Velo Podcast

Our man in Europe Andrew Hood Skypes in to talk about what he learned at Movistar's team camp. Plus, he remembers the late Paul Sherwen, who died unexpectedly Sunday night.

We discuss if Nairo Quintana can turn things around after a disappointing 2018 season, whether Mikel Landa is cut out to be an outright grand tour GC leader, and how Alejandro Valverde is handling the spotlight of being world champion.

Later in the program, we hear from Katie Compton on her "worst season yet" and ask her if she'll be able to defend her national cyclocross championship title.

This episode of the VeloNews podcast is sponsored by Health IQ. To get a free quote and save money on life insurance, go to www.HealthIQ.com/velonews

In today’s episode, we start by asking our expert guests that simple question: Do we need a coach? Next, we’ll talk about the relationship athletes have with their coaches — what makes a good relationship and what makes a bad one. After we’ve defined that relationship, we’ll ask our panel what to look for in a good coach. And, conversely, how to identify a bad coach. Finally, we’ll talk briefly about how much coaching is worth, and whether an athlete should stick with the same coach or change from time to time.

Our panel today includes coach Neal Henderson, owner of Apex Coaching and current coach of time trial world champion Rohan Dennis, among other elite athletes. Neal has joined us before, on one of our most popular episodes, in fact, Episode 33: Is FTP Dead?

Our other main guest today is the renowned endurance athlete Rebecca Rusch, formerly an adventure racer, now a decorated cyclist of mountain bike, gravel, and bike-packing events around the world. Rebecca currently works with CTS coach Dean Golich; for many years she went without a coach. She has a great depth of experience as an athlete and brings a wealth of knowledge to the conversation.

In addition to our panel, we have several experts weigh in throughout this episode:

Ciaran O’Grady, a coach and sports scientist with Team Dimension Data, talks with us about the pros and cons of self-coaching versus the accountability that comes from working with a coach.

LottoNL-Jumbo’s Sepp Kuss, winner of this year’s Tour of Utah, reached the WorldTour by being self-coached. We talk about why he did that, and what it’s like now working with the team’s trainers.

We check in with Dean Golich, head performance physiologist at CTS. Dean has worked with an incredible number of top athletes and shares some of his thoughts on how he approaches coaching them.

The legendary Ned Overend continues to crush Cat. 1 riders into his 60s. Despite all of his success, Ned has never had a coach. He explains why.

Finally we talk with Armando Mastracci, who has developed a highly sophisticated training AI system that can help athletes plan their workouts. Armando discusses what parts of coaching a good AI system can replace and what it can’t.

Two interesting storylines are developing in the world of cyclocross. In the U.S., the door is opening for a newcomer to win men's nationals. Abroad, the elite women's field is more competitive than ever.

We lead off with a conversation about the domestic scene and the litany of injuries taking top riders out of the picture. We call up Kerry Werner to hear about how this changes the races and his chances to win a Stars and Stripes jersey.

Then, we shift our focus to Europe. Don't worry about Mathieu van der Poel winning the men's races by a country mile, the women's field offers the most exciting racing a fan could ask for.

All that and more on this episode of the VeloNews podcast!

Are you shocked at how common e-bikes have become? We decided to learn more about the basics of how electric-assist bikes work.

To help us understand e-bikes, we called up Jonathan Weinert, sales and marketing manager at Bosch. He explains how the motors give you that tailwind sensation, the technology behind the batteries, and how e-bikes have evolved.

All that and much more on this episode of the VeloNews tech podcast.

After four years at the helm, Derek Bouchard-Hall is stepping down from his role as USA Cycling's CEO.

Fred gave him a call to evaluate the state of America's governing body. What is USA Cycling doing well? Where is it falling short? And what does the future hold? Also, Bouchard-Hall evaluates his own work as leader of USAC.

This episode of the VeloNews podcast is sponsored by Health IQ. To get a free quote and save money on life insurance, go to www.HealthIQ.com/velonews

In episode 60 we're discussing trainers. For those who hate them, we get it, but stay tuned, as we’ll tell you why you shouldn’t completely ignore them. For those who love them, we’re going to tell you why riding outside every once in a while is a really good thing. For those in between, today’s episode will offer a wealth of knowledge on how to get the very most out of trainer time. Now, one thing is certain: The days of staring at the basement wall while riding your clunky, loud trainer are behind us. Today’s smart trainers and online tools allow us to "game-ify" the experience and are making many re-consider how they feel about riding indoors, and importantly, the extent of the training benefits.

