I just signed my name to the Let Levi Ride petition at LetLeviRide.com. The online petition is to try to get the ASO to let the Astana team ride in the Tour de France. I saw Levi wearing a sticker or button after winning the ITT at the Tour of California today and had to take a look at the site. I promptly signed the petition and wrote this rant. I think that it is unconscionable that the ASO would not let the 1st and 3rd place riders from last year's Tour de France start this year. Neither rider has ever tested positive for any doping products. Levi has never been associated with any wrong doing and Contador's connection to the 'Operaci�n Puerto' has been discribed as tenuous at best and was dismissed long before the case was dropped. You could bet your last dollar that if Levi and Contador were French they would be in the race. Do you think that the ASO will exclude Cofidis from the Tour de France? No Way! They will let that bunch of mediocre talent into the race even after they too had to leave last year's Tour de France with their tails between their legs. After being one of the most vocal anti-doping teams at the Tour de France last year - one of the organizers of the anti-doping demonstration durring the race, one of their own (Moreni) tests positive for steriod usage. Well, I guess he's a
Months after the incident, I can finally have the courage to talk about the events that have led me to today. No it wasn't EPO or an illegal blood transfusion, it was a crash. According to those who were on the road with my this past July 3rd, it was one of the worst crashes they had ever witnessed. To make a long story short, I crashed 100 meters from the sprint line on Putah Creek Road going 40+ mph after a wicked lead out from the UC Davis Time Trial Team and Spencer Kenner. 150 meters from the line Spencer went Left, I went Right and the rest is a kind of a blur. I skipped a gear (or something) and went down hard, flipping head over heals and rolling down the road like a log until I came to a dead stop only to realize that I had shattered my collarbone into 6 pieces. OUCH! To stubborn to just sit behind the wheel of the team car, I am back on the bike training for what looks to be an awesome 2008! I am happy to announce that The DeMasi Group will not only continue it's sponsorship of a very visible Club Team, but it has created a Race Team as well! Keep your eyes peeled for those Red, White, Blue & Celeste uniforms and our 2008 team T-shirt (attached)!
I just read an article on cyclingnews.com that stated that Knapp Communications (the owner of the site) has just sold the site to Future plc. The article states that Future plc has a vested interest in the bicycle industry - already owning multiple cycling print magazines so they will be good stuarts. The article also goes on to explain that things will remain the same at the site - the same writes, editors, types of stories and the like. But I think we've all heard that song before. My hope is that Future doesn't mess up the best cycling site on the Web and drive my traffic elsewhere. Currently I go to the site multiple times a day - even when there are no big races happening. If it takes a turn for the worst I'll just have to go find another source for my cycling info fix. Just to hedge my bets please add comments about where you get your news when you do not use Cyclingnews.com. Hope my cynicism is unfounded.
Le Tour de France is just around the corner and I'm starting to get excited. One of the things that keeps my interest high on even the long flat stages where nothing much happens for the GC is having a fantasy team. The last couple of years I've had a team at the Velogames site. The rules there are cool, picking a team is straight forward, and it is free. There really isn't much in the way of prizes (I think the winner last year got a Velogames jersey) but its free to play and the site isn't full of ads and pop-ups. The guy who runs the site is really cool; we exchanged a couple of emails last year because of the craziness of riders being excluded at the last minute. He was very responsive and friendly. I hope he makes some money off the site he obviously put tons of work into it and deserves a bit of a payday. I'm not certain if team picking starts this weekend or later but you have to submit your team by 1300 CET on Saturday 7th July. Once I have a team I'll add a comment to this story with the name of it so anyone interested can track my team. If anyone else starts a team, add a comment with your team name so I can follow your progress as well. I can't stop competing even while I fat and out of shape. Hope Click icons to view large pictures.
