Beyond the Peloton Podcast

Visma/UAE Domination & One Cycling Already In Trouble

Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast break down what we learned during last weekend's Classics, what they expect to happen during this weekend's flurry of top-quality matchups between some of the sport's best riders (as well as making the questionable decision to spend a considerable amount of time talking about Strade-Bianche, which will probably be over by the time this episode is played), and how rival teams and riders can potentially thwart Visma's dominance in the coming weeks. They also discuss the rumors that One Cycling, which was revealed just a few months ago, is already in peril of dying on the vine.

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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.

Early Season Check-In & Julian Alaphilippe/Patrick Lefevere Beef

Spencer Martin of the Beyond the Peloton Newsletter & Andrew Vontz of the Choose the Hard Way Podcast touch on the recent early-season racing, discuss what they expect to happen at the upcoming Spring Classics kick off this weekend at Omloop before attempting to make sense of Patrick Lefevere's strange public lashing out at his star rider Julian .

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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.

Aisha Praught-Leer on High-Performance Training & Her Cycling Fandom

Professional runner Aisha Praught-Leer, 2x Jamaican Olympian and 2018 Commonwealth Games Champion (3000m Steeplechase), sits down to talk about her obsession with WorldTour cycling, her thoughts on what the sport could learn from the high-performance training used in professional running and how top-level athletes prepare for a life after sport.

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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.

One Cycling Rumors, Red Bull's Bora Acquisition & Spring Classics Speculation

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.

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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.

January Ramble: WT Stars vs Gravel Pros & Early-Season Racing Breakdown

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.

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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.

2024 Season Kickoff: MVDP’s absurd CX dominance, GC Wout, Ineos at Manchester United & more

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. 

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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.

Riley Sheehan on His Breakout 2023 Season & Future Goals

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.

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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.

Why GCN+ is being shut down & what it means for the future of watching bike races

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. 

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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.

Why cycling’s rumored new professional league will have a difficult path to success

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.

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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.

BWR Kansas Recap & Big-Picture Gravel Thoughts

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. 

BWR Kansas Wafer Strava File

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.