With Pace

In preparation for the upcoming season of the Enduro World Series, Payson talks to the top three men of last year, Jesse Melamed, Richie Rude, and Martin Maes. They chat about how they got into Enduro, their favorite courses, and how they’re feeling about all the changes being implemented this year. Martin talks about the success he’s found in both downhill and Enduro. In 2018, he won an EWS race and then followed it up two weeks later with a win at the World Cup Downhill Finals in La Bresse, France. He talks about the rivalry between downhill and Enduro racers, and the EWS goal he wants to fulfill before going back to downhill racing. Richie was the first man to win back-to-back EWS championship titles in 2015 and 2016 at 21 years old and continues to be a mainstay on the podium. He talks about his busy off-season, gravel riding, and how he’s changed as a racer since he burst onto the scene as a teenager. And we listen back to two of our interviews with Jesse, one directly after he won the 2022 overall title in which he discusses his victory, and one from February 2022 in which he talks about his love of training, camaraderie during races, and why heavy mileage is the key to his success. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

In preparation for the upcoming season of the Enduro World Series, Payson talks to the top three women of last year, Isabeau Courdurier, Morgane Charre, and Hattie Harnden. They chat about how they got into Enduro, their favorite courses, and how they’re feeling about all the changes being implemented this year. Hattie discusses her switch from dominanting cyclocross and XC as a junior to becoming the youngest rider to ever win an Enduro race. Morgane talks about how a broken wrist lured her away from her illustrious downhill career to Enduro racing, and why she still chooses to ride flat pedals despite the amount of pedaling EWS races require. And Isabeau talks about her deep love of the sport, how the death of her father changed her outlook on training, and the difference between results and performance. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Chad Haga spent eight years in the WorldTour on Team DSM (formerly known as Giant-Shimano and Sunweb). During that time, he raced in 12 Grand Tours including the Tour de France, six Giro d’Italias (where he won a stage in 2019), and four Vuelta a Españas. In 2022, he stepped back from the WorldTour to join the ProTeam Human Powered Health. Although he's spent more than a decade in Europe, he was born and raised in McKinney, Texas and didn’t start racing seriously until he was finishing up his Mechanical Engineering degree at Texas A&M, a relatively late start that he says has been a benefit in more ways than one. In this conversation, Chad talks to Payson about his decision to switch from the WorldTour to a ProTeam after eight successful years, how his life as a professional racer has transformed since he had children, and how he's reconnecting with mountain biking in a big way. They also talk about how he plans to use his mechanical engineering degree after he retires from professional racing, the new races he's planning to do in the coming season, and how he and his family have come to feel at home in Spain over the past few years. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Shannon Vandivier is a filmmaker and photographer who directed the recently released Youtube series following the inaugural Life Time Grand Prix, Call of a Life Time. His production company, Cold Collaborative, has worked with brands like YETI, Smith Optics, and Orange Seal to create award-winning movies about the outdoor industry, including Payson’s 2019 White Rim FKT project, Standing Man. In this interview, he tells Payson about growing up chasing tornadoes with his photojournalist dad and learning to shoot on a film camera at the age of six. He talks about the importance of constructing a story, no matter what the subject matter of a project is, and why he was so eager to create a series that makes gravel as compelling and character-driven as Drive to Survive has done for Formula One. They talk about the unique challenge of filming off-road cycling, including terrain, speed, safety, and interviewing athletes during some of the most hectic moments of their careers. They also talk about the feedback they’ve received from viewers, and how he plans to adapt the series in the upcoming season.Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

