Life in the Peloton, presented by MAAP

Rapha presents Talking Luft! Well it’s the last episode of Talking Luft for the year, and I’ve got veteran of the peloton and actually one of my first ever podcast guests from way back in 2016 back on the pod. I’m chatting with Welshman from Team Ineos, Luke Rowe. We sat down while he was in Australia for the Worlds, and got talking all the good stuff – kit, caps, mullets, the best of riders and t...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Well, here we are, it’s the last pod of the year and I’ve got a bumper one for you! As you’ll know the UCI World Road Race Championships were held in Australia this year, and I made the 1,250km trip from my home in Lancefield, near Melbourne, to the race in Wollongong by bike, and I documented the trip for the pod.  I gave myself five days for the trip, which me...

You all know my love for Paris Roubaix, and in that sense I have some cycling royalty on the pod for you this week. Chatting with none other than the man who conquered this year's Hell of the North, Paris Roubaix winner, Dylan Van Baarle. I was keen to hear a bit about Dylan and what makes him tick on and off the bike so I sat down with him while he was in Australia for the UCI Road Worlds and got...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Lael Wilcox is an American Ultra-distance cyclist and one of the absolute legends of the discipline. She is the record holder for some of the sport’s most famous races, such as the 2,475 mile Tour Divide and the 4,400 mile Trans Am Bike Race (If you don’t fancy the math – that’s roughly 4000km and 7000km!) - and that's against both men and women.  ... Ultra-dist...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! Well, the Vuelta a España has come to an end, but I managed to sneak in some time to get talking luft with the pros on race. And I’ve got a fresh batch of Vuelta-themed questions as we chat the hilarious intricacies of the Vuelta and Grand Tour racing. I caught up with Fred Wright, Daryl Impey, Luke Plapp and podcast favourite Luke Durbridge and asked them about cap st...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! The Vuelta a España is one of the 3 grand tours and it can slip under the radar after the hype of the Tour de France, but I can tell you first hand from a rider’s perspective it certainly is no easy feat.  It’s a notoriously tough old lap of Spain, raced in September towards the end of the season and known for its steep climbs and soaring temperatures. But in sa...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! Holly Harris is an Australian Mountain Bike and Gravel racer, who I paired up with last week at the Reef to Reef MTB epic. I thought, what better way to get to know her than going straight for the hard hittingTalking Luft questions – style, rituals, training, bikes, and of course, beverages. Naturally, we chat all things MTB and I hear about her favourite MTB and grave...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! It's no secret I'm a newbie on the MTB scene. Having raced on the road for 14 years I'm still finding my footing out on the trails. But I'm a firm believer that you learn by doing, and this year I have loved the challenge of getting out and competing in local events. Over the weekend I took part in the Reef to Reef - a 4 day mountain bike stage race on the Tropi...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! I had Australian Mark O’Brien on the pod last week – ex-pro and now coach, giving all the insights on Strava and using it in training. As you would have heard he’s fantastic to chat to, so I thought it would be great to sit down with him to talk a bit of cycling lifestyle this week on Talking Luft. Over a cold Orval beer we chat all the good stuff – caps, beer, shaving...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Strava, the social networking app that tracks physical activity, has become a phenomenon in the cycling world, with ‘taking Segments‘ and ‘giving Kudos‘ becoming part of everyday cycling chat. Strava was something that I completely ignored as a professional. It didn’t exist when I was a young rider, and as I already uploaded my training for my coach and my team,...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! Talking Luft is back for another week of cycling style, culture, rituals & bit of life off the bike. Following on from my Tour de France Femmes episode last week, I sat down with a teammate of theirs, British rider for EF Education Tibco SVB, Lizzy Banks. And this was one hilarious chat. As you’ll hear Lizzy was a laugh to chat to and had some fantastic stories to tell...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Photo: Twila Muzzi  It’s finally time for the women to take on the Tour de France. It’s a huge deal that the Tour is finally back on the calendar for the women, and as I wasn’t able to be on-race, I thought what better way to get the inside word than talking to some of the participants from this year’s edition. On the eve of the race, I was lucky enough to talk...