Leadville, The 100 Mile Mountain Bike Race Podcast p/b Shimano

If you're ever at a Leadville Party and the energy starts to lag, you know with 100% certainty you can jumpstart the conversation by asking, "So what tires are the best for Leadville?" In reality, though, that question doesn't really make much sense until you understand the anatomy of tires: their composition and performance characteristics. That’s what we aim to do in this show. To help us, we have recruited someone who has no bra...

We're excited to have Dylan Johnson back on the show to talk about how to approach the big X-Factor in the LT100: altitude. Dylan puts thought into every race and every situation and in the case of Leadville, he worked very hard at getting his arrival to high altitude right.  He’s here to share his approach and how the citizen racer can figure out how to lessen the blow of Leadville’s biggest challenge: it’s lack of air. And for ou...

Dr Allen Lim knows more about sports nutrition than most of us know about...well, anything. And he knows the Leadville course, too. We have a feeling this is going to be one of those episodes that people refer back to, over and over. We also get into the question of how much time we've shaved (or in Fatty's case, increased) between our first and second years of racing the LT100, along with how much time course knowledge buys you. D...

There was a time when the choice between hardtail and full-suspension bikes at the Leadville 100 was obvious: hardtail if you wanted to be fast and efficient, full-suspension if you wanted to be slow and comfortable.

Times have changed, and full-suspension bikes can now be a no-compromise solution for the Race Across the Sky. In today's episode, we get expert advice on setting up your suspension for the Leadville 100, and take a fi...

The white corral is not an easy place to kick off the Leadville 100 MTB. There are thousands of riders ahead of you, there’s anxiety, there’s uncertainty, and there’s a HUGE question hanging over your head, probably playing back in a never-ending loop: “Can I get back to 6th and Harrison and get a buckle?” In this episode we will take a look at what the numbers say about that question. Don't miss this conversation with Jeff Dieffen...

Many endurance athletes have turned to wearables to monitor their sleep and recovery. In this episode we take a look at this growing trend with Dr Kevin Sprouse to find whether — and how — regular racers can use these devices to recover smarter and faster. We also take on a great listener question in our LFAQ segment: "What 5 things do you wish you had known the first time you raced the LT100MTB?" We think first-time (and second-ti...

We're excited to welcome back Chad Timmerman: head coach and co-founder of TrainerRoad to talk about heat: how to leverage it during and after training (and how much it helps), as well as how to beat the heat on race day, and why it's important to do so. 

You can't change the weather conditions outside, but you can be smart about how you react. This episode is full of great advice from a real cycling thoug...

Dr Dan Smilkstein was the oldest person to finish the Leadville 100 MTB race last year. This recently-retired doctor — and father, and grandfather — is way more than just a badass cyclist. He's a runner, a skiier (both cross-country and Alpine), a rock and ice climber, a mountaineerer, a backpacker, a hockey player, and more. He's an offroad unicyclist, for crying out loud.

Our point is, Dr Dan has a lot of great stories to tell, b...

CJ and Jaxon have no right to be racing the Leadville 100 this smart. After all, in 2022 these brothers were just 18 and 20 when they raced the LT100 for the first time. While they wouldn't claim to have raced a perfect race, they certainly avoided a lot of the mistakes most first-timers make, while still learning a lot, challenging each other, and collecting the first of what we'll assume will be many buckles to come. Enjoy this e...

If you're planning on racing the LT100MTB this year — or any year in the future — you will not want to miss this episode. We pepper (in a nice way) Life Time's Ryan Cross with questions about how the race is changing (no aero bars or anything like aero bars for example as well as what we'd like to see changed (the 3x White Corral), and even stuff you probably haven't even thought of (why is there no Pipeline Alternate aid station?)...

Winter can bring on a slump in fitness, both from a physical and mental point of view. In this episode, TrainerRoad's Jonathan Lee joins to help give us a kick in the seat, as well as some encouragement and a strategy for success.

Also, Hottie and Fatty kick off our new "LFAQ" show segment: Leadville Frequently-Asked Questions. In this episode, we talk about our 2-week and 1-week pre-ride recommendations, along with the importance ...

We love a good Leadville story, and John Gaston is a great storyteller. And it doesn't hurt that the only guy who could beat him in the 2022 LT100MTB was some guy named Keegan. 

The crazy thing is, racing bikes is not really what he's into. They're more of his side hustle -- his off-season way to stay sharp and in shape. 

But that doesn't mean he doesn't sweat the details, and it for sure doesn't mean he doesn't know his way around...

Fatty and Hottie join a wide array of experts to talk you through your final prep for the big race. Merilee and Ken welcome you to the family, two-time-defending champion Rose Grant describes her race strategy and why it doesn't change depending on others, Tamira Jenlink and Ryan Cross underscore the most important things you should think about for the race (including the weather), and two of the smartest and most-experienced cycli...