With 2.5 million subscribers, Seth Alvo (founder of Berm Peak and Seth’s Bike Hacks) runs one of the most popular mountain biking channels on Youtube. Sharing hacks, reviews, and off-road adventures, he's built a passionate audience from a demographic that is largely ignored by the industry. The web developer-turned-content creator attributes his success to being the antithesis of a professional athlete. A self-professed nerd, he started out sharing tips and tricks for people who were new to mountain biking and needed guidance about how and where to begin. Answering fundamental questions about sealant, trail classifications, and tool basics filled a void that the industry neglected, and Seth has since amassed a passionate fan base of mountain bikers from across the spectrum of expertise.In this interview, he tells Payson about his quest to become the “Bill Nye the Science Guy of mountain biking,” from making videos in his free time to quitting his day job and taking his channel full-time. He talks about why ego has never been an issue, answering questions about mountain biking that everyone's afraid to ask, and how he’s managed to monetize his Youtube channel without compromising his creative integrity. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Griffin and Cullen Easter have been racing with and against each other since college. The brothers graduated from separate universities but went on to ride for UCI Continental team Airgas-Safeway together. Their paths diverged when Griffin went to race overseas and Cullen pursued a nursing degree, but their careers have merged again in unexpected ways in recent years. While Griffin was winning a stage at the Vuelta a Colombia and pulling off impressive results in Europe, Cullen was working in Utah at a detox unit at a psychiatric hospital where many of his patients were recovering from opioid addiction. This experience, combined with a related family tragedy, led the brothers to found OpiCure, a non-profit organization focused on relieving opioid addiction. Part of their foundation is a cycling team that helps people recovering from addiction find fulfillment on the bike. In this interview, Griffin and Cullen tell Payson about the inspiration behind OpiCure, when they knew that their Rider in Recovery Program was working, and how they plan to expand the foundation in the coming year. Griffin also talks about how Cullen convinced him to start riding again after he contemplated retirement, and his decision to join the Grand Prix this year. Cullen talks about the time he went from Cat 3 road racer to former WorldTour pro Chris Horner’s hand-picked domestique at the Tour of Utah within the span of a few months. Donate to OpiCure: https://opicure.org/donateInstagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Russell Finsterwald holds five national titles in mountain biking but stepped away from the World Cup relatively early in his career to pursue longer distance XC races in the US. When gravel became the dominant force in the off-road scene, he thought about retiring as soon as he finished the remainder of his contract. But in preparation for the Lifetime Grand Prix last year, he created a 350-mile route across southern Arizona that he dubbed the Spirit Tour. The goal was to answer some burning questions about the new discipline, such as, "What are gravel bikes capable of?" "What does it take to flat them?" And "What is the spirit of gravel?" In the process, Finsty and his fellow tourers Keegan Swenson, Kerry Werner, and Ryan Standish came up with a few answers and kicked off an annual tradition. Finsty finished 3rd in the inaugural Grand Prix, took a commanding victory at Big Sugar, and just completed the second Spirit Tour in preparation for the upcoming season.In this interview, he and Payson chat about the hours he spends scouting trails and devising routes (including the one they rode just before recording the episode), and how the Spirit Tour evolved this year. They discuss the difficulty he had early in his career racing the World Cup circuit and why he’s hooked on pushing the boundaries of gravel. They also talk about his FKT ambitions, his burgeoning real estate side hustle, and why the most dreaded race in the Grand Prix is the one he’s most looking forward to. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

 In 2018, 2x cyclocross national champion Ellen Noble was coming off the best season in her life when she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. After another season of racing, she went all-in on training in 2020 and was ready for her comeback, but a crash early in the season left her with a broken back and a resurgence in symptoms from her disease. Even under these circumstances, she never considered retirement until her coach, Allen Lim, told her that she didn’t have to be a professional athlete anymore. With this life-changing conversation, Ellen stepped back from racing and started a new chapter.In this conversation, she talks to Payson about why the idea of retiring was so foreign, why she needed “permission” to end her professional racing career, and how she navigated the months that followed. Since 2021, she’s started a podcast and dipped a toe into race commentary, appearing as a live broadcaster for multiple events including the Cyclocross World Championships. She also talks about why she's chosen to speak openly about depression and her use of SSRIs. Though many professional athletes struggle with the emotional toll of their careers, there remains a stigma around talking about it. By starting conversations about her own journey and those of her podcast guests, Ellen hopes to make it easier for others to open up.Ellen's podcast: This One's for YouInstagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

In the third installment of our series about pros in the off-season, Payson chats with two cyclists from different sides of the racing world: former WorldTour rider-turned-gravel racer Ruth Winder, and the 2022 EWS World Champion Jesse Melamed. Ruth talks about recuperating from a mentally grueling season. After retiring from the WorldTour, she decided to compete in the Lifetime Grand Prix last year but came up against some unexpected hurdles. She talks about the work she’s done in the off-season to rediscover why she began riding her bike in the first place, and her newfound love of skiing. Jesse talks about the exhilaration of winning the Enduro World Series and wanting to jump straight back into training. But with a trip to Spain and some celebrating back home in Squamish, BC, he managed to take some time off before packing in the miles in Arizona and California. He talks about why Enduro racers put in so many hours on the road, and how he’s prepared for moving teams this season. Our long-form interviews with Ruth and Jesse can be found at the links below:#70 Quarantine Companion #12 with Ruth Winder#160 Jesse Melamed, enduro racerInstagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

This week, Payson chats to some fellow pros about what they’ve been up to during the off-season. From snorkeling in Hawaii to meditation retreats, they’ve used their brief period of unstructured time to do the things they couldn’t do during their busy race season. Russell Finsterwald and Keegan Swenson talk about their adventures in Tucson that require meticulous route building and asking permission from local ranchers to use their land. Savilia Blunk talks about her trip to Hawaii with her partner, Cole Paton, and getting to know her new European-based team. And Chris Blevins talks about surf culture in Santa Monica and the creative outlets he’s using to unwind from a challenging season. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc