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REMCO EVENEPOEL
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Join the Belgian cycling superstar as he shares insights from his off-season trip to California, discussing his training regimen, strategic race selections leading up to the Tour de France and the Olympics, as well as his aspirations to secure gold medals in both Paris and the road Worlds in Zürich.
We delve into specific Tour stages, particularly the critical mountain and gravel stages, analyzing their potential impact on the overall race dynamics.
The discussion also touches on the differing training approaches for targeting a Monument compared to preparing for a grand tour.
Additionally, Remco discusses his R.EV Brussels Cycling Academy project aimed at empowering young talents and unveil future topics for his YouTube channel.
He shares insights into the WolfPack camaraderie within the team and much more.
It's a fully packed and insightful episode with Remco Evenepoel of Soudal Quick-Step.
We delve into specific Tour stages, particularly the critical mountain and gravel stages, analyzing their potential impact on the overall race dynamics.
The discussion also touches on the differing training approaches for targeting a Monument compared to preparing for a grand tour.
Additionally, Remco discusses his R.EV Brussels Cycling Academy project aimed at empowering young talents and unveil future topics for his YouTube channel.
He shares insights into the WolfPack camaraderie within the team and much more.
It's a fully packed and insightful episode with Remco Evenepoel of Soudal Quick-Step.
TOPICS COVERED & TRANSCRIPT
(00:00) Introduction
(02:16) Off-Season, USA
(6:59) Favorite Off-Season Ride
(09:38) Recap of 2023 Season
(12:40) Early Season Races
(17:25) Mikel Landa
(19:52) 2024 Olympics
(21:36) Tour de France
(26:19) Cobbles and Gravel in Grand Tours
(29:07) Road World Championships
(30:52) YouTube Channel
(34:45) Training and Recovery
(44:51) R.EV Brussels Cycling Academy
(45:50) WolfPack
(51:07) Giveaway!
(51:38) Ending
REMCO EVENEPOEL
But having both of the titles in the pocket already, I think it would be a nice goal to try and go for the double. I think I have two courses that I can really aim to go for a win. Quality wise, it can probably be even a bigger season than it was last year because it's only World Tours and championships. I mean, you should not put a real Strade stage in a Grand Tour because, I mean, it's quite a different thing.
SOREN JENSEN
Hello everyone and welcome to the Castelli Podcast, the show where we dive into the world of Castelli and professional cycling, exploring the stories behind the riders who inspire us. On today's episode, we are celebrating the one year anniversary of the Castelli show featuring our very first guest when starting the show. So it's an honor to have him back on the show, better, stronger, wiser, and with more impressive victories to his already outstanding palmares. Let's welcome Belgian cycling superstar Remco Evenepoel of Soudal Quick-Step. Welcome Remco.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Thank you. Nice introduction.
SOREN JENSEN
So Remco, we started the 2023 season and the Castelli podcast by featuring you as our very first guest. We discussed your early years playing soccer, mountain biking at Lake Garda with your family, your first Castelli memory of the Maglia Azzurra, your incredible journey into World Tour cycling, learning the ropes, setbacks, the Giro d'Italia, 2023 goals and more. So if anyone missed that episode, make sure to add it to your queue list and make sure to hang on to the end since we'll be giving away a Belgian national jersey signed by Remco himself. So stay tuned for more details on how you can enter for a chance to win at the end of the show. So now let's buckle up and jump right in. Remco, we're thrilled to have you back on the show and it's fantastic to reunite here with the team in Calpe, especially in December and the first meet-up after the off-season. How are you doing? What have you been up to after wrapping up a long 2023 season at Chrono des Nations?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, everything has been good. Took quite a long break, longer than I usually do. I think I've left the bike on the side for like five weeks which is a very long period but I feel like it did me well mentally and physically. I think like you mentioned it was a long and a hard season, tough season with a lot of ups and downs. Also the rainbow season so it was a special year but I think I was happy when it ended and I had some time to think about other stuff.
SOREN JENSEN
Think about the future, think about the upcoming season. Because I remember a year ago when you and I, we met up, you had already reconed, was that five stages?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Correct.
SOREN JENSEN
So now it's good to see that you have had some time to think about the family, also take some time off, you know, detach yourself. I also saw on your Strava, I also know this from the team, that you also had a trip to California, Morgan Hills, where you guys also, apart from looking at your Strava and seeing your always fast-pacing runs, you also went to the wind tunnel there at Specialized. And you guys also tested a few TT suits.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, correct. So actually it was a bit of a long thinking and doubting where to go on holiday, but then when we got the final call for the winter note testing, me and my wife and I decided to have a trip to LA. We spent 10 days there. We did Santa Monica Beach, then we went to Las Vegas for two days, and then we drove up to San Francisco and then went for three days to work at Specialized. And yeah, we did some interesting testing as I was wearing the new prototype suit in the Chrono des Nations. I was curious to see what the result would be.
SOREN JENSEN
The numbers would be like yeah.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah exactly and it turned out to be a very good suit so I was happy to see that.
SOREN JENSEN
Because for that suit it's just more for listeners so they're aware about this because some people might have asked, everyone knows the question why you're riding with, why you have short sleeves versus long sleeves TT suits. But also some people might have wondered why your sleeves are a little bit too short. But now we actually extended the length also on the legs. We made the shoulders and the sleeves with a complete new construction. Also something that we have studied, we worked on the track and especially looking forward also for the Olympics and stuff so yeah and it showed up to be what I could read through some of the tests from the team like the fastest suits that you guys tested over there in the wind tunnel.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah yeah exactly. I think the new shoulder construction really made a big improvement. I remember with the previous shoulder construction there was quite some wrinkles on let's say the back of the shoulder, the shoulder plate actually. And now with the new construction it is gone. So I think that made a big improvement. So I'm looking forward to the next test that is waiting.
SOREN JENSEN
Yeah, because we are actually meeting up I think mid-January, you know?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, correct.
SOREN JENSEN
In Milan at the Politecnico Wind Tunnel to do some more testing.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah it's Olympic season, so that's also why we're looking a lot into the suits and the material. Of course I have to be on my top game as well but I think if the material is up there then it's a bit more easy for yourself to motivate.
SOREN JENSEN
It is, it is, exactly. When you got back here to Calpe, which I know is your home base, and you pulled out your bike for the first time only a week ago or something, you did your first ride.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Around three weeks yeah so uh came home from the us around the 10th of october um november and then uh i was supposed to restart back then already uh then we had the team days in turnout at the Soudal headquarters uh the team meeting let's say and then I was supposed to restart after that but then the weather was pretty bad in Belgium a lot of raining and wind and within the back of my head the idea that I was coming here a few days later then I decided to to take off for a few more days and then restarted here so.
SOREN JENSEN
Also much better instead of riding around up in Belgium in rainy conditions and cold weather.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I mean if it's for a week I would say yes I'm gonna get through but if I have to restart there but then only for two three days then coming here then you just have to focus a little bit more on the nutrition and the food but then it's not a big problem.
SOREN JENSEN
You're right. What's your favorite off-season or early season training ride around here?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
The first day is of course the most flat one because it gets hilly pretty quickly here. But then like for now there's like a three four hour lap that I really like to do. It goes here over the small climb that goes to Benissa and then just over Calderat or going to Guadalest. It's a little bit higher. I think that's a very nice loop. You can actually in both ways it's really nice. You always start or come back over the sea roads, over the coastline, so it's a nice lap to do.
SOREN JENSEN
This is a good one here also for listeners coming to Calpe or Alicante to get these insights of where the pros are training and where they do some destructor training on.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It also depends on the weather. If it's around 20°C here, you can go up there, but if it goes to, let's say, 15°C, 10°C, it might get really chilly on top because you're riding in a direction of 1000 meters of altitude so it can be around let's say like 5 degrees up there. Let's say that the difference in temperature is quite big because you can start wearing short shorts but then up there if you're in short shorts it's pretty cold.
SOREN JENSEN
I remember my first time coming to Calpe with the team, I must have been 21 and I went out there after I finished all my work here, went out for a ride, got up the Kuldaratus, and it was super windy there up on the top.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it gets crazy there.
SOREN JENSEN
And just the temperature just dropped, like you said, like 16, 18 down the seaside in December, but up there it was probably, I don't know, 10 degrees or something, and then with this heavy wind. And while I was just trying to steer my SL7 down the mountain there, then I have this guy pulling up to me, who I've worked with in the past with Team Sky, called Poles. And he was like, dude, what are you doing here and he's like well get on my wheel and I'll take you down to the coast.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah it's actually a crazy place because you have the sea and then the mountain is like let's say just getting through it but then the wind always gets around so it's really there's a lot of turbulence on top of the climb.
SOREN JENSEN
Okay Remco, enough off-season. We touched on the 2023 season. I mean we know you said that earlier there's been a bit of ups and downs but I would say there's been some downs but a lot of ups you know especially with victories at UAE Tour, Catalunya, defending your victory at Liege-Pasteurn-Liege, two states at the Giro, three at the Vuelta, Swiss, Plastica-San Sebastian, the World Time Trial title, National Road, Race Champion and the list goes on and on. If you have to describe the 2023 season with its ups and downs, how would you look at it?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well, I mean, I'm definitely super happy with the season I did. I think it's just a shame that I couldn't finish the Giro in an honest way, let's say, because I think for sure I was in maybe the best shape I've ever had at the start of the Giro. It was also resulting in the first stage already. But I think, yeah, it was actually a great season. Then in the end, about the Vuelta, I think my biggest goal was the time trial, World Championship time trial. So I knew my preps were not going to be ideally for the Vuelta, which also turned out. But I think I cannot be more than happy if you get sick from a race, that's just how cycling goes. I think everything happens for a reason, to probably go back there with a stronger head and with, let's say, revenge feelings. Or maybe for next season, going into the Tour, it can help me with, let's say, the preparations and some different mindset maybe so I think I should be happy 13 victories of which 11 world Tours two titles I think it's a let's say pure quality wise it can probably be even a bigger season than it was last year because it's only World Tours and championships meanwhile last year I also won in in Algarve and two of Norway so I think last year I took five victories which were not World Tour. So I think about quality, spoken about quality, it has been a very good season. I think I could have won a bit more if I would have been racing sometimes a bit more smarter or with a bit more patience, like for example Catalonia. And also in Tour de Suisse was a bit of a strange race coming back from the COVID sickness. So, yeah, I think I should be proud about the season I did.
SOREN JENSEN
Amazing season. I think there were a lot of people out there who would like to just trade just a little bit of what you achieved this season for a whole career of results. So, no, you know, congrats as always.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Thank you.
SOREN JENSEN
Then looking ahead, I mean, we are in December now and January is just around the corner. You've got a long build up for the 2024 season. As you just said, you just started riding a few weeks ago you already announced a few days ago that you'll be defending your LBL title and world's title and that July will be the peak period of the year for you targeting a top five and a state's win at the Tour to have the triple you know stage victories in all Grand Tours. Well the Tour you'll be up against some of the other gods of Grand Tour racing, sounds like they will all be coming to the show, as well as adding an Olympic gold medal to your collection of World, European and Belgian titles. Without leaking too much information, because I don't want to get into trouble with the team, can you tell us how your preparation for the 2024 season will look like and what race will most likely be your season debut.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
For now I actually have quite some time. That's also why I only started three weeks ago. As everybody knows, the main goal will be the month of July. So we want to start the season with a fresh head and a fresh body. And I think that's why I took off for such a long period of time. And then for now I still have about two months to get into my first race so I will restart in Portugal. Algarve for a third time, hoping to get a good result there. I always perform well in the southern countries so it's a very nice race and I think especially with the races I will do after it's a good race to start to have some race hardness in the legs and it's also why we decided to not go to UAE Tour because it can get a bit easy there let's say for eight days or less if the most of the days so in our graphics every day up and down pushing a nice time trial to start with so I think it's it's gonna be a very good race to restart.
SOREN JENSEN
Oh, it's definitely a good race to restart the season. But that also means coming in, defending your Liege-Bastogne-Liege title, you're coming in to Liege without any altitude training or maybe less race miles in your legs. Do you think it will be more difficult to win the LBL again, or how do you see it?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well, I think the races that I will do after Algarve will be of very high quality. All races where the GC riders always want to be on their top game. So yeah, I will go over to Aparinis and then Basque. So it's two races that will fit perfectly into the build-up to the Ardennes. Especially Basque is something that is very good for preparing the Ardennes. And then I will do the combination flash and Liege so I will do flash also. Is that the first time for you? Second time. First time was when I won for the first time at Liege. Then I was a let's say the main guide of Julian during the day. I always have to keep him out of the wind. It was actually a very nice task to have as you know you know that you have a rider in your wheel that can win for I don't know how many times already so I think it's a very nice let's say spring campaign with not too many race days but I think it makes sense because after Liege I will have a small break and then I will go for almost four week altitude period that's why we decided to not go in altitude in spring period keep that off and then have a big effect after the Classics to get into the Tour.
SOREN JENSEN
I mean we all know that four or five weeks is kind of the window for when you go into altitude training. Then the whole Grand Tour team that will be supporting you will be coming? What will it be looking like? Because if some of them will be racing the Giro?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I'm not sure if the team will allow the riders to do the Giro-Tour combination as they did with me. So I think they will make two different programs with guys that will focus on spring and Giro and then have a bit of an easier second part of the season and guys that they will do a bit of the opposite with a, let's say a small packed spring classic campaign and then going over for a heavy summer. So I think for the Tour team it will probably be almost everybody together on that long training camp. Then depending on what the riders prefer to go Dauphiné or Suisse or another race, then they will divide it like that. But I think it's good that we can already have a small test in the start of the, in one of the first one week races with the guys.
SOREN JENSEN
So then you will have the Spring Classic riders, like the big domestic riders like Asgreen, Lampaert. Those guys who just finished off a really hard Spring Classic season, maybe then around Flèche and Liege, they will take it one or two weeks easy, and then they will join you on the altitude training camp. But what about Landa? He's like a new guy to the team and we know he's a GC guy. He finished third on the podium or third at the Giro. He won a couple of stages. He brought Froome to victory in 2016 and 2017. Actually 2017 Froome’s last Tour victory. He of course will be at your side of the Tour. How do you see him as your super climbing domestique?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Mikael is a different rider. I mean he's a bit older than me, he has more experience and of course I'm actually really looking forward to learn from him because like you said he won with a four time Tour de France champion and himself he also did some amazing results in the GCs of the Grand Tours so I think it's the perfect guy to have with us with a young team to learn from and to see how he does the things.
SOREN JENSEN
It's definitely going to be interesting. I remember Mikel from the days at Team Sky. Amazing person, really great personality.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
On the table and in the team meeting, we know each other a bit from the altitude in Thailand when we cross paths to have a small chat. And it's actually very nice when you speak English as well as a Spanish person. So he's a good guy and I think there's already a good friendship building up so it's very important to start an important year like this with such a special rider.
SOREN JENSEN
Yeah, a special rider, a lot of experience and won us still today, because it's his birthday today, 34 years.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Oh, I didn't know. I saw him on the table and I didn't even say it so when I see him I should do it. But it's nice and we have a cake tonight.
SOREN JENSEN
Exactly, exactly. No but 34 years of age and think about growing up in the best country. I mean even today he's still one of the best or part of the best group of the very exclusive World Tour top climbers. So yeah, no I think actually I'm gonna meet with him later today.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Okay. And... Well, if I don't see him, tell him happy birthday. If I don't see him anymore. But also like if I was in the Vuelta now and then the second and third week I could see a bit from distance and it was actually amazing to know him coming into the team, seeing him up there, battle to the last day with the, with the, yeah, Vingegaard and then Roglic and Kuss. Okay, I think from fourths in GC there were no real threats anymore, but still him trying to give that push always to do better and better and try to move up in GC was actually really nice to see and I was yeah, actually very proud of him to see that on that age knowing also that he that he had that he leaves the team It was actually nice to see that he still gives his very maximum to the last day.
SOREN JENSEN
One of the reasons for targeting the Tour this year, I assume that's also due to the Olympics, as a build up to the Olympics, because we have the individual time trial at the Olympics starting only a week after the championship, I think it's Saturday.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Saturday, so it's six days.
SOREN JENSEN
Six days, yes. And then you got the road race the following weekend after.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
And it's Sunday. Yeah.
SOREN JENSEN
No, I think the men's road race is on a Saturday and the women's Sunday this time. I don't know for what reason, but you're right. The individual time trial is on a Saturday. So less than six days after the finish of the Tour.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it's a bit comparable with the Vuelta a Australia campaign. So if I go out of the Tour in a good way, with a good feeling, with a good shape, I think it can be a bit of the same scenario as it was in Australia, with a bit of, I mean, not a bad TT, but just a bit less freshness, let's say. But then, yeah, the week after, if I would recover well and some good rest, I might maybe find the best legs of the season, like it was in Australia so yeah it's interesting but I think it's risky but if you look at how it ended up in Tokyo top 10 was all to the France riders in the road race and then the town trial were all fresh guys that were up there with a Primoz winning Dumoulin and Dennis so three guys that were not in the Tour yeah it's gonna be interesting luckily the travel is not that long, it's just from Nice to Paris. It's not super long but it's definitely gonna be a big month of July.
SOREN JENSEN
It's gonna be a big month of July, yeah. And also with the Tour starting in Florence, Italy for the first couple of stages. But then already, I mean the race could already explode I think on stage four over the Col du Galibier in the Alps and continue all the way to the finish in Nice, the time trial.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it's gonna be actually already the first day is pretty tough. It's like that medium mountain stage in the area of Turin. So it's gonna be a bit, it's gonna be an interesting and important first two stages already with the Giro d'Emilia finish. So I think almost all the riders know that lap. I think it's going to be interesting for stage 4. The GC guys are going to be obligated to be on top already. So if you have a bad day there, your GC can already be over. So it's interesting, but it's also always a bit tricky to put a... I mean, tricky not, but it's always interesting to see such a hard stage after four days. I mean, it can all explode or just nothing can happen at all because it's still 20 days to go..
SOREN JENSEN
Yeah, because then we have the third week, then we have all the big mountains coming in, you know, hot, solid, quite steep. What are the key stages to you that you looked at already on the map?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well, definitely the first ones. As we will meet up in Milan, I will also go and check the first two stages. We were thinking about the fourth stage, but probably in January the Galibier will not even be open. It will be full of snow, so we might place that in the month of June.
