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Show #452 – May 11, 2019

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Guests: Steve Maxwell & Joe Harris; Denise Korenek

With the beginning of the Amgen – which is arguably the United States’ most popular spring stage race, as backdrop, my first guests are Joe Harris and Steve Maxwell of the Outer Line blog.

According to their blog, “the outer line is the path often taken by cyclists who are unable to break into the lead-out train, but whose strength, resolve and tactical cunning can lead them to victory.

We provide an independent perspective on the challenges facing the sport – and offer an objective forum for analyzing its key structural, economic, governance and ethical aspects. It’s time to listen to new ideas and change direction. It’s time to take The Outer Line…”
With those words as background, I wanted to explore a new project they are working on.

Neither Joe nor Steve comes from a cycling background and both hold full time jobs outside of the bike industry. BUT, both of them have an abiding interest in the sport, especially when it comes to the economics of racing and what it might take to bring cycling into the national spotlight.

It seems Rapha had some of the same questions and tasked Joe and Steve to look into the issues that might be preventing cycling from growing and thriving and come up with a plan.

What Joe and Steve have discovered and learned is being published in the Rapha Roadmap Report – a 10 part series that looks at what is lacking in cycling and what other pro sports have done that might work for our sport.

When we spoke with Denise back in January of 2017, Denise and her driver Shea Holbrook had just broken the broke the women’s paced land speed record at 143 mph.

With the urging of her coach, retired pro cyclist John Howard, Denise realized that resting on those laurels wasn’t enough, and last September, she and Shea set out to break the world record. The record stood for over 60 years!

But, they didn’t just break it – they smashed it! We learn what it took to do that and whether there are other goals out there for her.

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Show #451 – May 4, 2019

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Guests: Hunter Allen; Susanne Masters; Dick Porterfield & Regina Lowsinger

Our show tonight offers up a variety of topics from measuring power to the distillation of gin.

We’ll talk with Hunter Allen, the founder of Peaks Coaching Group, whose newest book, Training and Racing With A Power Meter was released on April 17th in its 3rd edition.

So, what’s different? Well, ten years and a whole lot of technology has changed the training and riding landscape as the ability to track power gives us a lot of new tools in the toolbox.

After we speak with Hunter, we head over to the UK for a conversation with … wait for it – ethobotanist Susanne Masters. No, I didn’t know what it meant (she will tell us) and, yes, I was intrigued by her recent article in the NY Times titled Chasing Rembrandt’s Tulips on Two Wheels.
So, I rang her up via Skype and we talked about that article as well as her work on the Isle of Harris where she was tasked with coming up with the ingredients for a new Gin.

Finally, it’s off to the Binghamton, NY to speak with ride director Dick Porterfield about the 39th annual Great Finger Lakes Tour.

Centered around the beautiful area of Watkins Glen, the ride will take you to wineries, Amish country, and more. This year, the ride also honors the 50th anniversary of the organization that produces the event, The Southern Tier Bicycle Club.

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Show #450 – April 27, 2019

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Guests: Dan Wuori; Inga Thompson; Dr. Jonathan Hersch

First up, it’s time to check in with our man-in-the-pro-know Dan Wuori. With the Spring classics well under way, Dan will talk with us about some of the big stories from the cobbles, what’s going on with world champ Peter Sagan, and more.

Then, it’s a warm welcome back to retired pro and fierce women’s advocate, Inga Thomspon. Inga and I have been planning to chat for some time; but, we needed to wait until one of her new projects was in place.

The Inga Thompson Foundation – which is a not for profit enterprise – has launched with the goal of enabling women’s cycling with support of promising riders.

It’s especially timely because, after last week’s article about Rebecca Twigg, Inga has also dedicated a piece of her work to helping Rebecca.

Then, as promised, we have the first of our 4-part series on injuries that many cyclists face with orthopedic sports specialist Dr. Jonathan Hersch.

Dr. Hersch practices in Boca Raton, Florida and our episode tonight is about clavicles – collarbones if you will.

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Show #449 – April 20, 2019

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ENCORE PRESENTATIONS:

Guests: Shannon Galpin; Paul Sherwen

It might be an encore presentation this evening; but, I’ve reached back into the archives and pulled two GREAT conversations you might want to revisit or… perhaps you will be hearing them for the first time.

