Currently in the breakaway at stage eight of the Giro d’Italia, Tom Danielson has told VeloNews he is out to prove that his career is not over despite being 37 years of age now.

His selection for the Giro this year was his first for any Grand Tour since the 2013 Tour de France, capping a good start to the year where he was third in the Basque Country queen stage and won the Catalunya Mountains Jersey.

“The last grand tour I rode was the Tour in 2013. That year I rode both the Giro and the Tour. This year, I asked to do the Giro, because you don’t know what’s around the next corner. I’d like to try to get some results throughout the year, in different shapes and forms. In the earlier races so far, I did my best. On courses like Catalunya that don’t suit me so well, I went after breakaways and the mountain jerseys. It was a similar thing at the Basque Country, when I am not as explosive as the top guys, so it made more sense to try to win a stage. I got third on the queen stage. I used Romandie to build up for here.”

“I’ve had a great year. I’ve prepared well for this season. I had a great winter, and I finished off last season really strong, winning at Utah, second at Colorado, third in the time trial at Alberta, so I feel good. I’ve been trying to be a bit more aggressive, and work on areas that are weakness from before, so I hope it comes together in this grand tour, and be up there with the best guys in the mountains.”

He also spoke on how the merger between his Garmin-Sharp team and Cannondale Pro Cycling has went, as the team became Cannondale-Garmin in the offseason.

“It’s been a really smooth transition. It’s an American company, and an American team, so everyone is thinking on the same page. Things have gone really well in terms of equipment. With a sponsor like Cannondale, they already had a relationship with Mavic, so it’s made the transition go smoother. The riders that we’ve taken on are all very similar to what we already have. We have had so many news guys this year, it’s hard to even differentiate between the old Garmin guys and the Cannondale guys. I’ve been fortunate enough to have a roommate almost every night who doesn’t speak English, so I’ve been improving my language skills this season. I really want to experience a lot of different things I have yet [to experience] so far in my career, and having these news guys is part of that.”

Danilson says that despite his age, he doesn’t feel old yet, having only become a professional bike rider at 25.

“I keep hearing people asking me, oh, how much longer are going to race. Is it one or two more years? I started pro at 25, so I am 12 years into it. I don’t really feel old. The barometer is how you feel in the morning, do you feel tired? No. Are you motivated to train? Yes. When I go out on my bike, do I like it? Yes. Do I keep improving? Yes. Am I upset with anything? No. Those are all those questions. When I stop improving, that’s when I might say, ‘OK, I am done.’ But even this year, I’m improving. Now it’s time to get some results in the GC races, and prove that I am not done.”