The Paceline Cycling Podcast

It's a new year and that means it's time to think about what we're going to do differently. That's right resolutions! Or should we call them revolutions? Patrick and John take on their future selves.

How are things on planet bike as 2024 comes to a close? John looks into his crystal ball at what 2025 may hold. Patrick tackles the subject of road tubeless and, believe it or not, he says he has a reliable solution.

This week we have an interview with Matt Fritzinger of the Blue-Tailed Skinks, a kids' mountain biking program in Sonoma County California. Matt was the founder of the NorCal League, which grew into the National Interscholastic Cycling Association. He has started a new program, for kids from five to 11. The Blue-Tailed Skinks are about activity and being outside and riding mountain bikes, not raci...

Christmas looms. You probably shouldn't listen to this and make your loved ones listen to it instead because we're here to give your people suggestions for what to do for you. But if you listen, our Paceline Picks have some suggestions for you.

Thanksgiving may be thought of as the mother of all family meals, but it is a great time to stop and take stock. This week John and Patrick discuss what they have to be grateful for. Patrick shares a big personal revelation.

This week John takes on an acronym from the world of tech: TCO—Total Cost of Ownership. Patrick muses about what it says about us when we ride in yucky weather, and why we might choose to do it.

This week we're talking about all the cool, surprising and unexpected places the bike has taken us over the years. It might not be where you think. All that and pair of Paceline Picks, and that's today's show.

This week John talks crashing and differentiates it from falling. They are different things, he assures us. Patrick suggests that whether you're happy about the election or not, the bike is a balm we all need right now.

This week John talks about how some shops are beginning to reimagine what it means to be a bike shop. Patrick takes on the question of why, after so many years devoted to road cycling, he began putting so much energy into mountain biking.

This week John considers his bad choices and whether they were really even choices. Patrick discusses his experience following a bunch of kids around at a local park as part of a program called the Blue Tailed Skinks.

This week John talks work, as in working in the bike biz. Patrick looks at how women hucked their way through the glass ceiling and into the Red Bull Rampage and rider Robin Goomes went home six figures to the good.

This week John considers evolution and extinction as viewed through the lens of bikes and e-bikes. And he asks, "Will bikes survive?" Patrick discusses his experience at a retreat for NICA coaches.

This week John examines Tadej Pogacar's win at the World Championship Road Race last weekend and tries not to ask the question any knowledgeable cyclist ends up asking. Patrick considers bike lights and how your speed and when you're riding influence just how bright a light you need.

John and Patrick begin the show by remembering Bob Parlee, the Boston-based frame builder of custom carbon fiber frames who passed away due to cancer. John then analyzes how because bike work takes longer now, he does less of it. Patrick considers how confidence can influence our riding and our lives.

This week we discuss the evolution of roadie culture in the wake of the blood doping era and the "invention" of gravel bikes. Then we talk about all the good things that come from taking part in trail days, before finishing off with Paceline Picks.

John has been sessioning mountain bike skills with a friend and waxes, maybe not poetic, about the utility of slowing down, and breaking down a move until it is, as we say, on lock. On the heels of his segment about mountain bike suspension last week, Patrick considers the many technical changes the mountain bike has seen in the last 20-ish years that have caused him to kid that he's not sure why...

This week John considers a new purchase, a townie, a grocery-getter, errand-runner, gad-about, bike-of-all-trades. One wonders how his Vanmoof debacle will figure. Patrick talks about suspension travel and how much is right for you.

This week John looks at how consumers and shops will benefit if they—the dealers—begin carrying custom bike lines. Patrick takes on a question about bad fit.

This week John takes a look at leadership, particularly as it plays out in pro teams at grand tours. Patrick takes on a question about deep rims and whether they make sense for gravel riding.

This week John talks about categories. What sorts of categories? Categories of mountain bikes. Patrick talks about pumping a mountain bike and how his own skillset evolved over the summer.

Our guest this week is Yvonne Kraus of Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. As I've mentioned in some previous episodes, I've been spending a fair amount of time in the Seattle region and have been riding on some trail networks that have been built and/or maintained by the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance. What really got my attention were my visits to Duthie Hill in the Seattle suburb of Issaquah. F...

This week we have our first tandem episode in, well, forever. Last summer Skratch Labs released a new product, Superfuel, that is a high-calorie drink for endurance athletes. It's a drink mix built on a fundamentally different philosophy from their super-popular drink mix known for it's blend of sugar and electrolytes. Lim has long been an outspoken detractor of drinks that use maltodextrin as the...

This week the Paceline takes a moment to acknowledge the tragic death of Norwegian pro Andre Drege. John adjusts some of his prognostications regarding the Tour de France and Patrick takes on a question about tires and why people talk about them so much.

With the Tour de France starting this coming Sunday, John takes a look at who the cast of characters will be and the nearly foregone conclusion of the outcome. Patrick takes on a listener question regarding e-bikes and Shimano's e-bike-specific drivetrain, Cues. Also, Patrick flubbed the number of gears for the three versions. He said eight, nine and ten speeds, when, in fact, the options are nine...

This week John talks about how bike shops are the lifeblood of cycling culture and how we need them to continue to exist. Patrick explains how not all motors in e-mountain bikes are created equal and, with all due apologies to George Orwell, some motors are more equal than other motors. Best of all, he explains what to look for when shopping.