Chris Carmichael, 47, founded Carmichael Training Systems
(CTS), with offices in Colorado Springs and Asheville, N.C., in 1999. The
company offers personalized coaching, camps and classes across the country for
athletes of all abilities and in any sport. He is the author of 5 Essentials for a Winning Life. When I started CTS in 2000, I
knew I had a great idea: to use the Web, email and phone to remotely coach
athletes across all walks of life and sports. But I had no business background.
Up to that point, my resumé included Olympic competitor and coach, professional
cyclist and coach of Lance Armstrong. I could tell you everything you needed to
know about how to win the Tour de France, but a P&L statement was a mystery.
 I knew how to spot talented athletes, but I needed to learn how
to spot talented business people. It was tougher than I expected. Like many
entrepreneurs, I got burned by some of my early employees, and I know for a fact
that I burned out several good people, too.
Yet, a good business idea is a good business idea, and with
Lance winning the Tour de France, CTS experienced rapid growth. From two coaches
and a handful of athletes, we have expanded to 140 coaches working with nearly
3,000 athletes around the world. Today we coach racecar drivers, football and
hockey players, runners, pro triathletes and, of course, cyclists. People now
recognize me on the street, in airports and restaurants. In financial and
awareness terms, I’ve become a success. I’ve made it. During the growth phase of CTS, I married my wife, Paige, we
had a second child and I dedicated myself to Lance’s quest to continue winning
the Tour. I was practically MIA from my office and home for three months each
spring and summer as I traveled with Lance. Looking back, I can see that this
perfect storm of responsibilities was too much. I gained 25 pounds of flab, started to display signs of
hypertension and I ate like crap. I was more obsessed with Lance’s health than
my own. The healthier and the stronger Lance looked, the worse I did. I have
pictures from that time that make me look as if I aged 15 years between 1999 and
2002. On average, I wasn’t a happy guy. Funny, no one told me success
was going to feel like this. Here I was, part of one of the most amazing
feel-good stories in sports history, and I was a grouch. My employees didn’t
know whether I was walking into their office to congratulate them or fire
them.
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