GENEVA -- ProTour cyclists will be asked to sign a declaration before the Tour De France saying they are not involved in doping and that they agree to pay one year's salary if found guilty of drug use. The measures were announced Tuesday by the International Cycling Union following a meeting with leaders of all 20 ProTour teams to discuss the sport's doping crisis. The Tour starts in London on July 7. "The UCI will not tolerate any individual or organization that causes damage to our sport," UCI president Pat McQuaid said. "There is no reason cycling and doping should be linked and no reason doping should overshadow our sport." In the declaration, the riders also agree to let Spanish authorities use their DNA to compare it to blood samples seized in the Operation Puerto doping investigation. T-Mobile's Mark Cavendish Continue Reading
As I said in my story about the Giro d' Italia, I have been having a hard time getting excited about professional cycling. News of my friends races and rides has been fantastic and I have enjoyed hear/sharing those stories, but professional cycling just hasn't captivated me lately. I was barely motivated enough to read the results of the Giro stages and was only interested in the mountain stages at all. I'm hoping that the upcoming races change that all. The Crit￩rium du Dauphin￩ Lib￩r￩ starts tomorrow and I'm going to be reading everything I can on that one. It is a classic race with some big stars tuning up for la Tour de France. After it roles through France the Tour de Suisse gets rolling as the other major tune up for la Tour de France. After they are over the big show begins in London and I'm up every morning to watch the fun on Versus (what a retarded name for a network - I miss the Outdoor Life Network moniker). It doesn't hurt that Big George, Levi, Valverde, Dave Z, Vino, and Kash will all be racing in the Dauphin￩ (see the full list of starters at the Cyclingnews site.. What a showdown and preview for the Tour. Should be firework galore on Mt. Ventoux - that is one that I'm reading live coverage on since there is no TV for the Dauphin. Hopefully I'll get motivated enough to climb on my own dusty bike an ride a bit
My buddy Sal just started racing again after years of getting slow. Here is are the top 10 from his first race in a long time: Wheels of Thunder Dash for Cash Men - Cat 4/5 - Master - 35-99 Place Name License Team
I just got my clothes from my new team the other day so now I'm going to have to get out there, get a bit fit, and represent. When my neighbor,Chad, approached my about joining his new team I told him that I had hung up my race wheels long ago. He said that was OK and this team wasn't really going to be just about racing but more about getting people out riding, being friendly, and having a good group of people associated with the team. This does not mean that there are not any fast people on the team, there are. I just means that those of us who are not so fast anymore can still be part of the team. Our new kit is some pretty swank gear made by Hincapie Sportswear. It is awesome that I get to ride in clothes designed by my favorite rider - George is The Man. The clothes are cool, now I just need to get out and ride a bunch in them. It would not be right to leave such nice kit sittin in a drawer. Chad DeMasi, the Director of the team and one third of the DeMasi Group Realtors, has put in tuns of work to bring the team together. I want to thank him for giving me extra motivation to get out on the bike this year. I'm also going to thank the teams sponsors, because they are taking a chance on a different concept of a team. So many thanks to The DeMasi Group at Coldwell Banker, Continue Reading Click icons to view large pictures.
It is one week into the Giro and I don't care at all. There are a bunch of nobodies at the top of the GC, Petacchi has won a couple of stages, McEwen won one, and a few people have crashed. I can't find it in me to get excited. Starting the Giro with a TTT was about the stupidest thing going. The best part about the first week of the Grand Tours is watching the sprinters work like dogs to get the GC lead by winning intermediate sprints and finishes. With the time gaps from the TTT no sprinters were close enough to fight over the Jersey. I'm even having a hard time caring about the race even though it is the first time George Hincapie is racing it. As I've said before, Big George is my favorite guy but still I find interest lacking. Cycling seems to be missing a spark right now. There is plenty of drama with all the drug scandals and the clashes between the Pro Tour and the Grand Tour organizers but we really need a rider to emerge and drag cycling kicking and screaming back to glory. I miss the days of Cippollini, when that guy won it was a celebration full of bravado, pride, and self confidence. Petacchi is fast but just does not have the panache of the Lion King. I tire of hearing how he didn't feel very good and how his teammates convinced him to have a go anyway. Or how he was feeling better today and his team set him up perfectly. How boring is that junk. Right now in this time of crisis we need flash, excitement, bol Continue Reading Click icons to view large pictures.
