The Paceline Cycling Podcast

The Pull is a new podcast from Red Kite Prayer. My many interviews with framebuilders over the years have all lost something in translation from the conversation to the printed page (or pixels). I spent years dissatisfied with the outcome and honestly, reduced the number of interviews I did because…

I first read Bicycling Magazine editor Selene Yeager’s work in the 1990s. Having edited the work of health and fitness writers, I knew what good work looked like and hers was exemplary. She did a remarkable job of balancing the science side of things with the dimensions that are curious…

Down is up and up is underground. Our man Hottie, formerly the leanest man in masters bike racing has portlied himself up to a whopping 165 lbs! What to do! He confesses that without all the group rides and races, plus a bit more beer than he used to allow…

Hottie took off with Mrs. Hottie for a bike-packing trip. Only they didn’t camp out and sleep in sleeping bags. They stayed in a hotel. He thinks Mrs. Hottie brought too much stuff. But just how much is too much? And for that matter, how little is too minimal? …

What’s the craziest experience you’ve had in a bike race or event? Hottie puts this question to Fatty and Patrick and while they share some stuff you might not want to duplicate, their experiences comes up lame when compared to Hottie’s guest. Elon Rubin of Giant Santa Monica is Israeli…

Fatty had an unfortunate encounter with another cyclist recently. Actually, the unfortunate part of the encounter was between his big dog Duke and one of the dogs following behind the other ride attacked Duke. Took a souvenir out of poor Duke’s ear. What do you do in that circumstance? He’s…

Vacation. It’s such a loaded term. Is it time away from work? Time away from home? Is it recreation? Can it be a vacation without a bicycle? Hottie recently reviewed four different bike travel cases and decided to put the question to Fatty and Patrick of what their tips are…

It’s a podcast about bikes, so it’s no surprise that our hosts like to ride new bikes. And great bikes. And sometimes crazily expensive bikes, like the $15,300 Argonaut that Hottie had a chance to ride recently. In a world where we all joke about the correct number of bikes…

Where do you come from? Not, where were you born, or where did you grow up, but how were you birthed as a cyclist? This week Fatty tells how he got into cycling and asks Patrick and Hottie what got them into the sport. And despite a concussion on his…

How much work do you do on your bike? Are you the type who doesn’t let anyone else touch your bike and it gets a tune-up monthly, or do you turn it over to a trusted mechanic tipped in hoppy beverages? Or are you somewhere in between? Hottie discusses a…

This week Fatty, Hottie and Patrick are joined by a special guest. Yuri Hauswald is a former winner of Dirty Kanza, a Camelbak-sponsored athlete and a marketing pro with GU Energy Labs. He joins the boys to talk about the suggestion that cyclists should boycott Giro, Bell, Blackburn, Camelbak and…

Our man Patrick is back from the North American Handmade Bicycle Show and has stories to tell. As chief judge he, with the help of fellow judges Tom Kellogg (yes, that Tom Kellogg of Spectrum Cycles) and veteran mechanic to the stars, Merlyn Townley, inspected more than 100 different submissions…

Maybe it’s the gloominess of February, but the Paceline hosts — Patrick, Hottie, and Fatty — have some pretty serious topics this week…though they don’t necessarily approach those topics in a serious way (not all of them, at least). Hottie’s watching the Olympics, but can’t help but wonder about the…

Let’s talk dogs. No, not those furry lumps of love that drool on (or sometimes eat) your shoes. We’re talking feet. Do you have problems with your feet? Do cycling shoes give you trouble? If so, you’ll want to listen in to Fatty’s pull, which is all about his trouble…

The boys are back with another three-pull episode. Up first is Hottie and he asks, have you ever regretted a bicycle purchase? Not the money you spent, but the bicycle itself? Have you ever decided you invested in the wrong bike? Fatty is concerned about riding ugly. Between his namesake…

Peter Flax is the editor in chief of The Red Bulletin, the 10-times-per-year magazine from energy drink maker Red Bull. He is also the former editor-in-chief for Bicycling Magazine, features editor for The Hollywood Reporter and a contributing writer to CyclingTips as well as RKP. For the three plus years…

