With National Championships closing out the season still,
I would now like to take the time to evaluate the past season,
along with looking towards the future of the CSC-Orbea program for 2013.
CT 22th Overall : 0/5 Goals : 5 Wins
That heading pretty much says it all.
In CSC standards, "A F***'n Awful Season."
And no I'm not paraphrasing, that's what the CSC president
had to say when asked about our performance.
The Orbea bikes didn't even make it to our first few races of the season
because management put them on the wrong flight. Rookie mistake...
Rui Costa : Igor Antón : Julian Rodas
Our top 3 scorers for the team, contributing 57% of our total points.
Costa was the highest paid rider and also finished as our best rider.
While
Antón never found a grove and didn't record a single win all season, but his 2nd at the Tour of America should be noted.
Then the early season underdog
Rodas almost upset eventually
CT Champion Alarcon in his home tour but fell apart on the final stage.
And so did the rest of his season.
One of the few bright spots on the season;
Rui Costa winning the Strade Bianche!
Youth : Retirees : Loanees
We saw a lot of promise from our youngsters,
Serafin José Blanco and
Carlos Verona
could be found in numerous breakaways and have the potential to become key riders in the near future here with our team.
On the other side of the spectrum is
Carlos Sastre,
he hangs his wheel ups after a rather disappointing final season.
However we are trying to work out a deal to keep him on board as a trainer or marketing executive for next season, he is figurehead for CSC Cycling.
And lastly the guys we just have to let return to dave92 at Wikipedia,
Andrew Talansky has a bright future ahead of him and we are glad he enjoyed his rookie season with our program.
He wish him the best of luck, if he even needs it, going forward.
And we also have to give thanks to
Ivan Kovalev,
who helped us dramatically in the TT department
(and also kept fellow russian Romain Maksimov from going ballistic).
Hats off for the legend Carlos Sastre as he completes his final season.
Romain Maksimov : Bruno Lima : Eloy Teruel
AKA the sprinters, didn't accomplishment much.
Maksimov managed just a few thirds for what was
as highly expected season from him.
And he didn't get much help from his sprint train Lima and Teruel.
Overall the sprinters didn't perform at all.
Maksimov disappoints finishing the season without a win.
>The Future<
Before we start contract renewals I would like to give the riders a sense of where the stand with the team and allow the other managers to get a sneak peek at the direction I want to lead the team going forward.
| Want To Keep | On The Bubble | Probably Leaving |
| Rui Costa | Julian Rodas | Mauricio Soler |
| Igor Antón | Francisco Colorado | Moises Dueñas |
| Roman Maksimov | Edwin Parra Bustamante | Constantino Zaballa |
| Carlos Verona | J.A. Perez Cuapio | Craig Lewis |
| Serafin José Blanco | Bruno Lima | Brad Armstrong |
| Eloy Teruel | Juan Gelabert |
| Abilphez Ajewole | Ivan Basso |
There you have it! The Official 2012 CSC-Orbea Season Review.
- Brad Armstrong
