Rollman, let's talk about Machuwanderpaw and some crazy power figures
Rollman, let's talk about Machuwanderpaw and some crazy power figures. Let's cue that intro! The big question is this. How do we use cycling as a tool to improve our health, our happiness and our long changes? That is the question on this podcast will give you the answers. My name is Anthony Walsh and welcome to the Rollman Podcast. Well, man, welcome back. It's Monday. Welcome back to another Rowman podcast. I hope you guys had a great weekend wherever in the world you were listening. Got an action packed week ahead and we're into the season and that's where I want to kick off this week. I want to talk about Strata Bianchi. It's one of my favorite races of the year and although it's For the cycling purest out there, it's a relatively recent addition to the cycling calendar. It's definitely one that I have marked on the calendar every year. And even this year, I went out for a training ride on Saturday morning. And I'm sure to say to the lads of the ride, I'm only doing a short ride. I want to get back and watch Strata Bianchi. It's always classic. You can't but be savage with the parkour and that finish. Before I jump into today's podcast and I go through some of these insane power figures from Matthew Vanderpaul. I wanna remind you about Patreon. We're making a nice bit of ground on Patreon guys, but we're like any small business in the pandemic, small businesses that got hit tough. The big businesses, Amazon, Netflix, your Zooms, they're all thriving, but small businesses need you. So I would encourage you to visit patreon.com forward slash Anthony underscore watch. You can buy me the price of a beer once a month there to support the podcast and I promise you, it makes all the difference. When I'm out in the coffee shop and I pull out my phone to pay I see that someone has bought me the price of a beer on Patreon. It instantly sticks this mind in my face and I walk around all day, but if a Floyd Mayweather money team strut on me. So thank you for everyone that's made donations. And this week as well, the secret podcast will be dropping. So that's something else to look forward to. That's where I give away all my best tips, tricks and you know, it's a bit of an inside banter as well there. It's good fun, you'll enjoy it. Let's talk about Strata, so we had the best boy-griders in the world. Is there any other, it's an overused cliche at times. Oh, the best boy-griders are in the world, they're at the front of this boy-grace. But really could anyone question that. We had Tom Pitcock, we have Wout Van Ert, Pogacha, Bernal, Vanderpoh, Alafleep, all in the front group. I don't even know where to get started. Well, I'll get started by omitting Pitcock from that best-roiders in the world, because he hasn't earned that moniker yet. And he also, I don't know pickock at all, but he also, he's a head like you want to slap with a fish. That's already head on him, he's probably a lovely guy. But he just, yeah, I don't know. I don't know. I haven't warmed to him yet. But that's just the Ineos thing, isn't it? It's difficult to warm to Ineos riders initially. It's like they're like storm troopers out of Star Wars or something and they're nearly painted to be the enemy without even knowing the lads. me saying I want to slap a man I've never met with a fish. Roy, Wild Van Ert, Pogacha, Bernal, Vanderpoel, Alifeliep, they're undoubtedly the best boy-crotters in the world and they're all up front and they're just crushing the turn strips out of each other and they have one other guy who deserves honorable mention is Quinn Simmons that was dropped out of that group. Quinn Simmons is the writer who got a shit ton of trouble for being racist on Twitter and I had Corey Williams on the podcast who I don't want to stick words in his mouth but I think backed up a lot of what I was saying about Queen Simmons at the time but I'm often of the opinion that's you just judge Reuter's butter, butter, the form of the bike you know they're not meant to be this polished sponsors walking billboards, how you the writings at the right times.