SOREN JENSEN
You might be able to ride up to the tunnel when I lived in France I lived in Annecy an hour and a half drive from the Galibier and I rode up there sometimes also in May but you would get to the there's a tunnel you can go through but you cannot go over the pass because you know they were never clean that for snow but you would definitely I think you'll be able to ride up to the tunnel okay I think they usually clean that but I can check into with some of my friends they're living in Savoy.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It could be good. So yeah, fourth stage. Then I think there's a pretty important weekend of the first week with stage seven, eight and nine. Nine is the gravel stage, no? The gravel stage. Then seven is the longer time trial. And stage eight is maybe not that important but I mean, it's an area up and down all day, open fields, so it might get a bit let's say a bit of a war over there so that's it and then yes second week is also already pretty pretty important I think we have a few easy stages like completely flat ones and then again yeah the weekend is always a spectacle in the Tour.
SOREN JENSEN
TV time.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah exactly exactly. I think there's a 14 or 15 which is around Clermont-Ferrand. It's a bit of a Liege-Bastogne-Liege course actually.
SOREN JENSEN
Correct.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I'm not sure if it's 14 or 15 but I think it's like 200 and 220k or a bit less. And yeah like 4,400 meters of climbing so it's all day up and down. And then last week, everybody knows, there's only one flat stage in the last week and all the others are important. Nice to end up with a time trial which is a bit of a climbing time trial but it's going to be an interesting one. I think it can still change the Tour.
SOREN JENSEN
And as we also know that climbing time trial made part of the course, so it's what we know from Paris-Nice.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
So, yeah, but it's a bit the same. It's the same final, I think.
SOREN JENSEN
It's the same final I think. The exact last 20 kilometers from Paris-Nice so we'll have a good recovery in the month of March. And hopefully with weather is usually nice when you get to the coast in Cote d'Azur. So what do you think about now when the Grand Tours have started to include cobble and gravel stages? Should that be part of Grand Tours to you or just keep them as one day races?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I mean it's a really specific thing.
SOREN JENSEN
I mean for us as fans in front of a television it's amazing to see but I can imagine you guys who are racing three weeks have to think about everything. When you hit the cobbles or the gravel everything, as we know from Strade Bianche, as we know from the cobble classics, everything just becomes chaotic. And you can lose everything in no time also with defects and everything.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah that's exactly what I think. I mean you cannot win your Grand Tour up there but you can definitely lose. I mean it's not really up to me to say it has to be part of or not.
SOREN JENSEN
Are you a fan of it?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It depends, it depends. I mean I didn't see the course yet of the gravel stage I will definitely go check it out but I mean you should not put a real Strade stage in a Grand Tour because I mean it's quite it's a different thing you have riders specifically going to Strade because they're good at it and they want to win it. In a Grand Tour you might have guys that don't really or they are not really fans of it and they get a bit scared or whatever so it's a completely different bunch. So I mean it can be up there but it should not affect the race you know if you put a few sectors in it it's not a big problem but for example the Tour stage is quite a lot. I think if I'm not wrong it's from let's say kilometer 50 till 200. On and off. Only 10 kilometers of normal roads in between and then you have a longer section of gravel and you even have a section from like 10k to go. If you have a flat tire there, yeah, it's done, you lose quite some time because the bunch will be completely exploded. So yeah, I'm actually a fan of the fact that they put it in but it's more the effects that it can have. I'm not a fan of it.
SOREN JENSEN
I understand, yeah, because so you plan your whole season for this and just one flat or a crash in front of you, your Tour dreams are over. But then also at that stage you also had guys like Fuglsang who's also you know very skilled when it comes to technical skill coming from mountain biking helping him guiding over the and you got some of the best couple riders here you know joining you.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, if guys like Kasper and Yves would come with me to the Tour, I think for that stage they are the perfect guys to guide me because Kasper did at Strade and Yves is just one of the best riders for the flats. So I think I have two big machines with me, if they would join.
SOREN JENSEN
Two of the best Dome-Way sticks for the rolling hills and flats and this uncertain terrain. Remco, time is running out, but I just wanted to ask you also about the Worlds. Now it's in Zürich this year. You got both the individual time trial title to defend and you then both got the road race with 4400 meters of climbing I think it is.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yes, I looked it up, actually. It's on Veloviewer and it's climbing, but it's more like going to the directions of the Ardennes. So it's a bit harder than the Ardennes but it's not a real mountain stage. So, but I think, yeah, with having both of the titles in the pocket already, I think it would be a nice goal to try and go for the double. I think I have two courses that I can really aim to go for a win. Of course, I know that's a really ideal situation to win both of them. It's not going to be that easy, but of course, dream can try to go for it. So, I think it's a nice goal to put on the paper, try to go for the boat jerseys, because I'm one of the only riders ever to have won boat disciplines. So why not try to go for a boat in one year, that would be amazing. I was really close in Australia, so why not try again this year. We'll see.
SOREN JENSEN
We're looking forward to it, man. All the best of luck for this season. Thank you very much. It's always a pleasure to watch you on television and also meet you of course also in person. You're such a nice, humble and relaxed person. And what's great about your YouTube channel, I think you're showing a different side of yourself because you know when you're at races and people, armchair fans or cycling fans out there watching on television, it's difficult for them sometimes to understand the people behind the riders, you know, when they just watch them on television and see some of all the stuff that people are writing on social and everything. So I think it's a really nice transparent way to show the world who Remco Evenepoel is. I think that's probably one of the reasons why you started the YouTube channel.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Every start is difficult, but I think we're trying to find a way now, what works the best, or we're trying to find out about that. If you look, for example, at the first video, it was actually a very easy video to make on the track in Gent. So not a big working place, let's say. Like for example the Chrono of the Nations video or the Lombardia recon video.
SOREN JENSEN
That was a very emotional one.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, yeah. It was also a pretty long one. So for YouTube it's a bit unusual to make things like this. But I think in that video we just had that much content that was, let's say, good enough to be shown, that we thought we should just make a long one of it. We find out now what works, what doesn't, so for next year we'll probably get the videos a bit smaller again, and a bit more easygoing, and a bit more easy to understand for people, because, yeah, I mean, it also costs money to make videos. So I was a bit surprised with that so I think if we can kind of bring down the amount of money that goes into the videos it should be a bit more easy to make. Also it takes quite some time often so especially with the year that will come it would be great to to diminish a bit of time that goes into the filming.
SOREN JENSEN
Can you already tell us more about when, like a small spoiler, when will the next episode come out and the next episode will be?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well honestly I've been making, I mean we have been making a full Vuelta video, so I had a GoPro with me for three weeks filming myself in the room, then the guys came over a few days, but when we, when they finished the video it turned out to be like one hour and 45 minutes so I think that's more a thing that you can then make as a documentary I mean it's it's not really made for YouTube that so we actually skipped that plan so for the moment there is no video being planned but that's why a few days ago we made an Instagram story with the question “what people would like to see?” and there's a lot of FTP tests coming out so I think that will probably a project and then also they ask for a lot of collaborations with other famous people so yeah well we are kind of working on that already so there's a few plans but like I said we will not try to make four or five videos in three months. So, we will try to aim for six videos a year, but good quality videos and videos that will work.
SOREN JENSEN
I'm definitely looking forward to it. And it's cool. And I know, I know how it is with video filming, because you create like hours, almost days of content, B-roll content as well. And you edit everything down to hardly anything but you know c’est la vie, I mean. You also have had Amazon following you guys by the Grand Tour so you know how it is and now you did the same thing also for your own channel so that's awesome. It's still at your young age you are a superhero I mean you are a big celebrity looking there Palmares is unbelievable. I think a lot of people are asking themselves or wondering how many hours is Remco training a week. Of course it depends what time of the week and what is your bread and butter for training or what do you usually expect to see on a training calendar preparing for a Grand Tour or Liege-Bastogne-Liege for Remco Evenepoel. Can you give us without telling too much a little bit about your hours on the road and your specific training you do as a preparation for a Grand Tour?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well if I focus more on a Liege for example, which is a bit more explosive than a Grand Tour of course, I'll focus a bit more on those, let's say, VU2 max efforts, so a bit of shorter intervals but with higher intensity. Often training in three day blocks before that. Sometimes two days when it gets really tough to not go too much into the fatigue. And then I'll always try to have a, if I do a three week altitude block for example, I will always try to have a very long ride. So plus seven. Plus seven hours. Also not going to eight or nine because then you would really kill the body. But I mean, for example, Liege is a six, six and a half hour race. If you really want to have the feeling of having that amount of time on the bike, you should go for seven hours. I think that's always my strategy, at least one seven hour ride to have the feeling and be comfortable with sitting that long on a saddle. And then yeah, for a Grand Tour, it will always start easy, the build up, and then you will bring in some more hours, and then towards the end you will go for more intensity. And again, like I said, maybe two, three really long rides, a lot of climbing meters, but just always try to have that good combination of quality training with longer training but also a good rest day in between to be fresh to have the training really getting that it does it work in the body so it's always finding that combination of hard work but also having the good amount of...
SOREN JENSEN
Of relax because after training, well the second most important thing or maybe the most important thing, is the recovery.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, definitely. I think nowadays it's almost getting more important. Let's say training is really important, but I mean, you can always pick up on a training, but if you don't recover well, you might never recover from it anymore, so it’s like, yeah, let’s say if you do a good training first of all you need your good recovery strategy, shake, food, rest, even the massages is important. Yeah, sometimes it might get more important than it is, than training is. So especially the last weeks before that race, I think it's really important to worry more about recovery. Now it's a bit different because trainings are not the hardest and it's also not the longest ones so you can still perform if you recover let's say five percent less than you need to before that big goal so it's a really important thing.
SOREN JENSEN
Oh it is a very important thing, it's a very important thing now. Are there any tips training wise apart from recovery, nutrition, eating well, make sure you recover, get your recovery shake and everything. Any other tips you could give to all the cycling fans out there who want to maybe get into racing or just be serious amateur cyclists out there, just like the Sunday warriors and when they get into the training, some specific tips here you can give to them?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well if you don't need to ride fast you don't have to ride fast I mean it's it's also for us especially now when you're building up and you want to let's say let grow the fat threshold zone then you really need to ride a lot under that zone so I feel like for me it will probably be around 300 watts let's say the fat threshold if I it means that I should ride around, let's say, 250, 260 on easy pace on the climbs. And that helps, you know, like this you will also enjoy riding fast later on. And then, yeah, just enjoy it, you know. I mean, if you feel like on a day I don't want to go, you shouldn't go and try to do something else. That's also why I combine the running a bit with riding, because it makes me feel like I'm doing something else and not only riding the bike. I used to do sober training on the bike, but now I try to do them while running. It is the combination of... It gives the hunger to a bike.
SOREN JENSEN
It's good. It also works in a different way, the muscles, and also helps with bone density.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I needed that actually, because I was playing football, everybody knows. But then when I got into cycling, I didn't run for quite a long period of time and my bone density was really getting a bit worse. So that's why I needed to pick up pretty, I mean not intensively, I need to pick up the running. And that's what I did and I think I'm ready. And it also just grows shape a bit faster. So a pretty nice way to just keep the body moving. And it also doesn't take that much time. If you do, let's say 40 minutes of running, you have the feeling like you did two hours of riding a bike.
SOREN JENSEN
Correct. Yeah. Now I also got into running, well, many years ago after stopping cycling and racing and then started working at Castelli and when traveling the world it is so much easier sometimes to bring a pair of runners.
SOREN JENSEN
Or the road that you've done a thousand times on your road bike, you know looks different when you run it afterwards. Yes I'm patient. So yeah, do you sometimes also hit the trails or you mainly just stay in the tarmac?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well when I go back to Belgium for Christmas, I might hit the trails a bit more on the mountain bike. Because, yeah, I mean, if you go out on the road now in Belgium, you will get as dirty as you would go in the trails. So it's, I think then it's also fun to do something else, discover some roads that you never do. So in periods where the training hours are a bit less important, I will hit the trails with the mountain bike a bit.
SOREN JENSEN
And then you also, I mean, you're always focused and concentrated and plus you also have the less wind chill.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Exactly. You are always warm also. You need to push always and it's always, like I said, you need to be focused because downhill is also important on the trails. So it's, you always need to be focused and your body will never get cold.
SOREN JENSEN
And then you also work on your technique.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, correct.
SOREN JENSEN
So you're a multi-sport athlete, we know that. But also during the season, do you still hit the gym and do strength training?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It depends. I think probably spring, I mean till the edge, I will probably do it. But then after that, building up to the Tour, it will be a bit less. I think then it will be more about flexibility and a bit of core stability. But I think I will not run anymore from when I will start a season so probably from Algarve one I will not run anymore because I think then the risk of getting an injury is a bit higher as I will do high intensity riding so yeah I think from the moment that I start my racing season I will probably give me new all the extra extra sports. That's why it's nice to have a bit of a combination in the winter.
SOREN JENSEN
So knowing that you and Landa won't be riding the Giro, we completely skipped discussing the first Grand Tour of the season. What do you think about the course this year, which is less hilly and might suit you better than the Tour?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It was an idea because I saw the parkour and it was actually a very nice parkour with some beautiful time trials. I mean, I think the parkour is a bit compatible with Vuelta I won in 22. Not too hard starts in the first part. It's also almost not technical at all.
SOREN JENSEN
Well, and 20% less elevation compared to the Tour, I think.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it's really, that's what I said, it was like, I mean, it's an easy Giro parkour, but it's never gonna be easy, because in the Giro you have the weather which I don't think is a bad thing that they kind of make the course a bit easier because you also know the weather can I mean the 20% that goes less into the elevation can come back with the weather so it's not a bad thing that they did.
SOREN JENSEN
No, no it's definitely gonna be interesting. Like you said, with the Giro is unpredictable. You know, when it comes to the race itself, the third week, and then on top you've got just the weather. I mean, we have seen snow, rain, wind, cold, I mean, everything, everything can happen at the Giro. Then luckily you guys, you've got some good foul weather equipment to keep you guys protected. But you know, it's not everything you still need.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
No, no, but still it helps a lot. I already think about stage six, where I crashed twice last year. I mean, I think it was where Cavendish was flying over the finish line at that stage. It was really cold, it was like maximum 8 degrees and pissing rain all day and I was just super happy with the warm and thick clothes. It also protected me a lot for the crash actually. No bruises, no scars.
SOREN JENSEN
Oh, that's good to hear. Yeah. That's also part of, I mean, some of this is part of also of the development we do internally, just like the cable inserts that we used a bit in the past, but I don't think that many riders on this team here are using it. So Remco, it's been almost an hour since the interview now. It's fantastic. Thanks for your availability. And it's always a joy to talk to you. Two last questions. Is that okay? at the quay. Can you tell me more about the Brussels Cycling Academy?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yes, I would like.
SOREN JENSEN
It's an amazing project. I really and we really want to support this project as well. So in the future, but if you could tell our listeners who might not be aware about the Brussels Cycling Academy.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, so for now, we actually work in a few phases. So now it's a bit of communities, children that are staying at city houses because their parents don't have the credits to give their kids a good background and good support. We’re trying to support them and the kids mainly come from the city of Brussels now so we're trying to learn them about riding a bike, about the bike itself and just trying to develop them into an athlete and not just a cyclist. And then yeah there will be phase two where they hopefully can join a team and race and we will try to make a team on our own and you know then it just goes on and on trying to go into a higher category and then yeah one day hopefully around 2030 where Brussels might host the World Championships we would like I mean big dream and goal to have one girl and one boy.
SOREN JENSEN
That would be amazing.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
As a start of one of the categories. So we're thinking about juniors, probably under 23. So yeah, it's actually still in the build up phase and there are many other phases that will come or many other situations let's say. So yeah, it's an interesting project and we have the help from Specialized for the moment that give us some bikes for the kids, which is really helpful because like this they already have a high quality bike. So for now they're riding on mountain bikes, but I think definitely in the next phases we will go with narrower tires, a different handlebar. So it's really step by step because the kids, they really didn't know anything about the bike. But you also see that it's a good thing because they have no fear. For example, if they go up a ramp and then go down, if you're used to riding a bike, you would start to hesitate a bit sometimes because you know the risks, but they just go over.
SOREN JENSEN
That's children. I mean, if you like, when you go downhill skiing, it looks like, when they take a tumble, it looks like they're made out of rubber because they just maybe cry for a minute or two, but then they get up and, you know, just do it again.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It's like they forget.
SOREN JENSEN
How many kids are involved right now?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
For now, we have two groups of around 15 kids, almost 20 even. From different ages. So you have age zone 1, which is around 10. And then you have the second age, which is around 13. So it's a good thing. There's a lot of information online, on websites and stuff. So we're trying to build it up and make it bigger and bigger and hopefully for now it's in Belgium but we hope to go to the major or the capital cities the next of Europe as well it will be pretty difficult but we will see.
SOREN JENSEN
That's good, it's an amazing project. I'm really excited as I said you definitely also here at Castelli we would like to be part of this but where can people if you can just mention their social handle and the website where people can find more information about this project.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It's actually pretty easy: it's REV Brussels Academy and then you will find a lot of websites and information on Google. Also on my Instagram we launched a small reel yesterday so they can just check it out and find all the information online.
SOREN JENSEN
Perfect so make sure guys you do that and make sure to hit follow also because this is only the beginning. Last question Remco, what does the word Wolfpack mean to you?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It means a lot of things, you know, it's a bunch of friends that want to win races, but then it's also a bunch of friends that want to support each other. And also you feel that with the staff, with the team members, it's just something that lives in the team, you know? And yeah, I think also next year, if I speak for myself and for the group that I'm working with, we're going into new projects, into new, let's say, goals. So I think we can use all the help and support from every single team member help us and help me with that so that is just something that you need it's like it's actually the family that you find when you're not at home so it's a very important aspects in our lives.
SOREN JENSEN
It is. That's it actually. No but it's right and I see you also use that hashtag also often the world pack and I mean it's also from the other riders. It's something that is closer to the heart, the bond between teammates and good friends that will help each other out no matter what happens. Okay, Remco, thank you so much. It's been amazing to have you on again. And yeah, I'll see you later on today, hopefully for a birthday cake later on for Mikel Landa. Let's see. Exactly. Okay, Remco, thank you so much.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
No problem.
SOREN JENSEN
And all the best of luck for the upcoming season.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Thank you very much.
