Ep 12: Drake Deuel is Bagging Major Strava KOMs and Making Certain Pros Look Foolish in the Process
Can you imagine someone coming out of nowhere to take major Strava KOMs from both retired and current world tour pros? Well, that’s exactly what today’s guest, Drake Deuel, is doing, and he is not showing any signs of slowing down anytime soon. In today’s episode, Drake talks about his introduction to cycling while he was a rower at Harvard, and unpacks his decision to pursue cycling more seriously. We also geek out on some of our favorite LA routes, along with some others Drake has done around the country. Drake combined two of his passions, cycling and computer science, and managed to land an internship at Zwift. Over the summer, as he was working remotely, he did some traveling and got a great deal of cycling in. He is set to start a full-time job at the fast-growing company in December. We talk about the rise of indoor cycling, the place it has in complementing its outdoor counterpart, and Drake also shares what the future has in store for him. To hear this and more, tune in today!
Key Points From This Episode:
Get to know Drake, his background in rowing, and how he pivoted to cycling.
When Drake decided to go for KOMs and how he came to use a drone to document it.
Drake’s view on professional cyclists going after KOMs on Strava.
LA routes Drake often cycles and who holds Strava records on these routes.
Some other incredible routes Drake has done around the country.
Drake’s take on Las Flores and how he handles this ride.
What Drake’s time in Park City over the summer was like.
How Drake landed his internship at Zwift, and what he learned from the experience.
What Drake’s full-time role at Zwift is going to entail.
How the pandemic has increased indoor door cycling’s popularity.
An effective way to use indoor training; it can save you time.
Why it is important for Zwift to have its own identity and not replicate the real world.
Drake's road racing experience so far and his plans for the upcoming summer.
What the future has in store for Drake and his cycling aspirations.
Tweetables:
“A lot of people use cycling to get the aerobic fitness and cross-training, without some of the specific stress related to rowing.” — @drake_deuel [0:05:51]
“I think that internship helped me grow a lot personally. Because I learned so much about time management during that. Because I was training decently on the weekends. I got the fittest I've ever been while working full-time. It shows anyone can do that. If you prioritize your time and make it work and do the training well.” — @drake_deuel [0:34:06]
“I use Zwift as an amazing training tool, because you can get into one of those Zwift races and absolutely destroy yourself in an hour, an hour and a half in a way that you're not going to if you're just having to sit on the trainer and try to do some threshold intervals that are just terrible, and you want to die.” — @drake_deuel [0:38:59]
“I just try to take things one step at a time and enjoy the process. Because I like cycling. I mean, I don't need to be a pro.” — @drake_deuel [0:48:40]