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Episode Show Notes: Luke Fetzer Guest: Luke Fetzer — former U.S. U23 Criterium National Champion, riding for Cadence Cyclery p/b Waldo Luke Fetzer joins the show as one of the clearest signs of where American criterium racing is headed. A former U23 national champion, Fetzer races for the powerhouse Cadence Cyclery p/b Waldo squad and has already put together a résumé that marks him as a rider on the way up fast. Dave talks with Luke about racing at the front of the field, what's next for him, and why he's one to watch as the future of the sport. Sponsor: This episode is brought to you by KÜHL.

Danny Summerhill — The American Cycling Report There are riders who come into cycling with a plan. And then there are riders who simply keep showing up… keep racing… keep pedaling… and somehow, after more than two decades, find themselves still standing at the front of the pack. Our guest today has been there. From the muddy fields of American cyclocross to a silver medal at the Junior World Championships… from the brutal cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to some of the biggest, wildest, and most unforgettable races American cycling has ever produced. He’s raced through eras. He’s raced for big teams. He’s raced against some of the biggest names in the sport. He’s seen American cycling change, contract, rebuild, and come roaring back. And somewhere along the way, Danny Summerhill figured out something pretty important: He really, really likes racing his bike. Now, in a sport that is increasingly young and increasingly fast, Summerhill isn’t looking backward. He’s still at the front. Still fighting for wins. Still mixing it up with the best criterium racers in the country—and still finding new ways to make a living, make a mark, and make people remember his name. In 2023, he won the American Criterium Cup overall. In 2024, he was the ACC’s top American. And now, with Team Cadence Cyclery, he’s back in the heart of American crit racing, chasing another chapter in a career that refuses to slow down. But this conversation isn't just about results. It’s about the road that got him here. The races. The teammates. The characters. The close calls. The victories. The disappointments. And what it feels like to have spent your life chasing that little bit of speed around a four-corner course. Because Danny Summerhill isn't just a veteran of American cycling. He is a piece of its history who is still writing the next chapter. Danny Summerhill—welcome to The American Cycling Report.

A national title and a new team — Preston Eye's season just leveled up, and on this episode of American Cycling Report, he tells the story behind both. Dave Towle sits down with Eye fresh off a national championship win, a result that cements him as one of the sharpest talents coming up in the domestic scene. On top of that, Preston has landed a new home  with the Clif Family Drifters, joining one of the most respected programs in American racing. They dig into what it took to get to the top of the podium, how the move to the Drifters came together, and what Preston's aiming for as he steps into this next chapter of his career. This episode is brought to you by KÜHL — Born in the Mountains. Preston Eye's rise is just getting started — don't miss this one.

On today's show, I'm joined by Eric Brunner — one of the best off-road racers in the country and a three-time US elite cyclocross national champion. Born and raised in Boulder, Colorado, Eric capped his 2025 season with a solo win in Fayetteville to take his third national title, after podiuming in 11 of 12 US cross races with seven wins along the way. He's also a four-time Pan-American champion, and for 2026 he's turning his focus back to the road with Project Echelon Racing, where he'll line up as one of the team's leaders both here and internationally. It's a great conversation. And a big thank you to our friends at KÜHL for supporting today's episode. KÜHL — Born in the Mountains. We appreciate everything they do to keep this show rolling.

American Cycling Report — Patrick Lemieux Stars, Stripes, and Saddles: Patrick Lemieux on Winning, Wove, and the Long American Crit Episode Description Dave Towle sits down with one of the most fascinating figures in American endurance sport. Patrick Lemieux just pulled on a stars-and-stripes jersey at Masters Road Nationals in Milwaukee — and that might be the fourth or fifth most interesting thing about him. Patrick is a former pro who's building Wove in Boulder, Colorado — handmade North American carbon saddles designed with direct input from the women's pro peloton. He races for Rollers Racing. And as a promoter, his Solstice 100 is a throwback to the era when American crits were long, hard, and legendary. Racer, entrepreneur, promoter — and now national champion. There's nobody in this sport quite like him. In This Episode The finish in Milwaukee: how Patrick won his masters national title, and what's different about his engine (and his head) this time around Racing with Rollers, and the masters peloton vs. the old pro ranks Why the saddle? Building Wove, designing for women's bodies from day one, and betting on handmade carbon in North America The Solstice 100: bringing back the long American crit What American bike racing needs right now — and which jersey fits Patrick best Links Wove Saddles: https://wove.bike Follow Patrick on Instagram: @patricklemieux Thanks to Our Sponsor This episode is supported by KÜHL — born in the mountains, built for the way you actually live. Gear up at https://kuhl.com Connect with the Show If you enjoyed this conversation, subscribe, leave a rating, and share American Cycling Report with somebody who loves bike racing as much as you do. It genuinely helps us bring you more of these conversations. I'm Dave Towle. Thanks for listening — we'll see you at the races.