SOREN JENSEN
And that's a wrap on the first Castelli podcast of 2024 featuring Remco Evenepoel. The next episode dropping on January 23rd will feature Mikel Landa. He will share some climbing training tips as one of the best climbers in professional cycling and discuss his 2024 race program. Landa will serve as a climbing domestique for Remco at the Tour and take on the GC role at the La Vuelta Espana in August. As we all know, Landa checks almost every box in that regard having participated in twenty four stages and secured eight top ten results on GC. So, it's going to be a thrilling and insightful episode and as announced at the beginning of this episode, we are giving away one Belgium champion jersey signed by Remco himself. To enter the giveaway head over to Youtube if you're not already here, then follow Castelli Cycling and leave your favorite Remco Evenepoel wow moment in the comments of this video and you have entered the contest. Entries will close on Sunday February 18th and the winner will be randomly picked. So all the best of luck to every one of you and if you enjoyed this episode please make sure to subscribe on Spotify or Apple podcast, give us a 5 star rating or review to help us reach more cyclists through the algorithm. And also, if you would like to suggest a future podcast topic, just shoot us a line at podcast at castelli-cycling.com or connect with us on social media. We hope you enjoyed this episode and we'll see you in two weeks with the second episode of 2024. Until then, take care and ride safe.
(02:16) Off-Season, USA
(6:59) Favorite Off-Season Ride
(09:38) Recap of 2023 Season
(12:40) Early Season Races
(17:25) Mikel Landa
(19:52) 2024 Olympics
(21:36) Tour de France
(26:19) Cobbles and Gravel in Grand Tours
(29:07) Road World Championships
(30:52) YouTube Channel
(34:45) Training and Recovery
(44:51) R.EV Brussels Cycling Academy
(45:50) WolfPack
(51:07) Giveaway!
(51:38) Ending
REMCO EVENEPOEL
But having both of the titles in the pocket already, I think it would be a nice goal to try and go for the double. I think I have two courses that I can really aim to go for a win. Quality wise, it can probably be even a bigger season than it was last year because it's only World Tours and championships. I mean, you should not put a real Strade stage in a Grand Tour because, I mean, it's quite a different thing.
SOREN JENSEN
Hello everyone and welcome to the Castelli Podcast, the show where we dive into the world of Castelli and professional cycling, exploring the stories behind the riders who inspire us. On today's episode, we are celebrating the one year anniversary of the Castelli show featuring our very first guest when starting the show. So it's an honor to have him back on the show, better, stronger, wiser, and with more impressive victories to his already outstanding palmares. Let's welcome Belgian cycling superstar Remco Evenepoel of Soudal Quick-Step. Welcome Remco.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Thank you. Nice introduction.
SOREN JENSEN
So Remco, we started the 2023 season and the Castelli podcast by featuring you as our very first guest. We discussed your early years playing soccer, mountain biking at Lake Garda with your family, your first Castelli memory of the Maglia Azzurra, your incredible journey into World Tour cycling, learning the ropes, setbacks, the Giro d'Italia, 2023 goals and more. So if anyone missed that episode, make sure to add it to your queue list and make sure to hang on to the end since we'll be giving away a Belgian national jersey signed by Remco himself. So stay tuned for more details on how you can enter for a chance to win at the end of the show. So now let's buckle up and jump right in. Remco, we're thrilled to have you back on the show and it's fantastic to reunite here with the team in Calpe, especially in December and the first meet-up after the off-season. How are you doing? What have you been up to after wrapping up a long 2023 season at Chrono des Nations?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, everything has been good. Took quite a long break, longer than I usually do. I think I've left the bike on the side for like five weeks which is a very long period but I feel like it did me well mentally and physically. I think like you mentioned it was a long and a hard season, tough season with a lot of ups and downs. Also the rainbow season so it was a special year but I think I was happy when it ended and I had some time to think about other stuff.
SOREN JENSEN
Think about the future, think about the upcoming season. Because I remember a year ago when you and I, we met up, you had already reconed, was that five stages?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Correct.
SOREN JENSEN
So now it's good to see that you have had some time to think about the family, also take some time off, you know, detach yourself. I also saw on your Strava, I also know this from the team, that you also had a trip to California, Morgan Hills, where you guys also, apart from looking at your Strava and seeing your always fast-pacing runs, you also went to the wind tunnel there at Specialized. And you guys also tested a few TT suits.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, correct. So actually it was a bit of a long thinking and doubting where to go on holiday, but then when we got the final call for the winter note testing, me and my wife and I decided to have a trip to LA. We spent 10 days there. We did Santa Monica Beach, then we went to Las Vegas for two days, and then we drove up to San Francisco and then went for three days to work at Specialized. And yeah, we did some interesting testing as I was wearing the new prototype suit in the Chrono des Nations. I was curious to see what the result would be.
SOREN JENSEN
The numbers would be like yeah.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah exactly and it turned out to be a very good suit so I was happy to see that.
SOREN JENSEN
Because for that suit it's just more for listeners so they're aware about this because some people might have asked, everyone knows the question why you're riding with, why you have short sleeves versus long sleeves TT suits. But also some people might have wondered why your sleeves are a little bit too short. But now we actually extended the length also on the legs. We made the shoulders and the sleeves with a complete new construction. Also something that we have studied, we worked on the track and especially looking forward also for the Olympics and stuff so yeah and it showed up to be what I could read through some of the tests from the team like the fastest suits that you guys tested over there in the wind tunnel.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah yeah exactly. I think the new shoulder construction really made a big improvement. I remember with the previous shoulder construction there was quite some wrinkles on let's say the back of the shoulder, the shoulder plate actually. And now with the new construction it is gone. So I think that made a big improvement. So I'm looking forward to the next test that is waiting.
SOREN JENSEN
Yeah, because we are actually meeting up I think mid-January, you know?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, correct.
SOREN JENSEN
In Milan at the Politecnico Wind Tunnel to do some more testing.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah it's Olympic season, so that's also why we're looking a lot into the suits and the material. Of course I have to be on my top game as well but I think if the material is up there then it's a bit more easy for yourself to motivate.
SOREN JENSEN
It is, it is, exactly. When you got back here to Calpe, which I know is your home base, and you pulled out your bike for the first time only a week ago or something, you did your first ride.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Around three weeks yeah so uh came home from the us around the 10th of october um november and then uh i was supposed to restart back then already uh then we had the team days in turnout at the Soudal headquarters uh the team meeting let's say and then I was supposed to restart after that but then the weather was pretty bad in Belgium a lot of raining and wind and within the back of my head the idea that I was coming here a few days later then I decided to to take off for a few more days and then restarted here so.
SOREN JENSEN
Also much better instead of riding around up in Belgium in rainy conditions and cold weather.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I mean if it's for a week I would say yes I'm gonna get through but if I have to restart there but then only for two three days then coming here then you just have to focus a little bit more on the nutrition and the food but then it's not a big problem.
SOREN JENSEN
You're right. What's your favorite off-season or early season training ride around here?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
The first day is of course the most flat one because it gets hilly pretty quickly here. But then like for now there's like a three four hour lap that I really like to do. It goes here over the small climb that goes to Benissa and then just over Calderat or going to Guadalest. It's a little bit higher. I think that's a very nice loop. You can actually in both ways it's really nice. You always start or come back over the sea roads, over the coastline, so it's a nice lap to do.
SOREN JENSEN
This is a good one here also for listeners coming to Calpe or Alicante to get these insights of where the pros are training and where they do some destructor training on.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It also depends on the weather. If it's around 20°C here, you can go up there, but if it goes to, let's say, 15°C, 10°C, it might get really chilly on top because you're riding in a direction of 1000 meters of altitude so it can be around let's say like 5 degrees up there. Let's say that the difference in temperature is quite big because you can start wearing short shorts but then up there if you're in short shorts it's pretty cold.
SOREN JENSEN
I remember my first time coming to Calpe with the team, I must have been 21 and I went out there after I finished all my work here, went out for a ride, got up the Kuldaratus, and it was super windy there up on the top.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it gets crazy there.
SOREN JENSEN
And just the temperature just dropped, like you said, like 16, 18 down the seaside in December, but up there it was probably, I don't know, 10 degrees or something, and then with this heavy wind. And while I was just trying to steer my SL7 down the mountain there, then I have this guy pulling up to me, who I've worked with in the past with Team Sky, called Poles. And he was like, dude, what are you doing here and he's like well get on my wheel and I'll take you down to the coast.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah it's actually a crazy place because you have the sea and then the mountain is like let's say just getting through it but then the wind always gets around so it's really there's a lot of turbulence on top of the climb.
SOREN JENSEN
Okay Remco, enough off-season. We touched on the 2023 season. I mean we know you said that earlier there's been a bit of ups and downs but I would say there's been some downs but a lot of ups you know especially with victories at UAE Tour, Catalunya, defending your victory at Liege-Pasteurn-Liege, two states at the Giro, three at the Vuelta, Swiss, Plastica-San Sebastian, the World Time Trial title, National Road, Race Champion and the list goes on and on. If you have to describe the 2023 season with its ups and downs, how would you look at it?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well, I mean, I'm definitely super happy with the season I did. I think it's just a shame that I couldn't finish the Giro in an honest way, let's say, because I think for sure I was in maybe the best shape I've ever had at the start of the Giro. It was also resulting in the first stage already. But I think, yeah, it was actually a great season. Then in the end, about the Vuelta, I think my biggest goal was the time trial, World Championship time trial. So I knew my preps were not going to be ideally for the Vuelta, which also turned out. But I think I cannot be more than happy if you get sick from a race, that's just how cycling goes. I think everything happens for a reason, to probably go back there with a stronger head and with, let's say, revenge feelings. Or maybe for next season, going into the Tour, it can help me with, let's say, the preparations and some different mindset maybe so I think I should be happy 13 victories of which 11 world Tours two titles I think it's a let's say pure quality wise it can probably be even a bigger season than it was last year because it's only World Tours and championships meanwhile last year I also won in in Algarve and two of Norway so I think last year I took five victories which were not World Tour. So I think about quality, spoken about quality, it has been a very good season. I think I could have won a bit more if I would have been racing sometimes a bit more smarter or with a bit more patience, like for example Catalonia. And also in Tour de Suisse was a bit of a strange race coming back from the COVID sickness. So, yeah, I think I should be proud about the season I did.
