correlate with the advancing World Tour peloton. 

Dowsett gives us a break down of some of the hows and whys. We will now take this list and begin a deep dive series looking into each in all our geeky detail.

The Performance Process is a members-only podcast from Escape Collective. If you're not a member, you'll need to become one (insider or supporter level both apply – monthly or annual both apply) to listen to the full show.

Good chain lubes can extend the life of your drivetrain, and bad ones can shorten them – but do you know how much that might actually cost you? A new online calculator using Zero Friction Cycling’s data aims to tell you just that. Our crew of geeks also pick their favorite road helmets, Ronan has some thoughts on stock component sizes, the UCI is at it again, 3T and Bianchi have some fancy new gravel bikes, and if come across some new Pinarellos that seem way, way too cheap, there might be a reason for that.

Timestamps:

6:03 – The UCI has updated their penalties, but it’s probably not going to change anything
10:07 – That cheap bottle of chain lube might actually cost you $5,000.
17:20 – More bad news from the bike industry
18:19 – Pinarello needs a better fence – and maybe a stronger door
20:25 – Stock component sizes, chickens, and eggs
32:54 – Our favorite road helmets
47:50 – Bianchi’s new Impulso RC gravel bike actually looks really good
48:21 – 3T is going really, really big with its new Extrema Italia gravel bike

On this week's Placeholders, Dane Cash, Kit Nicholson, and Abby Mickey join Caley Fretz to bid farewell to AG2R's iconic brown shorts, discuss some late-breaking transfer stories, analyze the Rigoberto Urán telenovela, and more.

Surprise. We are interrupting our usual fortnightly episodes of Performance Process to bring you a bonus episode with Frank Overton of FasCat coaching. 

When we announced Performance Process a little under two months ago, we promised we'd bring you some of the insightful conversations we would be having anyway with experts and industry insiders. That's exactly what we are doing in this episode. It's less a performance process and more an insight into an interesting offering. Hence why it is a bonus episode and not a bi-weekly deep dive.

As a long time listener to the Fascat Coaching podcast I was pretty interested when I heard Frank and the team had developed an app for combining wearable sleep data and on bike training metrics to provide a traffic light, red, amber, green, training readiness score for any given day. It was the promised simplicity and actionable insights that really caught my eye. So, when Fascat reached out looking to setup a meeting to tell me more about the Optimize app, I gladly obliged. About two minutes into that call, I decided to start again and this time we'd hit record on the Google Meet. This week's episode is that meeting. Enjoy.

This week's regular (and free!) episode of Geek Warning has James Huang, Zach Edwards (of the Boulder Grupetto), and Dave Rome back on the mics. With only a small amount of news to discuss, much of the conversation surrounds bigger and broader-reaching topics.

Seeing so many sales out of the bike industry is great for those in the market for a new bike, but it's a worrying sign of financial struggles ahead. It's obvious the boom is over, and it may be a few years for stock glut to clear.

The mountain bike brand Guerrilla Gravity (GG) quietly ceased operations in September. Now fellow American company Canfield Bikes is providing aftermarket product support for owners of the thermoplastic bikes.

Zwift has announced new annual pricing options for those looking to save a little with a year-long commitment.

The episode then turns to what's on our minds, including Dave's recent boiling point over squealing brakes and a deeper conversation about lower-cost race bikes off the back of Caley Fretz's Trek Emonda ALR 5 review. The geeks then discuss their favourite mountain bike dropper posts.

The episode wraps up with Dave Rome at a Wera Tools media event, where he interviewed employees Lutz Buchholz and Ralf Joesch about the company's increasing presence within the cycling market.

Geek Warning is produced with the support of our members. Join as a monthly or annual Escape Supporter today, and pay only $1 for the first month. Not only will you receive full access to all Escape Collective content, you’ll also have access to our new exclusive podcasts. Simply head to our join page, select the monthly subscription, and enter the code PODCAST at checkout to redeem this special trial offer.

Timestamps:

5:03 – It’s a buyer’s market at the moment
14:17 – Guerrilla Gravity is closing shop
17:03 – New pricing options from Zwift
19:45 – Squealing brakes are on Dave’s mind
24:19 – Lower-cost alloy road race bikes used to be better
36:39 – Pick One, our favourite dropper posts
45:55 – a PSA related to tubeless valve stems
49:30 – an interview with Wera Tools

Jonny Long, Kit Nicholson, and Ronan Mc Laughlin join Caley Fretz on this week's Placeholders to talk about the changes behind the scenes at the Ineos Grenadiers, potential calendar challenges, and, of course, super blood worms.

