Enjoyed seeing the Walshes perform well at IM Texas today.
More on pack burro racing prez Bill Lee.
I have been hesitant to blog about the entire Lance affair because it is such a lightning rod issue. It seems that folks either love him or hate him, apologize for him or defend him. Lance does raise an interesting dilemma: is his supposed use of PEDs forgivable because it helped fund a significant positive cause (cancer research)? Look forward to chewing this one through on future runs.
17 miles on the day.
I'm with you...been thinking a lot about it lately. If the Hincapie stuff is true...a tipping point is near. Still sorting...
ReplyDeleteLike I said when you were dragging me all over Boulder's dirt roads Friday, Lance knows what he did or didn't do. His ego seems to be able to absorb the sour truth with the sweet accolades it brought. Let him go to pasture and let's enjoy the sport.
ReplyDeleteTough one.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I was affected by his accomplishments on a bike, I was much more affected by the personal support we received from the Livestrong Foundation when Kat was going through cancer treatment and we needed answers or just someone to cry to.
I admit I loved watching him through his run but at the end of the day it's just a guy riding a damn bike.
I think most people who still wear the yellow Livestrong bands hardly do so in support of an individual who rode a bike well in an event six years ago. These are people that have been affected by an unfair disease and are supporting loved ones and an organization that has raised $400+ million dollars to increase public awareness and offer much needed resources.
There will be other standout athletes in our lifetime. The question is will these individuals use their achievements in the same way Lance has. Personally, I think the legacy of what he actually overcame and what he continues to do with those results are what people should be focusing on.
Nothings worse to a young cyclist than the harsh realization that blood, sweat, and tears aren't enough to get you up the alpe d'huez in less than 38 minutes. Pro cycling needs legitimate role models, and it would be a shame if lance goes down as the most successful cheater of his generation.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion it doesn't matter if 500 cyclists say that they saw him doing drugs 10 years ago. It was 10 years ago and he has passed 500 different drug tests over the decade. I'm not condoning bad behavior if he did it, and he may very well be a huge cheater. But at the same time, look at what he did on the dirt cobblestones just a couple years ago, singlehandedly riding himself back forward at the age of 38.
ReplyDeletePart of me feels like if the drug tests that can accurately prove when someone uses those drugs constantly say he is clear, then you have to assume they are innocent. If the answer is the tests just aren't that good....oh well.
Pure BS. What about the people he cheated out of victory? How come he has 100 million and floyd has squat. I hope they fry his cheating, lying ass, and I can't wait to see him do the perp walk!!!!
ReplyDeleteActually, he hasn't passed 500 tests. There is more and more evidence that the UCI looked the other way on a positive test during the Swiss Tour. Also, all 6 of Armstrong's samples from 1999 tested positive for EPO. They can't use it against him because there wasn't a second sample to retest, but still, all six tested positive! Also, aren't you just a little pissed off that he appears to have flat out bribed the UCI? IF you are not pissed off at his crap then you are probably a cheater as well, or would be if you were a pro.
ReplyDeleteBeth was 11th over-all female! And she did it on the bike. And James in his first IM was pretty impressive. There is a monster learning curve at the distance so I wouldn't be surprised to see him drop an 8:50 at Kona if he has a good day. But the non-wetsuit swim could hurt him. I went 8:50 with a 1:01 swim, so it's very possible.
ReplyDeleteYou want to do a 2 X 3 mile hill interval run on Tuesday? Or a Green TT on Thursday?
Hi!
ReplyDeleteIf he cheated, it was a level playing field. Ullrich was cheated out of a victory? Basso? They doped. And got caught. Filthy pro circuit.
And ditto what JP said.
Ya, except he probably brought the cancer on himself from taking acocktail of PED's. He always knew he would get caught one day and thus the LIvestrong foundation. Perp walk, perp walk!!!
ReplyDeleteAnonymous - I think you have some legitimate arguments to bring to the conversation, so drop the veil of anonymous and step on up with a real name.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous - its other people's word against his at this point. Remember it was just in the last couple years Lance was still on the verge of winning yet another Tour...and he still tested positive on every drug test. Its not like this is 12 year old news...well it is...but its been constantly for a decade since then people have tried to catch him and he got tested all the time. They had their chances, and they couldn't catch him. All they have are people trying to sell books now pointing fingers at him. Thats not enough to ever convict him of anything. The larger question is not whether Lance will ever get the guts to come clean with who he really is, but if you will. ;)
ReplyDelete***Ooops, I mean tested negative (obviously).
ReplyDeleteI was trying to say I hope Lance and other cyclists start thinking about the future of the sport, not their medals or book deals, when they make the decision to accuse someone of doping or deny doping themselves.
ReplyDeleteI encourage GZ to blog about lance. Not acknowledging the problem is what dug cycling into the hole of which it has still not climbed out of. Talking about the issue can never hurt.
Anonymous #1 (but not 2-4)
"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" W.S.
For the 99.9% of people in America who don't really care about cycling, it's quite obvious that everyone at that level dopes. I can't remember the last time I saw an article on cycling on a mainstream media outlet that didn't involve the issue. Contador tests positive because of something he ate? You seriously have to be a fan of the sport to believe that. Plus, the letsrun trolls have deemed Lance guilty, so that's all the proof I need.
ReplyDelete