My take on Lance

I was a big supporter of Floyd Landis. I felt he was being railroaded. Then he admits it, bubble burst. Then of course there was Alberto Contador. What is it with the persecution of American winners? Then he was found guilty. But I continued to support Lance Armstrong. I strongly felt that he was being persecuted and that they would not stop until they got him. Call it naivete if you wish, but I really wanted to believe in him. Now that Lance has refused to defend himself any longer, in the face of Tyler Hamilton and Frankie Landreau's testimony against him, I am not so certain. Is Lance also guilty? Is my 7-time Tour de France hero a drug user too? I don't know, but my faith in him as a champion is shaken. My desire to follow cycling has been diminished. In spite of this, I cannot help but continue to be a supporter of Lance Armstrong the man if not the cyclist. It has become apparent that cycling at that level has so many drug cheaters that there is no point in thinking that any of them have not been users at one point in their career or another. I wonder how many other Tour de France champions used performance enhancing drugs or cheated in some way. Lance though has done so much good work through his foundation and continues to be a huge voice in cancer research that I am willing to concentrate on that and forget that he may be a fallen hero in the cycling world.

Still here!

Haven't done anything with this blog for a long time. I thought about abandoning it, but I'm not sure. I haven't even been on my bike for a couple of years and have even thought of selling it. I even took pictures of it in preparation for putting it up on Craigs list. I have been doing a lot of running and have a blog set up for my running as well. I am having second thoughts about giving up cycling now. Part of the reason I haven't gotten back out there is the loss of a local cyclist who was killed during a road race when she ran into the back of a SAG vehicle. I think I got a little scared after that happened and so my bike just sits there. So, a little air in the tires, a little oil on the chain, a battery for the bike computer and I could be back out there. We'll see.

Lighthouse Century 2007

OK, so I only attempted the metric century. After my disastrous Wildflower attempt, I thought biting off a little bit smaller bite might be appropriate. Yeah, I did it! This was really a great ride, 65 miles on the Central California coast from Cuesta College near San Luis Obispo north to Cambria and back. Course was basically flat, just some nice rolling hills. As I was coming through Cambria there was a really nice downhill which was headed for the lunch stop. As I was hammering along at about 35 mph I suddenly realized, oh crap, I have to come back up this after lunch! It actually wasn't so bad though. Got back to Cuesta College feeling really good, although my quads were starting to hurt a little coming through Morro Bay. Finished off with a great bbq chicken dinner and started thinking, I could have probably done the 100! Maybe next year

I'm Trying So Hard

Is it just my pride in being an American, or is it because Floyd Landis is just such a likeable, believable guy? When Floyd made that great comeback from one stage to the next in 2006, I was ecstatic. I know the expectation was that, finally, someone other than an American will win the Tour. Of course, two pre-race favorites were pulled at the last minute, Basso and Ullrich, but I was so excited watching the grit that Landis exhibited in fighting back and winning. When he was shortly thereafter accused of doping, I just knew that it was bogus and that it would be settled soon.

Now it is beginning to look like just maybe he actually did take synthetic testosterone. I still hope that a miracle will occur and that he will be absolved before they strip him of his title. But I don't know, maybe I will need to look for another American cycling hero.

In Case You Haven't Seen This

Dear Friends and Supporters,
I’m of course disappointed and in fact angry about the split decision ruling against me last week.
If any good has come out of this, we have shown that the anti-doping system is corrupt, inefficient and unfair. The content of this decision unfortunately highlights this once again. The straightforward and clear dissent in support of my case contrasts sharply with the scientifically flawed and illogical majority decision against me – not to mention the nonsensical ruling regarding when my proposed two-year suspension should start. I still have hope that the system can, and will be, changed so that no other athlete has to suffer through this process only to be denied a clean chance at justice.
I can sleep well at night knowing that I won the 2006 Tour de France fair and square. I hope that my campaign to clear my name still means something to all of you who have kindly donated to my legal defense fund. Every single contribution to the FFF made a real difference. For your constant support and generosity, I thank you.
At the end of the day, I am proud of what I accomplished in winning the Tour and I’ll always consider myself the rightful winner of the Tour. Whatever the way ahead, it will be good to be moving forward with my life, and at this point I will take some time to review my options.
Thank you for all of the support and encouragement,
Floyd

Reported on Trust But Verify

Morro Bay Ride

Went for a 22 miler today. Beautiful ride up the coast to Toro Creek Canyon, up the canyon a few miles and then back down to Morro Bay. It was a perfect day for riding on the Central Coast. A few clouds, warm sun (high of 67) and just a light wind. I had intended to go up to Cambria and back, but just couldn't resist going 'up the canyon' just to test my legs on some rolling hills. Next weekend is the Lighthouse Century, where I will be attempting the flat metric from Cuesta College up the coast to Cambria and back. Hope I'm ready!

