In association with Castelli. Ben Foster is an 8-time capped England goalkeeper who has played Premier League football for Manchester United, Birmingham City, West Brom and Watford, where he is still currently club captain. But it turns out he is also a cycling fanatic.That's right, he is one of us! A bonafide leg-shaving, Rapha-wearing, Specialized-riding roadie who loves his cycling so much he even uses oversized Ceramic Speed jockey wheels.So we got Ben on to the Cyclist Magazine Podcast to discuss how road cycling became his passion, balancing the bike and football, which footballer would make the ultimate pro cyclist and why he wants to try the Race Across America when he retires.Ben's new YouTube channel, The Cycling GK, has already launched and you can check that out here - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi33DX7KG3M3bI0ipjOP2EgJames got all misty-eyed about gravel biking and the Stayer Groadinger. That's probably because Issue 4 of Cyclist Off-Road just hit the shelves! You can buy your copy from the Cyclist shop here - https://shop.cyclist.co.uk/collections/coffee/products/off-road-issue-4Joe talks about the Kask Valegro that he really likes. He reviewed this lid a while back and you can read that here - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/4736/kask-valegro-helmet-reviewFor more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A few weeks ago, Specialized declared the aero bike dead. This week, Canyon revived the aero bike.The new Canyon Aeroad CFR is an out-and-out sprint machine which the German brand claims is its fastest ever road bike.Six years on from the first Aeroad, the German brand has made plenty of changes to this latest bike, not least saving 4.4 whole watts, but also inventing nifty handlebar solutions, comfy seatposts and much, much more.James and Joe speak with the lead engineer on the project, Lukas Schuchnigg, about these big changes, the future of aero bike, which brands he thinks are doing good things in the bike world and which UCI laws need to be scrapped. If you want those nitty and gritty Aeroad details, check out our report here - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/canyon/aeroad/8789/canyon-aeroad-cfr-first-ride-review-canyon-s-fastest-bike-everIf you prefer your information in video form, then check that out here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1aF4ha-e4Q&feature=emb_titleFor more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 107th Tour de France has just finished and proved to be one of the most dramatic editions in modern history.21-year-old Tadej Pogačar shocked the cycling world on the penultimate day's time trial on La Planche des Belle Filles by overturning a 57-second deficit to Slovenian compatriot Primož Roglič, eventually winning Le Tour by 59 seconds. It truly was one for the ages!But while Slovenian Pogrog battled it out for the Maillot Jaune, there was a 24-year-old Yorkshireman by the name of Connor Swift riding his way around France on Grand Tour debut.As recent as 2019, Swift was racing for the now-defunct British Continental team Madison Genesis at the Tour Series in Redditch. Last Sunday, he finished cycling's biggest race.So James and Joe got on the phone and had a chat with Swift to see what it was like to make his Grand Tour debut, talk being Nairo Quintana's personal bodyguard, whether he made any enemies in the peloton and what it was like to get in a Champs-Élysées breakaway.James also takes us through his recent trip to Italy which included plenty of beautiful mountains and sadness at the demise of the breakfast buffet while Joe gives us a sneak preview into what to expect on the next episode!For more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are slap bang in the middle of the Tour de France and there are plenty of things to talk about.James and Joe start off by looking at the plight of Thibaut Pinot. For another year, the Groupama-FDJ man saw his hopes of yellow fade up the side of a mountain as his body failed him yet again. Are the French cursed in their quest for a first Tour title since Bernard Hinault in 1985 or are their riders simply not good enough?As James mentions, Joe also wrote about this in further detail and that article can be found here - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/8674/is-thibaut-pinot-the-most-human-of-all-professional-cyclistsWe are then joined by Cyclist columnist and Eurosport man-in-the-know Felix Lowe to talk through the first week of the Tour, the rapid rise of Slovenian PogRog and which professional rider would make the best James Bond. Hint, it's Tom Dumoulin.There also some obligatory chat about tyre pressures, expensive chain lube and the time Joe and James saw Fabian Cancellara almost got run over in Richmond Park.For more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's here, it's finally here! The Tour de France is finally happening. Granted a few months late and a bit different to what we are used to but who's complaining? Not us, and while they cannot be there in the flesh due to logistical and 'legal' reasons, James and Joe have put together a little alternative preview to the three-week lap of France highlighting the stages you better not miss, which riders you need to have posters on your wall of and why there should be a jersey for the best old rider, too!There's also chat about the Swift RaceVox, a T-Mobile Giant TCR eBay bargain and why running could be a necessary evil for amateur cyclists. *Sound issues* Please accept our apologies for the sound issues throughout the episode, we are really unsure what went wrong and Joe was unable to sort despite spending all day trying to fix it! This episode was brought to you by bike insurance specialists Pedalsure. For more, visit www.pedalsure.com/cyclistmag for your bespoke deal today.For more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The man, the myth, the chosen son. Cyclist spoke to the voice that has narrated many of the biggest moments in professional cycling over the past decade, Eurosport's Carlton Kirby.A man who, quite frankly, divides opinion like no other cycling commentator. Like marmite, some love him and some absolutely hate him.We caught up with Kirby to discuss almost everything from his humble beginnings alongside