Someone smart told the boys that most podcasts don’t ever produce 100 episodes, so this one is a bit of a milestone. We’re not sure if they’re too determined to quit or too clueless to know when to stop. Milestones aside, they take 100 seconds (give or take) to favorite…

This week we switch our format up a bit with each of the guys taking one hard pull. Up first is Hottie with a confession. For the first time in roughly 20 years he isn’t taking out a USAC license. Hottie says he’s got several reasons for not renewing: less…

It’s winter time and conditions aren’t exactly fun for riding in many parts of the country. For this week’s Very Important Question we asked, “Which of these is the absolute worst conditions to ride your bike in?” A. Hard crosswind 28% B. Cold rain 35% C. Slushy road 30% D….

Fatty has been vacationing and says his kits don’t fit. In the spirit of truth in advertising, we’re actually pretty relieved. A skinny Fatty is not a fatty, right? Recently, he went with the Hammer to St. George, Utah, for some riding. Misadventure ensued. In other news, how important is…

Jake Pantone, Director of Marketing and Product at ENVE Composites Jake Pantone is a cycling success story. He started at ENVE lacing wheels and taking customer support phone calls—often at the same time. So the fact that he’s now the marketing and product director is no small thing. In this…

Hottie is away this week so Fatty and Patrick or holding down the fort, so to speak. For our big interview this week, Patrick interviewed Aaron Gulley of Outside Magazine about his recent essay about being hit by a car while on a mountain bike ride and how the specter…

With the holidays looming, we look at the spirit of the season. Fatty interviews Yann Bertaud who is an ambassador for World Bicycle Relief. He recently made a trip to Africa on behalf of the organization to help distribute bikes to children so they can go to school. For this…

Even thought the racing season is over, pro cycling is back in the news. Peter Sagan is even more amazing than we knew and Chris Froome (finally?) tested positive. As a result, for this week’s Very Important Question we ask, “What would happen if you attempted to do the splits?”…

Cold and flu season. That’s what we call it, right? As if it were restricted to a few months of the year like maple sugaring or cyclocross Nordic skiing. No matter how long it’s meant to last, it’s here once again and while Hottie’s rides are getting longer, Patrick is off…

Now that it’s the off season the boys are dreaming of bike purchases. Fatty wants a full-suspension cross-country bike for when he does Breck Epic next year. Hottie finally purchased a gravel-oriented frameset and even Patrick admits that he’s considering trimming one from his arsenal to add something else. This…

Thanksgiving is here and with it the need to preemptively burn calories. Of course, before they get to that, Fatty has a wound to clean. Hottie is back on the bike and Patrick wonders if his number is up next. Do you have a bucket list? A buddy of Hottie’s…

Running. On a cycling podcast. What is the world coming to? Well, it is that time of year, thanks to cyclocross and, in some places, inclement weather. Hottie and Fatty admit they’ve turned to the dark side, at least some. Patrick? Off mic he said he’d rather get dental work….

We discuss Halloween and costumes, and how cycling clothing is a costume of its own. Friends of Fatty’s (FoF) used some bike tubes to make a killer Thor costume. Fatty dressed up as Superman (or something like him) and they want for a ride called Helloween. His friend who dressed…

In the Paceline Tandem episode #2, Fatty has two great conversations with people who are doing amazing things with bikes. First, he talks with Decker—a high school senior who loves mountain biking, and is one of the nicest, most positive kids you’ll ever meet. Decker tells the story of an…

We open with discussion of the Santa Rosa fires and how they are affecting the local cycling community. Our man on the scene reports he is back home after a week in West County, and nearly everything he placed with other friends is back home as well. The family—both humans…

Phil Gaimon sits in on this edition of the Paceline. He plays along with all our normal antics: The Very Important Question and Paceline Picks. But what he really wants to talk about (and so do we) is his new book, “Draft Animals: Living the Pro Dream.” You’re going to…

After a difficult week in which schedules just didn’t meld (Vulcan or otherwise), the boys are back at it. This week’s Very Important Question concerns clipless pedals. On average, how many tries does it take you to clip your second foot in on uphill starts? A: First time, every time…

We’ve got our results from last week’s Very Important Question: would you still ride if you forgot your helmet at home and drove to the ride start. Patrick checks in from Las Vegas and the Interbike trade show. It sounds like he’s happy he won’t be going back there anymore….

