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Ever wondered what life is like as a professional cyclist? Australian ex-professional cyclist Mitch Docker takes you inside the world of Professional Cycling. Bringing you the stories behind the individuals in the sport - from the pros in the peloton to staff behind the teams - to commentators & legends, plus training insights & debriefs on major races throughout the year. It’s all here! Newly retired from the professional peloton, Mitch is exploring his new pelotons - all the pelotons that exist outside of the world tour - bringing you new stories from within the cycling community. His spin off series, Talking Luft - a bit like the DVD Extras - is where cycling style & culture takes centre stage. Talking cycling caps, bikes, kit, coffee stops, training loops and all the best things about riding a bike. Listen to all episodes here weekly! Find all our episodes, merch and more at lifeinthepeloton.com
Episodes
Wednesday Aug 02, 2023
Maghalie Rochette - The Cycle
Wednesday Aug 02, 2023
Wednesday Aug 02, 2023
Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by Rapha
I’ve got something a bit different for you on the pod this week, but it’s a fascinating topic and one that has really gained traction in women’s sport over the past few years.
I’m chatting to Maghalie Rochette - she’s a Canadian cyclo cross rider and mountain biker, she came to the sport from a background in running and triathlon, and she also has her own successful podcast called Fever Talk. But what sets Maghalie apart is that she is known for talking openly about racing as a female and all the struggles that come along with that. On her pod she launched a super successful series where she goes into depth about the challenges for women racing during their menstrual cycle, and in doing so she has created a whole platform where people feel comfortable talking about this topic that was previously something of a taboo.
It’s so refreshing to hear how open she is about it, and fascinating to hear how she has used the science to figure out that not only is it something that does not have to hold you back, but it’s something that can actually make you stronger. We are so aware of the difference between men and women in the professional sense – the prize money, the racing, the equality and the wage gap, but it’s interesting to hear about the physiological differences. And it’s refreshing to hear Maghalie’s take, that racing as a female doesn’t necessarily mean it is harder – it just means it’s important to understand your body so that you can turn it into an advantage.
It brings up some interesting questions that are relevant to both male and female athletes on how we can use science to understand our bodies better, and in the process learn how to get the most out of ourselves during training and racing, to learn to listen to your body, and how to find the balance between performance and wellbeing.
I hope you enjoy the listen!
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday Jul 26, 2023
The Race Communique
Wednesday Jul 26, 2023
Wednesday Jul 26, 2023
I’m back with something brand new for you this week, the first of a new monthly series called The Race Communique.
The idea is to get back to our roots, since LITP has moved on from the pro peloton with me, I wanted to get back amongst the action and back to chatting about the World Tour. We’ll be unpacking the trends, the race results, all the news and happenings in the pro peloton – to try to get the lowdown for you, the listener.
Joining me on the pod each month will be one of two guys who need no introduction to this podcast – my friends Tom Southam, DS at EF Education-EasyPost, and Jayco-Alula’s Luke Durbridge. We’ll chat race results and analytics, in true LITP style – taking a deep dive into what life is like as a pro, and notable things that have happened at races, from the varied angles of DS, rider, and me – the guy on the outside of the peloton trying to get a glimpse back in to see what’s up and how things have changed.
For episode one, we’re talking all things Tour de France, unpacking the amazing Tour that we just witnessed, and looking ahead to the Worlds and other upcoming races. Hang in there for a cheeky quiz at the end, and most of all enjoy the listen to the first Race Communique!
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday Jul 19, 2023
History of the Tour, with François Thomazeau
Wednesday Jul 19, 2023
Wednesday Jul 19, 2023
Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by Rapha
It’s nearing the end of the Tour de France for another year, and I have been in the box seat for the first two weeks of this phenomenon of an annual sporting event, following the Tour with The Cycling Podcast. Along the way, I had the chance to chat with an absolute expert in cycling history – François Thomazeau. His encyclopaedic knowledge of all facets of the Tour is extraordinary, and I am so excited to have him on the pod today walking us through the fascinating history of the Tour, from the earliest iterations of the race, up until this, the 120th edition.
While we have all become so familiar with the modern Tour, it is an event that is steeped in so much history - over a hundred years of evolution, scandal, and drama - and the idea was to try and get a complete picture of the Tour, from how it came about, to the subtle nuances of the race, and how it has evolved over time. In my opinion, there is no one better in the world of cycling than François to answer all my questions.
We start with the origins of the event, from its inception as part of the early cycling newspaper, Le Vélo, with its epic, 300km long stages, 2 am start times, and famously ingrained methods of cheating, like jumping on the train or skipping whole sections of the course. And we chat about just how important the Tour de France is to the French people, who are bathed in TDF coverage from a young age to the point that July is synonymous with the Tour, and the race itself is a French symbol of fun, of childhood, and of long summer days.
We chat about the recovery of the Tour after its war-induced hiatus, and of the emergence of a new generation of post-war riders that redefined the sport, including the likes of Fausto Coppi – likened to a type of gold dust for the sport, with his forward-thinking methods and slick media appeal – and the beloved Frenchmen Jacques Anquetil and later, Raymond Poulidor, and of course the arrival of the great man himself, Eddy Merckx, whose commanding hold on all classifications of the TDF earned him the nickname, The Cannibal.
It was fascinating to hear how this history has culminated in the version of the great race that we now know and love so much – how it became the show for television, how its riders started to emerge as household names, the evolution of the media in cycling, and how riders themselves have had to adapt, in order to succeed in the Tour de France.
I absolutely loved the chance to soak up so much of the history of the Tour de France and to get under the skin of this iconic race with François, and I hope you enjoy this little glimpse into the history of the Tour!
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday Jul 12, 2023
Talking Luft! with Adam Blythe
Wednesday Jul 12, 2023
Wednesday Jul 12, 2023
Life in the Peloton is proudly supported by Rapha
This week on Talking Luft I’m chatting with an old friend and teammate of mine – he is a former UK national champ, he has ridden for some of the world’s biggest teams, and – I’m calling it – he's the new voice of cycling. I’m talking about Adam Blythe and I can’t wait to put him through the full Talking Luft treatment!
I have always admired his crafty racing style and his ability to read a bike race, and when the conditions got tough, he was someone I would always look for because you could bet, he would be reading the conditions and riding smart. It’s a result of having mastered the art of race craft early on, and his insights have really translated well to the commentary box. He's unapologetic about his approach, and about his love of picking apart a race and calling out even the biggest names in cycling when they’re guilty of making questionable tactical decisions – and I just love that about him and his race commentary.
He’s also renowned for his retro style and some of these TL questions that I have put to so many riders now are right up his alley, so I can’t wait to get stuck into it. I put a few of the more important Talking Luft themes to him – he’s gravel bike for life, loves plenty of Luft, has strong feelings on all matters of cycling style, and confirms once and for all that, like it or not, the short leg length trend is back in the pro peloton.
I hope you enjoy listening along as much as I enjoyed putting this one together!
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday Jul 05, 2023
The Leadout Men
Wednesday Jul 05, 2023
Wednesday Jul 05, 2023
Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by Rapha
Well, it is Tour time, and I´m taking this opportunity to look at one of the most fascinating technical aspects of pro racing – the art of the lead-out. And what better time to do it than right now, at the beginning of the Tour de France, so you can sit back and watch the adrenaline-charged sprint finishes, with a deeper understanding of the game of chess that is playing out on the road.
The idea of the designated lead-out man is something that has only really gained traction in the pro peloton in the modern era, and in that time, we have seen some incredibly talented lead-out riders, that put aside their own winning aspirations and built their careers on leading out others for the win. I spoke to some of the biggest names in the game – Mark Renshaw, Michael Morkov, Brett Lancaster, Koen de Kort, Roger Kluge, and Freddie Rodriguez. They have worked with some of the most successful sprinters of the modern era – Mark Cavendish, Robbie McEwen, Andre Greipel, and Alessandro Petacchi, to name just a few.
The depth of experience with the riders in this episode is exceptional, and I wanted to find out how they had become lead-out riders, what the evolution was like, from trying to win races themselves, to suddenly finding themselves leading out others for the win. It was interesting to hear about how quickly this change can happen and about the necessity of finding your niche in the peloton which is so important to the longevity of your career.
The lead out is a role where you don´t get the big accolades, and you don´t get to stand on the top step yourself, but you can get plenty of recognition and job satisfaction for playing an important role in winning big races, and that was something that really came across for all of these riders - how accepting your role in the team and leaning into it, can become even more satisfying than vying for smaller wins yourself.
I wanted to ask some big questions: when you find yourself in the lead with 200m to go, how tempting is it to go for the win yourself, and why does a sprinter even need a lead-out? There were some fascinating insights into the split-second decisions, the adrenaline rush, the importance of trusting your lead out, calculating risks, and learning to switch off your mind in order to get the job done, the sacrifices that are made when you ride in service of another rider that gets the glory of winning, and what is it like working with these typically very explosive personalities.
