Episodes
Sunday Feb 11, 2024
Sunday Feb 11, 2024
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast dive into the latest rumors on the breakaway One Cycling league while attempting to discern the ultimate vision behind the project before touching on how Red Bull's surprise acquisition of the Bora-Hansgrohe team will affect the immediate future of the team, and the sport, before getting into some light Spring Classics speculation.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) on Twitter/X & Spencer (@spencersoward) on Threads with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Friday Jan 26, 2024
January Ramble: WT Stars vs Gravel Pros & Early-Season Racing Breakdown
Friday Jan 26, 2024
Friday Jan 26, 2024
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss the trend of major WorldTour stars like Matej Mohorič building top gravel events into their racing calendars and how it could affect the existing ecosystem and if it could potentially spell the end of the privateer model. Then they break down the early-season racing action and go through what we can take from events like the recent CX Benidorm WC and Tour Down Under.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) on Twitter/X & Spencer (@spencersoward) on Threads with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Saturday Jan 13, 2024
Saturday Jan 13, 2024
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast go through a list of topics to kick off the 2024 season, including, but not limited to, Mathieu van der Poel's unprecedented dominance in Cyclocross, Andrew's theory about Wout van Aert and Tom Pidcock emerging as GC threats in 2024, and Ineos' takeover of Manchester United and how it may diminish the program's cycling division.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) on Twitter/X & Spencer (@spencersoward) on Threads with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Tuesday Nov 28, 2023
Riley Sheehan on His Breakout 2023 Season & Future Goals
Tuesday Nov 28, 2023
Tuesday Nov 28, 2023
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast sit down with recent Paris-Tours winner Riley Sheehan to discuss his breakout 2023 season, which saw him rise from a US-based criterium racer to winning a major professional European race. They also talk about his newly signed three-year deal with the Israel-Premier Tech team, how his life has changed over the last few months, and his goals for the 2024 season and beyond.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) & Spencer (@btpcycling) on Twitter/X with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Thursday Nov 16, 2023
Why GCN+ is being shut down & what it means for the future of watching bike races
Thursday Nov 16, 2023
Thursday Nov 16, 2023
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast break down the news that the fantastic GCN+ cycling-specific streaming service is being shut down in December and dive deep into the potential reasons for this sudden ending. They speculate on what platform, if any, will allow Americans to watch non-ASO races in the 2024 season, as well as touching on Wout van Aert's apparent plan to race the Giro d'Italia over the Tour de France in 2024 and Geraint Thomas' interesting off-season admissions.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) & Spencer (@btpcycling) on Twitter/X with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Saturday Nov 04, 2023
Why cycling’s rumored new professional league will have a difficult path to success
Saturday Nov 04, 2023
Saturday Nov 04, 2023
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast go over the reports that Jumbo-Visma CEO Richard Plugge is leading a new cycling breakaway league and the rumors that Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, PIF, is providing financing. They break down how credible the reporting is around the deal, the implications for the sport the league would have if it actually came together, and why we've seen so many failed attempts at this in the past.
At the end of the episode, they identify a few troubling trends around the US gravel racing scene and tie up a few loose ends around their BWR Kansas participation.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) & Spencer (@btpcycling) on Twitter/X with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Saturday Oct 21, 2023
BWR Kansas Recap & Big-Picture Gravel Thoughts
Saturday Oct 21, 2023
Saturday Oct 21, 2023
In a departure from the normal program, Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss their experience racing at the recent BWR Kansas event (Wafer distance), what they learned about prepping for gravel events with vague course instructions, their gear setups and how they view the discipline after having competed at a high-level gravel event.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) & Spencer (@btpcycling) on Twitter/X with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Thursday Oct 12, 2023
Jumbo-Visma CEO Richard Plugge on Building Cycling’s Modern Superteam
Thursday Oct 12, 2023
Thursday Oct 12, 2023
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast sit down with Jumbo-Visma Managing Director/CEO Richard Plugge to discuss how he transformed the down-and-out Rabobank team into the modern winning machine that is Jumbo-Visma. They go through how he went from being the team's communication officer to owner/CEO in just six months, how the team slowly built a framework to identify and develop the sport's best young talent, the financial future of both his team and the sport, the team's decision to send both Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglič to the Vuelta a España and much, much more.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) & Spencer (@btpcycling) on Twitter/X with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Friday Oct 06, 2023
Friday Oct 06, 2023
Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast attempt to figure out what is going on behind the scenes after hearing the news that the Jumbo-Visma/Soudal-QuickStep merger has been called off and that Primož Roglič is headed to Bora-Hansgrohe for the 2024 season. They also give their predictions for the upcoming Il Lombardia race and Gravel World Championships, along with their continued preparation for the upcoming BWR Lawrence event.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) & Spencer (@btpcycling) on Twitter/X with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Jumbo-Visma/QuickStep Merger Rumors, Final Vuelta a España Thoughts & Gravel Ramble
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
Thursday Sep 28, 2023
After their special guest had to reschedule at the last minute, Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast discuss the rumors of a potential Jumbo-Visma/Soudal-QuickStep merger and give their final thoughts on Jumbo's recent podium sweep at the Vuelta a España before getting into the weeds on gravel racing/riding and their preparation for the upcoming BWR Lawrence event.
Get in-depth race breakdowns with the BTP newsletter
Listen to Andrew's Choose the Hard Way Podcast
Hit up Andrew (@vontz) & Spencer (@btpcycling) on Twitter/X with your questions, opinions, and anything else cycling-related.