In our first VIQ (Very Important Question) we asked you, our audience, which foot you place forward when descending. We assumed most riders would indicate they put their left foot forward. We got an amazing 516 responses, so a pretty solid sample. As it happens Fatty, Hottie and Patrick all ride…

Patrick is away in Tennessee working on a feature for Bicycling Magazine on Memphis. Memphis’ fortunes have changed in the last few years and the city has made a huge investment in infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians. Patrick says this has made the city wholly more livable and infinitely more…

Fatty had a meeting with a doctor that gave him an unusual frame of mind for this show. The colonoscopy made him hungry and maybe a little freer with his opinions. Some of those opinions regard his feelings about his performance at a new event called The Punisher. Apparently the…

So what do you do at the end of the season when you have massive fitness and all your goals achieved or finished? Fatty is busy compiling a new late-season race schedule now that he’s flying, post Leadville. As cyclists, we’ve all experienced stuff breaking, right? That just happens, part…

Hottie and Fatty are back from Leadville. Are they ready to stop talking about it? Heck no. The talk about how their races went, how that’s different from the result they expected, and their best guesses why. The boys actually Patrick a chance to talk about the race he did…

Fatty and Hottie (it’s like Laurel and Hardy, only not) are in Leadville for the annual Leadville 100. They’ve unpacked, done some course recon and have taken their final rides ahead of the race. And now they are eating. We talk about those final preparations, Jonathan Vaughters’ (name drop!) final…

Dream Chaser: A Normal Guy Confronts the Tour Divide You’re a normal person who wants to do something completely not normal: a 2700-mile mountain bike ride. You want to ride the holy grail of endurance mountain biking events — the Tour Divide. To make this happen, you’re going to need…

Fatty and Hottie are busy packing for the looming rendezvous of each of their seasons: Leadville. Yep, it’s that time once again. Fatty has a whopping six people in his contingent. The boys break down what they are taking with them, from clothing to tools and equipment and what food…

Fatty crashed and got a big raspberry on his hip. Went down on a wet descent right by a spot cyclists call Hamilton Falls because Tyler Hamilton fell there during the Tour of Utah. The staff here thinks they want to avoid that road at all cost. In the fall,…

The Tour de France is into its final days and Chris Froome looks likely to win. With Fatty away on a job interview, Patrick and Hottie hold down the fort and discuss Froome, Team Sky, (Sir) David Brailsford, journalist hostility and parallels to another episode in history. Patrick even suggests…

Fatty and Hottie went to Beaver, Utah, to partake in the wonderfulness known as the Crusher in the Tushar. Good suffering was had by all. Imagine an event that goes uphill more than downhill. Or don’t. It doesn’t sound easy, or fun. Fatty and Hottie interview organizer Burke Swindlehurst about…

With Peter Sagan’s recent expulsion from the Tour de France, all of social media has blown up with whether or not he caused Mark Cavendish’s crash and what the appropriate action, if any, was warranted. As our man Patrick put it, “Pinning all of the problems of that sprint on…

PressCamp took place in Park City last week and our man Patrick was in attendance. We open the show with his reporting on a few of the bikes he rode there. He checked out the new to the U.S. brand Factor, a new aero road bike from 3T, plus two…

Everyone is back in their usual chairs this week, thank heaven. Fatty is just back from the Vision Relay, an event he’s been waiting for all season, and frankly, we at the Paceline have been waiting for him to do. He and his team kicked butt, but not enough butts. Say…

Patrick is back from Dirty Kanza and while there may be no place like home, he says there’s no place quite like Emporia. Fatty is away on business, so it’s the duo of Pattie and Hottie (Patrick/Padraig is going to hate that.) for yet another show. Patrick fills us in…

This week the Paceline is down to two, with Hottie and Patrick trading pulls. Patrick is in Emporia, Kansas, for Dirty Kanza. He’ll be riding the 100 with the intention of getting back and then greeting the 200 finishers as they roll across the line. He interviews Adam Blake of…