# Photo: Thomasfutterknecht.
My first year as a team boss got off to a pretty turbulent start for me. Injury, viral illness and team building did not make it easy to build up the form in a targeted manner. Nevertheless, I was able to show myself well this year and recently showed a strong improvement in form. 4th place at Three countries Giro, on the pedestal at Engadine Marathon and the successful participation in a large number of other top-class cycling marathons can be seen in the first half of the season.
After a short breather, I still have a tight schedule ahead of me in the second half of the season. With hard and targeted training I've been able to make good progress since June and I'm very confident about the remaining races. Above all, there are two focal points that should bring about the necessary form refinement: the team training camp in St. Anton and the one-week stage race Haute Route, which takes me from Venice to Geneva across the Dolomites and Swiss Alps.
# Photo: Walter Andre.
This race is also one of the highlights of my upcoming calendar. Hopefully I can play to my strengths as a persevering mountaineer here and I'm looking forward to this adventure! Then it goes on in quick succession: First on the euro Bike, then the Ötztal Cycle Marathon. Hardly recovered, I continue with a 580-kilometer race across the Dolomites, which I will contest with my Italian counterpart as Mavic Community Manager - Omar di Felice. This is also a new experience for me: sitting in the saddle as a team of two for more than 24 hours.
# Photo: Marco Felsenhauer.
Immediately after my 26th birthday on September 12th, the big end of the season will come Endura Alpine dream which I was able to win with ease last year. I hope that I can be among the front runners again this year, although the competition will certainly be much tougher than at the premiere last year. So it will be interesting to see if I can pick up another sporting birthday present in Solda. In any case, after the race there is an extensive celebration on the program, with all the team riders and the loyal sponsors.
# Photo: Marco Felsenhauer.
# Photo: Walter Andre.
Because mine too Kirchmair Cycling Team was already very successful this year: we were among the teams with the most participants at almost all events and regularly took podium places in the team rankings. Above all, Monika Dietl is one of the figureheads of the team with numerous victories and further podium finishes. Of course, each of these successes is only possible through appropriate teamwork - includes drivers and supervisors alike.
But not only the sporting success of the team is worth mentioning, the many members who have a lot of fun in the joint team performance, far from any sporting ambition, are very decisive for the harmonious team structure. All members benefit from the targeted training planning by me as team manager and receive tips for successfully participating in the various marathon events in the Alps. With more than 50 members, the team is constantly growing and for 2015 there will again be an application phase that should appeal to new members of all performance and age groups.