Life in the Peloton, presented by MAAP

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The Spring Classics are done and dusted for another season. When I was a pro, I used to absolutely love these races. The grit they demanded of you as a rider, the passion of the fans in Belgium, the race craft you had to possess just to survive…man, I lived for it.

 

This month’s episode of The Life In The Peloton Chronicles is all about exactly that - surviving and thriving at the Spring Classics. Sveino may not have enjoyed the races quite as much as I did, but he gave them a bloody good go throughout his career, and shares that deep understanding of what’s required to even just get to the finish line of these races, let alone win them.

 

If I had to summarise the Spring Classics in a word, it would be ‘Passion’. You need to have passion for these races, for these roads. You have to be prepared to basically die for every single corner - that’s how intense the fight to be at the front at the key moments is. If you don’t have that passion, you’ll never win that fight, and you’ll be spat out the back quicker than you can say ‘Kwaremont’,

 

Svein and I are just a couple of old guys, really, so we spoke to some young talent to see if the demands of these races that left such a deep impression on us as riders are still there for the next generation.

 

Kell O’Brien has just wrapped up his fifth go around the Spring Classics circus as a pro. Hailing from Melbourne and riding for Jayco, I see a lot of myself in Kell. He came across as a young man, and did his time taking a real beating in these races - learning the hard way just like I did. Now he’s been around for a few years, he’s starting to carve out his spot in the bunch and get more and more out of these races. I loved chatting to Kell and hearing just how much it means to be a part of these prestigious, historic, crazy events and how much he’s grown as a person not just on the bike, but off it as well because of it.

 

Sveino caught up with the young American prodigy Riley Sheehan from team NSN. Riley tasted success at the classics before his pro career had even started, winning the late season classic style race Paris-Tour when he was just a stagiere! A trainee getting their hands in the air is rare enough as it is, but to do so at a race with gravel sectors and all the fighting and chaos as a Belgian classic shows just how much potential there is. Naturally, that kind of result puts a lot of pressure on a young rider, and repeating that kind of success in races that some riders take years to crack is no easy task. Fortunately for Riley, he absolutely loves the fight and the pure racing that plays out on the roads, cobbles, and bergs of Belgium and Northern France.

 

As always, I loved chatting to Svein and having a yarn like we do every month. Being able to relive these races and hear about the experience of a couple of talented young riders only makes me love them even more. Only 345 days until Roubaix 2027!

 

Guys, thanks for being part of the Pelo and getting behind everything we’re doing here at Life In The Peloton. You’ve done a great job keeping the echelon rolling throughout the crosswinds of the Spring, and now we’re only a few weeks away from chasing back on through the valleys of Italy together…after being dropped in the mountains.

 

Cheers,

Mitch

Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by MAAP

 

Guys, the cobbled classics are over for another year - and what a Spring we’ve had! Although the cobbles may be behind us, we still have the Ardennes to look forward to over the next week! Who better to wrap up the cobbles and preview the Ardennes with than my old mates Luke Durbridge and Tom Southam right here on this month’s Race Communiqué.

 

We kick this month’s episode off by rounding up the Spring so far; from Pogačar’s dominance at Flanders right through to Van Aert’s redemption at Paris Roubaix, there’s been heaps of racing to get stuck into. One race I didn’t manage to follow too closely was the Tour of the Basque Country, where young Paul Seixas absolutely dominated from start to finish. Fortunately, Southam was there on the ground in the EF team car, so he gives us the scoop from Spain, and just how good Seixas really is. 

 

The Ardennes classics have already kicked off, with Remco Evenepoel dusting Skjelmose in the sprint to win the Amstel Gold Race. Southam was in the convoy dealing with a unique….pretty gross situation that he’s never come across in his career. Safe to say Remco’s shape is ominous ahead of Liège - the 4th monument of the year - which is only a few days away. With Pog, Remco, and Seixas all on the start list it looks like we’re in for an epic showdown. We go through the course and pick our favourites.

 

Durbo’s just got back after a few days off the bike following Paris Roubaix, and that’s what this month’s PeloChat is all about; keeping mentally fresh and taking time away from cycling. As you all know by now, Luke’s just announced that he’s hanging up the wheels after national champs in January 2027. He’s riding out a long, distinguished career of 15 years - so this advice is worth listening to.

 

Talking Tactics is all about that head to head to head we’re getting hyped about at Liège-Bastogne-Liège; how do Remco and Seixas overthrow Pogi who, on paper, is probably the favourite. Southam gives us his thoughts. 

 

Finally - of course - it’s the Communiquiz; this month I’m quiz master and we’re talking monuments. Who’s DNF’d more monuments; me, Durbo, or Southam? You’ll have to listen to find out. 

 

The cobbles may have finished but there’s still heaps of great racing to enjoy, so give this ep a listen and get hyped up for the Ardennes. Not long to go until we can talk Grand Tours, and the Giro - Mama Mia, that’s come around fast! 

 

Cheers,

Mitch

 

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Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by MAAP

 

PARIS ROUBAIX! What. A. Race. Holy hell, guys - what have we just witnessed. 