Michael Garrison came up the classic way — Decatur, Georgia junior, worlds trips to Europe, LUX, then four seasons with Hagens Berman Axeon, where he won the U23 time trial national championship. But instead of chasing the traditional European road dream, he bet on himself, launching an independent program and building one of the most diverse race calendars in the sport: gravel wins, Speed Week podiums, crits, mountain bikes — all of it. Now, for 2026, he's joined forces with Cole Davis on SpeedStudio p/b Basso, with a schedule that runs from Tulsa Tough to The Traka in Spain to Big Sugar. Dave Towle sits down with the younger brother of former WorldTour pro Ian Garrison to talk about the development pipeline, life as a privateer, why he refuses to pick a lane, and what pro cycling can look like when you write your own rules. Presented by KÜHL — born in the mountains. KUHL.com Subscribe to the American Cycling Report wherever you get your podcasts, and leave a rating to help more fans find the show.

Our guest today is one of the most experienced voices in American cycling — Brad Sohner. Brad got his start in this sport at 14 years old, traveling the country helping set up race venues long before he ever got near a microphone. He fell in love with the sport from the inside out, and eventually that passion found its way to the PA system — and it never left. Today Brad is the voice of more than 200 events across multiple countries, covering the full spectrum of American racing: from grassroots criteriums to marquee events like the Amgen Tour of California, the Tour of China, and USA Cycling's Cyclocross National Championships. He's also a TV producer based in Pittsburgh, which means he understands not just how to call a race, but how to tell the story of one — on air, on broadcast, and for an audience that may be watching cycling for the very first time. Brad is one of the people in this sport who's been there when it was big, watched things contract, and kept showing up anyway. That perspective on where American cycling has been — and where it needs to go — is exactly why I wanted him on the show. Brad Sohner, welcome to American Cycling Report.

Cade Bickmore has put together a solid career on the American cycling scene — from his junior days through the domestic criterium circuit and now with his sights set on making the U.S. Olympic team pursuit squad. On this episode of American Cycling Report, Dave Towle sits down with Bickmore to talk through that journey, including his comeback from a concussion that sidelined him earlier this season. A two-time criterium winner at Tour of the Gila and a Sunny King champion, Cade knows what it takes to win on U.S. roads. He also has a unique vantage point on how the sport has evolved — what the criterium scene looks like now compared to when he was coming up, and how the demands on riders have shifted along the way. It's an honest conversation about resilience, the realities of racing at the highest level of American cycling, and what it takes to chase an Olympic dream on the track.

Anna Hicks | Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28 | Road & Track Anna Hicks is a 26-year-old pro cyclist from Placerville, California — raised in the Sierra Nevada foothills as a 4H kid — now based in Boulder, Colorado, and one of the fastest-rising names in U.S. women's cycling. The backstory Anna's athletic gifts showed up early. One season of high school cross-country was enough to earn her a Division 1 scholarship. She attended Cal Poly SLO, then turned her focus to the bike after college. Teamtwenty28 Road breakout In her first elite road season (2023), she finished 8th at the Pro Road National Championship, then crossed disciplines to finish 3rd at Big Sugar Gravel. Endurance Sportswire The track explosion This is the part that stops people: Hicks raced on a track for the first time at a local event in June 2025. Less than nine months later, she won gold at the Pan American Track Championships in the Points Race — beating reigning World Champion Yareli Acevedo. USA Cycling Team & program She rides for Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28, a program built specifically as a pipeline to the Olympics. Off the bike, Anna is a certified sports nutritionist and coach. Endurance SportswireTeamtwenty28 Olympic trajectory She was named to the 2026 Pan American Track Championships squad in the Points Race — and the LA 2028 Olympics are squarely in view.

In American cycling, there are builders — people who don't just show up to the sport, they construct it from the ground up. Chad Cheeney is one of those people. Known as "The Chainsaw," Chad has spent years turning Durango, Colorado into one of the most remarkable youth cycling ecosystems in the country. Through Durango Devo, he's put thousands of kids on bikes — not just handing them helmets, but genuinely changing the trajectory of young lives through two wheels. Durango is no ordinary backdrop. This is a town where elite pros train on the same roads and trails where kids are learning to clip in for the first time. Cycling isn't a niche here — it's a culture — and programs like Devo are a huge reason why. People like Chad don't happen by accident. They show up, they grind, they care — and they refuse to let the next generation figure it out alone. Every kid who found confidence on a bike instead of losing it somewhere else — that's Chad's fingerprint on American cycling. Welcome to the show — Chad "The Chainsaw" Cheeney.

