Kiel Reijnen has no doubt that the arrival of both Alberto Contador and his entourage, as well as John Degenkolb, will shift the dynamic of the group at Trek-Segafredo in 2017.

“It will mix things up,” Reijnen, 30, told VeloNews of Contador’s arrival. “It’s not just him coming. I think of half the team [for 2017] is new or different. So there will be a lot of changes with the dynamic at the races. But I don’t foresee it being positive or negative, just different.”

He hopes that the winning mentality the Spaniard possesses will rub off on his teammates and it will serve as motivation to all riders on the roster.

“We have had a really great group of guys for all our races this year and I really enjoyed my teammates’ company. So I hope we can kind of continue that vibe,” Reijnen said. “When you go to win a race the moral is always high, and Contador likes to go to win. That will be valuable for us … to be able to go in with that mentality at a lot of the races.”

Speaking personally about his own debut season at WorldTour level, the American says he has endured highs (such as winning a stage in Utah) and lows, and is now ready to commit to winning more races from 2017 onwards.

“I had done a handful of races on my schedule so it wasn’t a complete unknown for me, but I would say most of it was what I expected,” Reijnen said. “I knew a steadier diet of those races was going to be exhausting and I definitely had some low points around Tour of California, Tour of Suisse … I was really fatigued, but I bounced back well for the second half [of the season]. I think I did as well as I expected to do and hopefully next year I can build on the experience and I have got that season away. There are less unknowns for me next year so its easier to deal with the ups and downs.”