Hey Everyone,

The team told me that there have been a lot people asking about my condition. Now that things have settled down for me, I thought I would update all of you.

I still can’t remember what happened when I crashed, so I only know what I’ve been told by the guys that we’re with me that day. Apparently, we were on a descent, and we were rightly on our side of the road. There was a car coming in our direction that was also rightly on its side of the road. We must have been a bit too close for my comfort, so I altered my line slightly in the corner. In doing that, I hit a rough patch and lost it – going over the handlebars. Given my injuries, it’s fairly clear that I landed straight on my wrist and then on my face.

I was airlifted from the crash site to a hospital where I was told that I had a fractured wrist and cheekbone. I also had brain trauma – a pretty serious concussion in my head.

A few days later, the pain in my wrist was still troubling, so I went for another check. That’s when I found out that it was broken. I had surgery to have a screw placed in there. The idea is that the screw will heal the wrist more quickly and cleanly.

The cheekbone is mostly okay. I’m told it will heal on its own. The head injury is a bit more serious. I have to take it really easy for six weeks. This means training is out. It also means other changes to my daily life. I’ve been told to avoid television and computer time as much as possible. It’s important that I’m in a stress-free environment. I need to pay special attention to sleep. There’s no direct treatment required. I just need to let the body recover on it’s own – and I can’t push it. I’ll do damage if I try to come back into things too quickly.

I noticed improvements during the first two weeks after my accident. At first I was really tired and forgetful. People were telling me that I wasn’t always making sense. By the second week, I definitely noticed improvements in memory, clarity and energy levels. Since having the operation on my wrist, I feel like I have taken a few steps backward again. I have only been out of the hospital about a week now. I know it will take time.

The head injury is a funny thing. It’s not like a wound. I can’t gauge how well I’m healing by looking at it every day. I have to listen to the people around me and use their feedback to know if I’m improving.

Given all this, it may be obvious that the Classics are definitely out for me this year. I had lofty goals for this part of my season, and it took me a little while to get over the idea of missing these races. I had been really looking forward to doing them with GreenEDGE. Enough time has passed now, and I’ve accepted this. The Classics will not be part of my race program, and that’s fine.

My mind is now focused on my comeback. I’ve spoken to Sports Director Matt White briefly. If all goes well, my understanding is that I will return to racing in mid-May. We have tentatively penciled in the Tour of Norway as my return to racing. Of course, this is all dependant on my progress – on all the updates along the way. This is the ideal plan. If all goes well, I’ll be back to racing in three months.

I’m definitely hoping that an early season crash will lend itself to a stronger second half of the season. I’ve looked back at other guys who have crashed early on in the year and looked at how their seasons have gone. It’s motivated me to see how they have come back. I’m looking forward to starting the Vuelta really fresh. It will be a different approach for me – and a different approach than most riders will have. It seems as if it could be advantageous.

I have been speaking with our trainer, Marc Quod, on where and how I will return to training. This keeps me motivated, too. We have a plan, and I like the sound of it. I’m also enjoying spending time off the bike with my family, my friends, my girlfriend and her family. That’s one benefit to having crashed in Australia. I have a strong support system surrounding me. I’m not overseas in Europe having to work it all out on my own.

I appreciate all the messages of support and questions from fans who want to know how I’m doing. All in all, I’m doing alright. I’m going to come back better than ever.

Cheers,

Mitch