Today I sit down with Par Rubé legend Mr. George Hinappy. We talk about the race favorites, the key sections, the tech they're using at Modern Adventure Pro Cycling, and the big question, can anyone stop today?
Welcome to the podcast, Mr. Georgian Copy. Georgian Copy, welcome back to the Roadman podcast.
>> Good to see you again. It's been a couple years. >> Yeah, it's been a while.
It's been a while. It's been too long. Uh we're talking rubé today.
probably my favorite one day race of the season. I suspect it's one of your favorites, too. >> Yeah, it's uh certainly one of my favorites.
I actually cannot believe that I'm back here with my own team. It's kind of like surreal to say the least, but uh really excited about this weekend and the guys that are doing it. Uh just just really honored to be invited to this such a big race.
Alex House, one of your directors, was on the podcast a couple of weeks ago and he was talking all things modern adventure. It sounds equal parts excitement and stress. Would that be a fair summary?
>> Oh, yeah. I mean, it's it's wild. Like, we we would never have envisioned this first year being invited to so many races.
Um, being uh, you know, a new team, an upstart team. We have two programs right now. one here in in Belgium uh tomorrow at scale scale debris obviously rubet Sunday and the the other side of the team is racing in California so we're like split up amongst the whole world and uh it's kind of it's kind of wild but the staff has been doing real I mean our team is is doing an amazing job going above and beyond the call of duty um so super happy with the way things have started off this year >> you're the rub expert so going into rub how do you think about deconstructing the case cuz as a you know laying fan I kind of just break it down by sectors and look at key sectors.
Are you analyzing it that way or are you overlaying other considerations? >> Yeah, for for for us being a first year team doing it um a lot of guys actually all of the guys except for Riley have never done the race before. So um you know honestly when when I got the call from ASO in January I was a little reluctant.
Um but then who am I to take away this opport this like amazing opportunity for one the team and two the riders to do the biggest uh race in the world. Uh so we just decided to go all in. Obviously it required a lot more planning a lot of cost associated with Rubet.
I mean we got to put skin plates on the vehicles just a whole another layer of logistics that a normal race would entail. Um, so there's that part of it, but like for us, obviously, we've had some decent results this year, a couple top tens. I would I would be thrilled if we can get as many guys as we can to the finish line.
If we get one or two guys in the top 20, that would be an incredible day. Um, get a guy in the breakaway or guy or two in the breakaway, but as you know, um, you know, I would say half the teams there, like their only goal is to make the breakaway. So, it's one of those breakaway that's going to be super exclusive, difficult one to make.
But, um, yeah, I'm excited. Uh, we have young guys, too. We have like 19-year-old Ezra who's full of horsepower, uh, rides without fear, big guy with tons of watts that I think like a day a race like Bubet can really suit him, uh, for his future.
So, a day like Sunday could really shape the the rest of his career, so to speak. So, it's just a lot of, you know, sub sub things going on on Sunday that, uh, I'm looking forward to see how they pan out. It's also a really high value breakaway.
Like if you take Flanders last weekend, I can rarely remember a early, you know, we call it the TV breakaway in Flanders where those characters were still in the final or playing a role. Rubé is kind of different. You obviously Mahan's the obvious example, but you do see early breakaway riders holding on and getting top 10s.
>> Yeah, for sure. one like you if you you have to put in that huge effort to make the breakaway which is there's no denying how hard that is. Uh but at the same time the guys in the back have to put a huge effort to stay in the front for those first sections.
Uh so the battle I mean maybe not for the first the top five favorites but for everybody else is arguably just as hard just being in the pelaton if you want to enter those sections in the front. Uh so sometimes in many ways it's worth that extra effort to make the breakaway and enter the first sections with with 10 15 guys and there's no position battle. You're just kind of riding your your pace.
And these guys are so wellversed at calculating uh the the wattage uh the wattages that they can do and how hard they can do and how good they are pacing these days that in some ways the breakaways can go a long ways in Rubet. Now >> how important is position into those sections? Like I know everyone's like position's super important, but can you illustrate in terms of watts if you're in the top 10 versus you're in the back 10 that effort you're having to make to stay in touch?
