King of the Ride

Mads Würtz Schmidt has national titles, world titles, and World Tour pro wins but going into 2025 he's taken his skillset to gravel off-road to gravel. He's already racking up wins taking two UCI wins, the prestigious Traka 200 title, and now he's here on North American soil to try his hand at Unbound. Mads and I met up two days shy of the boiling hot Gravel Locos for this face to face conversation. Covering his time in rainbow stripes, his World Tour career, struggles with physical and mental setbacks, how therapy helped him rebound to the incredibly positive (and productive) place he is now. Follow Mads @madswurtzschmidt Change your shaving game entirely with Bolt Skin + Shave. Use the code KING15 for handy first time buyer savings! And give them a follow at @BOLTskinshave And give the newest generation of AG1 a try by trying out drinkAG1.com/tedking

Bike racers don't come much friendlier than Emily. They also don't come much more fierce, much more driven, they generally don't juggle as much, their palmares are usually shorter and they probably didn't have a first career as a professional pianist. But this professional athlete is all of those things which makes her an amazing podcast guest, which make for a really fun conversation! Enjoy this conversation with Emily Newsom and follow her at @instagram.com/emilyjoynewsom Get your hands on a Straz Components Sealant Funnel at www.StrazComponents.com and use the code king15 for some handy savings! As always, boost your health with my favorite bit of greens, the newest generation of AG1. Visit drinkAG1.com/tedking for your welcome kit.

Fresh off hosting the 2nd annual Growler bike race and the 16th annual Levi's Gran Fondo, Levi sits down with Ted to talk about the state of cycling here in North America. The Growler has the crown of the highest purse of any one day race in the world... let that soak in for a second. Bigger than winning Paris-Roubaix or a Tour de France stage. $156,000 is up for grabs and the race draws road racers, the top gravel racers, mountain bikers, and more. Ted and Levi raced Tours of California together, lived in Girona at the same time, and were members of the same peloton so there's some interesting overlap that they can discuss and dissect in today's episode. Simplify your life by giving the Straz Sealant Funnel a try! Visit strazcomponents.com and using the code KING15 Try out AG1 by visiting drinkAG1.com/tedking  

Ted sits down with a return guest, Jan Heine of Rene Herse Cycles and Bicycle Quarterly, to discuss how to be fast in the modern age of cycling. "Get low and pedal faster", right? Well... there's a lot of truth to that, but there's a lot more nuance to it. Tire widths, frontal exposure, riding with aero this and that, this dynamic duo talks through lots of the hot button issues on the tip of gravel racers tongues these days. If you enjoy this episode, be sure to scroll back to episode 97 where we talk lots of other fun anecdotes from other the years together. Save some money on your next bike light purchase! Visit ExposureLights.com and use the code KING10 to get your hands on the best lighting system on the planet. As always, try out AG1 -- and earn a free gift with your first purchase -- by visiting drinkAG1.com/tedking

Quoc Pham has the work ethic of a World Tour pro cyclist, the design savvy to walk a Parisian runway, and an upbringing that's extremely unique in the cycling world as a refugee from Vietnam. He launched his eponymous shoe company, Quoc, back in 2009 which has seen many iterations from a dapper commuter, to a fashionable boot, then with the release of the Grand Tourer he ventured into the backpacking and gravel space which has been his launch pad all the way to the feet of Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas.

Chase Wark and I set out on a pretty wild adventure on Sunday March 26, separately but for the same purpose. Purposes, rather. We were both seeking an FKT on the Mega Midsouth and in a much bigger picture, we were seeking to raise funds for the United Way of Payne County.  This podcast is in conjunction with The Stable Cyclist and covers a lot from a very busy weekend in Oklahoma. Please enjoy. I am continuing my fundraising through the end of March by sending money to my @iamtedking Venmo. Get your Viair Recon Mini by visiting this website and using the code TEDKING10 https://viaircorp.com/products/recon-mini-rider-carry-air-compressor And get yourself some AG1! Just visit DrinkAG1.com/tedking to get yourself a free $76 value with your first purchase.

Maghalie is a supremely successful professional cyclist with a lengthy list of palmares including nearly 50 UCI wins, World Cup podiums, and loads of national titles. She's in the midst of being a cyclocross racer with her heart and soul in the sport that is thriving in Belgium and is trying to find its legs elsewhere. You can find Maghalie and her Dirty Talks podcast here: https://open.spotify.com/show/0rtdEydjqc4E38onNx5Lql Watch her CX Fever show here: https://www.youtube.com/@maghalierochette Get your hands on a $76 value from AG1 at www.DrinkAG1.com/tedking Get a FREE UnTapped water bottle by using the code "bottle" when you spend $50 of UnTapped at www.untapped.cc  

Hello and welcome back to King of the Ride! Today is a bit of cross-pollination. I am drawing from a recent Gravel Kings podcast, where Laura, Stu, and I sit down to dissect Race Around Rwanda in a two part recap. But here we've distilled it down into one episode. So, please do yourself a favor and hit SUBSCRIBE on Gravel Kings. We're three hosts with radically different cycling backgrounds talking about what matters to you in the cycling world. I'm excited to have created a vlog from my time in Rwanda. Please check that out here: https://youtu.be/mKWJMqNM9lE If you are a watch-a-podcast kind of person, then check out this exact show here: https://youtu.be/2ax09zLeJMs

One of my favorite things to do in this podcast is to talk with the How I Built This style, namely to chat with the movers, shakers, and entrepreneurs to hear how they started their business. Amid being a professional athlete and then coach, Dirk started TrainingPeaks, which at this point has to be among the most popular pieces of training software on the planet. Every single Tour de France team, World Tour team, pro rider and aspiring professional uses TrainingPeaks.  Hey, don't forget to get your free Ted King signature water bottle by visiting www.untapped.cc, putting $50 of product into your cart, and punching in the code BOTTLE. A free water bottle will be added to your cart, plus you'll have earned free shipping. Offer valid until March 1 or while supplies last!

You likely know Cam Wurf from his exploits on a bike. He set record after record in the Ironman World Championships on the bike leg, then stepped back into the UCI World Tour after a six-year hiatus and has been working his way into headlines since. He's an Ironman winning athlete, generally found somewhere on the podium when the race is a wrap, but he's also known for wild exploits like running a half marathon for training the evening after riding Paris-Roubaix.  Let's not forget that he's an Olympic and world champion rower from his first foray into athletics, so he's basically been an endurance athlete his entire life. This conversation is not one to be missed, thanks for tuning in! Follow Cam at @cjwurf Get that $48 value from AG1 by visiting drinkAG1.com/tedking And follow the Kristian Blummenfelt excitement here and here!

They don't get more genuine than Chase Wark. Maybe that's those northern midwest roots, now living in the hallowed Driftless region of Minnesota (...home to the US national gravel championships, as we'll discuss today). No stranger to big results, to gravel beef controversy, to aero gains, and diving deep in search of the spirit of gravel, Chase brings a lot to the table as you'll learn today. Follow Chase's journey at @chasethebiker And get yourself some AG1 for goodness sakes. Visit drinkAG1.com/tedking to get your $48 value on the house. While you're at it, give yourself a month of WHOOP for free, plus a free band. Visit join.whoop.com/ted

It's hard to create a title in a single word or phrase for Christian's episode as a because he's a little bit of everything and I'm not sure in which order I should put those things that ended up in his title. Christian is a long time professional cyclist turned race winning ultra trail runner. He's also started a number of successful businesses in beautiful Girona, Spain. He's the founder/owner of  La Fabrica Girona Espresso Mafia Chance Run Apparel Overland Run Shop  On today's episode we'll talk about each of these items, plus translating a pro road career to professional running, compare gravel and trail running, talk about highs and lows of starting businesses, the grind of an entrepreneur, and how to deal with injury, among other topics. You can follow Christian at @christianmeier Please enjoy the show!    

Bond Almand just rode a record setting pace from the northern tip of Alaska to the southern tip of Argentina. Over 75 absolutely wild days, Bond rode into ferocious headwinds, among throngs of cities, highways, oil fields, high mountains, great plains and desert, and so much more to make it to Ushuaia, Argentina.  More than 13,500 miles later, he made it. Keep his website nearby: www.bondalmand.com as you'll want to cross reference it often. Check out drinkAG1.com/tedking  

Melisa Rollins is our esteemed guest today. She's been in the game for a handful of years, but she's quickly turning heads, especially here in 2024. Earning the most acclaim was a smashing victory at Leadville, the hallowed 100 mile mountain bike race scraping across some of Colorado's highest peaks. She just won Iceman Cometh. She was second in the life time Grand Prix. She's won Chequamegon, she's podiumed the overall at Redlands. She has seven Leadvilles to her name. And she's seemingly just getting warmed up! Follow Melisa at @melisa_rollins Check out the Gravel Kings podcast And try AG1 by visiting drinkAG1.com/TedKing

Luke immediately proved his worth stepping into the World Tour, coming third in his first ever race with Soudol Quick-Step having helped deliver his teammate to the victory. He finished 7th at Kuurne Brussels Kuurne, won a stage of Czech Tour, and has a boatload of results coming up through the ranks prior to this year, including back to back to back US criterium national titles. As if it doesn't get better, he's just an awesome guy. Tune in with this fun conversation that wraps up his neo pro year and see where Luke takes it from here. Follow Luke at @lukelamperti And get your hands on the $48 value from AG1 by visiting drinkAG1.com/tedking  

In particular, "Brussels Gravel" is on topic today. There has been lots of chatter about the course itself. The less than enthusiastically dubbed bike path world championships. In this conversation, Laura and Ted break down their perspectives on the course itself and what Belgium has to offer; the astounding level of World Tour competition (looking at you Lotto Kopecky and Mathieu van der Poel!); the type of support from USACycling, and how the race shook out... among other things. Don't forge to visit drinkAG1.com/tedking to try AG1 and get five free travel packs and one year's supply of vitamin D. 

Jessie Diggins' name is synonymous with success for US cross country skiing. She broke the drought for all of American skiers as she and Kikkan Randall (episode 36) won the first gold medal for the United States in 2018. Jessie is a four time Olympic medalist, a six time world champion medalist, an author, and activist working with The Emily Project and Protect Our Winters (POW) as a winter athlete alliance. Among other accolades.  She is a great follow on Instagram where you can find her at @jessiediggins      

Smack in the middle of finding success (and the yellow jersey!) at the Green Mountain Stage Race, I wanted to sit down and talk with Sam Boardman about all things contemporary professional cycling. From his days at UCLA through the wild times at Wildlife Generation and Legion, right up through the present in his impressive European debut with Project Echelon, Sam has stories to tell! And if you can't get enough here, then be sure to read what he's written at The Escape Collective in his Rookie Report. Check out the King Challenge and please please join us if you're available October 12. Help out my fundraising for the ride here: https://www.pledgereg.com/5124/tedking And get your hands on that jumpstart to the day you're looking for with drinkAG1.com/tedking

Welcome one of the world's very best at cyclocross (and pretty handy on all types of bikes), Joris Nieuwenhuis! Joris is a multi-time national champion of cyclocross for the Netherlands, he earned a silver medal at the 2023/24 UCI cyclocross world championships, he's raced the Tour de France twice, has won on the World Cup stage, and plenty of others.  We met up in Sweden as we were taking part in the Grit n Grind gravel race as part of the world championships qualification.  Follow along on Joris' ride at @joris.nieuwenhuis Don't forget to give AG1 a try, visit drinkAG1.com/tedking

Adam Roberge is on a tear. By my count, he's won the past three consecutive races, four out of the past five, plus plenty more to his tally this year alone. Today we'll talk about all the things you might imagine, the two of us racing together and landing in identical spots on consecutive weekends, how he got into cycling, what's happening with the general state of cycling in Canada, and his national championship win this year. We'll talk about the more controversial topics like using logic and game theory (i.e. tactics) to win races, aero socks, and aero bars. That and so much more coming up! You can see my Nepomuk Narly race recap here: https://youtu.be/Tnsn_vs5we4 And get your hands on some AG1, gosh darn it, by visiting: drinkAG1.com/tedking Follow along on Adam's adventures here: @adamroberge

It's July so it's Tour de France time! I'm thrilled to have our guest on the podcast, Sam Bewley. A Tour de France rider himself, a Tour commentator and sports director, we're here to shed light on what's happening now two weeks into a very exciting Tour. Sam is a New Zealander living in Europe, courtesy of the bicycle. He won a world championship medalist on the track, then  graduated to the World Tour and had a successful, lengthy, thirteen year career there.  Sam is now a sports director with Israel Premier Tech as well as a new father. Yeehaw! Don't forget to get your hands on AG1 by visiting www.drinkAG1.com/tedking

Daniel Oss is the man. This long time World Tour professional raced on some of the biggest teams alongside some of the biggest names in the sport. From Liquigas to BMC to Bora-Hansgrohe to TotalEnergies, he was easy to pick out from the bunch with his rock-star long hair. He was also nearly always at the front and often pulling Peter Sagan along to victory. He's now a gravel privateer as well as a commentator for EuroSport, taking on UCI races as well as Unbound.  Ted and Daniel were teammates for two years beginning in 2011 and this was a very fun catch up at a brewery in Emporia, KS a few days before Unbound. Follow along with Daniel's adventures at @daniel87oss  Check out WHOOP, try it out for yourself with a free WHOOP 4.0 band your first month FREE at join.whoop.com/ted And be sure to get your free offer at drinkAG1.com/tedking

Roger Brown has a fan club. He's a four time Unbound rider, has accumulated more than 800 miles across the Kansas plains (which marks a considerable portion of his lifetime mileage). He's a father of four, a co-owner of mine at UnTapped, and he back for another edition of Unbound and another podcast!  If you enjoy this show, check out his previous three episodes number 113, 91, and 75. Also, check out AG1 by visiting drinkAG1.com/tedking to get your five free travel packs and a year's supply of vitamin d3k2

Your 2024 Unbound 200 men's champion, ladies and gentlemen! Lots to talk about in this episode as Lachlan and Ted chat for nearly 90 minutes on all things bikes. From Lachlan's entry into the sport, his tough time in the World Tour, Lachlan and Ted's shared time in gravel and its enigmatic future, and of course ample race analysis from Unbound. Follow Lachlan's wild exploits at @lachlanmorton And get your hands on some goodies from AG1 by visiting www.drinkAG1.com/ted While you're at it, get a free WHOOP band and one month of membership included by visiting join.whoop.com/ted

There are certain people to watch for the win on any UCI road race start line and Matej Mohoric is certainly among them. He's won the road world championships as a junior and then u-23 rider, he's won three stages of the Tour de France, plus one stages each in the Giro and Vuelta. He tallied a monument, dramatically winning Milan-San Remo, dramatically in the first known case of a race win on a dropper seatpost. Last fall he took home the rainbow jersey in the UCI Gravel World Championship and this weekend he will race his second ever gravel race at Unbound. Tadej is a former teammate of mine and I loved talking to this young whippersnapper a decade ago with a new fresh perspective to cycling. He's always been wildly curious and brought a freshness to cycling well ahead of his time. And if you haven't seen his post Tour de France stage win interview, it's the kind of thing that will melt your heart. Watch that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjTROQR9pHQ Follow Matej this weekend and the rest of the season at @matmohoric

Many people who end up among the infrastructure of cycling begin as cyclists themselves. If they make it to the professional ranks, they often segue to professional cycling as mechanics, team directors, team managers, or soigneurs. It's rare that the timetable is reverse and they go from a professional soigneur to a professional cyclist, but that's exactly the scenario which "Gee" has experienced. Now one of the fastest women in gravel, Gee raced under the SD Works banner and has taken wins and podiums in UCI races and... well, quite frankly most of the gravel events she's raced. She podiumed at the Traka 360 this year, has bounced around between Europe and the United States this spring, and that allowed this meet up in Emporia, Kansas one week away from Unbound. Follow along with Gee at her instagram, @geegeertje And give AG1 a try by visiting www.drinkAG1.com/tedking

Christopher Blevins is on a tear. Winning the opening round of the UCI cross-country mountain bike race in Brazil here in 2024, he finished with the silver medal the next week in round two. Wearing the stars and stripes as the reigning US national champion, Chris has the Olympics high on his mind this summer going into Paris. From his early days on the BMX bike to showing stellar results on both the road and mountain bike in the U23 ranks, Christopher had to make a big decision going into the last Olympic cycle heading into Tokyo. We'll talk about that decision and how it's paid dividends since then. In addition to being extraordinarily fast on all things two-wheels, he's also a very fun, engaging, creative person. We'll talk about Stilspoke, an outlet for community building and storytelling, which is just launching now! Check that out at www.stilspoke.com You can follow all of his adventures at @christopherblevs And don't forget to get your hands on those five free travel packs plus a year's supply of vitamin D at www.drinkAG1.com/tedking

Laurens is a vibe. His Live Slow, Ride Fast mantra is a media company and it's a way of life! He has very big plans for 2024, so listen in as we talk the Portugal N2 trip, his target of Tour Divide, how he stays fit at 43, and what it takes to compete at the pointy end of World Tour bike races in this modern age. N2 trip in summary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7I4RBIlp9c Follow Laurens at: @laurens_ten_dam And why don't you buy yourself some AG1 at: www.drinkAG1.com/tedking

The multi-disciplined Tobin Ortenblad joins us on the podcast today. The former u23 national champion in cyclocross, the recently tattooed SSCXWC victor, the often bearded and fun loving Tobin Ortenblad, that is! We talk all facets of cycling from his early days right up through the present at Levi's Gran Fondo. The state of road cycling, his favorite genre of cyclocross, gravel, and everything in between. Join us for this riveting conversation. Follow along on @mctubbbin's via his instagram here.

This conversation started with a social media post. Namely, this one: https://www.instagram.com/p/C40wy-_Oh5Z/?img_index=1 You could argue that Noah is not your average MidSouth competitor, unless it's argued that he's the exact, prototypical MidSouth competitor. On a lark, Noah hatched the idea of doing MidSouth on a $2 per day beach cruiser rental bike and then he went ahead with the idea. Follow along over the course of this unique and hilarious conversation. Try AG1 by using the following this link: www.drinkAG1.com/tedking

Our guest today is Michael van den Ham. Michael is a staple to the North American cyclocross circuit, he's a four time Canadian national champion, he's tallied 6 UCI cyclocross race wins, he's raced the world championships on an impressive seven different occasions, and he's supremely handy on a gravel bike. Don't forget to visit drinkag1.com/tedking to get your hands on some AG1.

Derek Teel is on the podcast today. His strength training platform, Dialed Health, has become the gold standard among amateurs and pro cyclists alike. His following is prolific at @DialedHealth which perhaps has helped echo the story he's going to tell on today's episode of being hit by a car at 65mph and left for dead. This is a heart-wrenching story of challenges and overcoming obstacles, no matter who you are or what you're up against. Derek's story is one of positivity and strength.  Check out the first chapter of Ted's 2024 comeback story here on YouTube. And Ted's vlog from the start of the season here. And give AG1 a try by visiting drinkAG1.com/tedking.

Neilson Powless is just getting warmed up. His rise through the sport starts decades ago, when he and his sister Shayna were playing games secretly engineered by their parents to help encourage their endurance engines. Winning the XTerra World Championships in 2012, for example, indirectly shuttled him to picking up wins in the World Tour today. Recently becoming a father, Neilson reflects on the change of perspective that comes with racing knowing there's someone(s) very special back at home. His humility is matched by his friendliness, Neilson is one of a kind and makes cycling fans both at home and abroad very proud how he performs.  

Ben Hoffman is an amazing athlete. This born Coloradan, now Arizonan, is an 8 time Ironman champion, 7 time Ironman 70.3 champ, has finished as high as second at the hallowed Kona Ironman World Championships, as well as 4th place twice. He's a monster on the bike, duking it out on what's dubbed the fastest group ride in the country, there in Tucson, Arizona, and has toed the line at gravel races and Cape Epic in South Africa. He's training for the Paris 2024 Paralympics with hopes of bringing home a medal. Better yet, he's a father and wonderful of father of two young kids. As I start my journey into 40 and beyond, I saw a lot of parallels with Ben and wanted to sit down for a fun chat.  Ben thinks that AG1 is great and so do I. So visit www.drinkAG1.com/tedking to try elevating your health in the coming year.

Matteo Jorgenson is a young, powerhouse professional road cyclist. Born in Idaho, he's made his way all over the world racing his bike, and ultimately onto arguably the best team in modern day cycling, Visma-Lease A Bike. At just 24 years old, he's quickly and stealthfully tallied one of the strongest list of palmares American cycling has ever seen. With a focus and results already rolling in during the spring classics as well as stage races like Paris-Nice, Tour of Romandie, and overall victory at the Tour of Oman, Matteo's future looks very bright. You can follow Matteo at his instagram page, @matteojorgenson. All details for the inGamba trip across Portugal can be found here. Don't forget to recalibrate your health with the simple step of starting your day with AG1. Get your free year's supply of vitamin D plus five free travel packs with your first purchase. Visit www.drinkAG1.com/tedking 