I had a lot of fun putting this episode together and I loved hearing about the intricacies of the lead-out, and I hope you get plenty out of it to take into your TDF watching this year!
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday Jun 21, 2023
The Cadel Evans Story
Wednesday Jun 21, 2023
Wednesday Jun 21, 2023
Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by Rapha
I have a special guest on the pod this week, making his debut appearance on Life in the Peloton. He´s no stranger to you all though, he is a fellow Victorian, a former mountain biker, road world champion, and Australia´s only ever Tour de France winner, I´m talking of course about the legend himself, Cadel Evans.
This was a great opportunity to really get back to the beginning of the Cadel Evans story and hear it in his own words. I was keen to hear all about his infamous upbringing in a remote Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory of Australia, and how he made his start as a mountain biker when his family moved back to Victoria when Cadel was primary school age. We chatted through his evolution from junior mountain biker to European-level mountain biker, before moving to road cycling in Europe, and eventually, as the history books show, going on to become a world champion, and the first-ever Australian to win the Tour de France, in 2011.
Along the way, he forged some incredible partnerships and made some powerful allies, with team directors, teammates, coaches and sponsors, many of whom are still loyal to Cadel and his brand today, showing the amount of mutual respect and trust that he built up within his inner circle throughout his career. Always something of an outlier among the professional cycling ranks, we chat about the ways in which he was a visionary rider and ahead of his time, and how so many of these habits that he had are now somewhat ingrained in the pro peloton (chamomile tea after dinner, and solo training rides, to name a couple.)
It was fascinating to hear Cadel´s take on the crossover between road cycling and mountain biking, and the ways in which MTB prepared him to become one of the best cyclists of his generation. I loved getting the chance to chat in depth with him about his relationship with the visionary Italian coach Aldo Sassi, which was instrumental in shaping him into the forward-thinking cyclist that he became.
One of the golden eras of modern cycling, it was great to hear in-depth about his time on the iconic teams Mapei, T-Mobile, Lotto, and BMC – where he started his campaign towards becoming an eventual Tour de France winner, and the years of missed opportunities and bad luck that ensued along his road to winning. And to take a deep dive into his World Championship win in Mendrisio in 2009, with all the drama and team politics that came along with that win.
Something of an enigma in the world of cycling, I loved this chance to hear the Cadel Evans story from the man himself and to clear up a few myths and legends that have circulated around him throughout his career (for example, was he really the highest ever tested V02 max at the AIS?)
It´s a story we are all familiar with, but I hope you enjoy learning a bit more about the Cadel Evans story - I really loved chatting with him and hearing his story in his own words.
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday Jun 14, 2023
Talking Luft! With Alison Jackson
Wednesday Jun 14, 2023
Wednesday Jun 14, 2023
I just loved having Alison on Life in the Peloton so much last week, I decided to get her back for this episode of Talking Luft! I know you loved hearing all about her epic Paris Roubaix Femmes win this year, and how she became only the third-ever winner of the event. She has since been dubbed Miss Paris Roubaix (by me), for the commanding style in which she won.
Of course, we chat a bit more about that epic win, as well as dig into the really important questions in true TL style, plus I throw a few extra cobble-related questions Alison´s way. The big stuff, like rice or pasta (she´s introduced me to the idea of rice with maple syrup), world champ style (all rainbow, why not), I get some insight into some of her pre-race rituals and learn a few new Canadian terms that describe how she would choose to wear her hair in the pre-helmet golden days of cycling.
She´s a lover of bucket hats and coffee stops, a drinker of black coffee and cortados, and unsurprisingly, she will take racing over training any day. But don´t take my word for it, sit back and enjoy the listen and get to know more about the legend Alison Jackson, as she gets the full TL treatment!
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday Jun 07, 2023
Alison Jackson - Miss Paris - Roubaix
Wednesday Jun 07, 2023
Wednesday Jun 07, 2023
Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by Rapha
It is her first appearance on the pod, you might know her from her larger-than-life social media presence, or you might have watched her progress through the women´s peloton, but you´ll definitely know her as the Queen of Roubaix, after her triumphant victory there this year, and I´m super excited to be chatting to Alison Jackson this week.
I couldn´t wait to hear about her epic 2023 Paris – Roubaix win, where she won so impressively, and etched her name in the cycling history books by becoming only the third-ever female winner of the race. Her post-win finish line dance catapulted her from exalted winner to something of cycling legend, and she´s known as this big-energy person that comes across online (if you´re not currently a follower, do yourself a favour and go check out her Instagram and TikTok), where she just keeps it real and has such a fun vibe. But Roubaix really cemented her position in the pro peloton, and announced to the world that she´s an excellent tactical rider and a natural racer – you just don´t find yourself in that position at a race like that for any other reason.
