The Rouleur Podcast

“He walks along with a lurch, unbalanced and awkward. If you are not prepared for how utterly changed his posture is off the bike, it comes as a shock. When we are inside his suite, I tell him what I think. ‘Honestly? You walk like a drunk, Chris.’ ‘I do, he says, ‘yeah.'” Following his horrendous crash prior to last year’s   Dauphiné, many doubted we’d see Froome back on a bike, let alone pl...

Geraint Thomas is used to spending hours in the saddle but even he admits his latest challenge is a tough one. He's riding the turbo in his garage for three 12-hour shifts to raise money for the NHS. No team cars, no domestiques and no post-ride massages - but plenty of supporters joining him on Zwift. Ian Parkinson asks how he's coping and whether he's up for a delayed Tour De France in late Augu...

With the world going into lockdown, indoor riding is, unsurprisingly, on the rise. Turbo trainers are selling out faster than toilet rolls and training app subscriber numbers have gone though the roof. We spend the day in a London studio with Mathieu van der Poel and the copious film crew to find out why Zwift is leading the way in the market. The Rouleur Longreads Podcast brings you selected long...

A Rouleur podcast special, brought to you by Cycling in Flanders and the Ronde van Vlaanderen . We're proud be to be able to support our friends at Cycling in Flanders by syndicating this podcast, which will transport cycling fans to an era of unwritten, thrilling cycling history - just as if you were listening to the commentary to a genuine, live cycling race. Get ready for a story with some incr...

Cycling commentator and editor of the Road Book Ned Boulting is, like many of us, figuring out how to continue working in unprecedented times. How is he filling his time? Will the mighty Road Book be a narrow tome next year? And why has he deleted his Twitter account, just when everyone else is using it more than ever?   Nathan Haas, meanwhile, is in lockdown in Girona. The Cofidis rider, who...

“My world collapsed. I wasn’t a cyclist anymore. From one moment to another, I lost not only my job, but also what I like to do. They took away a part of my personality. There was a lot of crying in the time after.” A professional cyclist’s heart is trained to be as big and strong as possible, allowing it to pump massive amounts of blood and oxygen around the body. Most cyclists have a ticker 50 p...

"Anything from crazy, weird videos which are not like cycling’s really had before, to an interesting way to launch a kit and buy some merch, listen to some music, and get all my favourite loves of music, cycling, cars, motorbikes and fashion, lumping it all in one night and going: ‘I hope you lot like it.’ And if you don’t, I’m screwed!” Tekkerz founder Alec Briggs joins Ian Parkinson at the Levi’...

Belgium often gets a bad rap. Not without some justification. Geographically, its scenery isn't much to look at: mile upon mile of fields and farmland. Culturally, "name ten famous Belgians" used to be a popular parlour game (for those of us with parlours). Politically, Belgium is a basket case: it mostly doesn't have a government and one of its biggest parties has advocated for the abolition...

The Classics season got underway at the weekend with two opening races in Flanders - Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne Brussel Kuurne. Ian Parkinson was there to talk one-day tactics with first-year pro Fred Wright of Bahrain McLaren and EF Pro Cycling’s Jens Keukeleire. And the men behind The Deserter blog leave their natural home in the pubs of South London for the beer tent in the dune...

It won’t surprise you that the man who coached Rohan Dennis to his stunning Worlds time trial win last year has some interesting things to say about training. Neal Henderson is ‘Head of Science’ at The Sufferfest app and he’s joined by ‘Chief Cycling Physiologist’ Mac Cassin. They explain which numbers really matter and why most of us are probably looking at the wrong ones. Desire E...

Looking for a more portable way to enjoy your favourite cycling magazine? You’re in luck, as this week sees the launch of the Rouleur Longreads Podcast: selected long form articles from the magazine, especially recorded for Rouleur. Don’t stop what you’re doing – do it while listening to the world’s best cycling writing. We begin with ‘The Rise of Gravel’ by Hugo Gladstone, from  Rouleur 20.1...

British Cycling has dominated the sport - especially on the track - for more than a decade - but at what cost? That’s the central question in a new book 'The Medal Factory', by one of the country’s most experienced cycling journalists - Kenny Pryde. On this podcast, Kenny talks through the extraordinary transformation of British Cycling from its underfunded, amateur past to its world beating, gold...

