I have been a part of the Cycling 360 podcast team now for the past five months and each episode we record becomes more interesting and polished than the last. I get to spend a lot of time recording these shows with two incredibly talented and knowledgeable guys (Victor and Rob), talking about different aspects of cycling….it doesn’t get better than that now, does it?

We started off by releasing the podcasts twice per month, but as of July we have moved into weekly distribution and have cycling podcast goodness coming at you each Friday.  But you may be asking yourself…..What is a Podcast and what is Cycling360 all about?

What’s a Podcast?

According to Wikipedia,

A podcast (or non-streamed webcast) is a series of digital media files (either audio or video) that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication. The word replaced webcast in common use with the success of the iPod and its role in the rising popularity and innovation of web feeds.

Basically, it’s what happened when they took the words “broadcast” and “iPod” and put them together to create a term for audio information that is put out through the internet and using applications such as iTunes.

What is Cycling360?

Cycling360Media.com is the host site to the Cyling360 Podcast hosted by myself, Victor Jimenez (BicycleLab), and Rob Grissom (Positive Performance Coaching). The 3 of us bring years of experience and expertise in cycling fitness, technology, coaching nutrition and many other cycling related topics to bring you what we feel is a pretty awesome product.

We now have several podcasts available including topics such as “Is Fear Keeping You From Riding?“, “Group Riding Etiquette“, “Breaking Through Plateaus“, “Weight Maintenance for Cyclists“, “Travel and Cycling“, and many more.  All of our episodes are a lot of fun to listen to, and like we say in our into….These Podcast Will Make You a Better Cyclists.

Do I need Itunes?

Not at all.  Each of the podcasts can be listened to right on the website without having to download to your iPod.  When you’re on the website, www.cycling360media.com, simply take a look through all the pages and find the podcast you’d like to listen to.  Below each title, you’ll see two options…”Play in a New Window” or “Download”.  If you choose to play it in a new window then it will open up a new webpage and play the podcast right there for you to listen.  You can pause, rewind, and listen to it at your convenience.

There is also the option to download it to iTunes, or subscribe to the podcasts so that each time we launch a new one it will automatically get downloaded to your iTunes.  The benefits of downloading it to iTunes is that you can then put it on your iPod and take it on the go with you.

To make it even easier, Victor has put together this screencast to show you how to subscribe: http://screencast.com/t/Kct54JCGW2e

What makes Podcast so Popular?

Podcasts are becoming increasingly popular for many reasons.  They are easy to listen to (and hopefully entertaining), and you’re able to tune in while you’re doing other things such as cleaning the house, surfing the internet, or driving in your car.  The ease and convenience of this technology is super powerful. This is what makes them so fantastic.

What can I learn by listening to Cycling360?

The Cycling360 Podcast is a unique combination of a Cycling Guru, Cycling Coach, and a guy who loves Cycling.  Together, the three of us are able to talk about any aspect of cycling from three distinct viewpoints.  It makes for some great listening and we know that you’re going to get a great deal out of each episode.  You really will become a better cyclist by listening to these shows.

Interact with Cycling 360

You might not be a podcast kind of person, and that’s totally cool….but I’d like to invite each of you over to check out what Cycling 360 is all about.  Even if you only listen in for a couple minutes of one of the shows, I’d be sincerely gracious.  Even better would be to hear back from you and find out what you liked, disliked, found interesting, or whatever else.  Get back to me over here, or over at the cycling 360 site itself.  You can also interact with the Cycling 360 boys through e-mail at Questions@cycling360media.com, Twitter at @cycling360, or our Facebook Fanpage.  Oh, and you can also leave a review of our podcasts on iTunes.  This would be greatly appreciated and to find out how you can do that, check out this article on How to Leave an iTunes Review.

Thanks for letting me plug this super cool project that I’m involved with, and I hope to catch you all over at Cycling 360.

Just in case life wasn’t busy enough for me these days…I’ve teamed up with a couple great cycling guys and ventured into the world of Podcasts.  It feels great to announce that Cycling 360 is now on the AIR.  I am quite humbled by the company I’m keeping for these Podcasts, and am so excited to be working with Rob Grissom (Positive Performance Coaching) and Victor Jimenez (Bicycle Lab).

Yep, that right…now you get to hear that Canadian accent of mine as I sit down with Rob and Victor for our roundtable discussions on a variety of great cycling topics.  We launched the website and podcast about three weeks ago with Cycling 360 Podcast #1: Weight Maintenance for Cyclists.  This week we posted our Cycling 360 Podcast #2: Plateaus, so now both are available for your listening pleasure.  You can either listen directly online or download from itunes so you can take us with you on your ipod or other device.

Okay, so Rob is one of the hottest cycling coaches out there right now and he brings a ton of wisdom and advice to each of our podcasts.  You may remember Victor from the posts I did on my professional bike fit last year.  He runs Bicycle Lab and knows absolutely everything there is to know about a bike and it’s rider.  Two great guys and two super knowledgeable cyclists…..am I worthy of being on a podcast with them?  They are definitely the brains of Cycling 360.  Have a listen and see what you think.

Watch for our third Cycling 360 podcast: Getting Started in Racing….Coming soon to www.cycling360media.com.  Also be sure to friend us up on Twitter and Facebook so you can keep updated on the latest podcasts and Cycling 360 information.

I really look forward to hearing your input on the new site….go on now, give it a listen.