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/performanceprocess/ to become a member and gain access to the full episodes!
Who is CyclingSpy? The face behind the anonymous account
In this episode of Performance Process, we’re joined by the person behind CyclingSpy, the anonymous account famous for bringing us unrivaled insight into unreleased spotted tech.
After years spent posting screenshots of prototypes, the time has come for the person behind the account to lift the lid on their true identity.
We talk about why now, how the account grew and where it reached its natural limits, and the engineering path that led from Formula One to a World Tour team.
26 Mar 2026
Is Airo's accessible CFD software a breakthrough or just another aero tool?
We all know how critical rider position is when it comes to aerodynamics. We also know how difficult, time consuming, and costly it can be to properly test and optimise our positions using wind tunnels or field testing.
In this episode, Ronan explores a different approach.
Ingmar Jungnickel joins the Performance Process podcast to discuss Airo, a commercially available CFD-based platform designed to make aerodynamic testing more accessible, more iterative, and potentially more useful for a far broader range of riders. Instead of testing a handful of positions over an entire day, Airo promises the ability to explore multiple directions in minutes, using digital twins and cloud-based simulation.
But cycling aerodynamics is not simple. Transitional Reynolds numbers, rider movement, fabric interaction, and the complexity of real-world flow all raise legitimate questions about how useful CFD can actually be in this space. That’s what this episode digs into.
Ingmar brings 15 years of experience at the sharp end of performance – from WorldTour wind tunnel work to Olympic-level innovation in speed skating – and offers a detailed look at where Airo and CFD fits today, where it falls short, and where it could reshape how we approach optimisation in the future.
5 Mar 2026
Lizzie Deignan and Abby Mickey on training, parenthood, and purpose
In this special crossover episode between Performance Process and Wheel Talk, Ronan Mc Laughlin is joined by Escape Collective's Abby Mickey and former world champion Lizzie Deignan to unpack an unusual challenge. Abby has set herself the goal of returning to Mont Ventoux and riding it faster than she did during her professional career.
There’s just one complication. She’s now a full-time journalist, a parent of two, and juggling the realities of normal life rather than the controlled environment of professional sport.
To guide the process, Abby has asked Lizzie Deignan – recently retired world champion and now coach – to take her on as an athlete. The conversation begins with the first step of any coaching relationship: understanding the athlete. Together they discuss goals, constraints, postpartum physiology, training with limited time, the psychological side of coaching, and how performance can still improve long after a pro career ends.
This episode explores a bigger question that applies to every amateur athlete: How do you pursue meaningful performance goals when life, work, and family come first?
It’s the start of a project that will unfold over the coming months. And it begins with a simple but difficult question: Is it possible to beat your pro self?
Who has been a guest on Performance Process
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Ronan Mc Laughlin
Ronan
Robert Gorgos
Marc Graveline
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.7 / 5
10 ratings
Spotify
3.4 / 5
14 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 31 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
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