Monica's exponential growth Colonel Trinca, twenty-five year old from Grosotto (Sondrio) of Bepink who at the beginning of the season was a complete unknown when she showed up at the start of the Cycling Pro Costa del Almeria and now she even comes from the final podium in a prestigious race like the Tour of the Ardeche. Taking inspiration from that result, we learned about a curious story, that of a girl who left a safe place to pursue her dream on two wheels..
Monica's story follows a fairly predictable thread: her older brother rides a bike. As a child, she was drawn to all that fun, He starts competing in competitions for little ones, where there is no differentiation based on sex and follows the whole process, with passion making its way ever deeper into his heart.
Bikes in the attic, some work to do...
«My brother continued until he was under 23 – he says – then after graduating high school he chose to dedicate himself to work and left the bike alone. Initially I rode mountain bikes and on the road, I did two years as a beginner then I dedicated myself only to mountain bikingIn my area it's much more popular, there was no team to follow me on the road, I had no motivation to train, so I continued only on fat tires.
«But then my grandparents started to get sick and, between looking after them and school, I no longer had time for the bike and I put it aside. I graduated from high school and moved to Milan to complete a three-year optometrist program. As soon as I graduated, I immediately found work in Livigno. I was almost home, had a secure job that I liked, and even had time for sports. Running, cross-country skiing, and ski mountaineering—I'd always kept fit, but cycling wasn't part of my daily routine."
Professional values
That was until 3-4 years ago. Living in Livigno, where cycling is now a regular occurrence, the passion has slowly begun to emerge again: «It was more for fun, I combined road and mountain biking but I preferred the latter which I found more relaxingIn the meantime, however, my boyfriend, who is also a cycling enthusiast, told me that I was really good and that I should try to take part in some amateur races. I saw that without specifically training I got results, even if during my lunch break from work I only managed to dedicate an hour to training.But that was enough.
«Seeing my performances, my boyfriend told me that I had a professional racing “engine” and I had to at least try, so One day he took me for some tests and indeed I had unusual values for an amateur. I was starting to think about it: lots of cyclists, even professionals, often came to the shop, and I can't deny that I felt a little envious, especially thinking back to my experiences as a child when everyone told me I was pretty good. So the desire to try grew within me, but I knew it was difficult to reconcile cycling with work. If you take it seriously, you have to make a choice. It was a leap into the unknown."
Lots of emails, Zini replies
Monica took courage and started writing to all the teams. No answers were forthcoming; the data didn't pique their curiosity, at least not until Walter examined it. zini, who decided to get to know her and give her a chance.
«I was over the moon – Monica continues – I did a specific test with them and they confirmed that I had ideal values to try to compete. So I quit my job and decided to give it a try, at least for a couple of years."
Monica thus found herself suddenly projected into a world different from her everyday life, very different from the one she had left years ago: «It wasn't being in a group that scared me, I saw that from that point of view the notions learned immediately resurfaced and I felt at ease. But I felt disoriented, I competed without even knowing where I was, what I was doing. But little by little I saw myself improving, each test was different from the previous one, I felt more and more comfortable and my numbers were constantly improving. The season was a crescendo both in terms of performance and commitment, soon finding myself competing in the WorldTour as well.».
Suitable for stage races
Monica Trinca Colonel certainly hasn't held back, considering she's already completed 50 days of racing with 11 Top 10s. What's striking is that through her, BePink has found itself with a jewel in its hands that is especially useful in stage races.
«I actually understood that I perform better in multi-day races because I have excellent resistance and recovery skills, I am naturally inclinedThen I like long climbs, so I can fight for the overall standings. But I also like one-day races; in fact, I think I have more room for improvement there."
When she found herself competing in the WorldTour, such as the Giro d'Italia, she wasn't scared at all: «The level is different, higher. It's exciting to compete against the best in the world; what's impressive is that you see everything bigger. But when you're competing, you're always against each other, you all start from the same point, then whoever has the most wins. I have no fear, I do my part."
The dream of the Strade Bianche
His favorite race? Curiously, a race where the result wasn't particularly impressive: «It's the Strade Bianche, I had always dreamed of racing it and this year I found myself doing it, with so many people around you cheering you on and giving you the strength to overcome every difficult section. I only came in 38th, but it was a unique experience."
His season was a crescendo until he reached the podium in a prestigious race like the Tour de l'Ardeche: «I knew I could do well even if I wasn't in top form. I maintained a constant level and thanks to this I saw that I was progressively improving in the rankings, until I reached the final podium.It's the best result of the season, but I don't want to stop here."
The diploma put aside
But then, no matter what happens, there's always that diploma ready in the drawer: «I have the qualification and in that field it is easy to find a job.I know I have an alternative and this makes me face everything more calmly, no matter what happens."
