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Fourteen months ago, pro cyclist Taylor Phinney was in a hospital with a severely broken leg suffered on the side of Lookout Mountain during the men's road race at the USA Cycling Professional Championships in Chattanooga.
Today, Phinney will compete for the first time since the Memorial Day 2014 crash when he lines up as a member of the BMC Racing team for the Tour of Utah.
"It feels sweet. I'm really excited to race," Phinney said in response to questions from the Times Free Press. "I'm a bit anxious, but not in a stressed or nervous way - I just kind of want to get back into it.
"I feel like I have a different perspective on how the bike race is going to unfold. Having been gone for so long, I feel like I'll be able to take a step back and see things in a bit of a different light."
Phinney's May 26, 2014, crash snapped his tibia and fibula (lower leg bones) and injured his knee when he slid into a guardrail after he and fellow pro cyclist Lucas Euser were forced to change their line to avoid an official race motorcycle on Scenic Highway.
The 25-year-old Phinney - son of champion cyclists Davis Phinney and Connie Carpenter-Phinney - is a two-time national time-trial champion, and he finished fourth in both the men's road race and the time trial at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. He won the 2014 USA Cycling time trial title at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga just two days before his crash on Lookout Mountain.
BMC Racing officials confirmed Phinney's late addition to the Tour of Utah roster on Friday evening by email. Joining Phinney to make up the BMC roster in Utah will be fellow Americans Brent Bookwalter, Joey Rosskopf and Peter Stetina; Swiss riders Kilian Frankiny and Michael Schr; and Manuel Senni of Italy.
Phinney said he feels good after a long recovery with no guarantee he'd be able to return to pro cycling.
"I feel great; my weight is good, and all my power numbers are pretty good," he said. "I've been training since February, so it's been a long time coming. I'm just happy to get back in there."
Phinney isn't the only BMC rider back from injury. Stetina also is returning to racing after breaking his tibia, patella (kneecap) and five ribs in April in a crash at the Vuelta al Pas Vasco in northern Spain.
"Taylor has been working very hard to get to where he is now and believes that he is ready to race," BMC Racing team doctor Max Testa said in a statement released on the team website. "The team has no expectations of him. He will test his condition to see where his knee is and what kind of condition he has. From this race, he can gauge what the rest of the season may look like."
BMC Racing had an eventful weekend in addition to Phinney's inclusion in the Tour of Utah. In an incident eerily reminiscent of Phinney's crash in Chattanooga, BMC rider Greg Van Avermaet was denied a chance to win a stage at the Clasica San Sebastian in Spain when he was knocked over by a race official's motorcycle in Spain on Saturday.
In better news for BMC Racing, the team also announced Saturday that Richie Porte would be joining the team in 2016. Porte, currently with Team Sky, was a key teammate last month for 2015 Tour de France champion Chris Froome, and Porte is expected to compete as a top Tour de France contender next season.
Phinney said he hasn't set specific goals for this week's racing in Utah, but he hopes to show he can compete and is focused on being ready to resume a career that was stalled by a tragic day on the side of Lookout Mountain.
"I just want to get back in the race and see how it feels," he said. "I'd love to have a (good) result in one of the stages (at Utah). I've been looking at course profiles and have picked a couple of days out that I like. Beyond that, I want to go back to Colorado and race the USA Pro Cycling Challenge representing my home state.
"For right now, it's making sure I can come back and race and have minimal pain and be competitive. I kind of have to start at square one.
Contact Jim Tanner at jftanner@bellsouth.net. Follow him at twitter.com/JFTanner.