The Pinkbike Podcast: Episode 151 - F1's Valtteri Bottas on How Bikes Make Him a Better Racer & Dealing with Pressure
Art by Taj Mihelich
How about something a little off-topic-ish? Alfa Romeo F1 Team Orlen Formula One driver Valtteri Bottas spends many of his weekends inside a 1,000-horsepower race car while chasing tenths of seconds on tracks around the world, but he's also a dedicated cyclist who spends many of his off-days chasing PRs and KOMs on his gravel bike. Tiffany Cromwell races the UCI Women’s World Tour for Canyon / SRAM and has bagged wins at the Giro and Classics, and also represented Australia at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Amy Charity is a retired pro racer who co-founded the SBT GRVL event in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and together with Valtteri and Tiffany, is putting in the FNLD GRVL in Lahti, Finland, next June. If you think you can keep up with Valtteri on two wheels, FNLD GRVL offers three different length rides to choose from, including the 177km 'Midnight Sun' course with nearly 3,000 meters of climbing.
Today's episode sees Valtteri explain why bikes have become so important to him and how they help him be a better F1 driver, why he's always been so good at the pressure cooker that is qualifying, and which of his teammates would make the best - and worst - riding partner. We also get into what he's learned from Tiffany, how the current generation of cars compares to previous formulas, different driving styles, and the race car of his dreams. Tiffany explains the ins and outs of professional road racing, why it's important to keep things fresh, and what she's learned from F1 to be a better bike racer.
Which current or former F1 driver would you like to go for a ride with and why?
THE PINKBIKE PODCAST // EPISODE 151 - F1'S VALTTERI BOTTAS ON HOW BIKES MAKE HIM A BETTER RACER & DEALING WITH PRESSURE
November 10th, 2022
What's more uncomfortable: pulling five Gs in a braking zone or your ass after a five-hour ride?
Podcast presented by Canyon
Featuring a rotating cast of the editorial team and other guests, the Pinkbike podcast is a weekly update on all the latest stories from around the world of mountain biking, as well as some frank discussion about tech, racing, and everything in between.
Subscribe to the podcast via your preferred service (Apple, Spotify, RSS, LibSyn, etc.), or visit the Pinkbike Podcast tag page for the complete list of episodes.
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On the way down? What F1 season have you been watching?
Pretty apparent what a serious competitor he is from general discussion. I.e. "Do you use a power meter?" He seemed nearly insulted! Reading between the lines, to be competitive at that level you need to pay attention to every detail.
Also--reading the comments, two things become apparent: First, bikers that don't follow F1 don't really get it. Bottas as washed up? WTF. Second, before you think Bottas is a nut you need to visit Finland/meet some Finns to understand their humor.
www.pinkbike.com/u/pinkbikeaudience/blog/video-fabio-wibmer-and-max-verstappen-in-a-2-seat-f1-car.html
Interesting insight about his mental approach to quali vs the race, kinda like XC/Enduro vs DH I guess.
ps: My daughters cheer for Fernando and Esteban just because their cars are pink.