About as well as you know him. My opinion is based on print and tv interviews. From those interviews, I have formed the opinion that the man is a dullard and is not forthright about many issues (see later in my post). That is my opinion. Your mileage may vary. But frankly I don’t look at other people’s odometers. I look at mine.
Fine, but that small minority happens to be posting on this site. And that was my response to them. There also happens to be many who like Lance simply because he is American which is just as silly for disliking him for being American.
True. I also dislike many other athletes. Doesn’t mean I should dislike LA any less. I don’t use other athletes as the barometer for whether I like someone.
A) I’m not confused about anything.
B)No where in my original post did I allege that LA’s success was due to drugs. Nowhere. Go back and read my post again if you have to (you should have done this first before you decided to respond to it). I am the first to say that even if Lance and the entire peleton were “clean” that Lance would still be the champion racer he is today.
C) Want it both ways? What the hell? Success in sports as in life is due to a multitude of factors, not just one. Are you saying I have to pick one reason because youtell me to? You are oversimplifying the argument by saying that there can only be one reason for succes. It is completely illogical and simpleminded. And wrong.
D) Of course LA’s succes is due in part to hard work. That goes without saying. That does not diminish the fact that his genetic makeup puts him in the elite range of athletes. This is nothing to be embarassed about so why did he go out of his way to deny it? He made the denial about it being a factor and I was merely pointing out that it is a factor. One of many factors, but still a huge factor.
E) I like to debate people’s opinions and exchange facts but I can not stand responding to people misreading my posts. Nor do I enjoy pointing out egregious errors in logic, which your paragraph above abounds in. And I also do not like people misconstruing what I write and “putting words in my mouth”. For future reference, if you respond to my posts again, read my post first, don’t misconstrue what I write, and work out your logic before hand. Thanks.
I agree that the UCI should be doing something. There could be some negative ramifications for LA if he came forward but a mark of a strong character is when someone comes forward to do the right thing even if it is a hardship. Its called integrity. And believe me, if Lance started to talk, people would listen.
What bothers me about LA is not so much that he isn’t actively out there trying to solve the problem but the fact that he remains silent on the issue and even tries to mislead people about what is going on. When he is asked about drugs in interviews he always spews the same garbage about how “cycling is the most tested sport” and its “no worse than other sports” etc. What kind of answer is that? Its rubbish. He is complicit in the conspiracy of silence surrounding the sport. They refuse to address the problem because they are afraid of tarnishing the image of the sport and the impact this will have on their bank accounts. So the problem just continues. Why can’t he just come out and talk honestly about the subject?
Is that it? That’s his defense? If someone was slinging mud at me I would be calling them a liar, suing them for defamation/libel, screaming from the top of my lungs “I HAVE NEVER USED PERFORMANCE ENHANCING DRUGS IN MY ENTIRE LIFE AND I NEVER WILL!” and proferring up my blood and urine for the entire world to see. Calling someone unprofessional is not much of a denial is it?
Such as? I agree that making allegations without proof is not a good thing. But when the entire sport is engaged in a cover up, sometimes a little mudslinging is required. Also, keep in mind that cyclists and doctors on the tour know quite a bit about the other cyclists. Everyone knows who is doping. Cyclists talk, doctors talk to other doctors and even exchange drugs and advice so cyclists tend to know who is doping and who isn’t. It could very well be that Bassons knows something we don’t know. Or maybe not. And how is he supposed to obtain “proof” when there are no tests that can prove anything?
a)Well, no ****. Next you’ll tell me that the sky is blue and there is no Santa Claus. You’re just stating the obvious.
b) Pointing out the inverse of my original argument does not negate the validity of my argument.
c) The only reason I made that argument was because many posters were saying that (paraphrasing) “Lance must be clean because he keeps passing all the drug tests” etc. My point was that this was not a valid argument because the tests do not detect all drugs. I thought everyone knew this but apparently not. Which is why I mentioned it. I like to share.
I agree. I have no evidence either. And do we even have his “word”? The only thing I have to go on is what he says or more importantly, what he does not say. When asked about drugs, he plays coy and makes odd statements with suspicious wording. I can’t help but read between the lines. I have no hard evidence (no one does) so I am left to consider the following:
1) I have yet to read an interview where he explicitly denies taking PH drugs. Seriously, if someone can find an interview where he does, I will gladly read it and take this into account. And saying things like “I will never fail a drug test” is not the same as denying the use of PHD.
2) Has admitted seeing Dr. Michelle Ferrari who was investigated for providing PHD to athletes.
3)Intimidation tactics with Bassons as noted in my original post.
4)Does not address the extent of the drug problem in an open and honest manner. Contributes to the “conspiracy of silence” in the sport.
None of the above constitutes “proof”. Its just stuff I like to ponder when I lie awake at night.
Well yeah. I would think it would be hard for a clean athlete to compete against doped athletes. I’m not sure what your point is, but can’t argue with that.
Sigh. See my previous point. As stated, there are many factors involved in success in cycling. All the members of the peleton are genetically gifted, not just Lance. The drugs give riders an edge over an already elite group of athletes.
Okay, I’m done now.
