It is a bit late to be getting into the review of last year, but it is always good as an athlete to do a hard evaluation of the year.  It is a chance to celebrate success, but also be critical of your performance so that you can learn and grow.

Successes:

• Winning races – I finally put together some wins last year.  A big part to having a strong team around me that I can honestly say put the win in my lap at least once.  Thanks guys!  I learned a lot about the kind of sprinter I am and how to put that to better use in 2011. 
• Team structure – I was on a team that really rode with a single purpose and worked together well.  If I was off on one day, we worked for a different sprinter.  On other races we worked for other riders. We all came together and really supported each other.
• Racing – I was finally able to put together a real season of racing.  I was actually race fatigued this summer, which hasn’t happened in years.  It was a huge benefit to be out there racing a bunch and I was able to gain more experience from it. 
• Injuries – I stayed mostly injury free.  As always this is a combination of luck and work.

Challenges:

• Winning BIG races – The races I did well were smaller venues and not any of the big dogs.  I rode well in some bigger races, but didn’t have luck or worked for other riders.  I would love to win a major race in 2012 and my new team could be a big help towards that.  We are looking even stronger than last year and have many more weapons to deploy.
• Cyclocross – I was super hyped about this and then I faced a series of health challenges.  I wrecked my car and had some weird side effects from that.  I also had chest pains in many races that had me backing off.  I feel totally fine now, but it was a weird fall.  Any race I did I pretty much got destroyed.
• Bike – I destroyed my sweet Orbea Opal in the garage.  I miss it, but I don’t think the bike makes the racer anyway.  Biggest thing for me was the fit, which is a bit harder to get right on my Felt SC1.
• Family – My wife had an illness this summer that was pretty challenging.  But I think most of the fallout has been pretty positive.  And this year should be smoother for it.
• Climbing – As always.  I keep trying, but I just don’t get much better.

 I’ll be releasing 2012 goals soon.