There are cycling careers, and then there is the Taylor Phinney story — and no one has lived it quite like him. He was born into it. His mother, Connie Carpenter-Phinney, won the first ever gold medal in the women's road race at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. His father, Davis Phinney, won two stages of the Tour de France and took bronze in the team time trial at those same 1984 Games. Cycling wasn't just something Taylor grew up around — it was in his blood, his identity, the very air he breathed growing up in Boulder, Colorado. And then he went out and made his own legend. He made his Olympic debut in Beijing in 2008 at just 18 years old, placing seventh in the individual pursuit on the track. He went on to take back-to-back world titles in the individual pursuit in 2009 and 2010. In 2012, he won the opening time trial of the Giro d'Italia, becoming the third American ever to lead that Grand Tour, and later that same year earned silver at the World Time Trial Championships. He was the future of American cycling, full stop.  Then came the crash that changed everything. At the 2014 US Nationals, a catastrophic leg injury derailed a career that had been on an upward trajectory most riders only dream about. The road back was long, painful, and deeply uncertain. He fought his way back to the peloton — racing the Tour de France in 2017 and 2018 — but the sport had taken its toll. In 2019, he called time on a nine-year professional career with BMC, Cannondale, and EF Education First. He stepped away, turned to painting, to music, to life beyond the bike.  But the story wasn't over. Not even close. What Taylor is now calling "Comeback 3000" started simply enough — a return to gravel racing — before, in his own words, it "delicately snowballed into a full-on Olympic dream." He has returned to training on the track, targeting a spot on the USA men's team pursuit squad for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics — the very same city where his parents made history 44 years ago. The idea was planted by USA Cycling's Allen Lim. His wife, 2024 Tour de France Femmes champion Kasia Niewiadoma, pushed it from concept to reality.  This is one of the greatest stories in American cycling — a legacy built across three generations, a career defined as much by resilience as by brilliance, and a final chapter that nobody saw coming. Taylor Phinney sits down with American Cycling Report for a conversation about all of it. Don't miss this one.

Welcome back to The American Cycling Report. This episode is one that gets at the foundation of the sport—how we grow it, who gets access to it, and what the future actually looks like on the ground. Today’s guest is Pete Webber, a former professional cyclist who’s now helping lead Boulder Junior Cycling, one of the top development programs in the country and a Platinum-level USA Cycling Center of Excellence. But this conversation goes beyond results and performance—it’s about building pathways into cycling that are open, sustainable, and inclusive. If you care about where American cycling is headed, this is worth your time. We get into the real barriers that keep kids out of the sport—cost, access, awareness—and what programs like Pete’s are doing to break those down. There’s insight here for parents, coaches, and anyone invested in the next generation, but also a broader look at what cycling needs to do to stay relevant and grow. It’s a practical, honest conversation about development, opportunity, and how to make this sport something more kids can realistically be part of.   You can learn more about Boulder Junior Cycling's programs at www.boulderjuniorcycling.org   Thanks to Kuhl for the support, visit them at www.kuhl.com

This week on The American Cycling Report—we’re going big. Because when you talk about the modern era of American cycling—road, gravel, the whole evolution of the sport—you cannot tell that story without Pete Stetina. This is a guy who raced at the absolute highest level of the sport, lining up in the biggest races in the world, doing the work, earning the respect, and living the full WorldTour grind. But what makes Pete different isn’t just what he did there—it’s what he did after. Because when everything changed—when the crash, the setbacks, and the questions hit—Pete didn’t fade out. He reinvented. He helped define what gravel racing could look like in the U.S.—not just as a competitor, but as a builder, a connector, and a guy shaping the culture in real time. And now, it’s another turning point. Pete is stepping into a new phase—pulling back from elite competition, doubling down on community, on events like Stetina’s Paydirt, and on what impact in this sport really means when the racing days start to shift. So this is not just a career retrospective. This is a conversation about longevity, about identity, about risk, reinvention—and ultimately, legacy. Strap in—this is a big one. Pete Stetina, right here on The American Cycling Report.

Chad Sperry is one of the most respected event organizers in American cycling and the man behind Breakaway Productions. With a track record that includes legendary races like the over 25 USA Cycling National Championship events, the Cascade Classic and the Tour of Utah, Chad has spent decades building events that racers genuinely care about. These days, he’s channeling that experience into Oregon Trail Gravel—one of the most unique and ambitious stage races in the gravel space. Known as a tireless worker and a true “for the racers” promoter, Chad brings a grounded, no-nonsense perspective to an evolving sport. In this episode, we dive into the origins of his biggest events, what he’s learned from years in the trenches, and how he sees the future of cycling continuing to take shape.

This weeks guest is one of those rare figures in cycling who doesn’t just participate in the sport—he shapes it. Chris Tolley is the engine behind Austin’s iconic Driveway Series, a weeknight crit that’s grown from a local race into a full-blown community phenomenon. Chris is a racer in his own right, but what really sets him apart is his ability to bring people together—new riders, seasoned pros, and everyone in between—under the lights for something that feels bigger than just a race. The Driveway isn’t just about watts and results; it’s about culture, consistency, and creating a place where cycling actually thrives. He’s built a following, a vibe, and honestly, a bit of a cult of personality around what grassroots racing can look like when it’s done right. So today, we’re digging into how it all started, what keeps it going, and why the Driveway Series might just be a blueprint for the future of American bike racing. Chris Tolley—welcome to the show.