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The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan



 
 
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  #1  
Old July 6th 07, 06:54 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
just bob
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Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

I'm sure few of you give a hoot but I wanted to say I'm so ****ed I'm
considering not watching the tdf this year.

A little background I feel is appropriate. I'm just a fan, and just a fan of
the tdf and now the Tour of California because it's in the Bay Area where I
live.

I have watched the tdf for the last seven years or so pretty religiously,
even downloading the torrents of every stage last year. Yes, I only started
watching when Lance was winning so I guess I'm a fair weathered fan. But an
emotional one. The heavy tv coverage on cable was amazing - I just could not
stop watching and my dad and enjoy talking about the stages etc.

My dad has always been a bigger fan. He re-married a French woman and I
think he enjoys the sport-bonding with her during July. Last year I watched
and really enjoyed it, too, but I don't think it's because an American won.
I really don't care as long as it's interesting. I wanted to see who was
going to take over the mantle. My real sports heroes have always been
international stars like F1 racers Senna, Mansell, Hakkinen. F1 sucks now
and I've been a bigger MotoGP nut because of Valentino Rossi and but by no
small degree the integrity of the sport.

But I am so ****ed about the doping thing last year, when he asked yesterday
I told my father I can't bear to watch and would not waste my time and get
emotionally involved. Mostly because I do not know who to believe.

From what little I read, my impression is Lance believes the testing system
is flawed. Yet he did not come out to support Floyd, as far as I can tell. I
read in the paper earlier this year that Floyd had that thing to raise money
in the Bay area during the Tour of California and Lance was not there to
support him. I drew my own conclusions, and no one in the papers every
seemed to put that together. I feel, if he thought Floyd was clean, I think
Lance should have been the #1 witness. I think the whole country would have
stood up for Floyd if Lance had gotten on the public bandwagon. So WTF? You
are either passionate about your sport and believe or you don't. Something
stinks here.

It's these mixed signals which has me confused to the point where I feel
like if I watch I'm just going to have my experience and emotions crushed by
crap that happens off the track.

I guess this is kinda how some baseball fans feel, after the strike and
their own doping scandals.



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  #2  
Old July 6th 07, 07:11 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
G.T.
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Posts: 1,403
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

just bob wrote:
I'm sure few of you give a hoot but I wanted to say I'm so ****ed I'm
considering not watching the tdf this year.


I've watched Le Tour and other bike races since 1980.

Boycott all professional sports, especially Le Tour!

Le Petite Dejeuner au Tour de Farce:
http://www.photo.net/photodb/photo?photo_id=6131132

Greg

--
http://ticketmastersucks.org

  #3  
Old July 6th 07, 07:24 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
Ewoud Dronkert
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Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

just bob schreef:
But I am so ****ed about the doping thing last year


It has always been there. It is just that pro cycling is so crap at
containing the massively increased media attention. I say, ditch the IOC
and its WADA charter. No cycling at the Olympics is better than this drama.

All I want to see is great duels and honest suffering by simple men on
simple machines, in beautiful landscapes. Dope doesn't change a thing.


--
E. Dronkert
  #4  
Old July 6th 07, 07:40 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
SLAVE of THE STATE
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Posts: 1,774
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

On Jul 6, 11:24 am, Ewoud Dronkert
wrote:

All I want to see is great duels and honest suffering by simple men on
simple machines, in beautiful landscapes. Dope doesn't change a thing.



Exactly, although Just Bob would need to change "honest" to "real."

  #5  
Old July 6th 07, 07:44 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
[email protected]
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Posts: 744
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

On Jul 6, 8:24 pm, Ewoud Dronkert
wrote:
just bob schreef:

But I am so ****ed about the doping thing last year


It has always been there. It is just that pro cycling is so crap at
containing the massively increased media attention. I say, ditch the IOC
and its WADA charter. No cycling at the Olympics is better than this drama.

All I want to see is great duels and honest suffering by simple men on
simple machines, in beautiful landscapes. Dope doesn't change a thing.

--
E. Dronkert


In my opinion, there is less doping than 10 years ago. In particular,
take the 1997 Tour de France. One of my biggest impressions from that
race were the leadout by Ullrich and Riis for Zabel on the stage
preceding the first big mountain stage. I can't imagine GC contenders
doing that these days. The other one was the Festina guys toying with
Ullrich on the descents. No one is sure about Ullrich, but all the
Festina riders have admitted they were on EPO that year, and, unlike
current dopers who appear to be doing it on their own, the doping was
organised and they had a real drug culture, that is, taking drugs as a
reward and not just to enhance performance.

-ilan

  #6  
Old July 6th 07, 07:51 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
Doug Taylor
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Posts: 430
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

On Fri, 6 Jul 2007 10:54:09 -0700, "just bob" kilbyfan@aoldotcom
wrote:



From what little I read, my impression is Lance believes the testing system
is flawed. Yet he did not come out to support Floyd, as far as I can tell. I
read in the paper earlier this year that Floyd had that thing to raise money
in the Bay area during the Tour of California and Lance was not there to
support him. I drew my own conclusions, and no one in the papers every
seemed to put that together. I feel, if he thought Floyd was clean, I think
Lance should have been the #1 witness. I think the whole country would have
stood up for Floyd if Lance had gotten on the public bandwagon. So WTF? You
are either passionate about your sport and believe or you don't. Something
stinks here.


Lance turns on anyone who leaves his team without "permission", Kevin
Livingston and Floyd being two examples. Lance would not support
Floyd personally because he hates his guts, and vice versa. Lance
would support Floyd as far as the testing because Omerta says all
riders stick together, deny that they dope, blame the system, and
don't rat anybody out.

What stinks is the circumstantial probability is that Lance doped as
much as any other rider of his era. Which makes the playing field of
his achievements level, but does not say much as to his honesty or
integrity, or for that matter, that of the sport.

What doesn't matter for spectators is that so long as the playing
filed is level, then any bike race, from one day classics to stage
races to grand tours, are exciting as hell to follow.

But it is painful to watch someone like a born again cleanie, David
Millar, with his perfect form, not being an odds on bet to win a TT or
Prologue anymore.
  #7  
Old July 6th 07, 08:15 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
[email protected]
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Posts: 744
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

On Jul 6, 8:51 pm, Doug Taylor wrote:

But it is painful to watch someone like a born again cleanie, David
Millar, with his perfect form, not being an odds on bet to win a TT or
Prologue anymore.


I'm not at all convinced that David Millar is currently clean, before
the police found his drugs, a lot of people were convinced he wasn't
doping. And if you consider punished riders as being too repentant to
dope, consider Alex Zulle, who finished 2nd in the 1999 Tour. If he
wasn't doping after his Festina suspension, then that means that
Armstrong beat a clean rider, which reduces suspicion on him given
your even playing field argument (not that Zulle wasn't riding that
much better when he was on EPO).

-ilan

  #8  
Old July 6th 07, 08:44 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
Donald Munro
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Posts: 4,811
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

just bob wrote:
I'm sure few of you give a hoot but I wanted to say I'm so ****ed I'm
considering not watching the tdf this year.


Dumbass,
Early attacks rarely work. Unless you're just trying to get some media
coverage.

  #9  
Old July 6th 07, 10:05 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
William R. Mattil
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Posts: 303
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

Ewoud Dronkert wrote:


All I want to see is great duels and honest suffering by simple men on
simple machines, in beautiful landscapes. Dope doesn't change a thing.



Simple, direct and right on the money.


Bill
  #10  
Old July 6th 07, 11:54 PM posted to rec.bicycles.racing
John Forrest Tomlinson
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Posts: 6,564
Default The doping stuff makes it hard to be a fan

On Fri, 6 Jul 2007 10:54:09 -0700, "just bob" kilbyfan@aoldotcom
wrote:

I'm sure few of you give a hoot but I wanted to say I'm so ****ed I'm
considering not watching the tdf this year.


So don't.

It's these mixed signals which has me
confused to the point where I feel
like if I watch I'm just going to have my
experience and emotions crushed by
crap that happens off the track.


Crushed? It's a bike race. Get some perspective.

Or, did I just get trolled.
--
JT
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