Leadville, The 100 Mile Mountain Bike Race Podcast p/b Shimano

If you're 40+ years old and racing the the Leadville 100, you're in good company: a LARGE majority of folks lining up this August are Masters racers, and our podcast survey at the beginning of this season shows that 80% of our listeners fit in this group (it goes without saying that both of the hosts are). So we're very excited to have two true experts join us for this episode: Joe Friel -- the au...

Without question, the Leadville 100 is about the location. And it's about fitness. And it's about nutrition. And it's about the people. But really, when you think about it — before, during, and after the race — it's about the climbs. Face it, your reaction and conjured mental image when hearing the words "columbine" and "powerline" are already vastly different than 99.99% of the people in the worl...

Your race day nutrition plan is a crucial part of your race training, and this episode Hottie's got a great interview with Bill Armstrong of NeverSecond about setting up a one-company nutrition ecosystem. Meantime, Fatty's got a tip on keeping the rubber side down. This is a great episode; don't miss it!

This episode is all about numbers. First off, Fatty says there are four key numbers you must know when racing the Leadville 100, but they aren't the ones people put on their top tubes. Next, Jonathan Lee of TranierRoad joins to help you get ininto the zone -- your training zone, of course -- and how to understand and incorporate zones into your training. And finally, Hottie has a chat with USWE ab...

We're excited to have Coach Hunter Allen—who has worked with Jeremiah Bishop and dozens of the Leadvilles—join us to talk about a crucial (and often overlooked) component to your success in leadville: pedaling. Trust us, it's more than just turning the cranks. In Fatty's Finishing Tips, Elden tells you to lighten up...but in a good, non-judgey way that will make a real difference in your race. And...

Hottie and Fatty are joined by 2022 Leadville 100 champ Hannah Otto — one of the busiest professional bike racers in recent years. Between juggling UCI races, the Lifetime Grand Prix, and the occasional FKT, Hannah stays fast, smart, and positive: skills all Leadville racers should try to emulate. In this episode, Hannah talks us through both her prior Leadville 100 races AND walks us through a ne...

By now you know whether you got into the 2024 Leadville 100. If you did (and even if you didn't), now is the time to do a baseline FTP test, so you can measure your progress through the season (and yes, Fatty reveals his own current FTP). Coach Jonathan Lee of TrainerRoad -- a favorite friend of the show -- joins to talk about the why, how, and what of FTP testing. We also introduce a new segment...

In this mini-episode, Hottie and Fatty encourage you to enter the lottery for the 2024 LT100...but also, to not expect to get in the race that way. We dig into what the surefire ways are to get in, what the tradeoffs are, and strategies to get in that cost less (but are also less certain) or that require more time and patience. Also, we have a request as we plan out Season 7 (!!!) of this show: fi...

This is it: the season's final episode. Like in other seasons, we end with Fatty's race report...but this was no ordinary day on the course for Fatty. In this episode, he talks about what it's like to do his 25th Leadville 100...less than three months after a C2-C5 spine fusion. 

The 2023 Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race is now behind us and it's time to look back at the day. Hottie and Fatty talk about and with scores of racers, chatting about Keegan's record-breaking day, how numerous former guests did, and even a few surprising statistics. Enjoy this 2023 retrospective!

Hottie and Fatty talk about their Top 15 Tips -- five each for racers, crew, and spectators -- as we get close to race day. Whether you're out there on your bike trying to get yourself to the red carpet, taking care of your (let's face it) crazy cyclist, or just hanging out at Twin Lakes Dam watching this incredible race unfold, this is an episode you do not want to miss!

Nate Whitman joins the show to answer a whole slew of your questions about preparing for, executing, and recovering from the Leadville 100. We're also incredibly excited to have details on this year's podcast group ride. Don't miss this episode!

