With Pace

Latest Episodes:

Lizzie Deignan, professional road cyclist Dec 14, 2021

Show notes

Lizzie Deignan has held just about every title available to road racers. She was the 2015 World Champion, won silver medal at the 2012 Olympics in London, and is a four time British national champion. She has also won the prestigious trio of races consisting of the Tour of Flanders, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and the inaugural women's Paris-Rubaix earlier this year.
In this conversation, Lizzie recounts her experience at Rubaix, including what it was like encountering the infamous cobbles for the first time, being pursued by Marianne Vos, and vomiting in the final miles of the race. She also talks about how becoming a mother midway through her career was a liberating experience. At a time when cycling wasn’t bringing her joy, she says that she “wanted to do something that was just an emotional, non-logical decision.” She talks about balancing family life with racing, and why having a child has actually extended rather than shortened her career.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Kimo Seymour, President of Events and Media at Life Time, on a new era of off-road racing Dec 07, 2021

Show notes

In his role as President of Events and Media at Life Time, Kimo Seymour has been instrumental in the acquisition and shaping of mass participation off-road events such as Unbound Gravel and Leadville. Last week, Life Time announced a first-of-its-kind gravel series, where 40 professional riders (20 male and 20 female) will vie for $250,000 in prize money over the course of six races. The series, known as the Grand Prix, is comprised of three gravel races and three cross country races, including the Sea Otter Classic, Unbound Gravel, the Leadville 100, and Big Sugar.
Kimo talks to Payson about why they decided to create the Grand Prix, how they think it will benefit the non-professional racers, and some of the criticism that the series has received since being announced. They also talk about Life Time’s surprise acquisition of the Sea Otter Classic, and where Kimo hopes mass participation off-road events are headed.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Riley Amos, XC mountain bike racer Nov 30, 2021

Show notes

Riley Amos became the breakout star of cross country racing earlier this year when he became the first American male to win a U23 World Cup . At just 19 and in his first year out of the junior ranks, he also snagged the podium at two other World Cup races in Albstadt, Germany and Nové Město, Czech Republic. He entered the 2021 season with uncertainty about his prospects as a professional rider, only to leave the season with offers from every factory team on the circuit. Last week, it was announced that he would be joining Trek Factory Racing for the 2022 season.
Riley tells Payson about getting to grips with his success, learning to negotiate contract terms, and the agonizing decision between two of the industry's most celebrated teams. He also talks about balancing college finals while racing World Cups in Europe, why he's already thinking about paying it forward by mentoring young riders, and what it's like becoming teammates with your heroes. He also tells the story of his final race of the season, OZ Trails, when he bonked so hard that he started riding the course backward when he was less than half a mile from winning the race.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Jamie Bestwick, 14x X Games BMX champion, on discovering gravel and the dark side of athletic greatness Nov 23, 2021

Show notes

For over 20 years, Jamie Bestwick reigned as one of BMX's most decorated athletes in the history of the sport. Since competing in his first X Games in 1996, he's won 14 gold medals at the event, including in nine consecutive years. In 2005, he won every single event in which he competed. Now he's found a new outlet: gravel racing.
In this conversation, Jamie tells Payson about his harrowing experience racing at Unbound Gravel earlier this year, including what made him complete the 206 miles in spite of nearly quitting halfway through, and why he can't wait to do it again next year. They also talk about his BMX career and the tradeoffs he had to make to be the best in the world. They discuss the dark side of achieving athletic greatness, and the tragic passing of his friend and competitor, Dave Mirra. Jamie also tells Payson about coaching Team GB BMX rider Charlotte Worthington to victory at the Tokyo Olympics earlier this year, and explains why her surprise upset of American superstar Hannah Roberts was actually the result of a carefully calculated strategy.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Matt Phillips, Senior Tech Editor at Bicycling Magazine Nov 20, 2021

