I couldn’t be more excited to share some questions and answers from Peter Moore, a current American cyclist and past cross country ski competitor/ teammate of mine at Bowdoin College. Peter is an incredibly thoughtful (not to mention accomplished) athlete whose insights are nothing short of gold, and I’m thrilled to share a piece of his world here on the blog. Enjoy.
About Peter
What’s your name?
Peter Moore
Where are you from?
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Did you go to school? If so, where and what did you study?
I went to Bowdoin College, majoring in integrative biology. My research focused on the genetic control of zebrafish embryonic tooth development. Very specific.
What are you doing right now?
Sitting in the Apeldoorn velodrome answering these questions in between training sessions with the Dutch National Team. Actually though, cycling is far less regulated than skiing. There are many different racing series and race organizers. I live in Wageningen, Netherlands and race all over Europe and the world on both the track and the road. In skiing terms, I race in the SuperTour, OPA Cups, World Cups and World Championships.
How did you start cycling?
I started riding at age eight when my Dad signed me up for a kids class at the National Sports Center Velodrome in Blaine, MN. I absolutely loved it and have been racing ever since.
Training and Racing
What did you do for training today?
I’m in the final week of preparation for the World Championships so training is short but very high intensity. Today I had a double day with the Dutch National Team, who graciously allow me to train with them. Today we did a series of race simulations, five in the morning and two longer ones in the afternoon. After a double day yesterday as well, I am cooked.
How many hours per week do you train?
Anywhere from 33-15, although my longest was a 43 hour week of bikepacking. In a race block I’ll ride around 20.
What is your proudest racing accomplishment so far?
Somehow it’s still winning the Minnesota State High School Ski Meet in 2019.
What’s your training philosophy, in a phrase?
This is a hard one, so I’m going to pick two. First, many (not all) roads lead to Rome. If a training session goes poorly, you get sick, or you have to adjust your schedule for any reason, it will be okay. If you were planning on doing a threshold session and an anaerobic session and you end up doing two Vo2max sessions, it will be okay. Second, do what makes you happy. In endurance sports, the volume can get a bit ridiculous sometimes, so pick training that makes you happy. A week of bike packing is far easier than a week of six hour days. Yes, the recovery might be a bit worse, but happiness wins.
Where is your favorite place to ride a bike in the world?
Midcoast Maine! Bowdoin College is located in Brunswick, Maine, and unbeknownst to me when I decided to attend, the riding is phenomenal. Perfect roads, very little traffic, and the peninsulas and coastal roads are lovely.
Inside the professional cycling world
What’s something people don’t know about pro cycling?
Cycling is a very social sport. In a long, 170km+ road race, I will have plenty of conversations with friends and other guys around me. The conversations and exchanges can range from screaming expletives at each other after someone makes a dangerous move to asking someone how their family is doing.
What’s the best part of being a pro cyclist?
There are many answers to this question thankfully! One that I appreciate greatly is cultural education. I’ve been to 26 countries on five continents thanks to racing and training. I find that you learn much more about a culture when you go somewhere with a purpose. Cycling forces you to interact with people when you travel and I find that incredibly rewarding. A favorite recent experience was exploring Hong Kong after a Nations Cup (World Cup in skiing terms). Two of my Czech friends who were also racing invited me to join them and their Czech friend who was working as the coach of the Hong Kong women’s National Ice Hockey Team. Moments like these are sometimes surreal!
What’s the hardest part of being a pro cyclist?
Everyone will have a different answer to this one, but for me sometimes racing is terrifying! Imagine racing with 180 other guys at 60kmh on roads that are two meters wide with barbed wire fencing on either side. Racing isn’t like this all the time of course, but the physicality and aggression that it takes to properly position yourself within the field of riders is something that I’m constantly working on.
What is your social life like?
Variable! I have a few friends who live close to me that I train with. I see my teammates mostly just for races, which are frequent. I take a Buddhist meditation class and a Dutch language course as well. I also have a few American friends living in Europe and we manage to arrange our schedules well enough that we run into each other all over Europe.
What are pro cyclists like, in terms of personality or demeanor?
This is quite variable and similar to skiing. There’s not one particular personality trait that all pro cyclists have, instead it’s interesting to see the variety of different styles and approaches to training and racing that work for different people.
Peter’s advice
What advice would you give to younger athletes?
Contact people and ask for help for whatever you need. No one gets anywhere in cycling (and skiing) without the support of mentors, coaches, directors, managers, mechanics and people in plenty of other roles. When I first started racing in Europe I reached out to 60 different teams to find a contract. Seven replied, and only two were interested.
Will you give us a good reason to go for a bike ride, if we aren’t pro?
Cycling is the perfect speed at which to explore the world! Walking is too slow, you don’t get to see enough (and running is hard). Also driving sucks. Cycling gives you an excellent understanding of how far apart places are from each other, and there’s always something to discover on your route.
What can we do to look cooler on a bike? Style tips?
Sunglasses over helmet straps, socks 1/3 of lower leg length, bringing enough food, bib shorts that don’t expose yourself.
How can we watch you race? Streaming?
There’s a variety of sites, but live streams are often on Eurosport, Youtube, FloBikes, and a whole host of smaller local streaming services in Europe.
How can we follow along with your career?
Take a look at my blog, Peter Moore on the Road. I post somewhat regularly and give updates on training, racing, adventures, successes and failures.
Here’s a link to my latest post:
Thanks Peter!
Recent win
Peter at NCAA Championships - 2020, Bozeman
Heat training in a chemical waste suit
Peter and his stache
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