I wanted to hear all about how Alison made the leap from Canada to Europe – a challenge all pro cyclists go through but with varied success. It was refreshing to hear Alison´s take on what it takes to be a pro, and how you get through those challenging early years where you´re missing home, you´re just not happy in Europe and to top it all off, you´re getting your head kicked in at races. It can set off a real downward spiral for many riders, but for Alison it was the racing that kept her Euro dreams alive - she just absolutely loves to race.
And finally, we had a bit of a chat about where female cycling is headed, and the immense changes it has gone through in recent years – the increase in tactics, professionalism, and support and the flow-on effect this is having on the dynamics of women’s racing.
As you can probably tell, this episode was a lot of fun to put together, and I hope you love listening to Alison´s story as much as I did.
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday May 24, 2023
Life in the Peloton - The Goldfields Adventure
Wednesday May 24, 2023
Wednesday May 24, 2023
Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by Rapha
I´m bringing you something a bit different for Life in the Peloton this week, I have been back on the road exploring and learning some of the fascinating history of the Victorian goldfields, by riding the historic Goldfields Track. By now, you´ve probably become used to my bike-packing adventures, but this time the trip was not just about tackling a challenging adventure and exploring my own backyard, but also learning some of the history of this country and how this thriving regional area came to be what it is.
This trip is one that has been on my bucket list since moving back to Australia last year – I had become so used to being surrounded by incredible history while living in Europe, but it has really occurred to me how much history there is right here in Australia as well. I wanted to explore the Aussie countryside, but to also give the trip some purpose. Not just to ride, but to tap into a bit of local history and learn the backstory of this country along the way - why do these little Victorian country towns exist, and what has made the area so famous?
So back in the summer, before the weather in Victoria turned bad, I grabbed my good mate Al Iacuone, someone who is well known on the pod, and we headed off from Mount Buninyong, in the direction of Bendigo. The Goldfields Track is an existing, point-to-point trail and one that is regularly ridden by mountain bike, that takes in some of Victoria´s most historic towns. It´s a 210-kilometre journey, generally tackled over two to four days. We´re doing it in a day.
The trip threw up a few surprises, but we had a lot of fun out there. The trails made for beautiful riding, and although it was much tougher than expected, being out on the road allowed us to absorb the history and stories of the land in a way we never could by sitting at home and reading in a book or on the internet. Of course, there´s value in that as well, but there´s just something about being out there and hearing the stories for yourself that makes the experience that much more special and it really gave our expedition an incredible sense of purpose and meaning. In short, I would highly recommend this trip to anyone that has been considering it or another one like it. I hope you enjoy the listen, learn a thing or two along the way, and as always, I hope it inspires you to get out on your own bike adventures!
Cheers,
Mitch
Wednesday May 17, 2023
Talking Luft! With Jai Hindley
Wednesday May 17, 2023
Wednesday May 17, 2023
Well I know you loved his last appearance on the pod, my recent chat with Australia’s one and only Giro d’Italia winner, Jai Hindley, where we heard some epic stories about his early cycling career and his meteoric ascent to the top of the pro cycling ranks.
So he’s back today for the Talking Luft! treatment and I just couldn’t wait to put a few curly questions to him. Jai Hindley is a real Aussie gem in the European peloton. He has been riding and racing his bike since he was six years of age, all he has ever wanted to be is a pro cyclist and just loves everything about the sport. His love of the cycling eras of old made me really want to test out his knowledge and see if I could really put him to the limit.
We talked Giro ups and downs, and what it feels like to gain the confidence to know you can finish out a Grand Tour, and just get better and better. We talk casquette style, where I was a little surprised to find out it’s not really his thing. We went back in time to discuss the pre-helmet days of cycling in the early 90s, and some of the best kits and team rosters of all time. We chat race food, drinks of choice, what makes a good roommate on tour, and whether he is more of a bus or a team car kind of guy. He passes my name the bike test with flying colours, with some pretty impressive knowledge of cycling throughout all the eras. And of course, I just had to ask him the all-important question, if (and in Jai’s case, when) you do become world champion during your career, how are you going to wear that rainbow kit.
I loved chatting with Jai and finding out some of the lesser-known things about him for this episode of Talking Luft! and I hope you have a laugh and enjoy listening along. If you missed the Life in the Peloton episode, Jai Hindley – For the love of cycling, head back and take a listen!
Cheers,
Mitch