In this age of so much angst among women, one person stands out to me as a shining example of commitment, grit, and grace. Garnering the title of National Geographic’s Adventurer of the Year in 2013, Shannon Galpin has gone on to do some amazing things since our first conversation in 2015 and a subsequent catch-up in 2016, Shannon has since been around the world with her daughter to bring endangered species to the fore through art – a broad and successful project that took them to the far corners of the world.

Tonight, we revisit our April 30, 2016 conversation.

Then, as the 2019 pro season continues with the spring classics and then moves on toward the big events of the summer, I thought my chat with Paul Sherwen would be appropriate.

Although Paul passed away last December, he will be long remembered for his 3+ decades in the sport from 7 Tours de France and 2 British Cycling Championships to his witty and knowledgeable coverage of the Tour along with Phil Liggett.

Enjoy this week’s encore presentations and I hope you have a Happy Passover and Happy Easter (or just a happy weekend!)

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Show #448 – April 13, 2019

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Guests: Katie Hall; Steven Rittey

A bit shorter than usual this week… but this podcast is still pretty SWEET!

First up! America’s Pro Sweetheart… Katie Hall. Winning EVERY U.S. race in 2018, she almost decided to retire; but, a letter from pro European team Boels-Dolmans changed her mind.

I catch up with her in Spain as she wraps up training in advance of the Ardennes!

Then, it’s off to Manchester, England to talk about some GREAT European cycling tours. Freewheel Cycling Holidays offers self-guided tours with a GREAT underlying support organization that watches over you while allowing you to explore your itinerary at your own pace.

Steven Rittey, production manager of Freewheel Cycling Holidays explains the company and gives us a brief overview of the 4 new destinations in Eastern Europe!

Enjoy!

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Show #447 – April 6, 2019

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Guests: Joe Lindsey; Larry Pizzi, Happy Freedman

Three guests – three topics.

First, it’s a controversy! Everyone loves a good he said – she said; only in this case it’s WaveCel vs. MIPS helmet technology.

On March, 19th Matt Phillips published the following headline in Bicycling Magazine “Bontrager Says Its New Helmets Can Prevent Concussions 99 out of 100 times.”

And, it didn’t take long for those who developed the MIPS technology to refute Bontrager’s claims, citing an inability to replicate the testing.

Reading the article reminds me so much of just how the bike industry makes its claims – one company reports its sales in dollars while another reports in units. And, the same is true in this article. Case in point?
The article states: The company says that a helmet with Wavecel will prevent a concussion 99 out of 100 times. A standard foam helmet, for comparison, can only prevent a concussion 42 percent of the time. See what I mean?

So… rather than trying to sort it out myself, I turned to freelance journalist Joe Lindsey. Joe breaks down the controversy and puts some thoughtful ideas into what you might do if your head DOES hit the ground in his April 2nd article for Outside Online titled: Trek’s WaveCel Helmet Technology Is Causing Controversy”

Joe ALWAYS does his homework and that is true in this case. He’s my first guest.

Then, we head out to L.A. to speak with Larry Pizzi, the president of Accell North America. The last time we spoke with him back in 2013, he was with iZIP, an electric bike brand; and today, while iZip is STILL a brand in the stable, Larry oversees several other eBike brands.

Today, we talk about how eBikes are faring in the world of cycling – their growth, who is riding them, and how regulations around the use of eBikes is being developed and implemented.

Finally, it’s a discussion with one of the #1 bike fitters in the country, if not on the planet. Soft spoken and serious, Happy Freedman has decades of experience coupled with the use of the Leon Root, MD Motion Analysis Lab a state-of-the-art testing facility at the Hospital for Special Surgery in NY City.

Yet, with all the fancy-schmancy equipment at his disposal, Happy has a straightforward and relatively simple way of making the adjustments needed – and they aren’t what you

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Show #446 – March 30, 2019

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Guests: Patrick Brady; Molly Hurford; David & Emily Lafferty

First up, is the conversation I had with Red Kite Prayer’s Patrick Brady about the judging process at NAHBS.