We've never raced the Leadville 100 with a power meter, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be done. There's a lot to be learned from racing with power, and a good case to be made for it. Coach Jonathan Lee of TrainerRoad joins us to make that case.  We also take on the question of whether it's worth the time and travel for flatlanders to spend less time in Leadville, and more at a midway point (al...

LT100MTB Race Director Tamira Jenlink joins the show to catch us up with what's changed, what's new, and how to be have a great day on the course. We ask her about course changes, crewing, parking, shuttles, road closures, new aid stations, weather and smoke problems, qualifiers, aero bars and bar ends, and much more. It's a packed hour of info you need to know; don't miss this episode!

At some point, you're going to wish you'd listened more closely to this episode. And we're betting that point is as you're riding inbound from Pipeline to the base of Powerline and confronting a headwind that can charitably be called "evil." The fact is, we all think about iconic climbs when we think of Leadville, but you'll spend far more time on rolling and flat terrain than you will on Columbin...

This podcast has always been about regular people who are racing the Leadville 100: real people with real jobs and families, who find a way to do something big and bold: ride the highest and hardest one-day race in the country.  Natalie Dyksterhouse is doing exactly that. She has a career (as does her husband). She has two young children. And this year, she will be racing the LT100 for the first t...

Not everyone has dozens of crewpeople available to deposit at each aid station along the course, so in this episode Hottie and Fatty give their advice for where to situate your crew if you have one person to help you. We also bring back Dr Kevin Sprouse for practical guidance on being fast by staying cool. Don't miss this episode!

Dr Allen Lim joins the podcast for a second time this season, this time to guide us through race day nutrition strategies. We also talk about one of the key factors in this race: altitude. You know that all of the LT100 is way up there, but how much time do you actually spend at what altitudes? The answer may surprise (and encourage!) you.

A lot of living happens between lottery registration day and race day, and sometimes that means you have to make a decision: do you line up and race, or do you defer? Fatty's confronting that question right this second, so obviously we get into it -- plus we have info about the deferral policy that we're pretty sure will be news to most people. We're also EXTREMELY pleased to welcome Alison Tetric...

If you're ever at a Leadville Party and the energy starts to lag, you know with 100% certainty you can jumpstart the conversation by asking, "So what tires are the best for Leadville?" In reality, though, that question doesn't really make much sense until you understand the  anatomy  of tires: their composition and performance characteristics. That's what we aim to do in this show. To help us, we...

We're excited to have Dylan Johnson back on the show to talk about how to approach the big X-Factor in the LT100: altitude. Dylan puts thought into every race and every situation and in the case of Leadville, he worked very hard at getting his arrival to high altitude right.  He's here to share his approach and how the citizen racer can figure out how to lessen the blow of Leadville's biggest chal...

When you roll up the long red carpet at the end of the LT 100, chances are you're going to hurt. How much you hurt and where you hurt are -- to a degreee -- up to you, but a lot of people certainly experience hand soreness and numbness. In this episode we take a good hard look at this important contact point and get some great expert advice on your grips. 

Dr Allen Lim knows more about sports nutrition than most of us know about...well, anything. And he knows the Leadville course, too. We have a feeling this is going to be one of those episodes that people refer back to, over and over. We also get into the question of how much time we've shaved (or in Fatty's case, increased) between our first and second years of racing the LT100, along with how muc...

There was a time when the choice between hardtail and full-suspension bikes at the Leadville 100 was obvious: hardtail if you wanted to be fast and efficient, full-suspension if you wanted to be slow and comfortable. Times have changed, and full-suspension bikes can now be a no-compromise solution for the Race Across the Sky. In today's episode, we get expert advice on setting up your suspension f...

The white corral is not an easy place to kick off the Leadville 100 MTB. There are thousands of riders ahead of you, there's anxiety, there's uncertainty, and there's a HUGE question hanging over your head, probably playing back in a never-ending loop: "Can I get back to 6th and Harrison and get a buckle?" In this episode we will take a look at what the numbers say about that question. Don't miss...