Brad Huff Tour of Missouri Crash Remix 1.0

Doping is nothing new?

Seems as though an old bicycle was dug up recently on the Paris-Roubaix course. According to bikeradar.com the bicycle appears to be from the 20's or 30's. Although there was no race number attached or any way of identifying the bike, there was still a water bottle attached, with traces of cognac and pastis!! Seems as though some individuals have been cheating the system for a long time.

Metric Coming Up Quick

September 29, Lighthouse Metric Century - am I going to be ready? I haven't been on my road bike for a few days. I should be training hard right now but motivation is becoming an issue. I do my Spin classes, yoga, hiking and weights, but I am having a hard time getting on my bike. I am not sure whether I am making excuses or if my schedule is really as tough as I say it is. At any rate, I should be able to do it ok. I have done 55 miles previously and the course is relatively flat and should not be too hot. I definitely am looking forward to it. Every time I get on my bike I feel like I could ride forever, Wildflower Century notwithstanding.

Last Day of Tour - no racing?

I know it is traditional that the final stage into Paris is not competed. It seems to be a gentlemens agreement that whoever has the yellow at that point is allowed to keep it without challenge, making the run into Paris mostly a party, with a little bit of final sprinting by the specialists.

I find myself wishing that the 23-seconds could have been challenged this year. I know it would have been tough, but with some cooperation from some other teams, maybe Cadel or Levi could have made up the difference. I would love to have seen one of those heroic individual performances to vault one of them up to a challenging position. I don't have a great understanding yet of all the nuances of the strategy involved, but 23 seconds just doesn't seem like that much.

I am also a NASCAR fan. I just can't imagine 42 drivers allowing Kevin Harvick to win the race because he went in to the last lap with the lead. In fact, Harvick entered the last lap of this years Daytona 500 in seventh place, but made a tremendous charge out of turn 3 and ended up beating Mark Martin for the victory by a margin measured in thousandths of a second. Obviously, there is a lot of difference between a 200 mph stock car and a 40 mph bicycle, but I would have loved to see that kind of intensity in this years final stage.

Spinning

Besides riding my road bike, I love to Spin. If you don't know what that is, it is a stationary bike ride done on special Spin bikes in organized Spinning classes by certified instructors. It was invented by Johnny G and is an incredible cardio burn. I generally burn between 450 and 600 calories in a 45-minute class.

At the gym where I go, they are cutting some of the Spin classes because of lack of participation. Classes that can handle 20 participants are only getting 5-10 per class. Some of us regulars have gone out and talked to gym members about coming to Spin class. The perception seems to be that it is too hard. They are intimidated by the intensity. We try to explain that when you are new, in no way are you expected to keep up with the instructor or the regulars. Everybody is allowed to work at their own pace and gradually get stronger. That intimidation factor still keeps them away. I wish I could think of a way to get more people into Spinning.

My experience: I took my first Spin class in October of 2002. Foolishly, I tried to keep up with everything the instructor asked and I ended up working way too hard for my current fitness level. I was 56 at the time, and just beginning an effort to get into shape. I left that class swearing I would never go back, it was just too difficult. I didn't go back for 3 months, but I finally decided that I wasn't going to let it beat me. I went back, but this time I worked at a level that I could do, the next time I did a little bit more.... Now, I have been doing 2 or 3 classes a week ever since and I can out-ride all the young-uns in the class. So I know it works, I just wish I could get people inspired to give it a try - the proper way!

SLO Criterium Classic returns!

August 12th marks the return of the Downtown Criterium Classic Cycling Festival to San Luis Obispo, CA. This was an extremely popular event in the 70's and 80's and is sure to be a huge success again in this host city for the AMGEN Tour of California Racing will start at 7 a.m. with the junior category competitors, with the mens professional and Category 1 riders going of at 3:50 p.m. “I think a lot of people are going to show up and a lot of great athletes will race,” said former Olympic bike racer Dirk Copeland of San Luis Obispo in a phone interview Monday night. “It's going to be the best race in California and one of the best races to prepare for the nationals slated for the following weekend in the Chicago area in Illinois.” (Taken from a Santa Maria Times article) This is a great opportunity for the public to see what a great sport cycling is in this era of bad publicity. There will be ample opportunity to observe the progress of the race as the riders will go by any given spot on the course every couple of minutes. Good for you San Luis Obispo for hosting this great event.

What Others Are Saying

Martin Dugard says "I never like to post anything about the final stage.

Sara Best says " I think that a healing has begun".

Brendan Sheehan writes a letter to Bud Selig of baseball about the relative success of doping testing in pro cycling

Cathy Mehl of Versus says "Have you noticed that when the news is negative and things go awry at the Tour, or cycling in general, that it is the cyclists themselves that take matters into their own hands and bring the focus back where it belongs, to the racing itself?