SOREN JENSEN
Amazing season. I think there were a lot of people out there who would like to just trade just a little bit of what you achieved this season for a whole career of results. So, no, you know, congrats as always.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Thank you.
SOREN JENSEN
Then looking ahead, I mean, we are in December now and January is just around the corner. You've got a long build up for the 2024 season. As you just said, you just started riding a few weeks ago you already announced a few days ago that you'll be defending your LBL title and world's title and that July will be the peak period of the year for you targeting a top five and a state's win at the Tour to have the triple you know stage victories in all Grand Tours. Well the Tour you'll be up against some of the other gods of Grand Tour racing, sounds like they will all be coming to the show, as well as adding an Olympic gold medal to your collection of World, European and Belgian titles. Without leaking too much information, because I don't want to get into trouble with the team, can you tell us how your preparation for the 2024 season will look like and what race will most likely be your season debut.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
For now I actually have quite some time. That's also why I only started three weeks ago. As everybody knows, the main goal will be the month of July. So we want to start the season with a fresh head and a fresh body. And I think that's why I took off for such a long period of time. And then for now I still have about two months to get into my first race so I will restart in Portugal. Algarve for a third time, hoping to get a good result there. I always perform well in the southern countries so it's a very nice race and I think especially with the races I will do after it's a good race to start to have some race hardness in the legs and it's also why we decided to not go to UAE Tour because it can get a bit easy there let's say for eight days or less if the most of the days so in our graphics every day up and down pushing a nice time trial to start with so I think it's it's gonna be a very good race to restart.
SOREN JENSEN
Oh, it's definitely a good race to restart the season. But that also means coming in, defending your Liege-Bastogne-Liege title, you're coming in to Liege without any altitude training or maybe less race miles in your legs. Do you think it will be more difficult to win the LBL again, or how do you see it?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well, I think the races that I will do after Algarve will be of very high quality. All races where the GC riders always want to be on their top game. So yeah, I will go over to Aparinis and then Basque. So it's two races that will fit perfectly into the build-up to the Ardennes. Especially Basque is something that is very good for preparing the Ardennes. And then I will do the combination flash and Liege so I will do flash also. Is that the first time for you? Second time. First time was when I won for the first time at Liege. Then I was a let's say the main guide of Julian during the day. I always have to keep him out of the wind. It was actually a very nice task to have as you know you know that you have a rider in your wheel that can win for I don't know how many times already so I think it's a very nice let's say spring campaign with not too many race days but I think it makes sense because after Liege I will have a small break and then I will go for almost four week altitude period that's why we decided to not go in altitude in spring period keep that off and then have a big effect after the Classics to get into the Tour.
SOREN JENSEN
I mean we all know that four or five weeks is kind of the window for when you go into altitude training. Then the whole Grand Tour team that will be supporting you will be coming? What will it be looking like? Because if some of them will be racing the Giro?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I'm not sure if the team will allow the riders to do the Giro-Tour combination as they did with me. So I think they will make two different programs with guys that will focus on spring and Giro and then have a bit of an easier second part of the season and guys that they will do a bit of the opposite with a, let's say a small packed spring classic campaign and then going over for a heavy summer. So I think for the Tour team it will probably be almost everybody together on that long training camp. Then depending on what the riders prefer to go Dauphiné or Suisse or another race, then they will divide it like that. But I think it's good that we can already have a small test in the start of the, in one of the first one week races with the guys.
SOREN JENSEN
So then you will have the Spring Classic riders, like the big domestic riders like Asgreen, Lampaert. Those guys who just finished off a really hard Spring Classic season, maybe then around Flèche and Liege, they will take it one or two weeks easy, and then they will join you on the altitude training camp. But what about Landa? He's like a new guy to the team and we know he's a GC guy. He finished third on the podium or third at the Giro. He won a couple of stages. He brought Froome to victory in 2016 and 2017. Actually 2017 Froome’s last Tour victory. He of course will be at your side of the Tour. How do you see him as your super climbing domestique?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Mikael is a different rider. I mean he's a bit older than me, he has more experience and of course I'm actually really looking forward to learn from him because like you said he won with a four time Tour de France champion and himself he also did some amazing results in the GCs of the Grand Tours so I think it's the perfect guy to have with us with a young team to learn from and to see how he does the things.
SOREN JENSEN
It's definitely going to be interesting. I remember Mikel from the days at Team Sky. Amazing person, really great personality.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
On the table and in the team meeting, we know each other a bit from the altitude in Thailand when we cross paths to have a small chat. And it's actually very nice when you speak English as well as a Spanish person. So he's a good guy and I think there's already a good friendship building up so it's very important to start an important year like this with such a special rider.
SOREN JENSEN
Yeah, a special rider, a lot of experience and won us still today, because it's his birthday today, 34 years.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Oh, I didn't know. I saw him on the table and I didn't even say it so when I see him I should do it. But it's nice and we have a cake tonight.
SOREN JENSEN
Exactly, exactly. No but 34 years of age and think about growing up in the best country. I mean even today he's still one of the best or part of the best group of the very exclusive World Tour top climbers. So yeah, no I think actually I'm gonna meet with him later today.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Okay. And... Well, if I don't see him, tell him happy birthday. If I don't see him anymore. But also like if I was in the Vuelta now and then the second and third week I could see a bit from distance and it was actually amazing to know him coming into the team, seeing him up there, battle to the last day with the, with the, yeah, Vingegaard and then Roglic and Kuss. Okay, I think from fourths in GC there were no real threats anymore, but still him trying to give that push always to do better and better and try to move up in GC was actually really nice to see and I was yeah, actually very proud of him to see that on that age knowing also that he that he had that he leaves the team It was actually nice to see that he still gives his very maximum to the last day.
SOREN JENSEN
One of the reasons for targeting the Tour this year, I assume that's also due to the Olympics, as a build up to the Olympics, because we have the individual time trial at the Olympics starting only a week after the championship, I think it's Saturday.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Saturday, so it's six days.
SOREN JENSEN
Six days, yes. And then you got the road race the following weekend after.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
And it's Sunday. Yeah.
SOREN JENSEN
No, I think the men's road race is on a Saturday and the women's Sunday this time. I don't know for what reason, but you're right. The individual time trial is on a Saturday. So less than six days after the finish of the Tour.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it's a bit comparable with the Vuelta a Australia campaign. So if I go out of the Tour in a good way, with a good feeling, with a good shape, I think it can be a bit of the same scenario as it was in Australia, with a bit of, I mean, not a bad TT, but just a bit less freshness, let's say. But then, yeah, the week after, if I would recover well and some good rest, I might maybe find the best legs of the season, like it was in Australia so yeah it's interesting but I think it's risky but if you look at how it ended up in Tokyo top 10 was all to the France riders in the road race and then the town trial were all fresh guys that were up there with a Primoz winning Dumoulin and Dennis so three guys that were not in the Tour yeah it's gonna be interesting luckily the travel is not that long, it's just from Nice to Paris. It's not super long but it's definitely gonna be a big month of July.
SOREN JENSEN
It's gonna be a big month of July, yeah. And also with the Tour starting in Florence, Italy for the first couple of stages. But then already, I mean the race could already explode I think on stage four over the Col du Galibier in the Alps and continue all the way to the finish in Nice, the time trial.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it's gonna be actually already the first day is pretty tough. It's like that medium mountain stage in the area of Turin. So it's gonna be a bit, it's gonna be an interesting and important first two stages already with the Giro d'Emilia finish. So I think almost all the riders know that lap. I think it's going to be interesting for stage 4. The GC guys are going to be obligated to be on top already. So if you have a bad day there, your GC can already be over. So it's interesting, but it's also always a bit tricky to put a... I mean, tricky not, but it's always interesting to see such a hard stage after four days. I mean, it can all explode or just nothing can happen at all because it's still 20 days to go..
SOREN JENSEN
Yeah, because then we have the third week, then we have all the big mountains coming in, you know, hot, solid, quite steep. What are the key stages to you that you looked at already on the map?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well, definitely the first ones. As we will meet up in Milan, I will also go and check the first two stages. We were thinking about the fourth stage, but probably in January the Galibier will not even be open. It will be full of snow, so we might place that in the month of June.
SOREN JENSEN
You might be able to ride up to the tunnel when I lived in France I lived in Annecy an hour and a half drive from the Galibier and I rode up there sometimes also in May but you would get to the there's a tunnel you can go through but you cannot go over the pass because you know they were never clean that for snow but you would definitely I think you'll be able to ride up to the tunnel okay I think they usually clean that but I can check into with some of my friends they're living in Savoy.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It could be good. So yeah, fourth stage. Then I think there's a pretty important weekend of the first week with stage seven, eight and nine. Nine is the gravel stage, no? The gravel stage. Then seven is the longer time trial. And stage eight is maybe not that important but I mean, it's an area up and down all day, open fields, so it might get a bit let's say a bit of a war over there so that's it and then yes second week is also already pretty pretty important I think we have a few easy stages like completely flat ones and then again yeah the weekend is always a spectacle in the Tour.
SOREN JENSEN
TV time.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah exactly exactly. I think there's a 14 or 15 which is around Clermont-Ferrand. It's a bit of a Liege-Bastogne-Liege course actually.