 

That was the best Roubaix’s I’ve ever seen…that was the best race I’ve ever seen! I couldn’t wait till Wednesday to talk through this one, so I sat down with Durbo in person right here in Roubaix after the race to go through the dramatic, emotional, epic edition blow by blow. 

 

I was sector hopping at Paris Roubaix today - from the first cobbled sector, to the Carrefour de l’Arbre, then on to the iconic Roubaix velodrome to watch the women’s sprint finish. Meanwhile, Durbo was out there on the stones getting stuck in. We’ve both had pretty epic days, although I think Luke’s earned a few more post race beers than me. 

 

I had to take the opportunity whilst I’m here in Europe to sit down with Luke, recap the race, dive into the key moments that made this edition one for the history books, hear from inside the bunch direct from Durbs, and - of course - squeeze in a cheeky Roubaix Communiquiz. 

 

Guys this is a special emergency podcast from someone who’s just raced - as I’m sure you’ll agree - what was one of the best races of all time. Enjoy.

 

Cheers,

Mitch


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Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by MAAP

 

It’s Paris–Roubaix week, and it felt like the perfect time to bring back one of the interviews I’d wanted to do from the very start of Life in the Peloton. Sitting down with Tom Boonen at his place in Mol is still one of my favourite conversations we’ve had on the pod, so I thought this was the right moment to share it again.

 

When it comes to the Cobbled Classics, Tom’s palmarès are mind blowing. He’s the joint record holder for wins at both Flanders (3) and Roubaix (4), as well as the outright record holder for the most wins at E3 (5). Just one of those victories would define most careers, but Tom can also count three Gent–Wevelgems, a couple of Scheldeprijs titles and a world championship for good measure.

 

This was an extra special pod for me personally. Tom’s career wrapped up in 2017, which meant I spent a big part of my own racing career lining up against him at the Classics and getting my legs blown off by his attacks. He was the wheel everyone wanted to be on when the racing got serious. I managed it once… have a listen to hear how that went.

 

I was lucky enough to sit down with Tom at his home in Mol and really get stuck into chatting about the races that we both love so much. He’s a fantastic interviewee, and I got a real buzz from the excitement he still clearly feels when talking through the ups and downs of his biggest wins and defeats.

 

As well as revisiting some of the most legendary Classics moments of the last decade, I also got to ask a few questions I’d always wanted to know the answers to. What was it really like being a superstar in such a cycling-mad country? How did he handle the pressure of becoming world champion at just 24? And we also talked about a comeback story that often gets overlooked alongside Matt Hayman’s incredible ride at the 2016 Paris–Roubaix.

 

Honestly, I could have stayed chatting about the microscopic details of the Arenberg sector for hours if I could. There’s so much in this one, and with Roubaix coming up this weekend it felt like the right time to bring it back.

 

Cheers!

Mitch

 

Check out our new Substack! It’s a new place for us to go a bit deeper — home to Tom Southam’s Director’s Cuts, my Pelo Journal, and stories from inside the peloton… and a bit beyond it too - https://lifeinthepeloton.substack.com/

Life in the Peloton is proudly brought to you by MAAP

 

Guys, as if you need me to tell you, we are deep in the heart of the Spring Classics. My favourite races…hell, EVERYONE’S favourite races. I’ve got myself across to the motherland, in amongst it in Belgium, to soak it all in.

 

I want to take you with me on the road and show you why these races are so special. This week is bigger than any one race - it’s a part of the culture here in Belgium, and it’s woven into their very DNA. Even people who don’t ride get out there at the roadside and watch the classics race by. I want to peel back the layers and bring you along for the ride in a way that makes you think “Holy shit I have to get out there next year”.

 

I’ve been putting this episode together since I arrived last weekend, just in time for Gent Wevelgem or, as it’s now called, In Flanders Fields - From Middlekerke to Wevelgem, and hitting record to capture all sorts of rider interviews, roadside atmosphere, across the whole week through Waregem until the big one; De Ronde Van Vlaanderen.

 

I spoke to some really important characters in the Spring Classic story -both old and new - across my week at the races. Young, up and coming talent like Laurence Pithie and Bob Donaldson, Belgian hero Dries de Bondt, and legends from generations gone by like Sep Vanmarcke and Luke Rowe. Not just the riders, there’s an amazing cross section of fans from Belgian and beyond who have travelled out to the hallowed ground of Flanders to embrace it all.

 

From Wevelgem to Waregem, the Kemmelberg to the Kwaremont; this episode covers a lot of ground. Just like the Tour of Flanders itself, we twist and turn all over Belgium - covering bergs shoulder to shoulder with the classics riders who make these races so special.

 

Make no mistake, these races are hard. They’re aggressive, chaotic, fast - they chew you up and spit you out. But, as a professional rider, I loved being a part of it. The noise of the crowd, the smell of the beer, and the passion of the Belgian fans right there on the roadside are something I’ll never forget. I had to get in amongst it and see if it lived up to the hype. I’ll tell you right now, it far exceeded it.

 

Crack yourself a Belgian beer - be it a light pilsner, a sturdy blonde, a dark dubbel, or the full tripel - make sure you pour it into the correct glass, and enjoy this Classics episode.

 

 

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