RIDING WITH Podcast

Last year, my family and I watched the final stage of the Tour de France with a friend of ours who is an accomplished academic and advocate. Her PhD thesis, which she wrote in 2016, predicted that we would be working from home – and the catalyst for that change would be an existential event, such as a pandemic. So when our friend started asking questions about the Tour de France, I found myself st...

Professional cycling calls itself a global sport, but its media coverage almost exclusively and not surprisingly focuses on Western Europe. Dan Challis has taken a different approach. The journalist behind The Global Peloton – now at Escape Collective – joins the RIDING WITH podcast to talk about what it actually takes for a rider from Africa, Asia, or the Americas to break into the WorldTour — an...

The World Cup is underway. And if you’re looking for someone who saw all of this coming — the sovereign wealth funds buying clubs, the exorbitant costs of fandom, the collision of soccer and authoritarian soft power — Franklin Foer did. Twenty-two years ago. Foer is a national correspondent at The Atlantic , a former editor of The New Republic , and the author of How Soccer Explains the World — a...

With cycling’s World Championships underway in Kigali, Rwanda, this week, I spoke with my old friend, Mvemba Dizolele , a highly-regarded foreign policy analyst, about the role of sports in diplomacy and politics. (Take the time to read Mvemba’s full bio here .) For background on the issues facing Rwanda, Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch , who is a friend of the RIDING WITH podcast, has a terrif...

Today’s episode of the RIDING WITH podcast is a bit different. I’m trying a narrative with sound mixed in from the biggest, most prestigious cycling race in the United States, which took place in Baltimore on Sept. 6, 2025. You’ll get to hear from the winners, runners-up, and those finishing just off the pace. It’s an inside look at what it takes to produce a massive event in a major American city...

At the Tour de France, the teams’ buses are equipped with laundry machines. Hotels can range from high end to a box and a cardboard mattress. After crossing the finish line on the Champs-Élysées, the riders celebrate with family and friends, attend a fancy team dinner, and then go clubbing. On today’s podcast, I speak with Kevin Vermaerke, a 24-year-old American professional cyclist, riding for th...

Orla Chennaoui didn’t just rise through the ranks of sports media — she cut her own path. From reading traffic reports and covering sports for Sky News to anchoring coverage of cycling’s biggest races, she’s now the voice of cycling on TNT Sports and a defining presence in the sport. While TNT Sports airs in the UK and Ireland, cycling fans in the United States who subscribe to MAX (formerly HBO)...

The New York Times shuttered its sports section in 2023 and it had stopped covering professional cycling and the Tour de France years earlier. That did not mean the Times would stop covering sports. In 2022, it had purchased The Athletic for $550 million. Now, if you subscribe to the Times , you can read The Athletic . Cycling fans are lucky to have an enterprising young journalist, Jacob Whitehea...

“Go F— Yourself.” That’s the last thing Lance Armstrong ever said to investigative journalist and author Reed Albergotti. Albergotti, a longtime investigative reporter, spent several years uncovering the vast doping conspiracy in professional cycling. Wheelmen is one of the best books about cycling – and sport – ever written. It’s not just about cycling, but about business, the law, and ethics. Al...

How would we experience the tour without the perfect shot? Jerome Delay, the chief photographer in Africa for the Associated Press, joins Jonathan Kaplan to discuss the art and logistics of photographing the Tour de France. From the gear he relies on to the meticulous process of filing photos, Jerome shares a behind-the-scenes glimpse into his world. Hear about Jerome’s journey into cycling and ho...

From NBC’s international broadcasting studio in Stamford, Conn., Paul Burmeister leads the pre- and post-race coverage of the 111th Tour de France for the eighth consecutive year. Joining him this year are former American professional cyclists Brent Bookwalter and Teejay VanGarderen. Paul Burmeister, accustomed to the spotlight from his days as quarterback for the University of Iowa and later as a...

The 111th Tour de France begins this Saturday in northern Italy. It will end three weeks later in Nice, France.  To preview the race, I’m joined by Joshua Robinson of the Wall Street Journal. He and Jason Gay, his colleague at the Wall Street Journal, are the last two journalists at a major American newspaper who cover professional cycling. Joshua and I talk about his background and how he got int...

Louis Hatchwell joins host Jonathan Kaplan to discuss a range of topics related to cycling and Hatchwell’s ability to tell punchy stories on the screen.  It’s a fun conversation that pulls back the curtain on what it takes to become a creator and shows how hard Hatchwell works on and off the bike. Telling stories is hard work, no matter the medium.  If you haven’t already please make sure to follo...