>> It's not even the watts. It's more of like the danger, the risk because there's so much more risk of like a cra if there's a crash in in the in in in 20th wheel like the whole pelaton's blocked. You know what I mean?
So it's more of that. It's like of course and and of course you have the slingshot effect around the corners which also is more watts but it's mo the main part in those especially in those first sections because there's still 200 guys there is the risk of crashing and the road getting blocked and you can't move. >> What year was it that you had the wet rub?
It's on YouTube. I've watched it a few times on Turbo. >> Um I did a couple I did a couple.
My first rub was snowing at the start and freezing cold. Um, and then yeah, I had probably >> what was the slippy slide one where I think he must have crashed like three times. >> Yeah, the slippy slidy one.
I think it was O was it 02 or 04? I don't know, man. I did seven of them.
They all they all kind of gelled together. >> But the one the one I slid into the ditch was when Boon got uh third. So that was like what 200 2002 something like that.
early 2000s. >> What made Boon so good at rubé? >> He's just a beast.
I mean, he's he's uh you know, he was born and raised on the Cowboys, so to speak, and just a ton of power. Uh obviously a great sprinter, so really good at positioning as well. And uh just a race that really suited him.
>> You're riding these. If anyone has some time, they should go back and watch the YouTubes of those older bays. They're absolutely insane.
Equipment has changed so much in the last 10 years. Like we've gone from 21 mil tires with 140 PSI to 32, 34, 36 mil tires with like 55 to 65 PSI, maybe even lower depending on RERS's weight. We've gone to uh proper disc brakes, electric gears.
How much easier do you think it is to ride these cobbles now with the new modern tech? >> It's certainly better handling. There's no doubt the handling on the, you know, the lower tire pressure like you mentioned, the wider tires, um, it's a lot more stable of a ride.
I mean, you could even see it on the sections of of Flanders like the Coppenberg and these sections like you don't see that many guys walking anymore where back back when the 25 mil tires, I mean, you made one mistake or one one one lapse of focus, you're you're walking. Uh, so the the these tires and the the the equipment these days is a lot more forgiving for sure. >> The racing has changed so much.
You know, there's I was talking about this on social media the other day. Like some people are like, "Oh, we're watching the greatest rider ever, Puggy, which maybe we are. You know, it's it seems to be a two- horse race, Puggy and Merks.
" But also as a fan, like you used to go out on the Saturday morning club spin or the Sunday morning club spin and then you come home, at least if you're Europe based and you catch the final and the final still has like all the drama. Now you come home with like 40 50k to go. It's like a televised training ride.
>> Yeah. Yeah. I mean it's it's changed dramatically.
I still thought a race like Flanders was super exciting to see a guy like Remco first time ever doing it. Um still getting uh third place. I mean, he probably wasn't happy with that, but I think that's quite an honorable ride.
But if you see the, you know, the best five riders in the world trickling in one by one, as a rider, you know how hard that race must have been. Um, so yeah, in one sense, like, yeah, the race is over, 20k to go. Poker charges, rides away from, but at the same time, like you know how hard it must have been before that that that these guys are just on their last their last breath, so to speak, just trying to crawl their way to the finish line.
Yeah, I thought Remco looks super good. The team done a great job keeping in position. Maybe if he doesn't take that turn on the Patterbberg.
He rides through on the Patterbs Pogy come straight over top of him. Like maybe if he doesn't ride through there because he didn't blow cuz he was TT on his own for like 50k. >> Yeah, that I mean Yeah, I spoke about that on our podcast a little bit like the Pottersburg that section leading up to it is super tight downhill.
I mean, he was pulling there, but to me, you're not spending much energy on that downhill. You're kind of just choosing your lines. Um, and and you're able to to sort of dictate the the lines that you take on that technical descent to the potter.
So, I don't I don't think he burnt that much energy there, but maybe if he if he did some big pulls between the Qumont and the Pottersburg on that big road, then yes, that that would hurt a lot. But um yeah, he was just so close and it was it was wild to see that he just missed it. But obviously I don't I the result would not have changed.
