Tour de France -2007

[thesmoothdome]

Does anyone still care? I mean, Lance and the magic he brought are gone. Floyd is finished after riding what was one of the most amazing rides I have ever seen last year during stage 16 only to test dirty that night. Heavy weights Jan Ulrich and Ivan Basso, both contenders when Lance rode don't even make it to the starting line last year because of doping.

This year, the race leader, Michael Rassmussen, is thrown off his team for failing to be honest about his whereabouts 2 months ago and missing mandatory drug tests. Alexandre Vinokoruv wrecks early in the tour, has stitches in both knees and rides like a wild man to climb back in the race, only to be caught with someone elses blood in his body.

The fact is, doping has been around forever. Riders were using alcohol, ether, cocaine, basically anything they could get, to help with the pain of the race, basically since the Tour's inception. Amphetamines were popular for obvious reasons. EPO, blood transfusions, testosterone. The list goes on. Do these things bother you as a sports fan or fan of bicycling or is it a bit like hockey, where fighting is just accepted as part of the sport?

For me, it's 5:10 on the west coast and I'm up to see who will wear the maillot jaune after today's time trial.

As a disclaimer, I'm not a fan of drugs in any sport, and Barry Bonds breaking Hank Aaron's HR record makes me ill.

[Black-Gorrilla]

i was watching it earlier and the tour (more towards the beginning) but i find it very hard to follow.
i been seen all that has been happening, and it is just ridiculous. these are supposed to be the top athletes of their class... and its all this BS about doping and drugs and what not.
i am gonna peak at the results, but don't plan on trying to follow as it goes anymore.

[Ajuva]

The thing about drugs in sports is that they are there whether we want them or not.

Why not open the field to assisted and unassisted disciplines.

I mean if someone invented a pill that gave you the ability to breath hold for 5 minutes with no side affects would you still snorkel?

I am not a supporter of drugs, just a realist.

They will just find ways of hiding them from screening or using them as training enhancements anyway.

If it is legitamised and an athlete chooses to follow that path I would imagine it would be obvious. Remember the Russian femal weightlifters of the late seventies and early eighties.

[Queen]

I still love watching the tour! I'm bummed that my cable provider doesn't offer VS though, I try to catch clips wherever I can.

[Black-Gorrilla]

Originally Posted by Ajuva

I mean if someone invented a pill that gave you the ability to breath hold for 5 minutes with no side affects would you still snorkel?

i think you've made your point...

all those guys on the bikes are beyond any fisical conditioning out there... hey ride up an down mountais for days at a time... and some of them are all doped up... and some are'nt
it caies over to other sports too...

i just dont like how barry bonds is shatering a record.... and most say he is roided up... and you know what..it sucks, cause hank arron cant come back and start taking roids to boost his record...

[thesmoothdome]

I understand your point about it being there whether we want it to be or not Ajuva. However, I'm afraid that splitting the field into dopers and non-dopers wouldn't work. The whole idea of doping is to gain an edge on the competition. If everyone was aware that you're using Product A, wouldn't they be using it? Take it a step further, since not being detected would still be paramount to doping, why wouldn't guys who want to win enter the non-doping competitions if they believe they're using in a way that can't or won't be detected?

[Ajuva]

I suppose I just want them to develop my "No Snorkel" Pill.

You can dream can't you!

[thesmoothdome]

Originally Posted by Ajuva

I suppose I just want them to develop my "No Snorkel" Pill.

You can dream can't you!

That would be sweet

[plot]

they either need to open up the doors and make it legal for everyone to dope, or shut them completely and ban anyone caught cheating. only way to make it fair for other contestants...

and honestly, i'd take the ban anyone caught cheating stance becuase it's horrible what those guys will do to their bodies to win.

[thesmoothdome]

Agreed plot! the tour has had vigorous testing and suspension policies for years now and it's obviously not making a dent in the abuse. It's just one big game to the chemists to stay one step ahead of the testers and one big gamble for the athletes who KNOW that everyone else is doping and that they have to in order to compete and earn a living.