Spin Cycle

Silca’s new StripChip claims to take (most) of the hassle out of properly immersion-waxing your chain, but while it sounds promising, Dave’s got his doubts. Favero unveiled its long-awaited SPD-compatible power meter pedals for MTB and gravel, and although they tick a lot of boxes, pedals in general may not be the best power meter format for everyone. In big-brand component news, we read the tea l...

Jonny Long and Dane Cash join Caley Fretz on the Placeholders this week for a form check as early-season racing ramps up. The crew also circles the Plugge hole (Erzen's version) and makes some knee-jerk predictions ahead of Opening Weekend.

Abby, Gracie, and Loren break down the major talking points from Setmana Ciclista Valenciana over the weekend and what to look for at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad coming up on Saturday. Plus, we’re all excited about one rider on the start-list for Omloop van het Hageland!

Whilst down in Australia for the Tour Down Under and the Deakin University Road Race, our very own Matilda Raynolds sat down with Heidi Franz, rider for Lifeplus Wahoo, for a chat. They discussed Heidi’s last couple of years in the sport, how cycling should differ from gymnastics, popular Aussie phrases you should know, and much more. We hope you enjoy this bonus Wheel Talk episode, and Abby, Lore...

This is the third episode in our series that takes a deep dive into what the bike industry experienced during the covid boom and how it got into the trouble it’s in now. In Episode 2, we heard from various industry professionals about the early warning signals that told them that this bubble was about to burst, and some of the reckless behaviour and pressure that was being put onto various parts o...

Colnago recently debuted its latest C68 model – the C68 Gravel – and while it seems like a pretty nice gravel bike in its own right, what’s more interesting is understanding more about what that new bike means for Colnago’s strategy in general moving forward, particularly since being bought by a UAE-based investment group in 2020. In this members-only episode, James sits down with Colnago CEO Nico...

It’s time for another episode of Geek Warning. Dave and Ronan are back to discuss the latest happenings in the world of cycling tech and what’s on their minds. Ritchey and Factor have new bike (frame) releases that sit near polar opposites of the road market. Ritchey has brought back its well-loved Road Logic frames, while Factor’s Ostro VAM, a bike we’ve looked at before , is now officially offic...

Jonny Long, Kit Nicholson, and Dane Cash join Caley Fretz on this week Placeholders to cover all of the big news as racing is heating up around the world from Oman to Colombia.

In episode one we heard about the unexpected windfall that the cycling industry saw at the start of the pandemic and how many needed to react.  Of course that didn’t last forever, and in this episode I’ve titled ‘the storm clouds’ we talk about the early signs that this new demand was coming to an abrupt halt, and the types of behaviour that was happening and the causes of that behaviour that led...

Loren Rowney is back to discuss all the action from the UAE Tour with Gracie and Abby. They try to answer questions like: Will Kopecky’s form impact Vollering’s Classics goals, and what will that mean for SD Worx - Protime as a whole? And is there a cuter couple than Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce (there isn’t)?

In this 4 part series, I wanted to explore the events that took place that led the bike industry to the troubling point it’s at now. I spoke to over a dozen industry professionals from all parts of the supply chain. From well run bike shops, forecasting analysts, distributors, the biggest bike brands in the world, and manufacturers.  It’s well known that the bicycle industry went through an unprec...

JP Ballard joins us once again for part one of our Performance Process deep dive into all things aerodynamics. Ballard is founder and CEO of aerodynamics specialists Swiss Side. The Swiss company produces wheels and aero calf sleeves, but the majority of its work is in offering its aerodynamic expertise to other manufacturers in the cycling industry. Ballard first joined us for a pit walk critiqui...

Welcome back to Geek Warning. In this episode, Dave and Ronan talk through a bunch of the biggest tech news in the cycling world and cover a few test products at the top of their minds. It’s hard to find a new racing product today that doesn’t at least tease the “aero” word, however, TuboLight may just be the first to make such a claim for a product that goes inside the tyre. The recently seen sho...

Ronan Mc Laughlin, Jonny Long, and Kit Nicholson join Caley Fretz to discuss the rumors of a potential (and large) investment in bike racing from a Saudi Arabian firm as well as the news of the UCI banning a pedal and Zdeněk Štybar's retirement.

Helen Wyman joined Abby for this fantastic episode of the Wheel Talk Podcast. The two talk about all the action from the U23 and Elite races at the World Championships over the weekend, answer listener questions about families in Cyclocross, Lucinda Brand, and more. Plus, lots of laughter. This was such a good episode we’ve even got a longer version exclusively for the members of Escape Collective...

With much of the industry languishing under the post-Covid, brands are trying harder than ever to carve out a niche for themselves to stay afloat. Colnago’s new C68 Gravel bike is super premium by design, but based on their sales figures, the focus on luxury is clearly getting the job done. Campagnolo seems to be falling into the same strategy almost by accident, but is it working as well? That’s...

It’s time for another gathering of the geeks for an episode of Ask a Wrench. In this member’s bonus episode, Zach (of Boulder Gruppetto), James, and Dave answer more technical questions submitted by Escape members. This week, the geeks answer questions related to using alternative cassette options, fitting bigger cassette ranges than allowed, selecting parts for the Paris-Roubaix sportive, replaci...

Abby Mickey, Dane Cash, and Ronan Mc Laughlin join Caley Fretz to talk Red Bull, MyWhoosh, Ekoi, and more ...

This week on the Wheel Talk Podcast, Tils (Matilda Raynolds) is back to chat with Gracie and Abby about the Deakin University Road Race.

This week's episode of Performance Process delves deep into the topic of heat and how it can be both a powerful, free, and accessible training intervention and a major problem. In the podcast, we speak to Chris Bloomfield-Brown, a performance engineer for most of his life, in everything motorsport to pro bike racing and with plenty of work in triathlon along the way. Chris is perhaps best known in...

There’s always something going on in the world of cycling tech. This week, James and Dave discuss a bunch of news items, what their favourite clothing is for shoulder season, and a little safety warning related to new tyres. It’s been a busy week of tech news out of Europe and the UK. First up, the heritage brand of Eddy Merckx is back, but looking at the range today, it looks a lot like business...

There’s an undeniable truth that an overnight success takes about 10 years, not a single night. Almost no one comes up with a winning business idea all at once. And if you’re not Peter and Tom Marchment or those around them who created the aftermarket wheel brand Hunt, you might be mistaken that they came out of nowhere.  Tom and Peter are brothers who grew up riding in a small fishing village on...

Dane Cash, Jonny Long, and Kit Nicholson join Caley Fretz on this week's Placeholders to talk about where the Ineos Grenadiers find themselves in 2024, the latest from the 'cross scene, and whether pro cycling should have a draft.

Matilda Raynolds, or Tils as she’s known to the members of the Wheel Talk Podcast Discord group (available to members of Escape Collective), joins Gracie and Abby on the podcast this week with some insider information on the Tour Down Under and some thoughts on the upcoming Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race. And, as promised, here is a link to G Flips's cover of Cruel Summer by Taylor Swift .

Rupert Guinness, Ronan Mc Laughlin and Matt de Neef breakdown a fascinating final stage of the men's Tour Down Under and discuss the race's biggest winners and losers. Plus: a look at the logistics of moving the WorldTour peloton over to Victoria for the upcoming Cadel's Race.