football's Jeff Stelling, dealing with online abuse and his iconic commentary partnership with the King, Sean Kelly. It's a long one so sit back, pour yourself a glass of Côtes du Rhône and enjoy, we think this is a cracker! For more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The aero bike is dead. Well, according to Specialized it is. Earlier this week it launched its latest road racing bike, the Tarmac SL7, which not only hits the UCI weight limit of 6.8kg but is so fast in the wind tunnel, Specialized has decided to ditch its dedicated Venge aero bike.That's right, we have got to the point where a lightweight race bike is just as fast as an out-and-out aero bike.So this begs the question, is the aero bike dead?James and Joe caught up with product manager of the new Tarmac SL7, Cameron Piper, to ask him about the end of aero and the other mass changes seen with the new Tarmac SL7, not least that new threaded bottom bracket!James and Joe then mull over where road bikes are headed and what other bike trends could join aero in the bin.James has a gripe about how bikes are not set up properly for the consumer while Joe praises Shimano Ultegra Di2 and laments a diesel 4x4 being promoted by a professional cycling team.For more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bike racing is literally weeks away from returning so to celebrate, we called up the world’s best domestique, Tim Declercq of Deceuninck-Quickstep - it’s official, he won a vote and everything.We had lots to ask him and he had lots to say such as how nervous his all-conquering Classic team get before the start of the Tour of Flanders, how sprinters no longer cooperate with one another in the gruppetto and how he arranges for his wife Tracey to pick him up halfway through Paris-Roubaix so he doesn’t have to ride to the finish line.Oh, and Tim has been spending his lockdown playing computer games and building cots for his newborn daughter, Marilou.And since the turn of the year, James has spent more time riding, visiting and talking about Italian bike brand Pinarello than he has spent time with his own father.Before lockdown, James jumped on a plane to the brand’s base in Treviso, northern Italy, for a tour of its factory conducted by the man himself, Fausto Pinarello. He saw a collection of the most defining bike’s in Pinarello’s history for a feature that can be found on the Cyclist website while he also sat down for a long conversation with Fausto, the profile of which is in the latest issue Cyclist, on sale now.James also rode and reviewed the Pinarello Dogma F12 Disk and is currently riding the Pinarello Grevil gravel bike. Honestly, if he was to go onto Mastermind, Pinarello would be his specialist subject.So with all this knowledge, we talk through the brand’s humble beginnings in the early 1950s to being the bike that has taken 10 Grand Tours in just eight years.Joe mentions the new Continental GP5000 clincher tyre in tan wall, you can read about that here - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/news/8437/continental-releases-tan-wall-version-of-the-gp5000-road-tyreFor more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Episode 5 of the Cyclist Magazine Podcast.Since lockdown stopped bike racing back in March, it seems like every man, woman and their dog have turned their hand to Everesting, the slightly insidious challenge of riding hill repeats on an individual climb, in one continuous ride until you hit 8,848m of vertical elevation. We called up former WorldTour pro turned YouTuber, author, Strava King of the Mountain getter and former Everesting world record holder Phil Gaimon to discuss how hard it actually is, what the perfect climb for an Everesting record attempt would look like and whether it is actually possible for us mere mortals. James and Joe then discuss some of the hardest rides and sportives they have ever done (all of which are much, much harder than Everesting). James discusses the time he retraced Stage 2 of the 1903 Tour de France, a 374km epic from Lyon to Marseille, while Joe talks about how riding the Paris-Roubaix Challenge left him with swollen fingers for a week.Joe also mentions the Bergkonnig Vintage Festival in Switzerland. You can read more about that here - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/6400/keeping-it-wool-at-the-bergk-nig-vintage-sportiveAnd if you want to read Joe's review of the Katusha Light rain jacket, that can be found here, too -https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/8388/katusha-light-rain-jacket-reviewFor more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://cyclistmag.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

James and Joe return for Episode 4 of the Cyclist Magazine Podcast.Tattoos are a mark of modern life so it comes of no surprise that the professional peloton is awash with them. From Peter Sagan’s Joker tattoo to the lyrics to Ed Sheeran’s ‘Perfect’ scribed across Nico Roche, we discuss the good, the bad and the ugly ink of cycling.We even gave Trek-Segafredo domestique Koen de Kort a call about his tattoo collection and how it represents his life as a cyclist, too.Cold meats, chewing gum, concrete flooring, industrial explosiveness, aperitifs. No, it’s not a dinner party around Mario Cippolini’s house, it's a brief list of some of the weird and wonderful things that have propped up professional cycling teams over the years.We discuss the origins of the cycling team sponsor including one, rather sordid sponsor, that gave us the humble team bus.We also kick off the show with our usual natter on things we like and don’t like.For James, it’s the Rapha Pro Team shoes which he absolutely loves. Luckily, he also put digital pen to internet paper to review these knitted kicks, which can be read here - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/reviews/7764/rapha-pro-team-shoes-reviewAnd for Joe, it’s buying second-hand jerseys from eBay, something he discussed at length here - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/8325/forget-modernity-just-buy-your-cycling-jerseys-from-ebayFor more on the Cyclist Magazine Podcast - https://www.cyclist.co.uk/cyclistmagazinepodcastSubscribe to Cyclist Magazine now - https://bit.ly/2W9VZ0t Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.