If cycling were poker.........

[nns1400]

Consider the following scenario:

It's high stakes poker. One guy has most of the chips -- looks like he's gonna win. He's beaten many at the table before after all. They are about to watch all their money go "****!" yet again to this dominating player. Wait! He's got an ace up his sleeve! He's been cheating! So THAT'S how he does it!

Would the response from the other poker players be:

A) "Wow! I'm really surprised. I just didn't think he'd do that."
"I'm really disappointed. It's shocking. I don't know what to think."
"This comes at a bad time. It's a blow to the whole world of poker."
"It's a disappointment. But he's still a fighter. My heart goes out to him."

OR

B) They'd shoot his ass!

 

[Crankyfeet]

Good post. Except before, so many of the players had aces up their own sleeve or were worried that the family of the deceased would sue them for murder (Did anyone see him put the ace there???) that they didn't do anything. And the Poker game organizers thought that to publicize the cheat by exposing him would mean that no-one would play or watch next time they arranged the game, so they put their head in the sand.

Thankfully it seems that things are different now.

Consider the following scenario:

It's high stakes poker. One guy has most of the chips -- looks like he's gonna win. He's beaten many at the table before after all. They are about to watch all their money go "****!" yet again to this dominating player. Wait! He's got an ace up his sleeve! He's been cheating! So THAT'S how he does it!

Would the response from the other poker players be:

A) "Wow! I'm really surprised. I just didn't think he'd do that."
"I'm really disappointed. It's shocking. I don't know what to think."
"This comes at a bad time. It's a blow to the whole world of poker."
"It's a disappointment. But he's still a fighter. My heart goes out to him."

OR

B) They'd shoot his ass!

 

[Bro Deal]

Consider the following scenario:

It's high stakes poker. One guy has most of the chips -- looks like he's gonna win. He's beaten many at the table before after all. They are about to watch all their money go "****!" yet again to this dominating player. Wait! He's got an ace up his sleeve! He's been cheating! So THAT'S how he does it!

Would the response from the other poker players be:

A) "Wow! I'm really surprised. I just didn't think he'd do that."
"I'm really disappointed. It's shocking. I don't know what to think."
"This comes at a bad time. It's a blow to the whole world of poker."
"It's a disappointment. But he's still a fighter. My heart goes out to him."

OR

B) They'd shoot his ass!

This has always been the tell about how prevalent doping was in cycling. No one ever got mad when they were denied victory by someone who was later shown to be doping. Riders have been screwed out of hundreds of thousands and sometimes millions of dollars in future earnings, but all they can manage is a lame statement about how unfortunate it is so and so doped.

 

[nns1400]

Good post. Except before, so many of the players had aces up their own sleeve or were worried that the family of the deceased would sue them for murder (Did anyone see him put the ace there???) that they didn't do anything. And the Poker game organizers thought that to publicize the cheat by exposing him would mean that no-one would play or watch next time they arranged the game, so they put their head in the sand.

Thankfully it seems that things are different now.

That's my point. The other players DO all have aces up their sleeves or they wouldn't say the things they do.

People like Oscar Pereiro are "saddened" and still consider the cheater "a good friend" when Landis gets busted instead of saying "That son-of-a-***** stole my jersey!" Before the race last year, Landis himself was saying he was sorry that Ulli and Basso couldn't compete. "No one is happy about what's happened." How about, "If they're cheating they can go to hell. They aren't going to ruin my chance of winning the Tour when I'm clean." Oh, he's not. No wonder he wasn't happy. No wonder Oscar is sad.

The fans might have booed Ras, but the peleton didn't, except for their goofy "protest" against doping. Voight said he didn't even know what was going on, what they were protesting or why.

You're right about the organizers! My husband likes to watch High Stakes Poker and it is taped and edited, so who the hell knows what goes on in there! I'm sure they would try to hide any famous cheaters too.

 

[nns1400]

This has always been the tell about how prevalent doping was in cycling. No one ever got mad when they were denied victory by someone who was later shown to be doping. Riders have been screwed out of hundreds of thousands and sometimes millions of dollars in future earnings, but all they can manage is a lame statement about how unfortunate it is so and so doped.

EXACTLY!