The OG trio is back (mostly). Sam has survived his battle with a stump, David returns from the void, and Pat is running on patio-remodel spite.

In Episode 535 of the Packfiller Podcast, we break down the absolute chaos of the opening days of the 2026 Tour de France. We analyze Visma's clinical Team Time Trial, Tadej Pogačar’s early flex in the Pyrenees, Mads Pedersen surviving the mountains, and the reality of a 100-degree Occitania heatwave baking the peloton.

Plus, in Pat's Pulpit, we dismantle the "purity of sport." While the White House is speed-dialing FIFA to overturn Folarin Balogun's World Cup red card, the UCI is busy banning ice-socks because they alter a rider's "aerodynamic morphology."

Grab a Big Barn Campesino IPA, protect your shield, and let's get into it.

👇 Drop your Tour de France heatwave survival strategies (and your fantasy punishments) in the comments below!

We are exactly four days away from the biggest cycling circus on earth crossing the start line in Barcelona, and the pro peloton is entering a state of absolute panic. This week on The Packfiller Podcast, the crew dives face-first into the 113th Tour de France. We break down the absolute madness of an opening day Team Time Trial, slap letter grades on the heavy GC favorites (Pogačar, Vingegaard, and the Red Bull-Bora "co-leadership" dynamic), and debate whether the Alpe d'Huez back-to-back double-header is brilliant route design or pure sadism. Closer to home, we unpack the fragile reality of TPU tubes, figure out who is dumb enough to ride Mount Spokane at 2:00 AM, and make a massive announcement: PACKFILLER LIVE IS BACK! Mark your calendars for August 1st at Big Barn Brewing. Grab a Campesino IPA, avoid the 13% walls, and don't forget to upload!

The Tour de France is weeks away, and the peloton is in absolute chaos. Tadej Pogačar just put the entire WorldTour on notice with a historic, 67-year record-breaking onslaught at the Tour de Suisse. Meanwhile, Visma-Lease a Bike is structurally collapsing, Wout van Aert is officially out with an infection, and the UCI is handing out 500 CHF fines to Mathieu van der Poel for unzipping his speed suit in 90-degree heat.

Plus, we are convening the official "Cycling Fashion Tribunal." Jackson and Paul battle it out across generational lines as we ruthlessly judge the Top 15 Cycling Fashion Crimes of 2026. If you wear ankle socks on a road bike or leave the valve nuts on your tubes, prepare to be sentenced.

Hit subscribe, drop your verdict on the Fashion Tribunal in the comments, and welcome to the Bunker.

🎙️ SUPPORT THE PACKFILLER EMPIRE:

• Book The Packfiller for your next event (We promise no Donkey Kong references): [Insert Website Link]
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🍻 THIS EPISODE IS FUELED BY:

• Big Barn Brewing: Ride your bike to Greenbluff, WA. Tell them The Packfiller sent you for $1 off your first pint.
• Athletic Brewing: The ultimate recovery radler.
• Thomas Hammer Coffee: Keeping your style sharp and your coffee black.

Welcome to Episode 532 of the longest-standing podcast on the sport of cycling. We are "The Packfiller"—think of us as a post-ride beer with several friends and one asshole. (Pat is definitely that asshole tonight).

With Sam and David out for the evening, the OG three—Pat, Paul, and Jackson—hold down the studio to discuss the biological reality of getting a season-threatening injury from a hotel mattress, tearing down a BMC chassis, and whether the summer racing season is already evaporating.

In the WorldTour, we dissect the newly rebranded Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, where Isaac Del Toro and Paul Seixas proved that professional cycling has officially been taken over by teenagers. Then, we tackle the UCI's controversial new "Cognitive Load" limit on head unit screen sizes. Are riders actually blinded by data, or is this just another case of old-school administrators yelling at modern technology?

Finally, we roll out The Broom Wagon for a brutal game of "Real or Bullshit: Cycling Tech Edition." Can the panel spot the difference between real WorldTour gear and completely fabricated cycling engineering?

Grab a pint, check your Apple AirTag crankset, and let's ride.

Welcome to Episode 531 of the longest-standing podcast on the sport of cycling. We are "The Packfiller"—think of us as a post-ride beer with several friends and one asshole. (Pat is potentially that asshole).

This week, four generations of riders sit down to dissect a massive week in the WorldTour and the absolute delusion of the local amateur scene. We break down Team Visma-Lease a Bike's flawless TTT at the newly rebranded Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Demi Vollering’s absolute masterclass at the Giro d'Italia Women, and the radical new 5-day compression experiment at the Tour de Suisse.

Then, we turn our attention to the comments section. The panel roasts the "Unsolicited Coaches" of the local group ride, and Pat delivers a Pulpit aimed directly at the "Keyboard Cat 5s" who recently called us the softest podcast in the sport. Spoiler: We agree with them.

Grab a pint, check your tire pressure, and for the love of God, learn how to use a comma.

Welcome to Episode 530 of the longest-standing podcast in the sport of cycling. Think of us as a post-ride beer with several friends and one ahole. (Pat is potentially that ahole).

The Waples brothers are still MIA, so the OG three—Pat, Paul, and Jackson—are holding down the studio to dissect a wild week in the peloton. We are breaking down the absolute peanut butter mud chaos at Unbound Gravel and debating if Keegan Swenson's star-ratchet rescue proves the "Spirit of Gravel" is alive, or if tech is just ruining the race.

Plus, we look at the absurdity of Lorena Wiebes getting disqualified at the Giro d'Italia Women over 20 measly grams, Anna van der Breggen’s devastating return from retirement, and the highly controversial "internal down tube hydration" bladders that are currently starting an aero war in the WorldTour.

Stick around for the end as Paul (the retro-steel veteran) and Jackson (the carbon-fiber Zoomer) go head-to-head in a brutal, buzzer-beating round of The Broom Wagon: The Generational Brand Gauntlet.

Grab a drink, check your ego, and keep the rubber side down.

The Packfiller Empire has finally returned to the studio with a little Riverside dust in the lungs to show for it. Fresh off the 24 Hours of Riverside, the ensemble cast breaks down the absolute type-2 fun of mass-start mountain biking, Sam and David’s 5-person team title, and what’s next for Jackson "The Cyclist Without a Bike." Plus, Pat lays out the long, audacious road to the 2027 Master’s Nationals and a 350W FTP.

On the World Tour front, we dissect Jonas Vingegaard's absolute dismantling of the Giro d'Italia General Classification on Stage 16, the controversial Milan sprint neutralization, and the massive shift toward rider-driven POV media from teams like Unibet Rose Rockets.

Finally, stick around for the inaugural debut of Pat’s Pulpit, where we take a deadpan, cynical look at the absolute cognitive dissonance and elitism of the amateur roadi

Four days, four stages, an ungodly amount of wind, and a studio reeking of Neosporin and existential exhaustion. Welcome to Episode 528 of The Packfiller Podcast—the post-ride beer with several friends and one asshole.

The complete Packfiller Empire has finally returned to the studio after surviving the region’s largest stage race, Wenatchee’s own Tour de Bloom. Tonight, the full panel—including a doctor and a physical therapist who have a lot of medical concerns—dissects a weekend defined by breakthrough redemptions and absolute field carnage.