The cycling world is again rocked by scandal: Ivan Basso has admitted to cheating. Here are the words of the man himself: "The moment has come for me to assume my responsibilities. I only
hope that I will be understood." What is there to understand? You cheated, you lied about it, you even offered to give DNA to prove your innocence. Did you really think no one would take a drop of your blood? Should we think more of you for admitting your guilt right before that precious blood was taken and compared to the bags of blood you used to boost your performance? I think that Basso is just the first of many cyclists to admit using Dr. Fuentes services. Who is next? There are lots of names to pick from, I won't bother to list them as thee are now over 100 rider implicated in the case. What will happen to the sport I love? Basso's lawyer is quoted thusly: "If Ivan has done what he has done it is because he loves his sport. We looked each other in the eyes and we said to each other that it was a case of lifting this weight off our backs, from our conscience." What kind of crap is that? I love the sport so much that I will cheat and lie to win? That does not sound like love for the sport - that sounds like love of one's self. I raced for 15 years and survived in the peleton on nature's gifts alone. I worked hard and did fairly well but always new that the Pro peleton was not the place for me. Maybe if I Continue Reading
The rules are pretty simple: One thing you will notice is that my name is not on any of the resul Continue Reading Click icons to view large pictures.
With the news of more of Landis' B samples containing exogenic testosterone leaking to the press I feel compelled to weigh in on the case. Now I'm not pretending to know whether Floyd is guilty or not - even though I do sincerly hope that he is not - I can't help thinking that he is indeed being rail-roaded. You can't argue with the fact that his case has been handled carelessly; with an seemingly purposeful disregard for his rights. The constant leaks by the UCI and now by either the LNDD Lab or the USADA show a total breakdown in the protection of the rider under the UCI's own rules. Time and time again Landis has had to deal with these breaches in the UCI's rules. I understand that cycling is facing a rough road right now when it comes to doping, but that is no excuse for the UCI's blatent disregard for riders rights. Floyd is not the only rider to be unjustly treated. Look at the riders involved in the Operaci�n Puerto investigation. Some riders mentioned in the case were sanctioned immediately and harshly - Basso, Ulrich, Botero, and others were banned from racing because they might have involved in the investigation. Other riders also named in the investigation were allowed to keep racing including Alejandro Valverde. Why the discrepancy? Who knows, not me. When all is said and done in the Floyd Landis case I think that it will become clear that he Continue Reading Click icons to view large pictures.
The Discovery Channel Cycling Team kicked some butt at the Tour of Georgia this year. They won the overall (Janez Brajkovic), 3 stages (2 for Levi Leipheimer and 1 for Gianni Meersman), the team overall, and best young rider - (Janez Brajkovic). If it weren't for the freakishly large breakaway Levi would likely have taken the overall instead of his teammate Brajkovic and would have scored his second stage race victory of the year. You might be saying Discovery should crush the competition at Tour of Georgia since they are a Pro Tour team, but there were 5 other Pro Tour teams there as well and none did nearly as well. Does anyone else think it ironic that balding Levi won the Brasstown Bald stage? You can see his shinny head through the holes in his helmet. Just acoincidence? Maybe, but maybe not. Was that stage sponsored by Rogaine? Hmmm... Levi has always been a fav of mine and I think he is perfectly suited to races of this length - one week is great for him. The latest news out of the discovery camp is that he is still their main man for the Tour de France. I'm not certain that Levi can win a three week tour - he always seems to have one bad day that crushes his chances. Maybe with the might of Discovery behind him he can pull it off this year, I certainly hope so. It would be great to see another American on the top step in Paris, if for no Continue Reading Click icons to view large pictures.
The Hell of the North has always been a favorite of mine. I think it has to do with the brutalness of the course, the grand champions who have won, and the wild variations in the conditions the race is run. This year it was blazing hot, often it is a freezing, wet slog. It is great to see Stuart O'grady win such a big race. He seems to be one of the more likable guys in the peloton. Since my favorite bike racer - big George Hincapie - didn't race this year's Roubaix because of the wrist he broke in the Amgen Tour of California, Stuey is the best guy I could think of to take home that huge cobble trophy. He did it with such panache too. Riding everyone off his wheel and soloing the last 20 or so takes some serious power. Not that he'll ever see this, but congratulations on this incredable win Stuey. I'm already looking forwad to next year's Paris-Roubaix - hopefully Geogre will be healthy and a bit more lucky than in the past and finally get a big cobble of his own.
Welcome. I just started this blog because I'm an ex-racer and long-time cycling fan. I'm also a bit of an IT geek, so this site is really just a combination of a coupld of my favorite things. My plan is to have a place for people to discuss all the aspects of cycling. My focus is going to be on the International racing calendar - mostly Pro tour stuff, but I hope people will comment about local races, cycling related products, doping, mountain biking, cyclocross, or anything else you can think of about the bike. I hope you enjoy what you see, join in the discussion, and even write a post or two of your own. |
