14/10/2020
Ride & Coffee with TDF Yellow Jersey holder and La Flèche Wallonne winner, Bo Hamburger
Between Tuscany Cycle Retreats and Casa Hamburger there is a stunning 15km hill taking you up past Marliana castello, the very same route Hannibal walked more than 2200 years ago on his way to Rome. Further up this road you will find Abetone which has gone down in the Giro history with big wins for Mercx and Coppi. Bo Hamburger and TCR share this stunning training ground.
Over coffee TCR had a chance to ask Bo some important questions.
Favourite and least favourite mountains?
I love the Pizzorne climb, its located close to my home here in Tuscany. (12km with avg. 7% just north of Lucca, red)
I would love to like Alpe D`Huez…. But I hate it….
Who are your favourite cyclists, current and past?
Pogacar and Indurain.
What is your favourite cycle race?
Tour de France
After your Orbea bike 😊 which is your favourite bike?
Colnago, the one and only J
Amateur club cycling has reached enormous popularity with members in all age groups. What is your best advice to all us eager cyclist?
To improve you need to be consistent, 3 times a week is my moto, and most important. Have fun!
You run training programs for amateur cyclists. How do we need to train to maintain and/or improve?
Most of my customers are 40+ and it’s important to train intervals and to remember to recover, I see many not training hard enough, but also not taking the time to rest, then it’s going to be so with improvement.
Many of us love buying new bikes. How much does club cyclist need to spend on a bike and at what price is the marginal gain negligible?
Uhh that’s a tough one…. Because what is an expensive bike? But under 2000 euro I find it hard to find a really good bike.
Rim or disc brakes?
Disc is the future
Tube or tubeless?
Tubeless (I ride tubes… J) but need to convert….
If you have money burning in your pocket, what is the most important upgrade on the bike?
Performance wise a power-meter, gear wise a nice set of wheels.
Finally, are you listening to music when riding alone?
Yes… try not to hear it to loud…. Uhh I listen to a lot of different music, but mostly Rock, like ACDC
About Bo Hamburger: After a long successful carrier where he won a stage of the Tour de France and wore the yellow jersey plus many other victories as La Flèche Wallonne, Bo now runs Hamburger Bike. He offers full range of cycle related services from bespoke training programs to arranging cycle tours. He is also representing high end cycle clothes from Champion. Bo is sponsored by Orbea cycles.
About Tuscany Cycle Retreats: We are a luxury cycle retreat offering full-experience cycle holidays. From we pick you up in the airport we will make sure the only thing you have to is to push those pedals. You will be treated to home cooked Italian food and locals’ wines in our club house, Villa Flavia. We guide you around the famous hills we share with the pro cyclists. As we are in northern part of Tuscany on edge of the Appennines, you will have a proper alpine experience.