It's time for another bonus episode of The Geek Warning podcast, exclusive to our members. This week, Brad Copeland – former world cup pro mechanic and now service director at Hush Money Bikes – joins James and Dave to answer member-submitted questions.

This week, the geeks answer questions related to chain waxing, degreasing, what grease goes where, removing stuck cassettes, tool tips, how we store small parts, how to solve noisy brakes, and plenty more.

While the weekly Geek Warning podcast remains unchanged, we’re now providing these additional bonus episodes each fortnight. These bonus episodes will be a mix of Ask a Wrench, deep-dives, or interviews with the people behind popular products.

The Geek Warning bonus episodes are exclusively available to Escape Collective members, though select segments of certain episodes will find their way into our free feed.Your membership makes this podcast possible. If you are already a member, you can follow this link to receive a unique RSS link to add the Geek Warning bonus episodes to your library in your chosen podcast app (this is very easy, promise). If you are not yet a member but want to hear, support, and enjoy the Geek Warning bonus episodes, join Escape Collective today.

Join as a monthly or annual Escape Supporter today, and pay only $1 for the first month. Not only will you receive full access to all Escape Collective content, you’ll also have access to exclusive podcasts and ad-free episodes. Simply head to our join page, select the monthly subscription, and enter the code PODCAST at checkout to redeem this special trial offer!

In this week's Performance Process, we talk to Mehdi Kordi, PhD and Head Coach (Track Sprint) at the Dutch National Cycling Federation. Kordi recently coached Jeffrey Hoogland to a new Kilo World Record, and having spoken with him for our optimising deep dive looking inside that new World Record, we knew we had to get Mehdi on the podcast. 

In this episode, Mehdi talks us through his unique route into coaching, including a detour into researching CPR techniques for use in space on the one-way mission to Mars. He also breaks down the benefits of an inquisitive mindset and how to harness it. There's a discussion on the importance of improvement-focused process goals and why ultimately everything still hinges on binary results, and the challenges of coaching Olympic athletes from a different country.

Slightly worryingly, Mehdi explains why track cycling is so dependent on the Olympics and why its days at the Games might be coming to an end, and his take on the challenges the UCI faces in ensuring a level playing field. 

The Performance Process is a members-only podcast from Escape Collective. If you're not a member, you'll need to become one (insider or supporter level both apply – monthly or annual both apply) to listen to the full show. 

A quieter week in the world of tech news means Dave and Ronan have more time in this week's episode of Geek Warning to ramble about what's on their minds, their favourite eyewear, and servicing pedals. 

Princeton Carbon Works has released its 5th iteration of its Wake 6560 wheels. Perhaps best known as the wheel company used by Ineos over their sponsor-correct Shimano options, Princeton continues with its wavy rim design, plenty of colour options, and a whole lot of choice in hubs, too. As we discussed, the 28.2 mm external width is narrower than we thought we’d see on a new aero-focussed hoop. 

We chat about the saddle that’s already received too much attention. The SaddleSpur is undoubtedly a silly saddle.

Well-priced and easy to install, the Asssavers Win Wing has been updated. The new version is stronger, more subtle, and now with paint-protecting stickers. As Dave and Ronan discuss, this one is likely an excellent option for keeping your kit clean, but it won’t do much for pleasing anyone riding behind you. 

Raleigh UK, owned by the Accell Group, has been “restructured”, or, more specifically, greatly consolidated into its parent company’s operations. It’s yet another sign of the tough times facing the bicycle industry. 

Sure, Black Friday is good for a deal, but we’re all for the companies using the day of consumerism to promote something more positive. Ortlieb is just one example, with its repair week offering 40% off repairs for any of its bags that fall outside of the five-year warranty period. 

All that and plenty more in this week's episode. 

Plus, we're having an introductory sale for new members. Join as a monthly or annual Escape Supporter today, and pay only $1 for the first month. Not only will you receive full access to all Escape Collective content, you’ll also have access to exclusive podcasts and ad-free episodes. Simply head to our join page, select the monthly subscription, and enter the code PODCAST at checkout to redeem this special trial offer!

Timestamps:

3:00 – New Princeton Carbon Works 6560 wheels
11:05 – A silly silly saddle
15:22 – Asssavers improves on an interesting fender
22:20 – Accell Group massively downsizes its investment in the UK
25:03 – Ortlieb doing Black Friday in a way we’re happy to discuss
28:09 – Ronan has Tear-Offs on his mind
36:23 – What we’ve been testing
45:05 – Pick One, the eyewear edition
53:48 – Your pedals need love, too

News dropped on Wednesday that GCN+ and the GCN app will be shuttered in December. We have thoughts. We have emotions. Caley Fretz, Joe Lindsey, and Cosmo Catalano got together to talk through it.