The Big Wheel Coaching Podcast

Ahead of Coach Brian's first participation in the ultra-endurance Dirty Kanza 200, he spoke with Race Director, LeLan Dains who has some great tips in his 15+ years of experience with the infamous DK200!

These tips are as applicable for gravel riding as it is Gran Fondo's, endurance MTB, or any other performance-focused cycling event!

It was such an incredible opportunity to speak with the Mastermind behind what is the World's Premier Gravel Grinder and we are certain you will enjoy and learn from all that Mr. Dains has to share.

There is an old-saying that goes like this...

Question: "How do you eat an elephant?"

Answer: "One bite at a time!"

Signing up for a bucket-list event like Dirty Kanza, the Leadville Trail 100, Paris-Roubaix Sportive, or any other epic ride takes a whole lot of guts.

At 200-miles the Dirty Kanza is touted as "The World's Premier Gravel Grinder", and for good reason, its popularity is such that entry is gained through a lottery system, meaning not everyone who applies will be able to take to the start or test themselves in this incredible event.

In thinking about Dirty Kanza, which takes place next week, and what it takes to complete a monumental challenge like the "DK", Coach Brian connected with 8-time DK finisher Curt Shelman in this weeks BWC Podcast.

Curt has a wealth of knowledge about these kind of events and doubles as one of the minds behind the Chamois Butt'r brand that is renowned and loved by all types of cyclists for it's ability to make the longest of rides comfortable! 

In the interview Curt and Coach Brian talk preparation, training, equipment, and why epic events like the Dirty Kanza are a special kind of accomplishment that every finisher can be proud of.

Coach Brian and his Athlete Tony Rago have been working together for a few years now, but 2019 has been filled with success for Tony.

What has been the difference? In short, one part mindset and one part training, to find out more about Tony's race-winning mindset and the things he is doing to get results check out this weeks podcast. You will be glad you did! We hope you enjoy the episode!

Sleep hygiene and proper nutrition are most likely not the first two things an Athlete thinks of as fundamental in their preparation for a big goal, but they most certainly should be!

Both sleep and nutrition, as well as massage, ice-bath's, and compression are considered "passive" recovery techniques that help our bodies repair from training and reduce stress.

And as any Athlete that has been training consistently can attest, it is the regular application of these techniques that makes the difference between being well prepared or over-trained come race-day.

In part two of our series on recovery, Coaches Brian and Brady overview sleep, nutrition, and other techniques that every Athlete should prioritize in their week as much as they do their workout routine.

In this episode of the BWC Podcast, Coaches Joy and Brian overview Endurance Training and share tips you can implement into your training routine to help you thrive in your upcoming epic endurance event.

In this episode of the BWC Podcast, we interview Athlete Eric Zook and his coach, BWC's Leo Bugtai to share some insights into Eric's training and how he went from casual masters racer to a fit and confident race winner! Enjoy!

It doesn't take a whole lot of hard training for an Endurance Athlete to develop an appreciation for their recovery days, but unfortunately what is often missed is the "why" behind the various recovery techniques that are central to endurance sports like cycling.

In this episode of the BWC Podcast, Coaches Brian and Brady overview why recovery is important before delving into specific Active Recovery Strategies that can help take your training to the next level. 

As Coach Brian details in the podcast, "bodies are built in bed, not during training", emphasizing that all the hard training in the world is no good if our bodies are not given the chance to recover properly.

Coaches Brian & Brady share insight that transcend group coaching environments to help individual Athletes achieve their very best.

Coaches Joy and Brian over-view a recent TrainingPeaks article titled "Marginal Gains For The Everyday Cyclist" and share their coaching experience to help Athletes of all levels focus their energies on the areas that will translate into the greatest gains for them.

BWC Athlete Fred Archambault just completed his very first stage race at the San Dimas Stage Race. Although this was not his goal event, it was incredibly demanding and took a monumental amount of effort. In this episode Fred and Coach Brian talk through lessons learned and how others can perform their best at a multi-day event.