SOREN JENSEN
Correct.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I'm not sure if it's 14 or 15 but I think it's like 200 and 220k or a bit less. And yeah like 4,400 meters of climbing so it's all day up and down. And then last week, everybody knows, there's only one flat stage in the last week and all the others are important. Nice to end up with a time trial which is a bit of a climbing time trial but it's going to be an interesting one. I think it can still change the Tour.
SOREN JENSEN
And as we also know that climbing time trial made part of the course, so it's what we know from Paris-Nice.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
So, yeah, but it's a bit the same. It's the same final, I think.
SOREN JENSEN
It's the same final I think. The exact last 20 kilometers from Paris-Nice so we'll have a good recovery in the month of March. And hopefully with weather is usually nice when you get to the coast in Cote d'Azur. So what do you think about now when the Grand Tours have started to include cobble and gravel stages? Should that be part of Grand Tours to you or just keep them as one day races?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I mean it's a really specific thing.
SOREN JENSEN
I mean for us as fans in front of a television it's amazing to see but I can imagine you guys who are racing three weeks have to think about everything. When you hit the cobbles or the gravel everything, as we know from Strade Bianche, as we know from the cobble classics, everything just becomes chaotic. And you can lose everything in no time also with defects and everything.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah that's exactly what I think. I mean you cannot win your Grand Tour up there but you can definitely lose. I mean it's not really up to me to say it has to be part of or not.
SOREN JENSEN
Are you a fan of it?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It depends, it depends. I mean I didn't see the course yet of the gravel stage I will definitely go check it out but I mean you should not put a real Strade stage in a Grand Tour because I mean it's quite it's a different thing you have riders specifically going to Strade because they're good at it and they want to win it. In a Grand Tour you might have guys that don't really or they are not really fans of it and they get a bit scared or whatever so it's a completely different bunch. So I mean it can be up there but it should not affect the race you know if you put a few sectors in it it's not a big problem but for example the Tour stage is quite a lot. I think if I'm not wrong it's from let's say kilometer 50 till 200. On and off. Only 10 kilometers of normal roads in between and then you have a longer section of gravel and you even have a section from like 10k to go. If you have a flat tire there, yeah, it's done, you lose quite some time because the bunch will be completely exploded. So yeah, I'm actually a fan of the fact that they put it in but it's more the effects that it can have. I'm not a fan of it.
SOREN JENSEN
I understand, yeah, because so you plan your whole season for this and just one flat or a crash in front of you, your Tour dreams are over. But then also at that stage you also had guys like Fuglsang who's also you know very skilled when it comes to technical skill coming from mountain biking helping him guiding over the and you got some of the best couple riders here you know joining you.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, if guys like Kasper and Yves would come with me to the Tour, I think for that stage they are the perfect guys to guide me because Kasper did at Strade and Yves is just one of the best riders for the flats. So I think I have two big machines with me, if they would join.
SOREN JENSEN
Two of the best Dome-Way sticks for the rolling hills and flats and this uncertain terrain. Remco, time is running out, but I just wanted to ask you also about the Worlds. Now it's in Zürich this year. You got both the individual time trial title to defend and you then both got the road race with 4400 meters of climbing I think it is.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yes, I looked it up, actually. It's on Veloviewer and it's climbing, but it's more like going to the directions of the Ardennes. So it's a bit harder than the Ardennes but it's not a real mountain stage. So, but I think, yeah, with having both of the titles in the pocket already, I think it would be a nice goal to try and go for the double. I think I have two courses that I can really aim to go for a win. Of course, I know that's a really ideal situation to win both of them. It's not going to be that easy, but of course, dream can try to go for it. So, I think it's a nice goal to put on the paper, try to go for the boat jerseys, because I'm one of the only riders ever to have won boat disciplines. So why not try to go for a boat in one year, that would be amazing. I was really close in Australia, so why not try again this year. We'll see.
SOREN JENSEN
We're looking forward to it, man. All the best of luck for this season. Thank you very much. It's always a pleasure to watch you on television and also meet you of course also in person. You're such a nice, humble and relaxed person. And what's great about your YouTube channel, I think you're showing a different side of yourself because you know when you're at races and people, armchair fans or cycling fans out there watching on television, it's difficult for them sometimes to understand the people behind the riders, you know, when they just watch them on television and see some of all the stuff that people are writing on social and everything. So I think it's a really nice transparent way to show the world who Remco Evenepoel is. I think that's probably one of the reasons why you started the YouTube channel.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Every start is difficult, but I think we're trying to find a way now, what works the best, or we're trying to find out about that. If you look, for example, at the first video, it was actually a very easy video to make on the track in Gent. So not a big working place, let's say. Like for example the Chrono of the Nations video or the Lombardia recon video.
SOREN JENSEN
That was a very emotional one.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, yeah. It was also a pretty long one. So for YouTube it's a bit unusual to make things like this. But I think in that video we just had that much content that was, let's say, good enough to be shown, that we thought we should just make a long one of it. We find out now what works, what doesn't, so for next year we'll probably get the videos a bit smaller again, and a bit more easygoing, and a bit more easy to understand for people, because, yeah, I mean, it also costs money to make videos. So I was a bit surprised with that so I think if we can kind of bring down the amount of money that goes into the videos it should be a bit more easy to make. Also it takes quite some time often so especially with the year that will come it would be great to to diminish a bit of time that goes into the filming.
SOREN JENSEN
Can you already tell us more about when, like a small spoiler, when will the next episode come out and the next episode will be?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well honestly I've been making, I mean we have been making a full Vuelta video, so I had a GoPro with me for three weeks filming myself in the room, then the guys came over a few days, but when we, when they finished the video it turned out to be like one hour and 45 minutes so I think that's more a thing that you can then make as a documentary I mean it's it's not really made for YouTube that so we actually skipped that plan so for the moment there is no video being planned but that's why a few days ago we made an Instagram story with the question “what people would like to see?” and there's a lot of FTP tests coming out so I think that will probably a project and then also they ask for a lot of collaborations with other famous people so yeah well we are kind of working on that already so there's a few plans but like I said we will not try to make four or five videos in three months. So, we will try to aim for six videos a year, but good quality videos and videos that will work.
SOREN JENSEN
I'm definitely looking forward to it. And it's cool. And I know, I know how it is with video filming, because you create like hours, almost days of content, B-roll content as well. And you edit everything down to hardly anything but you know c’est la vie, I mean. You also have had Amazon following you guys by the Grand Tour so you know how it is and now you did the same thing also for your own channel so that's awesome. It's still at your young age you are a superhero I mean you are a big celebrity looking there Palmares is unbelievable. I think a lot of people are asking themselves or wondering how many hours is Remco training a week. Of course it depends what time of the week and what is your bread and butter for training or what do you usually expect to see on a training calendar preparing for a Grand Tour or Liege-Bastogne-Liege for Remco Evenepoel. Can you give us without telling too much a little bit about your hours on the road and your specific training you do as a preparation for a Grand Tour?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well if I focus more on a Liege for example, which is a bit more explosive than a Grand Tour of course, I'll focus a bit more on those, let's say, VU2 max efforts, so a bit of shorter intervals but with higher intensity. Often training in three day blocks before that. Sometimes two days when it gets really tough to not go too much into the fatigue. And then I'll always try to have a, if I do a three week altitude block for example, I will always try to have a very long ride. So plus seven. Plus seven hours. Also not going to eight or nine because then you would really kill the body. But I mean, for example, Liege is a six, six and a half hour race. If you really want to have the feeling of having that amount of time on the bike, you should go for seven hours. I think that's always my strategy, at least one seven hour ride to have the feeling and be comfortable with sitting that long on a saddle. And then yeah, for a Grand Tour, it will always start easy, the build up, and then you will bring in some more hours, and then towards the end you will go for more intensity. And again, like I said, maybe two, three really long rides, a lot of climbing meters, but just always try to have that good combination of quality training with longer training but also a good rest day in between to be fresh to have the training really getting that it does it work in the body so it's always finding that combination of hard work but also having the good amount of...
SOREN JENSEN
Of relax because after training, well the second most important thing or maybe the most important thing, is the recovery.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, definitely. I think nowadays it's almost getting more important. Let's say training is really important, but I mean, you can always pick up on a training, but if you don't recover well, you might never recover from it anymore, so it’s like, yeah, let’s say if you do a good training first of all you need your good recovery strategy, shake, food, rest, even the massages is important. Yeah, sometimes it might get more important than it is, than training is. So especially the last weeks before that race, I think it's really important to worry more about recovery. Now it's a bit different because trainings are not the hardest and it's also not the longest ones so you can still perform if you recover let's say five percent less than you need to before that big goal so it's a really important thing.
SOREN JENSEN
Oh it is a very important thing, it's a very important thing now. Are there any tips training wise apart from recovery, nutrition, eating well, make sure you recover, get your recovery shake and everything. Any other tips you could give to all the cycling fans out there who want to maybe get into racing or just be serious amateur cyclists out there, just like the Sunday warriors and when they get into the training, some specific tips here you can give to them?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well if you don't need to ride fast you don't have to ride fast I mean it's it's also for us especially now when you're building up and you want to let's say let grow the fat threshold zone then you really need to ride a lot under that zone so I feel like for me it will probably be around 300 watts let's say the fat threshold if I it means that I should ride around, let's say, 250, 260 on easy pace on the climbs. And that helps, you know, like this you will also enjoy riding fast later on. And then, yeah, just enjoy it, you know. I mean, if you feel like on a day I don't want to go, you shouldn't go and try to do something else. That's also why I combine the running a bit with riding, because it makes me feel like I'm doing something else and not only riding the bike. I used to do sober training on the bike, but now I try to do them while running. It is the combination of... It gives the hunger to a bike.