It’s just not that simple – go around the show, ooo and ahhh about a bike and give it a blue ribbon! In fact, along with frame builder Tom Kellogg and journalist Nick Legan, Patrick has his work cut out for him with a multitude of categories, a show floor full of gorgeous bikes, and a lot of folks hoping to garner one of the top awards. You can also read Patrick’s blow-by-blow (bike-by-bike here)

We speak with Molly Hurford, who is often a guest on TOC. Molly just released an article yesterday titled, Why Sleep Is Critical for Athletes.

With lengthening daylight hours, the recent time change back to daylight savings time, and the outrageous work schedules many of us keep, it’s a wonder that sleep even gets on our day-to-day calendar.

BUT, when you take all of those things and then add intense athletic endeavor… lack of sleep is a recipe for disaster.

You can also learn more about Molly’s new book, Shred Girls! (Out May 7th)

Finally it’s off to the Granite State for a talk with husband and wife team, David and Emily Lafferty. Their company, Cycles Chinook, offers custom titanium tandems. They’ve built bikes for several blind stokers, including the first RAAM blind tandem team. It’s all about your fit, your ride preferences, and where you want to go. They have a cute how-‘they-met-story too!

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Show #445 – March 23, 2019

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Guests: Jennifer Carey & Paul Self; Phil Deeker: Gary Mikitin

We begin this evening’s show with the “The Boob Ride“… stifle those giggles for a second – or maybe not. This event is a very different animal from the usual raise-money-for-a-cause-ride.

Keeping it local, Jennifer Carey and Paul Self run the two locations of the Boob Ride to raise money for the “last mile of breast cancer treatment”.

Partnering with local social workers, all the registration fees from the Boob Ride are given to cancer patients who might need everything from a ride to treatment, a cart of groceries, or a mortgage payment, taking those daily burdens off of the patient’s shoulders so that she can go through the healing process.

We talk with Phil Deeker, the founder of the Cent Cols Challenges. Once again, not your ordinary events, Phil began the Challenges when he turned 50 as a way to celebrate – which will sound very unlike a celebration when he tells you about it.

And, finally, Gary Mikitin – who is the voice you hear when TOC opens and closes each week – reviews a new book that will be on the stands on April 2nd.

Nige Tassel’s Three Weeks, Eight Seconds: Greg LeMond and Laurent Fignon and the Epic Tour of 1989 is an in-depth look at not only this historic race; but also explores some of the travails that LeMond went through to get back into the peloton after being shot in the back by his brother-in-law and suffering a severe appendicitis attack.

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Show #444 – March 16, 2019

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Guests: Colin Browne; Angie Schmitt; Shaun Gad

This week we have 3 guests covering a wide variety of topics.

We will speak with Colin Browne, the communications director for WABA – The Washington Area Bicyclists Assn. WABA is one of the oldest advocacy organizations in the country, established in 1972, and reaches a broad swath of the D.C., Virginia, and Maryland area with a variety of programs – which we talk about in our conversation.

We’ll welcome back Streetsblog journalist Angie Schmitt whose article “Walking and Biking are Hurt by Lack of National Leadership: Report caught my attention.

And finally, we learn about a major expansion of the Gran Fondo NY series when we speak with Sean Gad, one of the founders of the GFNY Jerusalem.

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Show #443 – March 9, 2019

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Guests: Carlton Reid; Tom Kellogg

This week Carlton Reid is with me to talk about a variety of subjects from autonomous vehicles to Brexit.

Carlton’s long history writing about bicycling has resulted in two books – Roads Were Not Made for Cars and Bike Boom.

Last year, he was named the Press Gazette’s Transport Journalist of the Year. Currently, Carlton is writing for Forbes Magazine.

The interview I didn’t know I would have, and am incredibly delighted to share with you, is with one of the most respected and talented frame builders ever to have graced our bicycle world.

Along with his partner Jeff Duser, Tom Kellogg has built under the name of Spectrum Cycles since 1982, producing some of the most exquisite steel and titanium frames.

This past week, Tom and Jeff announced their retirement. Taking orders through July 31st, they will build whatever is in the queue and then permanently close the shop.

I figured this was the perfect time to check in with him and learn more.