Welcome to Riding With, hosted by Jonathan Kaplan.  This podcast uses cycling to tell stories about the world around us and the human condition. Whether it's a professional cyclist, a gifted journalist, or a dedicated fan, each episode brings you closer to the heart of the sport and closer to the heart of who we are as people. Riding With isn't about the races and results. Join us as we...

Brent Bookwalter, a former professional cyclist who retired in 2021 after over a decade racing at the highest levels, made a swift transition to the broadcast booth within only a year. In this episode, he joins me for a conversation about his career shift, the nuances of race analysis, the ever-evolving landscape of cycling media, and the ongoing efforts to captivate fans worldwide with the intric...

From the storied roads of the Giro d'Italia to the iconic routes of the Tour de France, Anthony McCrossan has been the voice behind some of the most iconic moments in cycling. In part two of our conversation, he shares insights and experiences from the commentator's booth, previews for the upcoming season, and crucial advice for budding commentators.  If you haven’t heard part one,  jump...

Anthony McCrossan is the voice behind some of the most iconic moments in cycling commentary.  From local races to global platforms like Eurosport and the pioneering days of CyclingTV, he has continuously honed his craft to stay at the forefront of cycling commentary.  In this two-part conversation, Anthony shares career his path from passionate fan to the broadcast booth. We explore the challenges...

During the past 15 years, too many journalists have experienced too many layoffs, including myself. It was July 2008. I was sitting through a congressional hearing on derivatives when I got an inadvertent email from HR to the editor that read, “When are you going to tell Kaplan he’s being let go.” Well, today’s guest experienced something similar. It was not an email sent by mistake, but a hastily...

This episode of the RIDING WITH podcast is produced in partnership with Bartali – Youth in Movement (BYIM) , a unique Israeli nonprofit that operates a network of cycling centers for at-risk youth aged 13-18, who live mainly in youth villages and welfare boarding facilities throughout Israel, as a platform for social mobility. After October 7, BYIM launched YOUTH STRONGER TOGETHER , a joint ride w...

Today’s episode is brought to you by RedWhite Apparel. They are both durable and comfortable for your longest, toughest rides. Get your pair at RedWhite Apparel by clicking here. Nicholas Roche, a scion of a cycling family and former professional cyclist, is now the voice of the Tour de France. I spoke with Roche in early October when he was visited the United States to compete in the Belgian Waff...

Today's episode is brought to you by RedWhite Apparel. They are both durable and comfortable for your longest, toughest rides. Get your pair at wwww.redwhite.cc with free worldwide express shipping. Journalist Kate Wager, the author of “derailleur” and a contributor to Escape Collective, and Jonathan Kaplan discuss the dramatic and thrilling Vuelta Espana, which came to an epic conclusion in...

Professional cyclist Henrietta Christie, who races for the US-based professional team, Human Powered Health, provides a firsthand account of her week racing the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. From the enormous crowds and suffering through Stage 2 to climbing to the finish on the Col du Tourmalet--and then having to ride back down to get back to the team cars, Christie describes what it takes to...

On the final day of the Tour de France, Anthony Palmer and Jonathan Kaplan put the race, the narratives, and the media coverage into context.  Subscribe to the RIDING WITH substack Connect with Jonathan on Instagram | Twitter | LinkedIn Follow on Apple Podcast | Spotify - - - - - RIDING WITH is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co. Get full access to RIDING WITH at ridingwithkaplan....

For Sylvan Adams, Israel-Premier Tech is more than a cycling team. From projects in Rwanda and a campaign to promote tourism in Israel, Adams is Israel's self-appointed brand ambassador. Subscribe to the RIDING WITH substack Connect with Jonathan on Instagram | Twitter | LinkedIn Follow on Apple Podcast | Spotify - - - - - RIDING WITH is produced and edited by the team at Palm Tree Pod Co. Ge...

On the penultimate day of the 2023 Tour de France, Spencer Martin and Andrew Vontz, the co-hosts of the Beyond the Peloton podcast and the two most astute analysts of professional cycling discuss how the race was covered and the future of cycling media. Subscribe to the RIDING WITH substack Connect with Jonathan on Instagram | Twitter | LinkedIn Follow on Apple Podcast | Spotify - - - - - RIDING W...