It also happens that you find yourself pedaling with a professional. It's the magic of the end of the season when suddenly everything slows down and there's time for a chat. A chat with John Lonardi. Almost 80 kilometers traveled side by side in the Jesolo plains.
And you know, you can talk better on a bike (even if you don't have a notebook on the back!). The same leaders of the Eolo-Kometa, Iván Basso e Luca Spada, They say that their best ideas, their best conversations, happen when they are in the saddle.
In the saddle…
With Giovanni we start talking while Shoulder to shoulder, we leap from the Sile bike path to the road. And that's why we joke about filing.
«Today everyone files down – says Lonardi – partly because there is less respect in the group than before and partly because with the high speeds that exist it is necessary. Today it happens that they start 100 kilometers from the finish line. And if the one moving is a evenepoel then go and get it… You have to go fast, really fast.
«This year at the Coppa Bernocchi I, and more or less all of us, set every record on the climbs, with the watts expressed. You can't imagine how we went, and yet one lap from the end on the climb I dropped out. Other sprinters dropped out even before me. I was talking about it with Viviani…he stopped even earlier. It's incredible.
"The Tirreno was impressive on more than one occasion this year: crazy pace. Or at the beginning of August, at the Tour de l'Ain, I suffered the wrath of God. Okay, it wasn't a race for me, but I worked incredibly hard, especially since I was returning from the summer break. I think I've recovered now!"
Lonardi tells his story, but there's bound to be a hint of perplexity on his face. But how? I express my best values, yet I'm disconnected? How can I maintain my motivation?
«But the stimuli are always there, they never disappear. If you're feeling good, you'll eventually make a move. If you believe in it, you'll find the right moment. You have to know how to seize the opportunity when it comes... like it happened to me at the start of the season: the right leg, on the right day."
2022 under consideration
Lonardi talks to us about his season. He started off great with a victory in Spain, then there was a downturn in the spring which effectively cut him off from the Tour of ItalyAnd this is a crucial point… also with a view to 2023.
"I got off to a good start with that win," Lonardi says, "and I was happy because I had a new team, new motivation, and I felt great right away. I followed that up with a second place and other results. Then I dropped off a bit. Luckily, I recovered at the end of the season and my feelings started to feel good again.
«What did I miss? The condition – Giovanni replies dryly – the condition around April, May… I have an idea and I think it was a specific preparation problem. That's why I want to change a few things for next year. Do the opposite, maybe fewer hours and more intensity."
How much to run?
While we're doing well over 30 miles an hour, we manage not to lose our composure. Luckily, the group is large and we're doing just fine following along. The reflections continue.
We talked about filing down in an increasingly aggressive and prepared group. Today, it's said that you need to be well-prepared for races, but you also need to stay on top of races that are increasingly challenging. Where's the balance?
"This is difficult," explains Lonardi, who isn't even out of breath. "For example, I'm convinced that by not doing the Giro in May and June, I didn't run much, and I lacked that consistency during that period. But it's also true that if you don't have time to prepare, you can't even go running; otherwise, you'll only struggle and make your situation worse. So It's important to run a lot, but at the right times.».
Like at the bar
Our questions and curiosities are almost "bar-like". We are cycling with a protagonist of the group and we are curious to know how things go when Evenepoel and pogacarDo the rhythms really change? Who's stronger?
«Already at the start – smiles Lonardi – When you have these champions, especially Remco, you know that as soon as the race gets underway, or even before, you'll see some great things. If you see their team leading, you understand that you have to prepare yourself for suffering. Then you don't have to be afraid, because if you suffer psychologically from the start, it becomes harder. But it's a pleasure to see them, because you understand that you have a lot to improve, you can aspire to a lot.
«You think that these very young kids do certain things and you say to yourself: If they can do it, I can do it too. They motivate me. I try to do something more in training. I see what they do. It's clear that we're not all the same and that they're phenomenal, but it's intriguing to challenge them."
Turn in the sights
Lonardi, a sprinter born in 1996, already has two Giro d'Italia titles under his belt, one with Nippo and one with Bardiani. His real goal for 2023 is to return to the Giro d'Italia.
«Obviously that's the goal and I'd love to go back there. But doing it just to suffer, no. Returning to be a protagonist, yes."
To be a key player in the Giro, Giovanni knows he won't just have to be fast, he'll also have to hold his own on the climbs. The average elevation gain for next year's edition is 2.440 meters per stage. In other words, you have to go fast on the climbs.
«I know it well – concludes Lonardi – if you look at the Caleb ewan of the situation can pass even important climbs. And to play the sprint with him or a demare you have to "save" the climbs and climb them well, otherwise you risk that yes, you pass the GPM, but you don't have the legs to do it. And maybe at that point the sprint will be done by someone who isn't a pure sprinter but is fresher. But everything becomes even more risky because they don't move like sprinters."