Rouleur editor Andy McGrath’s in-depth interview with Marcel Kittel is our lead feature for issue 20.1, out soon. One of the most prolific sprinters of his generation stepped away from the sport last year at the age of 31, to the surprise of many. Why?   Andy discusses Kittel’s decision with host Ian Parkinson. It’s not a cut and dry ‘mental health’ issue, he concludes, but more a matter of j...

Adam Blythe rode for some of the biggest teams in racing over his ten-year professional career – Tinkoff, BMC, Orica-Greenedge and Lotto Soudal – but it was his year with British squad NFTO that proved most fruitful and fun, including his win at RideLondon in 2014. Adam joins our own Stuart Clapp and host Ian Parkinson on the sofa at the Rouleur Classic to talk through past, present and future, th...

The always-ebullient Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig joins Ian Parkinson to explain how she went from stacking supermarket shelves to being a major talent in the Women’s World Tour, with podium finishes at Trofeo Alfredo Binda, Tour of Flanders and La Course. The young Dane moves to a French team next season, and promises to keep her attacking style. “That’s how I love racing, the harder the better.”&n...

We are going long distance for a change on the latest Rouleur podcast.    Lachlan Morton of EF Education First joins us to explain his thinking behind tackling some unusual and challenging events this season, a million miles away from the standard pro road racers’ fare.    From the GB Duro – Land’s End to John O’Groats mostly on bridleways and country lanes – which Morton won,...

“Jean de Gribaldy said no sex for two weeks before a one-day race, no sex four weeks before a big tour, so you never had sex! There was that fear that it would take energy away from the riders.”   We were honoured and delighted to have Greg and Kathy LeMond as our special guests for the entirety of the Rouleur Classic. They were both on absolutely sparkling form throughout the three days of t...

Tom Pidcock launched his new team Trinity Racing before launching into a full season of racing in the mud and dirt of top level cyclo-cross on the Continent. The reigning under-23 ‘cross world champion had a decent road season too – first at Paris-Roubaix espoirs, stage and overall at Tour Alsace, and a terrific performance with the entire GB team at Tour de l’Avenir before a horror crash on a sta...

Mark Cavendish, Caleb Ewan and Owain Doull guide us through the upcoming Six Day London at the Lee Valley Velopark. How does Cav make sense of the Madison? Can Caleb find his track legs in his first ever Six? And can Owain and the vastly experienced Cavendish topple the talented Italian duo of Viviani and Consonni? Ian Parkinson visits Christian Dagnoni in Milan to marvel over his family’s stunnin...

Yorkshire is once again the centre of the cycling world and the podcast comes direct from Rouleur's temporary home - the Corner Haus Belgian bar in Harrogate. Ian Parkinson is joined by Ned Boulting and Rebecca Charlton, looking back at the championship so far and looking ahead to the star events - the men's and women's elite road races. Will Vos be unstoppable or will the home crowd cheer home Yo...

Ian Parkinson travels to Spain to meet Joseba Arizaga from Orbea and ride their brand spanking new Orca OMX. Proudly Basque, cooperatively owned and backers of Fundación Euskadi, they do things differently at Orbea.    Our man Stu Clapp is back from his travels and full of beans, just for a change. Apart from holidaying in Japan, he’s been getting up close and personal with some classic...

Yanto Barker explains how 20,000 hours of riding as a pro inspired his quest to make better kit with his clothing brand Le Col. "I'm one of those rare people who will say the customer is wrong, which my team find really uncomfortable, but the fact is I am an expert." And we hear from the first non-European to wear the Maillot Jaune, the Australian great Phil Anderson. More than forty years since h...

Not many former pros can boast as varied a career as Rob Hayles. The former Cofidis rider and British national champion holds Commonweath and Olympic medals, and track World Championships golds in the team pursuit and Madison (with Mark Cavendish). On retiring in 2009, Hayles slipped seamlessly into a commentating role for television and radio, but also repairs carbon frames and, interestingl...

A very special Desire edition of the podcast as we reach for the sky at Biggin Hill airport with Spitfires and Hurricanes as a backdrop. Talking over the mighty roar of Rolls Royce Merlin engines are Desire editor Stuart Clapp, Claire Beaumont from Condor Cycles, photographer Benedict Campbell and your host, Ian Parkinson. Claire explains how a medium-sized shop in London competes w...

An honest and revealing interview with Jonathan Vaughters of EF Education First. "I realised what my performance could be with EPO and I realised what it could be without it. Once you realise that, any time you're racing without it....you kind of give up." Jonathan Vaughters has always been one of the most outspoken voices in pro-cycling and, in his new book One Way Ticket, he talks frankly about...