Climb e sprinter, a dichotomy rather than a binomial. The fastest wheels in the peloton have always struggled when the road climbs. Their physical makeup certainly doesn't help them: more muscle, more weight, more explosiveness and less endurance and, if you like, even less mental aptitude for this effort. One of the sprinters who best embodies this vision is (was) Francesco Chicchi, U23 world champion in 2002 Zolder and professional for 14 seasons, from Fassa Bortolo (2003) toAndroni Giocattoli (2016), now sporting director in force at Team New Speedy Bike Casano.
Pure sprinter farewell
And the problem is getting worse. Today, even the easiest stages have no less than 1.500-2.000 meters of elevation gain. Simone Consonni He won an Italian U23 championship, which wasn't easy at all. There was a climb that had to be repeated many times. It wasn't long, but it was tough. And in fact, it wasn't achieved with a bunch sprint. Yet today Simone is considered a sprinter.
«True – comments Chicchi – just think of the victory of the Italian Nicelo this year or that of Viviani a few years ago, when he arrived in a group with Visconti e Well I livePozzovivo, climber.
«The modern sprinter must be able to climb the hill with groups of 50-60 riders, otherwise he risks a lot or doesn't reach the finish with the right strength. Today, sprinters like me or Napolitano they would work really, really hard. I think the pure sprinter will disappear."
Climb up at full speed
But what makes a sprinter a pure sprinter or not? Does training also matter? Does working more on hills change the sprinter's characteristics?
«A reasoning that makes sense. Working uphill makes you lose that kilo or two, even of muscle, that makes you sprint at 71 km/h instead of 72. Not to mention that working on hills makes you lose explosiveness. Hills for a sprinter are like garlic for vampires! Even in training...
The workouts are more or less the same for everyone: climbers, rouleurs, sprinters. They range from SFR to 40"-20", but the sprinter must remember that on climbs he's forced to always go "full speed ahead", because the climber's flatness is the sprinter's forte. That's why if he has to do 10 repetitions, it's normal for him to end up doing 8, because he's so high in lactic acid.
Sprinters-climbers
I think the way sprinters work on climbs has changed today. They do more uphill kilometers in training, also because there are no longer any truly flat stages. I won the Manservisi: 200 kilometers of flat terrain. Today even the smallest of races has a "zampellotto." I don't have exact numbers, but I believe that today a sprinter climbs at least 30 percent more than 10 years ago.
«How did I climb? With so much patience! Having a teacher Petaks I followed his routine a bit, so I did 3-kilometer climbs like this: 1st kilometer outside the threshold, 2nd at medium speed, 3rd at threshold. It was an exercise that trained your endurance to go all out. But you produced so much lactic acid that maybe by the fourth climb you'd say: "Oh well, I'll take this one easy."
"Today, sprinters tackle more regular climbs, setting a pace 2-3 kilometers per hour faster than their threshold, and they rely heavily on the rear-end engine. The sprinter's goal is to reduce fatigue time. To speed up. To gain 10 seconds on a climb to move up 30 positions."
Mental approach
And you tend to go more steadily. You rely on your tools, and your approach to climbing is different, even mentally, if you like.
"The sprinter (but not only him) is also more careful with his food. I've even run with 4 extra kilos and still managed to sprint; today that would be impossible. Look at how it went this year too. They hadn't run yet, yet at the first races they were all already very thin.
"And yes, clearly the mental approach changes too, and I think they're being followed by the right people. I used to get scared just looking at the stages on the map! When I was struggling, I'd be there thinking: I ate too much. I didn't approach that climb well... In short, I was thinking about it a bit too much and wasting energy."
