Life in the Peloton, presented by MAAP

Phil Liggett – The Voice Of Cycling

He almost doesn't need a intro, Phil Liggett is the voice of cycling. When I hear his voice it just takes me back to when I first fell in love with the sport watching the 6.30pm SBS highlights of the Tour De France, the Jan Ullrich Lance Armstrong battles. It was a real pleasure to be able to sit down with Phil and talk to him about his time behind the mic commentating over 44 Tour De Frances.

‘You Can Ask That’ with Kirk Docker, Featuring Michael Hepburn

Long time coming but the pod is back. And back to cycling basics it is. Why live in Europe? How does the team structure work? Can you eat whatever you want because you ride everyday? Plus coffee rides, style checks, luft, nature stops and doping. Just some of the topics we cover as my brother, Kirk, gets behind the mic, asking Michael Hepburn and myself all those simple but niggling questions any non-cyclist might wonder about life as a professional cyclist. Kirk is a TV producer in Australia, who has produced shows like You Can’t Ask That and Demolition Man, and was previously also on screen on the show The Hungry Beast. Michael Hepburn has been my team mate on Orica-Scott for the last 6 years, where it has been a pleasure to grow with him in the early part of his potentially long career. Both Heppy and I spend a lot of time together in both Girona, Andorra and racing on the road, so it was interesting to be able to answer a few questions from someone who is outside the cycling bubble. 

A Reflection with David Millar

David Millar's career spanned over 2 decades, where a lot happened in cycling. A lot changed. David was a big part of the changes, where firstly his career was turned upside down after admitting to using EPO, a banned performance enhancing drug,  in 2004. Then after serving a 2 year ban from the sport he came back to racing but this time as a advocate anti-doping campaigner. Aside from his dark history in the sport, David has a fantastic insight to what life in the peloton used to be like and to what it is like today.

Question & Answer with Luke Durbridge and Mitch Docker

Luke and I found a bit of time this week between the big Classic races, Ronde Van Vlaanderen and Paris Roubaix, to answer all your inquisitive questions. Sit back and enjoy, cause we did recording and answering them!

Gracie Elvin – Life as a Female Pro

While obviously being tied up in the male professional peloton, I realised I don’t really have any idea about what life is like within the female peloton. Gracie Elvin is at the top of the female racing scene, especially when it comes to the tough style of racing in Belgium. She has already been twice Australian champion and is able to give a really good insight to her life on the road as a female Pro.  

Marcel Kittel – I’m a Sprinter now

Marcel Kittel is a house hold name when it comes to the big bunch sprints today. He has won stages in all 3 Grand Tours, La Vuelta Espana, Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France. But it is not so well known that when he first singed as a professional with Skil-Shimano in 2011, he was signed primarily as a time-trialist who might be able to pull a good lead out for the sprinters. Things soon changed. He and I were teammates 2011 and it was nice to be there at the beginning of his stella career, and to now get the chance to discuss what has happened since those early days.

The Psych – Craig Appaneal

We all worry about the physical training that needs to take place in order for us to perform on a given race day. But I think not enough attention is payed to the mental training that should take place to have us ready psychologically to tackle the big race days. It can literally be the difference between the winners and the losers, having that right mind set. I was lucky enough to have the time to meet Craig Appaneal in my offseason this year and we discussed some situations that I have encountered through out my career, where things went well and where things didn't go so well. We then try and decipher what was happening in my head on those given days. Craig has a background in organisational psychology which not only looks at a individual, but also how a individual acts and works within a team and then how that team works in a organisation.  I think he is a person we can all benefit from in not only the performance side of cycling but in all aspects of our lives.

Simon Gerrans – Making of a Champion

We are back for 2017, and what a way to start with Simon Gerrans. We all know him as an assassin on the bike, a winning machine, where it sometimes feels like he is winning more races than he is losing. But what I wanted to find out, was when did that switch get turned on for him, from being a rider who can win, to a rider who is expected to win. I get inside that cool calm collected mind of his that when inside the final few hundred meters of a race can make unbelievable race winning decisions. To finish off, hang in there after the music at the end for the first live feed segment podcast I have done, not very successfully but it's a bit of fun anyway.

Graham Watson – Cycling from Behind the Lens

After always seeing him wiz by on the back of a moto bike snapping away during a race, I had the opportunity to pin Graham Watson down here at the last race of the season. It may come as a surprise but most often than not we do not stay in the same hotels throughout the year, so when we were I took the opportunity to have a chat. And just as expected through out his colourful 37 years of taking photo's of the sport of cycling he has some fantastic insights to all the eras he's been though during his time in the Peloton. Its great to hear things about the world of cycling from someone who is right there with us on the road, yet shares a different view.

Nick Schultz – Making the jump

Nick Schultz is a young Australian making his way into the European Pro ranks. He has taken a road not so often traveled anymore by Australians into the Euro cycling world. He jumped in the deep end, and immersed himself in the French scene. He has slowly but surely worked his way through the cycling ranks and created an all important european life for himself along the way. It's this jump from living at home in Australia with Mum and Dad as a 18 year old, to taking a  leap to a whole new culture and lifestyle, living on your own and facing all challenges that come along the way that can sometimes get over looked from everyone from afar. It's nice to hear that you can do it if you really want too.