Marginal Gains Cycling Podcast, Presented by Silca

The Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race has long been grounds for equipment tinkering and experimentation with the hopes of shaving minutes .. even seconds off finish times. Drop bars on mountain bikes at Leadville may seem recent but actually it was first tried by a pro in 2009. Travis Brown showed us by putting road bars on his Trek Full Suspension 26 inch mountain bike that anything can and should be considered when setting up a Leadville race bike. 
Drop bars, aero bars, and bar ends mounted inboard are now banned. But the experimentation and tinkering continues. We went to ten-thousand feet to find out how some of the fastest riders were planning to cheat the wind and reduce rolling resistance over the 100 miles plus of Rocky Mountain pain and suffering. Due to a nearby wildfire, the course was changed. Less climbing and more road was on the plate.  Riders were making adjustments in both tactics and tech.
In this episode we take a look at the common threads as riders headed for the start line. Paige Onweller gives us an inside look at dialing a bike for this unique race. We also get some feedback on how 32 inch wheels perform when placings and prize money are at stake. Two pros – Zach Calton and Emma Langley – share their thoughts on riding big wheels on big climbs. And we get a full recap from the front of the men's race from a guy who has been there a lot. John Gaston details the attacks and alliances that defined the 2026 Leadville 100. Plus we hear about the tech he used and rejected for this year's edition of the LT100 MTB Race.

If Bike sales were purely based on a beauty contest, Baum Cycles would be at the top of the charts. Baums are stunning, Titanium machines. Most of them are custom built by an out-of-the-box thinker in Geelong, Victoria, Australia: Darren Baum. 
But what motivates us to choose one bike over another is more than just looks. A bicycle -- especially a performance bike -- has to deliver where and when it matters. Darren is dialed into that as well. 
Darren has obsessed over geometry, center of gravity, and chainstay lengths for more than two decades. His mission is to not only make bikes look good on paper and in photos, but to make them accelerate, turn and climb like no other. In this interview we get a refreshing look at what it takes to build a custom, performance bicycle. Some things are just a tweak but other approaches by Darren are revolutionary.

While listening to Paige Onweller answer our questions, we found ourselves wishing we could be more like her. Wishing we had her organizational skills, her critical thinking, her ability to adapt quickly. Paige has the tools to be the kind of Marginal Gainer that makes us think, "I wish I was more like Paige."
Paige's focus on details started well before she ever saw a Gravel Race start line. She was a collegiate runner and after that, had a career in medicine. But like we've heard from many runners, her sport led to injury which led her to the bike. At first, her riding was for fitness while she healed. But then she discovered how good she was, and so did others. Namely team Twenty-Twenty Four. They brought her on board to do Zwift racing and Time Trials. Before she knew it she was on a start line in Nebraska at Gravel Worlds. Then her career in medicine was put on hold as Paige took her detailed approach to the Life Time Grand Prix. 
Josh and Paige's partnership started this spring in the wind tunnel. The two of them got together for a focused approach on aerodynamics and women. They made some very interesting discoveries which we talk about in this show. Ever thought about waxing hair? You will after hearing them discuss Paige's aero bun.

Josh sinks his teeth into questions on turning road spray on a frame into aerodynamic information, Argon gas in tires and deep, carbon wheels for XC mountain bike racing. 
We also talk about Fatty's successful Everest challenge – the Marginal Gains that worked and the ones that didn't. And we get into some new happenings with Silca.

A favorite topic on the Marginal Gains Podcast is rolling resistance, also known as CRR. It is one of the cornerstones of this show. While we have interviewed aerodynamic experts who have devoted hundreds of hours to CdA, we have found very few who have made CRR their passion. Tom Anhalt was an early guest but we can't think of another since. That changes with this episode. 
John Karrasch makes a living from bike fittings. But John has made a name for himself through his tire testing. Using the Chung method, John has been putting tires to the test to see which ones live up to the hype. In just more than a year, he has amassed an impressive database covering just about every brand you can name. The beauty of John's work and results is he shares it with all of us at no cost. 
In this interview, John shares his early beginnings with the Chung method, how he has refined his testing, and what some of the key learnings have been. The only thing between your bike and the surface you ride are your tires. John is one of a few who has been trying to quantify just how much power it takes to keep those tires rolling.