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! We had a special Tour de France episode last week , taking you backstage at the race, and this week we have a special Tour de France Talking Luft. While speaking to several pros about the race I snuck in some cheeky Talking Luft questions, which were a bit of a curveball for a few of them but great fun hearing their answers. This episode is packed full of riders at the...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! The Tour de France is a beast! A beautiful beast. It is the biggest annual sporting event in the world. Cycling fan or not, everyone knows about the Tour de France.  When I was a professional it was obviously a marked goal for all the guys in the peloton. An achievement to simply get to the start line. Although never having ridden the Tour myself, the last coupl...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! I had the breakaway specialists on the podcast last week talking all the nitty gritty details about the theory of the breakaway. And this week I couldn't resist talking some luft with British former pro & breakaway master and current Sports Director for Team Ineos, Steve Cummings. In case you’re not familiar with Steve, he raced professional for 14 years, winning stage...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Have you ever wondered why riders attack off the front? Why do they form breakaways? Is it just for the TV cameras or is it actually a race-winning tactic? The Tour de France is upon us and you’re almost guaranteed to see a daily breakaway. It’s historically how a pro cycling race is run: the first 50km is riders attacking off the front – trying to form a breaka...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! This week I’ve got Aussie former professional cyclist, and commentator Simon Gerrans on Talking Luft – brother to Andy Gerrans, Pro team Osteopath, who I had on the podcast last week talking about life as a staff member on a World Tour team. For those not familiar with Simon, he had a hugely successful 14 year career – winning stages in all 3 Grand Tours as well as wea...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Have you ever wondered how you get a job on a Pro Cycling Team as a staff member? Or who the people are who work behind the scenes? What qualifications do they have? What is a Soigneur compared to a Physiotherapist or to an Osteopath?  Well I sat down with Andrew Gerrans, or Andy as I know him, the brother to well-known retired pro cyclist Simon Gerrans.  Andy i...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! I've got US crit racer & co-founder of L39ion of LA, Cory Williams, back on the pod for the good stuff - talking style, talking culture, talking all the best bits about riding & racing. Casquette or no casquette? How does he wear his kit? Arm warmers & leg warmers? Gloves or no gloves? Speedsuit or jersey? We chat all-day pre-race breakfasts, coffee orders, cheat meals...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! This week I’ve got a really cool guest for you on the pod, American Cory Williams. Hailing from South Central L.A. (and weighing in at 65 kilos…). Cory is a hugely successful racer and regular winner on the U.S. criterium scene, as well as a founder of the L39ION of Los Angeles racing team.  Growing up in a cycling-mad family (their father, Calman, competed inte...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! Talking Luft is back this week with the smiling assassin – Colombian Pro Cyclist Esteban Chaves, riding for EF Education First EasyPost. I had him on the pod last week to hear his incredibly inspiring and tough story of how he got his start in the World Tour – coming back from a nasty crash – then eventually going on to win stages in the Giro and Vuelta and wearing lea...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Esteban Chaves was the first Colombian to win a monument at the Tour of Lombardy in 2016, he’s a podium finisher and multiple stage winner in both the Giro D'Italia and the Vuelta España. Not only is he a hugely talented rider, but he’s an incredibly positive & inspiring guy. Off the bike, he runs the Esteban Chaves Foundation in Colombia, helping disadvantaged...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! Arm warmers over or under sleeves? Gloves or no gloves? Glasses over or under helmet straps? After our Giro episode last week I've got American pro, Joe Dombrowski back on the pod and this week we're Talking some Luft. 2.0 to be exact. Talking Luft 2.0 is always a bit of fun, and I ask him questions about the little intricacies of style in the pro peloton. We talk the...

Rapha presents Life in the Peloton! Photo: Cor Vos It’s Giro time! This week I caught up with a former teammate of mine, Joe Dombrowski, as he finished off his preparations to head to Hungary to start his seventh Giro d’Italia. The Italian Grand Tour is a really special race to be a part of and Joe is a true Giro specialist. We rode the race as teammates in 2018, and it was obvious to me the affil...

Rapha presents Talking Luft! If you loved last week’s episode with the king of gravel, Colin Strickland, you’re gonna love this week’s Talking Luft! Colin is an American fixed-gear bike racer turned gravel racer, and as you would have heard last week, an all round awesome guy. In his spare time he fixes up Diesel engines and has started his own garage renovating 1950s Spartan Travel trailers, even...