Cycling in Alignment with Colby Pearce

Thoughts on the Teeter Totter of Cadence and Torque - Ep 164

Most often, riders associate making power with pushing harder on the pedals. The sensation of the bottom of the shoe providing resistance against the plantar surface [bottom] of the foot is how the sensation of “going hard” is processed. 

However, speed on a bicycle is dictated by the complex interaction of weather [including wind, temperature, pressure and humidity], ter...

A Conversation with Brendan Housler: Bits and Pieces about Bicycle Practice - Ep163

This is a conversation with Brendan Housler of EVOQ.BIKE. It’s a friendly game of verbal ping pong in which we discuss many topics that seem to bounce around in cycling at the moment. These include what FTP is, the challenges with ERG mode when indoor training, how group rides impact your training program, and figuring out whether a rider might bene...

Austin Einhorn: Thinking Critically - Part 2 - Ep161

This is part 2 of this discussion. In this episode, Austin and I continue to slay some sacred cows in the fitness world such as “shoulders down and back” and “brace the core”. Austin explains why he doesn’t agree with these platitudes. 

We also discuss at length the concept of standards of strength for all athletes.

We agree that cycling is fundamentally biomechanically similar t...

Austin Einhorn: Thinking Critically - Part 1 - Ep161

In this discussion with strength coach Austin Einhorn, 

Along the way, we slay some sacred cows in the fitness world such as “shoulders down and back” and “brace the core”. Austin explains why he doesn’t agree with these platitudes. 

We also discuss at length the concept of standards of strength for all athletes.

We agree that cycling is fundamentally biomechanically similar to r...

Pre-50, Post-50 Relationship to Cycling - Ep160

In this walking podcast, I unpack my thoughts on training and how it might differ for athletes younger than 50 vs older than 50. On a previous podcast, I spoke to Phil Cavell about his book The Mid Life Cyclist, which also covers this topic.  My thoughts are around Intensive training vs extensive training, but perhaps not in the typical sense they are discussed in cycling lexicon.

Co...

Thomas McDaniel: Knowledge is Horizontal (Part 2) - Ep159

This the second part of a conversation is with Thomas McDaniel, who has been in the cycling world for many years. He is currently completing his PhD at CU Boulder in Advanced Biomechanics. In the past, Thomas has been a PT, a bike mechanic, a bike fitter, and worked at Specialized, BMC and Trek. 

Thomas and I are aligned in that we prefer to educate rather than treat our...

Thomas McDaniel: Knowledge is Horizontal - Ep158

This conversation is with Thomas McDaniel, who has been in the cycling world for many years. He is currently completing his PhD at CU Boulder in Advanced Biomechanics. In the past, Thomas has been a PT, a bike mechanic, a bike fitter, and worked at Specialized, BMC and Trek. 

Thomas and I are aligned in that we prefer to educate rather than treat our clients and the people in our...

The Inner Self - Ep157

In this walking podcast I share some of my thoughts about how you can be your own medicine and claim authority over your life. In this day and age we have access to so much information, it can be simultaneously overpowering and also paralyzing. 

What I offer is a perspective on the difference between knowledge and understanding, and how each of these serve us in our lives. 

Think critically, pedal consciously...

Tyler Benner: It Feels Easy When you do it Right - Ep156

This episode is a conversation with Tyler Benner from Strong Feet Athletics. Tyler was a member of the US National Archery team for about a decade, and a lifelong athlete. 

He has spent the last 10 years making the world’s first barefoot style cycling shoe that is mass produced. They just started shipping the first model, The Leviathan, about a week ago as of the time of this...

Lore: Creating Unicorns - Ep155

This podcast is a conversation with Lore CEO and founder Stephan Drake and lead engineer Rob Horacheck. If you haven’t seen or heard of Lore shoes, come out from under the rock you are living under and see the future of cycling footwear. Lore is a fully custom 3D printed carbon fiber shoe. Let that sink in for a moment. It’s a complete departure from any how any cycling shoe has been made in the hist...

Ben Serotta: Where Does Responsibility Begin and End? - Ep154

This conversation is with legendary bike builder Ben Serotta. 

Ben has been building bikes since the year I was born [1972!]. He is also one of the pioneers of bike fitting, founding the Serotta International Cycling Institute in the late 90’s, and creating the Size Cycle, so fitters could start from scratch to build a custom bike for a given athlete. 

We discuss some of...

Menachem-Brodie (Part 2) - Ep153

Greetings Well Dippers.

This is the second part of my conversation with Strength and Conditioning coach Menachem Brodie. If you missed part 1, feel free to start here but you won’t have the full picture until you listen to the first part of our discourse. 

Hopefully this conversation reminds you to move consciously.

You may have heard Menachem on the Fast Talk Labs podcast, or read some of his writi...

Menachem Brodie – Part 1 – Ep 151

Happy New Year Spartans and Archadians. 

This conversation is with strength and conditioning coach Menachem Brodie. This podcast was recorded for his channel, The Strong Savvy Cyclist & Triathlete Podcast, and I thought my listeners might enjoy our conversation as well so it is republished here. We recorded two podcasts and this is the first round.. 

We wander into various aspects of strength a...

Relationship to Cycling - Ep151

In this final walking podcast for this year, I ask you to consider what your relationship is to cycling, and does this relationship serve you? I unpack a few archetypes of riders I have worked with and raced with over the years. 

Everyone has their own relationship to the sport. From my perspective, there is no “right” or “wrong” way to relate to cycling, this is a child’s perspective. We can think p...

More Thoughts on Shoes and Feet - Ep150

This walking podcast is a bit of a rambling pile of thoughts on shoes and feet, in relation or response to some discussions I have had recently including feedback from my audience. 

Specifically, I address the commonly held belief that in cycling, the best way to have good “power transfer” is to immobilize the foot in a rigid cocoon of carbon fiber and thermoplastic. This is incorrect. 

The h...

The Two Fulcrum Problem of Cycling - Ep149

In this walking pod, I talk about the Two Fulcrum Problem of Cycling, which is a term I made up during the walk to encapsulate the challenges many riders face in their relationship to this relentlessly symmetrical machine. 

I also offer a few short rants on various topics related to modern life. Hopefully these don’t distract too much from the bigger points I am trying to convey. 

Pedal co...

Reflections on the 2004 Olympics - Ep148

In this walking soliloquy, I share some reflections on the 20 year anniversary of the Olympics in Athens, Greece, which I attended as a member of the US team. I competed in the 40KM points race, finishing 14th out of 24 competitors. 

Being on the Olympic team is something I can be proud of, but at the same time something I don’t feel compelled to talk about often. While it is certainly a sig...

Why Bike Fitting is Stupid - Ep147

On this episode I thought I would just dive in and stab a sacred cow in the face. 

I share my thoughts on why bike fitting is “stupid” and by that, I really mean what a few of the challenges are in bike fitting. 

Perhaps you agree or perhaps you do not. Either is OK but if the latter, I hope it is with good critical reasoning instead of someone else’s regurgitated opinion. 

I look forward to your ...