Best of 2013: Ryan Anderson

With the close of 2013, Canadian Cycling Magazine is looking back at significant events in our sport. Today, we focus on Ryan Anderson, who quietly achieve some impressive results in 2013.

Ryan Anderson burst into the second half of the 2013 racing season with an impressive performance at the Canadian road race championships. Few had expected him to to sprint up the final incline in Saint-Georges, Que., and onto his first ever elite podium in second. That had been his first race in nine months.

Anderson followed the nationals up with an run of successes. Stand-out rides came at the USA Pro Challenge and at the Tour of Alberta. At the inaugural stage race on the Prairies,  Anderson battled cross-winds and world-class pros, such as Peter Sagan, in sprint finishes. Anderson finished eighth overall with the best Canadian rider jersey. With only three months of racing, he finished third overall in the UCI America Tour finishing 3rd overall.

Anderson didn’t race  at all during the spring of 2013. He signed a contract with the Champion System. However, communication between the Anderson and the organization broke down in December 2012. It wasn’t until May that we was legally allowed to break his contract and compete with another team.

With the prospect of an unwanted early retirement looming, Anderson went back to basics. He stuck to a strict training plan on the roads around his North Vancouver home. He also reached out to old friends for support. One was Jonas Carney, his old cycling director, who found room for Anderson on Optum Pro Cycling presented by Kelly Benefit Strategies. Coming back to the sport rested, motivated and to a positive working environment proved to be a successful combination for Anderson. He will continue to ride with Optum in 2014. With a full calendar of race, Anderson could be set for even bigger achievements in the coming year.

For more of the top moments in 2013, see writer Marsh Cooper’s top-10 list and those by other CCM contributors.