Some of these kids are from difficult backgrounds, they're not…
Some of these kids are from difficult backgrounds, they're not groomed and polished in the media and that imperfections is what makes them likeable. And you know at the start I was slighting pickock but a lot of why we don't like any else is that because they are groomed and they give the key messages about races and you know it's a game of two halves type of choice that we hear from footballers. Whereas you know Quinn Simmons yeah maybe it's not your political taste but it's raw and it's honest and it's who he is and it's entertaining and it gives him personality and I feel that personality when I'm watching him. I feel like I'm more of a connection with him because I know a little bit about him whether I agree with it or don't agree with it. I know a little bit more about him. Gwen Simmons was open the front group with these hitters with these world beaters and he's holding his own. He's made the difficult split for the day or at least the force of two difficult splits for the day and he has a double tragedy puncture tragedy. It's like a like a Shakespearean play. He was befell but tragedy. He punctures and then he's trying to get back on. He gets into the chase group which is you know no slouches up there. Greg Van Avermaert Valverde. It was the breaky yesterday year back there and he crashes out of that. So the lad couldn't boy any luck. If he didn't have bad luck he'd have no luck in that race. The race gets into its final steep kicker off road. I don't know what it's called. It's steep as fuck. That's what I'm call in that section and the best boy growing in the world at the moment. World Van Ert, not sorry, not World Van Ert, Vanderpal hits it and Vanderpal hits it and no one can follow only Alif Aleep and when I say Alif Aleep can follow he followed with his tongue on the ground and Bernal can't follow but he benefited from a little lull over the top of the climb and got back in. So we Vanderpaul Bernal, hopefully, really could you write the story? Or would you ever expect Bernal, a Tour de France winner, to be in a group with classic specialists and a cyclocross world champion? So with the current world champion, Tour de France winner and Vanderpaul, the best boy grower in the world upfront. Now, for me, this is where the last 10 kilometers and they're trading off, but for me, this is the problem now for Bernal. It's a tactical error from Bernal and the director. I don't see why Bernal hasn't started sitting on and said I have Pitcock coming across. Pitcock's not coming across, but he can play that card as he's entitled to play it because I have two on the break. I don't see why Bernal doesn't sit on there and then with five, six kilometers to go launch. Because at five, six kilometers to go, if Bernal launches, we have Vanderpoll and Alafilippe, two favorites who are going to look at each other and he only needs that bit of hesitation, but he never tested them. He went to the final climb into that, whatever that square is called, the Campodel, whatever. And it's a stinkin' steep, 15%, 16% cobbled climb up to the finish. Bernard was never gonna hold Aleph Aleep and Vanderpold. Who would punch his Reuters in the world on that final climb? It was an impossibility. He was racing for tour all the way in there. So just disappointing to me. We have on this week, we've Johnny Brown on the podcast on Wednesday. Johnny Brown is a 23 year old rider who at the age of 21 became the youngest ever winner of the US Pro National Road Race. And he was in a break of four. He was riding for a Hagan's Bermans who were a continental team. And he was in a break of four with all world tour riders. And you would think that there's a little bit defensive mindset saying, okay, I'm gonna get a top four in the US Nationals.
I'm the youngest guy here. I'm on the youngest guys in the race
I'm the youngest guy here. I'm on the youngest guys in the race. but he went on the attack in 2018 and he won it and became the youngest ever-roider to win the US Nationals. It was that fortitude I expected to see from Bernal. Attack, make a fucking race of it. Stick it down to the two lads and I'll just roll in for tour. It was like the deal was done. I won't sprint, bring me to the line lads and I won't sprint. How would he say that in Colombia? Like, it's, you know, it was brutal from Bernal and brutal from Inias and, you know, Alifley, look, you did what he got in the finish, Vanderpaul is un-matchable on those steep finishes at the moment, then Alif leaps the second best in the world at them, and he can't do it either. So, look, some of the power figures from Matthew Vanderpaul are astonishing. So, for 186km, he had a normalized power of 398 watts. Absolutely barbaric astonishing. For the last 60km, which is roughly an hour and a half, he had 449 watts. Now I'm not as blown away by his 20 second power up to the finish line, it was a thousand watts, which is not crazy to be honest. But what you need to factor into that is what I've just said previously, he rolled the last 60 kilometers at 439 watts, you ride the last 60 kilometers at 439 watts and see how good your 20 seconds sprint is at the end of it. So it needs to be put in context of of the power he's delivered for the last 60 kilometers, how deep he is into the race and the power he's ridden for 186 kilometers. And you can see the difference between Machia van der Paul and the rest of the guys, because that 20 seconds sprint at the finish was enough to put about 25 seconds into Eigen Bernal. Like if you look at the finish, Bernal's not even psyched when van der Paul is off his bike and he's getting wiped down. That's how devastating that finishing punch was. enjoyed Strata Bianchi, Paris Nises on it the moment, obviously Sam Bennett win in stage 1. So Irish Ois are definitely glued on Paris Nises. And yeah, we're into the season and again hats off to the UCI. They're often come in for criticism but they've done such a great job of keeping the show on the road. And at the top level there hasn't been a lot of races missed with COVID and when you look at the devastation it's wreaked on other sports around the world, the UCI and individual race organizers really need to be commended for that. So, shop all guys and thanks for giving us something to watch every weekend. Roadman, I'm gonna catch up with you again tomorrow. Hey everybody, it's Anthony again. Really quick, I want to invite you to join arguably the best thing I've ever put out inside the Roadman community. It's a challenge. It's a challenge called a 14-day Kickstarter challenge. So regardless of where your fitness is at right now, this is going to be the catalyst for making it faster and making you the leaner. I've created this challenge to take the guesswork out of everything. It's 14 days of training plans regardless of what your level is. There's the master's beginner advanced, there's meal plans shopping list and even a video course holding your hand and talking you through at all. So what I recommend you do right now is just stop everything, press pause on this audio and go to roadmansoycling.com forward slash 14 day or check out the link in the bio. roadmancycling.com slash 14 day.