I mean it was it was the strongest guys rolled in in the top three. >> I also think he missed out on a bit of that classic specific work that maybe Vanderpole and Pogy are doing. Like the seated accelerations just aren't as much of a feature of Grand Tours as they are the classics.
>> Yeah. Yeah. I mean, again, he's he's not a rider that you would think would be the typical Torah of Flanders rider, but for him to still be there, battling it out till the end.
And the the amount of stress and positioning that goes on before what we actually seen on TV is is as intense as it gets in in Flanders and Rubet, and he did a great job with that. >> Obviously, the races we've had so far were like a strata bi kind of expected a pogy win there. Milan Sanan Ramo less sure because we were unsure if he was going to drop Vanderpole.
It turned out he didn't. It was Pickock that he didn't drop. Flanders again it kind of just looked like a puggy.
It was difficult last year for for Vanderpole to follow on the quarant. But going into Rube I think now for the first time it seems like Vanderpole's maybe more of a favorite than Poga is going into it. If you're sitting on the Alpas team bus, how are you thinking about tactics for Vanderpole versus Pagotaa?
>> Yeah. Well, the the difference is for Rubay, in my opinion, is that uh Vanderpole will have a much better team in Rubé than he did in Flanders. He'll have guys that'll be able to one most likely make that breakaway and two be be with him in the in the like the second group uh or right with Vanipole for a long time just because these guys are like flat powerhouse riders.
Um we've seen we've seen um >> Philipsson's gone really deep. >> Philips Philipsson's gone second twice. Um so he can go super deep.
He's a he's a potential winner depending on the tactics, depending on the wind. Um, so they have a they have a I think they have a lot more options on Sunday and obviously Vanderpole is a master class at bike handling and and the Cobbles. Um, you know, and has more experience than Pogachar.
So I would say he's got the advantage going in. But again, Pogachar just, you know, continues to do what he wants on the bike. >> You don't think they need to get too elaborate with the tactics?
You think it's a they're trying to get it down to a mono mono and just backing Vanderpole? >> Uh, I think so. But also, they need to they need to hold Phillips in, you know, uh they need to sort of have him save as much energy as possible and go as long as he can because if he gets there with those guys, I mean, he's going to be the winner.
Um, and also they can play they can play t with tactics as well. they think, you know, if they think that uh Bogachar is way stronger than Vanderpole and Vanderpole will be able to see that I think early on um with at least 80k to go probably probably from the Aaronburgg on then you would think okay well I'm not going to work as hard with Pogar even if we ride away from everybody like he did with Vanart um in uh again wagum because they have the guy behind so technically he doesn't have the responsibility to keep that breakaway away so we can see sort of dynamic tactics like that going on which will make the the race uh exciting. >> Is there an outsider?
I was chatting with a buddy this morning. I was thinking Brennan from Vizma had a good ride last year. Obviously super fast finisher.
>> Yeah. Yeah, that guy's a beast as well. I mean, if if he has a good day, uh he can certainly be there and uh and and certainly has a better sprint than those guys if he makes it with them.
>> What is the hunt for you guys to get a top 10? Well, we've had Ben Collins up there battling out in the classics or in the in the in the semi-lassics and he's done a great job and he's from a mountain bike background, so really good technically. Um, has no fear, you know, he's he's he's got a chance for a top 10.
I'm not going to say everything has to go right. U, but he's he's got a he's got a chance to to be up there. Certainly in the top 20.
>> Since this video has been recorded, I've actually lost the weight. I've gone from 88 to 80 kg. I can't actually believe it because the crazy thing is I'm eating way more than ever before.
Some days my jaw is actually getting sore. I'm eating so much. But I feel amazing on the bike.
My power numbers are not quite back to my best, but I'm trending there very fast. But importantly for me, my big hesitation when I got back training was, yes, I had the time available to train, but I couldn't do it if it meant sacrificing energy, the focus to come and have highlevel conversations on the podcast. And I have so much energy off the bike.
Like I'm coming in the door fresh after three hour rides. It's wild. I've never experienced it before.
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Trust me, it's a game changer. This is a totally different challenge and a totally different team talk with a new team. Like, I' I've never ridden Rube.
I've never even ridden obviously I've never ridden the race, but I've never even ridden the course. But in advance of our call this morning, I was jumping on to Training Peaks virtual. I uploaded the GPX file into it and I was able to just ride like the Arberg Forest.
Obviously, it's not the same as going to ride it, but like it gives you a real flavor. How much are you able to lean on tools like that for your debutons who've never just experienced these parkours? >> Yeah, the training piece virtual um has been a huge asset for the team.
Uh the guys have been using it leading up to Rebe and it's just it's just a matter of having as much information as you can going in. So when you actually get to the race day, even though you have info, your directors are talking to you in the radio, there's just so much chaos going on and so much stress that it's it's an advantage to have have it in your mind already doing it virtually and kind of knowing what it looks like. Uh it's certainly an advantage for us.
>> What's the other considerations for the debuts? I guess when you're going into it like you are what you're right 15 17 times you're fig you kind of largely know year one year two year three you're it's a blank slate and you're like I don't know what works and you're like okay I know this works I know this week of here's the type of spins I need to do before here's the amount of fitness I need here's the amount of fatigue I need to shed how are you thinking about that kind of freshness fitness for guys going in when they've never experienced this before or even like most of your guys probably haven't raced monuments before >> and in a way it might be a a good thing because the guys that have done it and just have done it for survival, they know how hard it is and how much risk they have to take. So in some ways these guys being debutants to the race they go hopefully in with less fear and just excitement.
Uh just excited to be there. I know my first rubet I was just over the moon excited to be there. It was snowing, freezing cold.
I had shorts on. I didn't care. I was just happy to be there.
So, I want I hope that these guys come in with that same feeling. Um, especially like our our young Americans. I mean, as an American rider, you grow up watching Paris Rubé and the tour to France.
That's pretty much it. So, for them to be here doing it, um, I'm hoping that the adrenal adrenaline takes over and the excitement takes over and they go really deep into the race. >> Is there different considerations for Rub than there would be for other semi-lassics?
Like, is feeding more difficult? Is the feeding strategies? >> Oh, yeah.
We got 30 people. We have 30 people um outside of our staff coming just for wheels uh like having them at the different wheel sections, the feeding sections. Um yeah, it's just it's a lot more logistics involved.
We have all of our fleet of vehicles here like all hands on deck uh for this race. >> That's absolutely wild. Does that scale up when you look at you guys?
Obviously with respect to Motor Venture, you're a first year team. It's amazing that you're even like Alex was saying, you basically achieved the full season goals already in the first handful of races of the season, which is phenomenal. >> You've been on the opposite side of the bench where you've been going there as one of the race favorites in one of the biggest teams.
>> In terms of infrastructure, what's the difference that separates the smaller teams from the bigger teams in the races like this? >> Oh, yeah. Uh the teams like Albine, Phoenix, UAE, I mean they have they probably have I mean if we have more than we have more than 30 staff here, they probably have 50 to 80 staff.
I mean they'll have they'll have uh staff every section. Um they have just a lot more uh tools at their disposal. But I mean you know Rubet at the end of the day is just a survival race for for many of the teams.
So, um I think the the road will do a lot of the talking and hopefully, you know, we don't have that much bad luck and we we're able to to come away um unscathed throughout the day. >> How much of a role does look play in it? >> A lot.
A lot. Um you know, is like these days equipment is is uh really everybody's got really top top of the line equipment. I mean, we're really excited to have the the Monza factor bikes, um the special ShraMM group O's for this this race.
I mean, we our guys are dialed in the Michelin tires. We've tested it. We're going to test it again on Thursday after Skelter Pre.
Um so, we've done a lot of uh prep in that sense. Um but at the end of the day, if you hit a cobblestone the wrong way, doesn't matter how good your tires are, they might end up exploding. Uh what we >> we're going to we're on Michelins for uh for for rub.
>> Nice. So what uh what width we go? >> 30 uh 32 I believe.
>> 32. And you know >> uh tubeless no inserts. >> Tubeless with inserts.
Yes. >> With inserts. Interesting.
>> Yeah, the insert debate is interesting. I guess it works for races like that where you can get a wheel change quite easy. I think for amateurs, what I'm seeing is the insert just sucks up a lot of the sealant.
>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah. For sure. >> So, any other >> Yeah.
I think that the the you know, the idea behind that is just go as long as you can till you get a wheel. At least you're able to ride it. >> Any other crazy tech modifications that you guys I know people double wrap their bars.
People tried weird suspension in the handlebars through the years. >> Yeah. Well, we're going with a whole new frame uh for this race.
We're going with the Monza factors. We're going with one by uh Shrimp uh Explorer Groupo. Uh yeah, so we're we're changing everything up for this for this one day race.
So you can imagine for our mechanics, they had to build up another uh 15 bikes just for this race. Uh so every everything's like it's it's pretty wild. We've had, you know, this time of year, every team's got riders that are getting sick.
Of course, we had guys getting sick, so they're coming back. So, we're actually waiting till tomorrow night to make the final call on the roster. I mean, we have 80 80% of it done, but there's a couple guys we need to see if they've bounced back from their illnesses.
>> So, what's the team talk that morning? What are you saying to the guys? >> Um, so the directors will do the strategy.
I mean, we've been talking about the strategy for for a month now, but for me, it's just, you know, guys, soak it in. This is this is uh as big as it gets. We're on the we're on the the the world stage right now and just race with gratitude, excitement, and no fear.
Um and and this day could define your career for the rest of your career. So, I mean, just just do what you can out there and and uh and uh just just be u like don't take for granted the position that you're in because a lot of riders dream to be in that position. >> Yeah.
And I like what I see with Rube time and again I guess maybe the directors are trying to emphasize this the writers is just keep riding. You see often that a writers totally out of the race and it's a attitude difference between him and someone else in the group that means that he keeps riding because you can't control the chaos that happens ahead and often they actually ride back into the race. They ride back into top 10s, back into podium places when they looked out of the race.
How do you get somebody to switch that mentality? Because just because you're not in the group you need to be that this is slightly different. It's it's not San Ramo that if you're in the wrong group it's game over.
>> Yeah. Yeah. You got this.
Flanders and Rub are those those unique races where like you just got to keep going as long as you can cuz like you said there's always a chance to come back or um even if you don't come back just coming onto the drum there in Rubet is super special feeling. Um and it's it's just this huge sense of accomplishment. Obviously, if you're a favorite of the race and you're just finishing is not a big deal, but if you're a newcomer to Paris Rubet, getting to the Belgium is a big deal.
>> Yeah. Like when you pulled out the Modern Adventure bingo card at the start of the year, I didn't see Pari Rubé on the bingo card. >> I I didn't either, trust me.
>> What's your record for the rest of the season if you've accomplished all these your goals in almost the first 10 weeks of the season? >> Yeah, I mean, we're still busy. We got a we got limb we got obviously we're doing California this whole week but we have Lindberg on on uh is it Wednesday we have Lindberg and then we have the guys going to Turkey uh we have Woneyi after that we have Hungary uh we got the US nationals so we're and the and the Euro nationals South Africa well no South South African nationals were already in January but we have a super busy schedule um August we got the Arctic tour Norway we have tour Denmark September we have tour Britain tour Luxen Ber, we got a stacked stacked calendar.
More than I ever imagined. >> Every rider chases that feeling. The one where the bike just disappears.
Where the pedals turn easy and the road hums beneath you. And for a few fleeting seconds, everything just clicks. No effort, no noise, just flow.
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Parley cycles engineered for that feeling that keeps us coming back. If any of your boys do a good ride, it'd be interesting if he's willing to share it to send across this training pig file and I'll do a podcast review on the power it needs into each of those key sections. >> I'd say that's a great idea.
>> Wild. >> Yeah, for sure. >> Uh George, I know you're super busy getting ready for race, so I really appreciate your time and you unique insight.
We'll catch up again. >> Yeah, we'll c Yeah, we catch up again. We won't go uh a couple years without talking.
>> Cheers, buddy. So, >> all right, man. Cheers.