With Pace

Keegan Swenson returns to the show to talk about his experience racing the UCI Road World Championship in Australia at the end of September. Though he spent years racing on the mountain bike World Cup circuit, this was his first experience competing in a WorldTour level road race, and it came just a week after securing his win for the overall Lifetime Grand Prix title at Chequamegon. He talks about his whirlwind preparation, the white-knuckle tactics that the rest of the racers were throwing down, the mistakes he made early on, and why he thinks gravel racing is harder. He also reveals where he’s taking his career in 2023. After a commanding performance throughout the gravel Grand Prix, he received multiple offers from WorldTour teams to switch to the road. He tells Payson what his decision is and how he finally reached it after months of deliberation. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Earlier this month, WorldTour racer turned “alternative” cycling adventure seeker Lachlan Morton returned to the Colorado Trail for the second time. His first experience in 2019 was harrowing mentally and physically and left him determined to go back someday to rewrite his relationship with the infamous 530-mile route. After the death of professional cyclist Sule Kangangi this summer, Lachlan returned to the CT in memory of his friend. This time, he completed it in three days and 10 hours, smashing the official record by over nine hours. He joins Payson to talk about why the Colorado Trail is the hardest thing he’s ever done, including his commanding win  at the 1,200-mile GBDuro in 2021 and the Alt Tour in which he rode every stage of the Tour De France (plus transfers) unsupported. He talks about why he won’t be going back to race the CT, the high and low points of his solitary three days on the trail, and his thoughts on not making it into the “official” record books. They also talk about his return to competitive racing, the Lifetime Grand Prix, and how the gravel series might develop in the coming years to become an alternative to World Cup and WorldTour racing. Click here to contribute to the Sule Kangangi Memorial FundInstagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Payson sits down with the winners of Chequamegon, Savilia Blunk and Bradyn Lange. Savilia talks about her breakout World Cup season and navigating the unexpectedly muddy conditions of last weekend's race. Bradyn talks about his childhood motocross career, van life, and being caught off guard when he found himself in the lead at Chequamegon. Payson also answers listener questions about the race, including power numbers, the surprise rain storm, and how he feels about the race culture in the Midwest.Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

When Meg Fisher went to college, she was a walk-on for the University of Montana's Division 1 tennis team, but was taken out of the sport and the life she knew when a catastrophic car accident left her in a coma. When her leg was amputated, it was the least of her doctors' worries. Most of them assumed that she would never be able to live independently, let alone walk, but Meg proved them (and herself) wrong, earning a Doctorate in Physical Therapy and becoming a 3x triathlon world champion and a multi-medal winning Paralympian at the 2012 and 2016 Games. More recently, she's been focused on bringing paracycling categories to gravel races and expanding resources for physically impaired people in under-served countries. In this conversation, Meg tells Payson about marking the 20th anniversary of the crash, accidentally melting one of her prosthetic legs at Rebecca's Private Idaho, and why she attributes "everything in her life" to a cattle dog named Betsy. She also talks about how meaningful it has been to be recognized within the cycling community, and being overcome with emotion when her teammates from the 2012 Paralympic Games came to cheer her on at Steamboat this year. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

