Watts Occurring

Happy new year to all of our GTCC members! We're back with a bang to kick-start 2024 - by welcoming Egan Bernal to the GTCC.Latin America's first Tour de France winner joined G and Tom to chat about his road to recovery after his life-changing accident.In January 2022, Egan was riding at 60km/h when he hit the back of a parked truck. He broke 20 bones including his spine, femur and kneecap, and his lung collapsed. He was lucky to be alive. Doctors initially warned there was a chance of paralysis.Remarkably, Egan returned to racing eight months later, at the Tour of Denmark. In 2023 he raced both the Tour de France and La Vuelta.And now, he's eyeing up an improved 2024 as he continues his journey back to the racer who changed the sport when he burst onto the scene in 2018.We'll be back next week.Music courtesy of BMG Music Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Merry Christmas GTCCers! G and Tom are back with a little festive bonus pod for you all to enjoy in the classic Christmas lull between the big day and New Year's Eve.Back at the start of December G spent some time with the charity Best Buddies and welcomed the founder of the charity, Anthony Kennedy Shriver, to the GTCC. Best Buddies is a nonprofit organisation dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and inclusive living for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).Cam Wurf, Chris Froome, Magnus Sheffield and Tom Pidcock have all helped Best Buddies in the past and this year G was privileged to lend his own support to the charity. He spoke to Anthony about the charity's work and much more besides.We'll be back in early 2024 with some more brilliant guests on the GTCC. See you then.Music courtesy of BMG Music Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mathieu van der Poel, newly-crowned world champion, talks about his remarkable ride in Glasgow, winning two Monument races at Milan San Remo and Paris-Roubaix. The hosts discuss getting into the Christmas spirit, Quickstep's viral video, and introduce a special guest who is a prominent figure in the cycling world. They also reflect on the challenging World Road Race Championships in Glasgow and discuss Mathieu van der Poel's achievements and aspirations for future races.

It's time for our Annual Watts Occurring Awards Show which means that yes, Luke is back! The boys had a lot of fun at their Mallorca training camp reflecting on a pretty remarkable 2023.And in typical Watts fashion, it's not very polished - with Tom Pidcock making an impromptu appearance and Cam Wurf chipping in from a nearby massage table. Don't worry, we'll never change.The boys run through: Win of the Year, Race of the Year, Rider of the Year, the controversial Flop of the Year, Team of the Year, Grenadier of the Year and Breakthrough of the Year.Agree? Disagree? Let us know on Twitter @Watts_Occurring! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Professional cyclist and winner of the Vuelta a Espana, Sepp Kuss, joins the podcast to discuss his amazing 2023 season, his plans for 2024, and his thoughts on racing his teammates. They also talk about the challenges of winning a Grand Tour and the tactics and challenges of the Giro d'Italia. Sepp Kuss shares his changed ambitions and desire to participate in the Tour and return to the Vuelta as the defending champion.

Chris Froome, professional road cyclist, discusses his plans to continue racing in 2024 and his Chris Froome Academy in Africa. They also talk about INEOS' current position, lost luggage, training in smaller groups, the challenges of recovery, and a funny incident involving a jersey. Chris Froome's comeback and old-school approach to nutrition and training are also mentioned.

This week's new member of the GTCC is a bonafide cycling icon: the Lion of Flanders, Johan Museeuw!A three-time winner of both the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix - as well as the 1996 world champion - Museeuw is the first rider G can remember watching growing up, and he loved welcoming him to the GTCC.With Tom busy, G recruited our Watts Occurring Ambassador Laurens de Plus to help him quiz one of his idols, and the two Belgians got on like a house on fire.Speaking of Watts Occurring, we've released our first-ever line of Watts merch this week, just in time for Christmas! Head to www.gtccstore.com/collections/watts-occurring to get yours.In Zwift news Producer George is delighted to have completed his first weekly ride and G is planning to join him in two weeks, on December 6th. Come and join the fun.We'll see you next week.Music courtesy of BMG Music Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week's new GTCC member is a good friend of G's and one of the nicest guys in the peloton: Larry Warbasse!Larry has had a fascinating career and he regaled Tom and G with his tales of domestique life, collecting bottles, chasing contracts, and much, much more.Meanwhile G is upping his training in LA, prepping for his first Thanksgiving, and Tom's battling on in his winter cyclocross league. He wouldn't mind a bit of G's sun.We'll be back next week.Music courtesy of BMG Music Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

G was very nervous for this week's guest... mainly because he's spent most of his career on the other side of the mic, answering her questions!Yes, that's right: welcome to the GTCC, Orla Chennaoui! From reporting on Team Sky for Sky Sports to ruling the roost at GCN and revolutionising mainstream cycling coverage, Orla has become one of the most recognisable faces in the sport.She's also incredibly open about her own struggles with anxiety, and has launched a project called 10 Times Braver, which she told G all about it when they sat down and chatted in Ibiza, at the Le Blanq Weekender.In other news, Tom and G are back from our live tour and already planning next year's, while G is off to LA shortly to kick-off his 2024 training in style.We'll be back next week.Music courtesy of BMG Music Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

WE'VE GOT A NEW GTCC KIT! With the fourth season well underway, we spoke to our friends at Bioracer and decided it was time for a fresh look. Head to www.gtccstore.com to pre-order our new orange GTCC jersey - but be quick! The pre-order window closes on Friday 10th November. And now... on with the pod.Could Jasper Philipsen be the fastest man we've ever had in the GTCC? That's hard to say, but one thing is for certain: the Belgian was by far and away the quickest man at this year's Tour de France. Four stage wins, a comfortable green jersey win, and the world knew that the nickname 'Jasper Disaster' was a thing of the past.With Tom away, G rung up our old mate and Watts Occurring ambassador Laurens de Plus to make his GTCC debut, and get you all the inside scoop on his compatriot who is taking the sprint world by storm. They discussed leadouts from Mathieu van der Poel, a podium place at Paris-Roubaix, and winning on the Champs-Elysees.Meanwhile, we have PLAYED OUR FIRST LIVE SHOW! G and Tom recorded the intro to today's show after Monday's first-ever live GTCC Show at the Cadogan Hall in London. We'll be in Cardiff tonight (Tuesday) and are already making plans for 2024. Bring it on!We'll see you next week with a full debrief on the live shows and another big guest. Watch this space. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices