Interesting Observations

limerickman

I have just been looking at the build up to the Olympic Games here in Ireland where we have our own TV stations as well as BBC, ITV etc.

The mens Road Race is next Saturday and I was fascinated to read/hear the comments made by general (non-cycling) commentators about this event.

One guy said "and they race - listen to this folks - for over six hours. Imagine that, having to cycle for six hours !"
Or how about this from the TV guide for next week "9.45 GMT coverage of the Mens Olympic Road Race which is six hours +, this program will be intercut with Hockey, Volleyball and other sports. Times may vary".

Or how about this comment from the Irish Times Newspaper "of course, the fact that the Mens Olympic Cycling Road Race is the longest endurance event
in Athens will merely give succour to those who believe that this sport is full of endurance performance enhancing drugs.
One cannot blame those who have this perception, after all cycling round for
six hours in extreme heat is beyond most mortals.
And when you consider that most of these competitors will have completed the Tour De France and have cycled about 25,000 miles already this season,
one would have to wonder".

This is how the outside world view the world of cycling.

musette

Which is reinforced by unsupported allegations made by those who might not consider themselves outsiders.

limerickman

Or re-enforced by those who were insiders and have a detailed knowledge
of how cheating operates.

The perception in the wider public ie outside of cycling public, is that men/women who cycle are using substances to enable them to do so.
I didn't post my original message to enter in to a debate about cheating - I
posted my initial message to illustrate how the outside world views cycling.
(there are plenty of thread here where the issue of cheating is being debated as you well know)

Mouse Potato

It's also quite common for people to think that because something is significantly beyond their own individual (natural) abilities/habits/whatever, it must be beyond everybody's.

gntlmn

How do you come to the conclusion that the wider public outside of the cycling public perceives that men/women who cycle are using substances to enable them to do so? Where are your figures to substantiate such a claim? Is this just another one of your exaggerated claims? Or do you have evidence of such a perception? In other words, why do you assume that the general public jumps to the same wild conclusion that you do when it reads a few doping stories about riders who get caught? Have you seen the results of any surveys on such a topic? To be widespread, doping must not only be perceived as widespread by extrapolating a few stories and stretching the imagination a little; it must be widespread in fact. Do you really believe the general public will make such a stretch like you have? This strikes me as rather far fetched.

musette

The same "logic" is used to support that conclusion as it is to arrive at certain other posts on this board.

limerickman

Where have I said that covering large distance was down to drug abuse ?

No disrespect intended here but you seem to have this uncanny ability to
launch in to a tirade without reading the aforementioned posts in this thread.
Go and read what I posted on this thread today and then come back and aske the question.

limerickman

and the same applies to you.
where have I mentioned drug use in this thread ?
Can you point out where I mentioned drug abuse in this thread titles interesting observations ?

and while we're at it - if you can send me details of your palmares, I'd be very interested in reading it.

keydates

Must every thread here come down to a (Lance Armstrong) doping debate?

I think that most people have a less respect of cycling than that. After all, only kids ride bikes. Adults drive cars.

limerickman

A couple of children wanted this thread to descend in to an LA/doping
discussion but I replied early to say that this was not my intention for posting
(see message 3).

Bikerman2004

[QUOTE=limerickman]and the same applies to you.
where have I mentioned drug use in this thread ?
Can you point out where I mentioned drug abuse in this thread titles interesting observations ?

Originally Posted by limerickman
Or re-enforced by those who were insiders and have a detailed knowledge
of how cheating operates.


I think Limerickman's point is the sport needs to clean itself up so other less knowledgeable folks don't think cyclists are dopers. We can argue all day long about which individual cyclist are "cheating", but the fact remains that pro cycling needs to do something about its image.

Limerickman did reference drug use in cycling. Everyone knows what cheating in cycling means. If not then exactly what did you mean by "cheating"?

limerickman

For the record once again - I posted the original observation to show the Forum, how the media in this part of the world views cycling.
Most other sports don't last six hours in duration.
The wider public therefore find it hard to conceive how someone can
participate in such an endurance event.

Another poster - for purely mischevious purposes it needs to be added - then
started going on about drugs.
In my third message, I stressed that this thread was not created to discuss
drugs, it was created in order to bring an awareness as to how this sport
is viewed in the wider world.
I told that poster that she could go off on to the numerous threads that populate this forum to discuss drugs.

Whether we like it or not, cycling distances and durations are viewed by the
wider public as being inconceivable.
That's the point I wanted to make.

kuhlpinkdash

Yeah, you might want to chill out a bit gntlmn...I just read the first post and it seemed pretty innocent to me,, A lot of media sources share resources so if you have several stories reporting similar things it normally means a general view has formed or may be starting to form...That is certainly true in the case of Australian Cycling. In the past few weeks, amid a degree of factual evidence, the belief that drugs are commonly used has increased immensely,, fortunately there doesn't seem to be any links to any tour riders

I know, "from anecdotal evidence" that a lot of people I know think that cycling for 6 hours would be impossible..let alone the 400km a day they used to do in the early tours...

Hmm I wonder if they had even invented drugs back then? Maybe some sort of:

**Longmuir's Patented Whisscoughing Detraction Powder**
Guaranteed to Increase your Plasto-Glytens by 10%

Brunswick_kate

Limerick, my man whom I most frequently love to disagree with, what is with you and the palmares? Is it your position that unless a person is or has been a racing cyclist then he or she is unable to formulate an opinion or have a thought?

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