SOREN JENSEN
It's good. It also works in a different way, the muscles, and also helps with bone density.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
I needed that actually, because I was playing football, everybody knows. But then when I got into cycling, I didn't run for quite a long period of time and my bone density was really getting a bit worse. So that's why I needed to pick up pretty, I mean not intensively, I need to pick up the running. And that's what I did and I think I'm ready. And it also just grows shape a bit faster. So a pretty nice way to just keep the body moving. And it also doesn't take that much time. If you do, let's say 40 minutes of running, you have the feeling like you did two hours of riding a bike.
SOREN JENSEN
Correct. Yeah. Now I also got into running, well, many years ago after stopping cycling and racing and then started working at Castelli and when traveling the world it is so much easier sometimes to bring a pair of runners.
SOREN JENSEN
Or the road that you've done a thousand times on your road bike, you know looks different when you run it afterwards. Yes I'm patient. So yeah, do you sometimes also hit the trails or you mainly just stay in the tarmac?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Well when I go back to Belgium for Christmas, I might hit the trails a bit more on the mountain bike. Because, yeah, I mean, if you go out on the road now in Belgium, you will get as dirty as you would go in the trails. So it's, I think then it's also fun to do something else, discover some roads that you never do. So in periods where the training hours are a bit less important, I will hit the trails with the mountain bike a bit.
SOREN JENSEN
And then you also, I mean, you're always focused and concentrated and plus you also have the less wind chill.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Exactly. You are always warm also. You need to push always and it's always, like I said, you need to be focused because downhill is also important on the trails. So it's, you always need to be focused and your body will never get cold.
SOREN JENSEN
And then you also work on your technique.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, correct.
SOREN JENSEN
So you're a multi-sport athlete, we know that. But also during the season, do you still hit the gym and do strength training?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It depends. I think probably spring, I mean till the edge, I will probably do it. But then after that, building up to the Tour, it will be a bit less. I think then it will be more about flexibility and a bit of core stability. But I think I will not run anymore from when I will start a season so probably from Algarve one I will not run anymore because I think then the risk of getting an injury is a bit higher as I will do high intensity riding so yeah I think from the moment that I start my racing season I will probably give me new all the extra extra sports. That's why it's nice to have a bit of a combination in the winter.
SOREN JENSEN
So knowing that you and Landa won't be riding the Giro, we completely skipped discussing the first Grand Tour of the season. What do you think about the course this year, which is less hilly and might suit you better than the Tour?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It was an idea because I saw the parkour and it was actually a very nice parkour with some beautiful time trials. I mean, I think the parkour is a bit compatible with Vuelta I won in 22. Not too hard starts in the first part. It's also almost not technical at all.
SOREN JENSEN
Well, and 20% less elevation compared to the Tour, I think.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, it's really, that's what I said, it was like, I mean, it's an easy Giro parkour, but it's never gonna be easy, because in the Giro you have the weather which I don't think is a bad thing that they kind of make the course a bit easier because you also know the weather can I mean the 20% that goes less into the elevation can come back with the weather so it's not a bad thing that they did.
SOREN JENSEN
No, no it's definitely gonna be interesting. Like you said, with the Giro is unpredictable. You know, when it comes to the race itself, the third week, and then on top you've got just the weather. I mean, we have seen snow, rain, wind, cold, I mean, everything, everything can happen at the Giro. Then luckily you guys, you've got some good foul weather equipment to keep you guys protected. But you know, it's not everything you still need.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
No, no, but still it helps a lot. I already think about stage six, where I crashed twice last year. I mean, I think it was where Cavendish was flying over the finish line at that stage. It was really cold, it was like maximum 8 degrees and pissing rain all day and I was just super happy with the warm and thick clothes. It also protected me a lot for the crash actually. No bruises, no scars.
SOREN JENSEN
Oh, that's good to hear. Yeah. That's also part of, I mean, some of this is part of also of the development we do internally, just like the cable inserts that we used a bit in the past, but I don't think that many riders on this team here are using it. So Remco, it's been almost an hour since the interview now. It's fantastic. Thanks for your availability. And it's always a joy to talk to you. Two last questions. Is that okay? at the quay. Can you tell me more about the Brussels Cycling Academy?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yes, I would like.
SOREN JENSEN
It's an amazing project. I really and we really want to support this project as well. So in the future, but if you could tell our listeners who might not be aware about the Brussels Cycling Academy.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Yeah, so for now, we actually work in a few phases. So now it's a bit of communities, children that are staying at city houses because their parents don't have the credits to give their kids a good background and good support. We’re trying to support them and the kids mainly come from the city of Brussels now so we're trying to learn them about riding a bike, about the bike itself and just trying to develop them into an athlete and not just a cyclist. And then yeah there will be phase two where they hopefully can join a team and race and we will try to make a team on our own and you know then it just goes on and on trying to go into a higher category and then yeah one day hopefully around 2030 where Brussels might host the World Championships we would like I mean big dream and goal to have one girl and one boy.
SOREN JENSEN
That would be amazing.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
As a start of one of the categories. So we're thinking about juniors, probably under 23. So yeah, it's actually still in the build up phase and there are many other phases that will come or many other situations let's say. So yeah, it's an interesting project and we have the help from Specialized for the moment that give us some bikes for the kids, which is really helpful because like this they already have a high quality bike. So for now they're riding on mountain bikes, but I think definitely in the next phases we will go with narrower tires, a different handlebar. So it's really step by step because the kids, they really didn't know anything about the bike. But you also see that it's a good thing because they have no fear. For example, if they go up a ramp and then go down, if you're used to riding a bike, you would start to hesitate a bit sometimes because you know the risks, but they just go over.
SOREN JENSEN
That's children. I mean, if you like, when you go downhill skiing, it looks like, when they take a tumble, it looks like they're made out of rubber because they just maybe cry for a minute or two, but then they get up and, you know, just do it again.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It's like they forget.
SOREN JENSEN
How many kids are involved right now?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
For now, we have two groups of around 15 kids, almost 20 even. From different ages. So you have age zone 1, which is around 10. And then you have the second age, which is around 13. So it's a good thing. There's a lot of information online, on websites and stuff. So we're trying to build it up and make it bigger and bigger and hopefully for now it's in Belgium but we hope to go to the major or the capital cities the next of Europe as well it will be pretty difficult but we will see.
SOREN JENSEN
That's good, it's an amazing project. I'm really excited as I said you definitely also here at Castelli we would like to be part of this but where can people if you can just mention their social handle and the website where people can find more information about this project.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It's actually pretty easy: it's REV Brussels Academy and then you will find a lot of websites and information on Google. Also on my Instagram we launched a small reel yesterday so they can just check it out and find all the information online.
SOREN JENSEN
Perfect so make sure guys you do that and make sure to hit follow also because this is only the beginning. Last question Remco, what does the word Wolfpack mean to you?
REMCO EVENEPOEL
It means a lot of things, you know, it's a bunch of friends that want to win races, but then it's also a bunch of friends that want to support each other. And also you feel that with the staff, with the team members, it's just something that lives in the team, you know? And yeah, I think also next year, if I speak for myself and for the group that I'm working with, we're going into new projects, into new, let's say, goals. So I think we can use all the help and support from every single team member help us and help me with that so that is just something that you need it's like it's actually the family that you find when you're not at home so it's a very important aspects in our lives.
SOREN JENSEN
It is. That's it actually. No but it's right and I see you also use that hashtag also often the world pack and I mean it's also from the other riders. It's something that is closer to the heart, the bond between teammates and good friends that will help each other out no matter what happens. Okay, Remco, thank you so much. It's been amazing to have you on again. And yeah, I'll see you later on today, hopefully for a birthday cake later on for Mikel Landa. Let's see. Exactly. Okay, Remco, thank you so much.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
No problem.
SOREN JENSEN
And all the best of luck for the upcoming season.
REMCO EVENEPOEL
Thank you very much.
SOREN JENSEN
And that's a wrap on the first Castelli podcast of 2024 featuring Remco Evenepoel. The next episode dropping on January 23rd will feature Mikel Landa. He will share some climbing training tips as one of the best climbers in professional cycling and discuss his 2024 race program. Landa will serve as a climbing domestique for Remco at the Tour and take on the GC role at the La Vuelta Espana in August. As we all know, Landa checks almost every box in that regard having participated in twenty four stages and secured eight top ten results on GC. So, it's going to be a thrilling and insightful episode and as announced at the beginning of this episode, we are giving away one Belgium champion jersey signed by Remco himself. To enter the giveaway head over to Youtube if you're not already here, then follow Castelli Cycling and leave your favorite Remco Evenepoel wow moment in the comments of this video and you have entered the contest. Entries will close on Sunday February 18th and the winner will be randomly picked. So all the best of luck to every one of you and if you enjoyed this episode please make sure to subscribe on Spotify or Apple podcast, give us a 5 star rating or review to help us reach more cyclists through the algorithm. And also, if you would like to suggest a future podcast topic, just shoot us a line at podcast at castelli-cycling.com or connect with us on social media. We hope you enjoyed this episode and we'll see you in two weeks with the second episode of 2024. Until then, take care and ride safe.
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