The Climb to Columbine Mine

07.2.2018 | 8:09 am

It’s a new episode of the Leadville Podcast — a day early, because I figure everyone’s heading out for vacation by tomorrow (I know I am). We set you straight on the most asked about part of Leadville bike setup: the rolling parts. We brought in a couple of our friends from ENVE, both of them Leadville veterans — each with finish times of around 7:30 — to geek out about rims, tires, sealant and air pressure.

If you’ve ever wondered about what the perfect setup is for your endurance bike, this is the episode for you.

In this episode, we’ll also be talking about the part of the course everyone obsesses about — one of the true defining moments of the Leadville 100: the climb to Columbine Mine. We talk about how to come back from setbacks during training, whether it’s an injury or illness. Enjoy this seriously-packed show!

Support My Sponsors
We went out of our way, for this podcast, to reach out exclusively to companies we actually love and buy stuff from ourselves. Which is to say, you won’t find ads here for life insurance companies or mattresses or cooking kits that come to you in a box. These are all companies I buy stuff from and use pretty much every damn ride.

Please support them, because you should. And also so they will love me and want to keep supporting me. It’s the circle of advertising, folks.

Shimano

I don’t even know what to say about Shimano that I haven’t yet said. XT Di2 is just perfect. I have it on both my hardtail (a Felt Doctrine) and my full-suspension mountain bike (a Specialized Epic S-Works). The Hammer has it on her Epic, too, and it’s her favorite bike ever. The way it shifts. The way it brakes. Shimano makes the best drivetrain and braking components there are, and XT is bombproof and affordable. Get it already and find out how much better your bike will be.

The Feed

Hottie and I have been using Maurten drink mix, and both of us are totally sold on it. No stomach issues, goes down easy, super easy to mix. Hottie’s super anal about stuff like this, so he loved the package precision; they tell you exactly how much water to use, no guessing with scoops and different sized bottles.

My overarching impression is that it’s a ridiculously non-intrusive way to get down a lot of calories. One bottle, 320 calories — it’s a little sweet, it’s a little thick, but there’s no aftertaste and I felt great — my stomach was fine, I didn’t feel that weird energy spike you get with some energy drinks. It tastes smooth, and it burns smooth. I am a fan.

And our podcast listeners can get a great price on a training and racing packs custom curated for Leadville racers. Go to TheFeed.com/leadville for the race pack, and there’s a link on that page to go to the training pack. And be sure to use the code LEADVILLE15 for a 15% discount on either of those boxes.

And starting with this episode (now, basically), you can use the LEADVILLE15 code at checkout for any Maurten drink mix purchase.

Banjo Brothers

At Leadville, and at any race, you will see riders with all sorts of crazy ways to carry their bike repair essentials. People tape or velcro stuff to top tubes, stems, seatposts and seat tubes. We say do yourself a favor, use our sponsor, Banjo Brothers, to get your flat fixing goodies strapped properly  to your bike.

And not just your race bike, but your commuting bike and your bikepacking bike…and they’ve even got great backpacks and messenger bags for when you’ve got to carry bigger stuff.

I’ve got a Banjo Brothers Bag  on every bike I have, and have been for a dozen years. They’re simple and they’re bombproof. They just work.

To get 15% off your order, go to Banjobrothers.com/fatty-favorites.

ENVE

I have ENVE wheels on my single speed setup. I have ENVE wheels on my hardtail setup. I have ENVE wheels on my full suspension setup. They are the very best wheels you can buy. They’re very expensive, but they last forever (or if they don’t, ENVE takes care of you pronto — they’re the Nordstrom of the bike wheel world). Spend the money on a great set of wheels and watch them outlast the rest of your bike by a factor of two. F’reals.