When Kiel Reijnen’s five-year-old daughter EmmyLou told him that she wanted to ride to Idaho (a 700+ mile trip), he suggested they compete in the 102-mile gravel stage of Rebecca’s Private Idaho instead. Kiel joins Payson to talk about how he brought this idea to fruition and got to witness Emmy’s grit, endurance, and competitiveness. With only one low point around mile 85, they won the tandem category on a 240-pound rig and raised thousands of dollars for World Bicycle Relief in the process. Kiel talks about the unique stresses of ensuring a five-year-old’s safety throughout a 102-mile gravel ride at elevation and how surprised he was that they completed the whole course. He also talks about raising a child who shares his hunger for adventure, and how seeing himself in his daughter is both a blessing and a curse. EmmyLou joins the conversation as well to answer a few questions about snacks, sailing, and why she likes riding bikes with her dad. Kiel and EmmyLou's World Bicycle Relief fundraising pageInstagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Bjorn Riley is part of the wave of young US cross country mountain bike racers that’s been making a splash on the World Cup circuit over the past few years. Placing 5th at Worlds this year, 2nd at the Snowshoe World Cup in West Virginia, and landing at the top of the podium at Nationals, Bjorn is already making a name for himself on the international stage. After spending three years on the Bear Development Team, he recently joined European-based Trek Vaude and moved to Austria full-time.In this conversation, Bjorn explains why this big life change has made him more relaxed about racing than ever and has so far come with only minor growing pains. They discuss his off-the-bike hobbies which include sewing, drawing, and writing poetry, and why his team has helped him maintain these pursuits alongside training. They also talk about the style that Bjorn brings to XC (he’s been known to throw no-handers in the middle of World Cups), and which trick he’s hoping he’ll get to throw down on course someday. On top of cycling and art, Bjorn also has some pretty big plans for the off-season. He talks to Payson about why he’s so interested in finding his limits, and the goals he's planning to tackle this winter. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

South African cyclist Matt Beers has done a little bit of everything when it comes to racing on two wheels. Starting out in motocross, he turned to mountain biking after he was sidelined by an injury, going on to win the South African Marathon National Championships and the Cape Epic stage race in 2021. After an impressive but unlucky showing at Cape Epic in 2019, he was invited to guest ride on the WorldTour road team UAE Emirates. These days, he's spending more time state-side on the gravel circuit. At the beginning of the year, he placed second at Belgian Waffle Ride and elected to do the double-header, Leadboat, earlier this month.Matt joins Payson a few days after completing Leadboat to talk about why he's chosen to spend so much time in the US this year racing gravel and how his first Leadville went He reflects on his time as a stagiere with UAE, why it made him doubt his choice of career, and how it transformed the way he approaches training. He also talks about how winning Cape Epic changed his life, why he was out riding the day after Leadboat, and the impressive power numbers that caught the eye of the WorldTour.Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Today on the show, we feature some of the experiences that riders in all categories had at Leadville and SBT GRVL last weekend. Payson answers listener questions about the races, including his training in the weeks leading up, using hydration packs instead of stopping at neutral aid stations, and his bike setup. He also chats with Keegan Swenson, the winner of Leadville, SBT, and the combination race ‘Leadboat’ about his dominance on the gravel circuit this season and a potential move to the road. Hannah Otto, the winner of Leadville, joins Payson as well to talk about how unexpected her win was after crashing and injuring her shoulder at Mont-Sainte-Anne the weekend before. Having not ridden her bike until the day before Leadville, she had low expectations about her chance of snagging a podium let alone the win and was nervous about how the forecasted rain might affect her ability to avoid crashing. When she found herself riding solo off the front, the fact that she might come away with the win began to sink in. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

5x mountain bike Marathon National Champion Rose Grant joins Payson to talk about her recently announced retirement, how she hopes to finish out the season, and what she’s looking forward to post-professional cycling. Rose started racing later than many riders, only getting into the sport when she was nearing 30. During her first season, she became pregnant with her daughter, and has spent the height of her career juggling training, racing, and motherhood. She talks about some of her professional highlights, including winning her first Leadville, and some low points, including breaking her leg in Colombia and the mental battle of Unbound. Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc

Sarah Sturm returns to the show for a wide-ranging conversation about the struggle to stay hungry in a profession full of uncontrollable inconsistency, Tour de France Femme, and the anxieties about what life might look like after retiring from professional cycling. They also discuss the many ways that grief is shaping the gravel community this season and how their mental and emotional connection to racing has permanently changed. Sarah also talks about her work with Protect Our Winters, and the athlete who she thinks is the gold standard for maintaining their integrity.Instagram: @withpacepodcastYouTube: Payson McElveenEmail: howdy@withpace.cc