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Performance Process

Performance Process

By: Escape Collective
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Welcome to the Performance Process podcast, hosted by Ronan Mc Laughlin and Caley Fretz. This podcast is dedicated to unearthing and analysing the processes behind some of the most successful athletes in the world, and understanding how every rider can apply them to their own improvement. The Performance Process podcast is produced exclusively for Escape Collective members. While you'll see partial episodes on this feed please head to https://escapecollective.com/member/ to become a member and gain access to the full episodes!2022 Escape Collective Exercise & Fitness Fitness, Diet & Nutrition Hygiene & Healthy Living
Episodes
  • Introducing Escape tyre testing: Get ready to rethink accepted wisdom
    Dec 10 2025

    In this episode of Performance Process, we finally dig into the tyre-testing project that quietly consumed most of my year.

    Nine months, six tyre widths, hundreds of test runs, three road surfaces, four identical wheelsets, and far too many cold late-night tests than any sane person should attempt. But it was worth it.

    Today, Ronan is joined by John Buckley the founder of Streamlines Aero, the company behind the hardware and technical support so crucial to this testing. Together, we break down how the test protocol worked, why it’s different, and why those differences matter. We also unpack the major findings: why pressure mattered more than width in this dataset, why some long-held assumptions didn’t hold up in the real world, and how tyre temperature turned out to be one of the biggest and least appreciated variables affecting performance.

    This is just the beginning. Later in the episode we explain where our tyre testing goes from here and what to expect in the new year.

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    24 mins
  • Inside Red Bull's laser-powered aero testing with Dan Bigham and the CyclingSpy
    Nov 11 2025

    For years, cyclists have said, “you can’t see aero.” Now Dan Bigham can.

    In this episode, we go inside Red Bull–Bora–Hansgrohe’s groundbreaking use of Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV), a laser-based imaging technique that effectively makes airflow around a rider visible in 3D. Dan joins Ronan and the CyclingSpy to explain how the team used helium bubbles, high-speed cameras, and class-IV lasers inside Catesby Tunnel, an old railway tunnel, to capture the first-ever full-field airflow data behind a cyclist.

    We unpack what PIV actually is, how it bridges CFD and real-world testing, and what it could mean for the future of aerodynamic development in cycling. From vorticity maps to quantum computing, this one’s a deep dive into the tools shaping the next generation of aero performance.

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    57 mins
  • How applying the Performance Process philosophy helped achieve a lifetime best performance
    Oct 29 2025

    In this episode, Ronan applies the Performance Process philosophy to help Marcus Christie, one of the most successful Irish time trialists ever, to reimagine how to train, test, and race.

    Ronan and Marcus dive into the complete optimisation process behind Marcus's Nationals campaign. From bike fits and wind tunnels to injury management, heat strategies, nutrition, and radio-guided pacing, this is the inside story of how process can transform performance.

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    31 mins
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