Yes that arrogant statement made me lol too, but many people mistakenly feel that way.
LR is very interesting. I like his stuff. I have been watching on and off for a few years now, from back when he just had still frame pics of races
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Yeah, though having prior professional experience might mean youāre more likely to be qualified to do those things it certainly isnāt the only way.
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Anyone can turn themselves into a bike racing nerd (or whatever nerderie floats your boat). LR is not really different than any cycling journalist working for a big label podcast or web site. Those cycling journalists got some degree and then found their way into writing about bike racing. They all learned on the job. Some raced, some didnāt and most were not pro cyclists.
Not every pro cyclist is a bike nerd. Many donāt give a crap about equipment. They will ride whatever. There are amateurs on the forum that know way more about bike mechanics or bike fit or many things related to cycling.
Itās the same with coaching - how many of the top coaches were successful pro cyclists and won the biggest races? Almost none.
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I can get wanting to know his qualifications for analyzing races. But at this point he has so much content out there that I think the only thing he needs to prove himself is āare his analysis and predictions correct?ā
Itās like getting a job. A degree in the field gets you in the door for your first entry level position but after that itās your work experience and performance that keep you moving up. You could also build work experience first and get that same entry level job without a degree but you have to prove yourself a bit first.
So LR may not have a ādegreeā in pro cycling but he has certainly proven himself through his āon the job experienceā. I canāt say Iām anywhere near as into the sport as he is, but Iāve watched a fair amount of his videos while on the trainer and I donāt think Iāve ever heard him say anything that was false, misleading, or ended up being wildly wrong. Theyāve all been pretty insightful and definitely is good at recognizing the up and comers.
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he has been active on r/velo for years. Iām not sure about his palmares if thatās what you are asking but he has been involved in the sport for years.
Should also be noted that this is a YouTube channel we are referring to. You know who is entitled to start a YouTube channel about anything they want? Yep, thats right, anyone!
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Thatās exactly what I meant.
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Yeah I and I donāt think any of his Lawyering had anything to do with sports representation or cycling. IIRC it was more about corporate law.
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It does have an impact. You can mask 30 years of booth knowledge to understand a little more of the sport, but it doesnāt give you the intuitions that playing the sport does.
There is a reason that on all sports broadcast they have someone that played that sport in the booth. Joe buck by him self in the booth would be a train wreck. The goal of the color commentator is to fill the air with words. The goal of the expert, the person who played the sport is to articulate what is happening and why. I would have never know someone failed to rotate 1/2 a spin on a triple axle if tara lipinsky doesnāt tell me, i would just see the person lose a point and wonder why.
Sure, and Iām not saying it doesnāt. What I am saying is that the idea that you need to have been a professional before becoming a great announcer / commentator is not accurate.
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Where do we get this pro cycling commentator degree?
Like a degree is enough of a qualification.
World is full of punters working in the field they have a degree of and still suck.
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I think there is an online program you can pay for to become a cycling expert 
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I am not falling for that again!
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But for three easy payments of $14.99 you too can be considered an online cycling authority!!
Terms and conditions apply
Someone tell me again how you need to have been a professional cyclist in order to have good insights while commentating. Being forced to listen to Bob Roll and CVV on the Peacock app this AM was like having fingernails removed.
The best was with 5K to go and the race squarely over and Roll announced that they were gonna get brought back. Yeah, brilliant insight there. 
Conversely, the LR podcast (which was up within hours of the race finish!) was excellent with many great insights and comments.
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In fairness to Bob, when he started that sentence at 5.7k, it might have seemed possible. But, yes, by the time he finished the sentence and the camera panned back, the end was set.