Been there, done that. I've never been so glad to say that covering a one-year countdown to an Olympics.

It's been a few years since that milestone didn't involve significant talk about the pandemic.

This year felt, dare I say it, normal.

I had that realization while doing an interview with 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist Gabe Gardner. I covered Gardner's golden moment in Beijing and we've been friends ever since. Gabe is still active with Team USA. He's worked as an athlete liaison and Board Member for the United States Olympic and Paralympic Endowment.

Gabe is one of my go-to interviews as we hit the one-year mark to an Olympics. In the last couple of Olympics, we've focused on pandemic protocols, masking, testing and all things COVID-19.

This year, we talked about the fun stuff. It was deliciously normal. And we both remarked after the interview that it felt good to get back to something we'd done before. Been there, done that.

• A challenge to all of us to recognize and appreciate these moments as they come up post-pandemic