Bobby & Jens: Behind the scenes at Roll Massif with Scotty Olmsted
Event director Scotty Olmsted shares a preview of this season’s best routes in the Rockies.
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Across North America, winter’s snowpacks are melting, spring’s first flowers are blooming, and cyclists are dreaming of summer’s epic rides. Perfect timing, in other words, for a conversation with the man who directs eight of the most spectacular road and off-road centuries in Colorado’s high country.
This week, Bobby and Jens welcome Roll Massif co-founder and event operations director Scotty Olmsted to learn what it takes to pull off legendary rides like Copper Triangle, Crooked Gravel, Elephant Rock, Sunrise to Sunset, and Wild Horse Gravel. Olmsted pulls back the curtain on site selection, route planning (loop or point-to-point?), and the logistics of staging a first-class experience in locations that are frequently quite remote and rugged.
Bobby also shares fond memories of Tour of the Moon, a Roll Massif event made famous by the Coors Classic stage races of the 1980s and later by the movie American Flyers. He recalls visiting Grand Junction with his father and sister, and his starry-eyed first circuit of the course, which loops up and around the red rock splendor of Colorado National Monument.
“It’s where my passion for cycling started,” he says, “and I can’t wait to go back this fall.”
More good reading:
The episode also features lighthearted reflections from Jens on the difficulty of being “older, slower, and fatter” now that he can eat ice cream with his kids, along with race commentary from Milano-Sanremo, the winner of this week’s “Shut Up, Legs!” winner, and more.
“Bobby & Jens” is a new podcast from VeloNews starring former pros Bobby Julich and Jens Voigt, and featuring conversations with top athletes, coaches, emerging stars, and other newsmakers from the wide world of cycling. A new episode drops every Friday. Subscribe now wherever you get your podcasts.
Send your questions and “Shut Up, Legs!” votes to BobbyandJens@VeloNews.com or @bobbyandjens.