In this episode, we'll talk about the science and experience of the trainer, including: (1) How riding on a trainer differs from riding on the road, including the experience, our interaction with the bike, the different inertia generated by the trainer, and its impact on our biomechanics. (2) What impact these differences have on our power and heart rate, and why we shouldn't use the same numbers inside and outside. (3) We’ll discuss situations where it’s good to use a trainer—and when it may be even better than riding on the road, such as when we’re doing neuromuscular work. (4) Likewise, we’ll talk about situations where you might want to avoid the trainer. You might know already… a five-hour, mind-numbing ride on the trainer is a sign of incredible dedication. Don't do it again. (5) The game-ification of trainers by tools like Zwift, Trainer Road, and Sufferfest, and how this is changing our perspective on trainers. It can be both good and bad.

When to use rollers rather than a trainer. (6) And, finally, we'll talk about how much time to spend on the trainer, and alternatives even when there's snow outside.

You're going to get a lot of different opinions in this podcast. None of us will go so far as to call the trainer Satan — though at times we'll come close — but you will hear a few guests give convincing evidence that the trainer has benefits you can't get on the road. Ultimately, it's going to be up to you to decide.

Our primary guest today is Ciaran O'Grady who is a new coach and sports scientist at Team Dimension Data. Ciaran just finished his Ph.D. at Kent University with Dr. James Hopker, who conducted some of the definitive research on the biomechanical differences between riding on a trainer and the road.

In addition, we'll talk with:

Retired multi-time national cyclocross champion Tim Johnson. Having lived in the northeast for most of his life, Tim is very familiar with riding indoors and has a lot of good points to offer from two decades of experience.

Trevor also caught up with Jacob Fraser from Zwift and Kevin Poulton who coaches Matt Hayman and Caleb Ewan, and works with Team Katusha. Kevin used Zwift to coach Matt to his 2016 Paris-Roubaix win and since then has integrated significant trainer time into his athletes' race preparation.

And with that, get your fan ready, dial in your Zwift avatar — make sure you enter your weight correctly in Zwift now, no cheating. Let's make you fast!

Cyclocross is here! But it doesn't seem like it is as wildly popular as it was back when Tim Johnson was racing. We talk to the former national champion about the state of U.S. cyclocross. What will keep people stoked on racing in the mud every autumn?

Also, Johnson talks about one of American cyclocross's top riders, Kaitie Keough as well as the divide between European 'cross and the American World Cup races.

All that and more on this episode of the VeloNews podcast!

We have noticed a trend: Riders are opting for shorter saddles with pronounced cutouts. What's the explanation for this shift?

On this episode, we bring on Chris Jacobson, Shimano North America's product line manager for Pro Components and BikeFitting.com. He answers our many questions about how riders can (or should) select saddles, what are some common bike fit issues, and why saddles have evolved to become shorter.

All that and more on this episode of the VeloNews tech podcast.

News leaked out this week that SRAM is developing a new 12-speed eTap component group. We bring tech editor Dan Cavallari on the show to discuss its likely features and what it takes to increase the size of a cassette.

Then, we serve up some takes on the 2019 Giro d'Italia route. Will the mountainous back half of the race make up for what seems like a boring start? Who will win it?

And finally we talk to Geoff Kabush who dared to ride a gravel bike in a mountain bike race... And in fact, he won Iceman Cometh on those curly bars.

This episode of the VeloNews podcast is sponsored by Health IQ. To get a free quote and save money on life insurance, go to www.HealthIQ.com/velonews

In this episode of Fast Talk, we speak with the guru of cycling medicine and ergonomics, Dr. Andy Pruitt, about cycling's most common injuries and how to prevent them. The discussion includes: 1)What used to be the most common over-use injury — knee problems — why they are no longer the most common problem, and how it’s possible for most of us to go through the rest of our cycling careers without one. 2)Back problems — these have eclipsed knee issues as the most common cycling complaint. Unfortunately, the cycling position is not kind to the lower back, but there are still things we can do to prevent pain. 3) Saddle sores, numbness, and pressure issues, and how with the right saddle and fit most of these issues can be addressed. 4) Just like the back, the cycling position can be tough on the neck. We’ll discuss. 5) Feet and hands — many of us think that numbness is just part of riding a bike. But the truth is that if you're experiencing numbness, something is wrong, and it can generally be solved. 6) Finally, for those of you still clinging to that 1980's mindset, we'll talk about just how bad it was then and why you want to get with the 2000s.