Show notes

Matt Phillips has ridden more bikes than perhaps anyone else in the world. And over the last 30 years reviewing cycling gear, he's tried just about everything the industry has to offer. But his job is not always the dream career that cycling enthusiasts might imagine. In this conversation, Matt opens up about the unsettled relationship between his work as a tech journalist and his struggles with mental health. While much of his job involves riding new bikes and testing cutting edge equipment, it also includes criticism from readers and brands, and the pressure to maintain quality content and adapt to the rapidly changing landscape of media and journalism.
He talks about why he pushes himself to be a technically skilled rider, what he wishes the industry would focus on more, the death of print media, why gravel is the answer to road's innovation problem, and why he doesn't see athletes creating their own media as a threat to his own work.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Reed Boggs, freeride mountain biker Nov 13, 2021

Show notes

Reed Boggs is a freeride mountain biker who placed third at this year’s Red Bull Rampage. The event is known for pushing the boundaries of freeriding and has seen its fair share of groundbreaking runs. Reed has competed in three Rampages, and explains why, in his case, experience was the only way to success. He also talks about how he got into freeriding as a teenager from suburban Ohio, why he wasn't sure that he'd even get to ride in this year's Rampage, and why he's outspoken about riding responsibly on public and private land.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Joe Cruz, bikepacker and Professor of Philosophy at Williams College Nov 05, 2021

Show notes

Joe Cruz has been bikepacking since the 80s, when a college trip introduced him to the excitement and challenge of multi-day cycling adventures. Since then, he's raced and bikepacked his way across the world, including journeys through Ethiopia, Patagonia, Pakistan, and Tibet. When he's not riding his bike, he is Professor of Philosophy at Williams College in Massachusetts, where he also chairs the Cognitive Science Program.
In this interview, Joe talks about how the physicality and adventure of bikepacking complements his academic work, why the pace of cycling invites a unique form of philosophical thinking, and how he works to avoid entitlement or expectation when encountering new cultures on his bikepacking trips. He also talks about being held captive for almost an hour in a village in Ethiopia, and the trip he took through Pakistan during the height of the War on Terror.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Alexey Vermeulen, pro cyclist Oct 26, 2021

Show notes

Alexey Vermeulen began his career racing on the WorldTour circuit for Jumbo Visma. After falling out of love with the road scene, he decided to transition to gravel and mountain bike racing in 2018. Since then, his results have included second and first place finishes at the Iceman Cometh in consecutive years, and third at Belgian Waffle Ride. In this conversation, he talks about his decision to change the trajectory of his career early on, and the steep learning curve of switching from road racing, which he had been chasing since he was a teenager, to the relatively unknown quantity of mountain biking. He also talks why 2020 was a good year for privateer cyclists, and the video series he created with Ryan Petry for Outside, in which they selected three amateur riders to train and prepare for the Leadville 100.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Nat Ross, Hall of Fame mountain biker Oct 19, 2021

Show notes

Nat Ross has many firsts to his name. He was the first rider to race a World Cup on 29 inch wheels, the first winner of the Marathon National Championships, and competed in the first X Games...in two disciplines. He's also competed in forty 24 hour races and won nine, including two World Championships. During his professional racing career, he was often at the front of the line to try the latest innovations from industry legends whose names are now synonymous with the technology they pioneered, including Gary Fisher, Keith Bontrager, and Stan Koziatek.
In this interview, he tells Payson about the battle to get 29-inch wheels approved by the UCI, being one of the first riders to adopt tubeless technology and full suspension, and the year he competed in the Triathlon World Championships and won the four man relay Race Across America. He also talks about moving to Bentonville, Arkansas from Golden, Colorado, the initiatives he's starting there to get kids into cycling, and why his 1997 Gold Medal from the Great American Beer Festival remains his proudest achievement.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Sarah Sturm, professional gravel racer Oct 12, 2021

Show notes

Sarah Sturm returns to catch up with Payson about how her life and career have changed since her first time on the show in 2020. She talks about learning to say no to things, why she doesn't like going back to races she's already done, and the imposter syndrome she still feels on the start line no matter how many wins and professional successes she achieves. They discuss how she chooses her race schedule, the hypocrisy of being an adventure advocate on Instagram, and why she's feeling pretty relaxed about getting older. They also talk about their Enneagram personality types, the sensitivity of teenage boys, and conducting social media from the toilet.

Instagram: @withpacepodcast
YouTube: Payson McElveen

Email: howdy@withpace.cc

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected