The Rundown: Lance and Ian are fresh off a week in Tenerife, and they brought home a mountain of climbing, a magical Masca loop, and a full breakdown of what a trip like that actually costs. The guys recap the cyclocross World Championships, dig into whether road racing needs to go global, and answer a great batch of EPO Chain Mail questions on training camp structure.
What Happened on Dialed Podcast 357?
A Tenerife training camp recap, the cross World Championships in Lievin, the case for global road racing, and how to structure a big training block.
Backpedal: A Magical Week in Tenerife
Lance, Ian, and Chris logged roughly 391 miles and 45,000 feet of climbing in seven days, including Mount Teide, the longest paved climb in Europe at about 22 miles and 7,400 feet from sea level to the crater rim. Ian came in off seven full rest days and a DEXA scan reading of 11.6 percent body fat, then promptly dropped everyone on the climbs. There is no flat road on the island, the pavement is glassy smooth, and the drivers give cyclists total respect.
What a Cycling Trip Like That Costs
The honest numbers: about 3,000 dollars each for the week, with airfare around 1,500 the biggest line item. The apartment ran roughly 2,800 euros for the group and included breakfast and dinner, and food out on the road was absurdly cheap, like four sandwiches and coffees for under 17 euros. The takeaway for anyone planning their own camp is to bank credit card miles, stay flexible on dates, rent a bike rather than fly your own, and split lodging with more riders.
The Masca Loop and Smart Pacing
The highlight ride was the Masca loop, about 75 miles and 11,000 feet, with the three of them climbing the long ridge at tempo in total silence, pure zen. The week paid off late: by day five Lance found his legs and crushed a brutal two and a half mile, 11 percent wall five hours into the queen stage, then put down a 48 minute threshold effort on the final day. The discipline of climbing at sweet spot rather than threshold early in the week is what made it possible.
Champ Bailey: Cross Worlds in Lievin
Mathieu van der Poel rode away inside the first 30 seconds to claim his seventh world title, holding up the number even while sporting a 300,000 dollar Richard Mille watch and a Whoop strap. Wout van Aert clawed from the fifth row to second, ripping his shorts and losing his Garmin watch along the way. Fem van Empel edged Lucinda Brand in a tense women's final, and the US mixed relay squad stunned everyone by leading into the last lap before settling for fourth.
EPO Chain Mail: Does Road Racing Need to Go Global?
One listener asked whether the UCI should expand beyond Europe. The crew weighed the Amgen Tour of California's rise and fall, the four UCI road races still on the US calendar, and the reality that sponsors follow viewership. The consensus: gravel is the real US growth lane, and the path to a marquee US road event runs through more domestic WorldTour teams and serious local advocacy. A second question landed on the eternal truth that any sport your kid is good at will eat your calendar, so you might as well get them into cycling.
One Last Thing
Matt is wrapping a hundred day review of the Garmin Fenix 8 and floated the Fenix 7 Pro as the money saver for anyone who does not need the microphone and speaker. Ian locked in the Michael Myers Memorial Time Trial for March 23, with traditional TT categories in the morning and Eddy style road bike racing in the afternoon. Jake announced a moving sale ahead of the lab's relocation, using code dialedpodcast for a discount, plus a new affiliate program for the community.
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