Special ASK ME ANYTHING episode! You sent questions in, we answered. From van life to real life to gravel in the casual sense to gravel in the hellbent racing sense, lots of UCI questions, and everything in between. Please visit www.drinkAG1.com/tedking to get those five free travel packs and a year's supply of vitamin D. To submit more questions, visit www.iamtedking.com/contact 

Tanner Putt has spent the majority of his life spent in cycling. I've known him as a bike racer — a very successful one in the u23 and domestic scene, especially. But it was when I was reading a recent Outside magazine article about Americans racing the Tour de France and in particular the atypical pathway that seemingly every American has to travel to make it from here in the states to the start line at the Tour, that I knew I had to talk to Tanner. He's quoted in the article about how to make that path to success simpler.  Tanner overseas the Road Racing program at USACycling which is a very impressive ship to be navigating and it's one I'll be watching closely as I'm a fan of his and a fan of American road racing. Don't forget to visit join.whoop.com/ted to get your free month of WHOOP And drinkag1.com/tedking to get a year's supply of vitamin D and five free travel packs.  Try them both now, thank me later.

There's rumor of someone coming out of South Africa who's an absolute machine in off-road racing. He's cleaned up in his home country and now he's on the move to North America. That person is the very affable Matt Beers. On the heels of his recent sprint to second place at the inaugural Little Sugar in Arkansas, Matt is lining up for the season finale Big Sugar this weekend. Between these big late season races we caught up, talked shop, talked global gravel and lots more. Be sure to visit www.drinkag1.com/tedking to get yourself a year's supply of vitamin D and five free travel packs with your first purchase.

Ben Delany has a career in cycling media to his name. He's seen the sport soar, he's been there during troubled times, and he's excited to break out on his own and expand what cycling media is. As gravel has taken off, he's now a bit of a cycling media privateer himself with the advent of his YouTube channel and the ways he interacts with brands. Join me on this conversation with someone who shares a rich history of cycling knowledge. To see Ben's YouTube channel, visit TheRidewithBenDelaney To try out WHOOP, visit join.whoop.com/ted To join the King Challenge, visit KingChallenge.org To support my King Challenge fundraising efforts, visit pledgereg.com/4715/tedking

Dave Wiens is a Coloradan. He's an outdoorsman. He's a mountain biker and skier. He's a father, husband, and hall of famer. He carries the torch of the International Mountain Bicycling Association as their executive director and has a vision for cycling, hiking, and just being outside that makes people want to be part of this vision.  This is a very fun one and I know you'll enjoy it. Don't forget to visit www.drinkAG1.com/tedking to make all your hopes and dreams come true!

Not all professional athletes are one dimensional and Alexey is proof of that. This busy body has a lot going on, both on and off the bike. After an impressive 2nd at Leadville and 3rd at SBT, he's only whet his appetite for an action packed end of the year.  We caught up on the eve of SBTGRVL and had this terrific conversation about the state of the (gravel) cycling world and where he's placing his piece of the puzzle. I really enjoyed this conversation and I know you will too! Please do yourself a favor and visit www.drinkag1.com/tedking  

Anna Greetis is always on her toes. She looks after seemingly anything resembling a road bike, gravel bike, or cyclocross bike here in America for SRAM athletes, and then still has time to head off to Europe for some of the biggest bike races in the world. Anna is an all-star as she's helped keep my fleet of bikes in tip top shape for years now and does it all with a genuine smile and easy conversation. We cover her globetrotting schedule, her entry into the sport, the hurdles of being a female mechanic in a male-dominated profession, and an optimistic look at the future of a more welcoming cycling. We caught up at SBTGRVL amid her whirlwind travels before jetting off to the next one! Please visit www.drinkAG1/tedking to get those 5 free travel packs plus a one year's supply of vitamin D. You need vitamin D, so why not get it for free, right?  

There are many chapters to Ryan Standish's path through cycling, but beginning in Australia at the age of two straight up through the present, there are a book full of anecdotes along the way. From the pursuit of Olympic mountain bike dreams to a shot at the World Tour to the current ambiguous endurance off-road scene, Ryan mixes his passion for cycling with close-to-the-heart interest in giving back with his fledgeling company, Rocket Sloth. Check that out at www.rocketslothco.com Visit www.drinkag1.com/tedking to try out AG1

Roger Brown has four bike races under his belt. He's raced Unbound 200 twice, some random race in college that he discusses today, and now the Unbound XL! Admittedly, neither Roger nor Ted finished the XL, but that doesn't mean it doesn't come without stories. Drop in on these two friends catching up on an epic overnight in Kansas. Use code "podcast" at untapped.cc to get some handy savings on all UnTapped active nutrition! And visit www.drinkag1.com/tedking to finally try out AG1!

The Tour Divide didn't go my way, but that doesn't mean I didn't learn anything. I had hours and HOURS of alone time to ponder everything under the sun -- before, during, and after my race -- and it was fun to condense it and talk about it here with the one and only Rebecca Rusch. If you're curious about my packing list, please check that out here, www.iamtedking.com/blog/td-packing   And don't forget to give AG1 a try, visit www.drinkAG1.com/tedking

On the eve of Tour Divide, I thought it would be wise to talk to the friendliest character in bikepacking, Lael Wilcox. We caught up with Lael on her ride TO THE START of the Tour Divide, as she rides from Tucson, Arizona to Banff, Alberta, Canada. There are loads of questions on my mind as it seems like this event is intentionally cryptic. For example, the Tour Divide is a ride along the Continental Divide Trail... which is also called the Great Divide... which starts in Banff... unless you consider the start in Jasper, Alberta... and the route usually stays the same... but sometimes changes year to year? I'll be relying on Athletic Greens to seek daily nutrition thanks to AG1 all throughout my ride. If you're interested in trying Athletic Greens visit www.drinkAG1.com/tedking to get on the fast track to simplified nutrition!

Paige Onweller stamped her name as a contender in the gravel scene by winning Big Sugar 2022. Lots of podiums and top 10 results also live on her palmares, despite a very short list of total races that she's ever done. Given her greater life story of selling her house, buying a van, and pressing pause on her career as a PA makes her transition to gravel all the more impressive.  Visit www.athleticgreens.com/tedking and pick up those 5 free travel packs!

What's path to victory look like in the hotly contested 2022 Unbound 200? That's what I set out to find out with our guest Ivar Slik. Ivar is a member of the Dutch Mafia, as amalgamated by Laurens Ten Dam and his introduction to his Dutch countrymen (and women) to the American gravel scene. Although Ivar's name is forever tagged to the win in the most storied gravel race of them all, he's been dabbling in the scene for years, and boasts a lengthy list of palmares prior to that. Like winning the sprint jersey at Tour of Turkey. Finishing second in the Netherland junior national championships. He rode a stagiere year with Belkin and was part of the hallowed Rabobank development team. Follow Ivar at @ivar.slik And help improve your day with a daily dose of Athletic Greens. Just visit www.athleticgreens.com/tedking and you'll earn an annual supply of vitamin D and 5 free travel packs.

Cole Paton is one of the good guys. He happens to be one of the good guys who's off to a screaming start to 2023. With international wins to his name this spring, second at Whiskey Offroad, and sitting third overall at the Life Time Grand Prix, we're hearing his name a lot and should expect to see him near or at the top of the podium for many years to come. Follow Cole at @colepaton And give yourself the same daily boost of nutrition that I do with AG1 by Athletic Greens. Visit www.AthleticGreens.com/tedking

Russell Finsterwald is our guest today. Professional mountain biker, crusher on a gravel bike, Russell wrapped up 2022 in third place in the Life Time Grand Prix and is looking for more this season. With a big year ahead, I wanted to check in to hear more from Russell, his background and history, plus his goals and ambitions for 2023 and more. Don't forget to get your FREE flask at www.untapped.cc just by adding a bottle of bulk UnTapped then inputting the code KOTR. Also for your five free travel packs plus a year's supply of vitamin D from Athletic Greens by visiting www.AthleticGreens.com/tedking   

Nicolas Roche is a pro's pro. This long time Irish born, French raised, global savvy individual has a lengthy list of impressive results. Twice finishing in the top ten of the Vuelta a España, Nico is a two time Irish national champion, and represented Ireland at the UCI road world championships seven times, the Olympics once, and just recently at the inaugural UCI gravel world champs.  He's got a heck of a lot going on, so I'm pleased as punch to have carved out the time in Oklahoma at MidSouth for this chat. Clearly there's room for another couple hours of conversation, hopefully later this year. To start your day off right, try AG1 by Athletic Greens simply by visiting www.AthleticGreens.com/tedking