Weight Watchers again

I still need to lose 15 - 20 lbs to get to what I consider my ideal weight. I don't have a lot of willpower on my own, so I think I am going to go back to Weight Watchers. It worked for me before. I should be able to watch my calories and do lots of exercise and get to where I need to be. Just not working that way though. I will count calories for a couple of days and then get lazy. One week I will ride my bike and do some Spinning, the next week I may be lucky to get in one workout. So I think the discipline I get by attending Weight Watchers and weighing in weekly may be what I need to do. Last time I went from 180 down to 165 - I just didn't keep it off. Right now I am 183 and I want to get back down to 165 and stay there.

Pro Cycling Will Survive

We lost some great riders during this years Tour de France. Rasmussen, Bayo, the entire Astana team and on and on. A lot of people are saying that it just shows how 'dirty' pro cycling is. Yeah, a lot of riders are doping. No excuses, it's just dumb. The idea of sport is to excel because you work harder, train harder - not because you learn how to inject chemicals and foreign blood into your system. I still hurt about Floyd Landis. I was so impressed by his comeback to win the tour last year, an absolutely incredible display of talent and heart. But, if he in fact was pumping testosterone, then he deserves to be stripped of his title.

I am really impressed at what Team Slipstream is doing. Their partnership with the Agency for Sporting Ethics represents the kind of action that is needed. Their commitment to drug testing and clean training is to be commended. Already David Millar and Christian Vandevelde have committed to moving to Slipstream/Chipotle next year, even though they are not even a Pro Tour member as yet. I think that says a lot about cyclists who want to excel as athletes, not as 'dopes'.

Good for Discovery??

I don't think so. Having your top competition being picked off by stupid involvement with doping is no way to advance in the GC. So, no we have lost the entire Cofidis team, the entire Astana team, the current yellow jersey wearer and probably the entire Rabobank team before the stage starts tomorrow. This is getting really disgusting. What is happening with professional cycle racing? I am a big supporter of Discovery. I really hoped this would be Levi's year, and I have been very impressed with Contador. Now I can't help but wonder, if they end up with podium finishes, will we find out that they too may have cheated? I certainly hope not, and choose to support them totally, just as I still do Lance and Floyd. Am I just being naive?

Velonews Story about Vinokourov

Vinokourov tests positive; Astana withdraws from Tour
By VeloNews.com
Filed: July 24, 2007

Vinokourov tested positive for homologous blood doping after his time trial win on Saturday
Double stage victor Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana)learned Tuesday that he had tested positive for homologous blood doping following his victory in last Saturday's stage 13 individual time trial.
Vinokourov and his Astana team have reportedly withdrawn from the Tour.
The 33-year-old had lost all chance of winning the Tour with a dismal performance in Sunday's 14th stage but then bounced back to take Monday's 15th stage in the Pyrenees.
Vinokourov, whose performance in Monday's stage was feted in the French press with headlines such as the 'Courage of 'Vino'', had been criticized before the Tour by UCI president Pat McQuaid for his association with Italian sports doctor Michele Ferrari.
McQuaid declined to make any statement on the matter until results of a likely B sample test are released.
"I can't comment on it. We have to follow the rules," said the Irishman, who like predecessor Hein Verbruggen has now seen a team pull out of the world's most famous cycling race over a drugs scandal - Festina having been kicked off the Tour in 1998.
If Vinokourov's B sample comes back positive, Aussie Cadel Evans (Predictor-Lotto) would be declared the winner of stage 13.
Vinokourov becomes the first cyclist to test positive for homologous blood doping - the injection of an other person's red blood cells - since American Tyler Hamilton and Spaniard Santi Perez were found positive for the banned technique in 2004.
Vinokourov's Astana confirmed that the Kazakh star tested positive for blood doping.
"The anti-doping control on Alexandre Vinokourov, which was carried out on July 21 after the time trial in Albi, has tested positive," read a statement released by the Kazakh team. "According to the ethical code of the Astana Cycling Team Alexandre Vinokourov has been suspended from the team with immediate effect. The rider has asked nevertheless for a B sample analysis.
"Informed by the Astana management, the organisers of the Tour de France invited the team to withdraw, which was immediately accepted."
Quick reactionThe news spread through the Tour press corps like an electrical current.
Journalists were attending a Saunier Duval-Prodir team press conference about the team's plans to plant 1 million trees in Mali when the first story moved across the wire: Vinokourov positive for blood doping.
David Millar was the first rider to react to the news: "Jesus Christ - there you go, that's my quote," he blurted out. "What timing, huh? This is just f#cking great."
Addressing Irish sportswriter Paul Kimmage, a former cyclist who exposed doping in pro cycling his 1990 book "Rough Ride" and made waves this year when he challenged Vinokourov for working with Ferrari at Astana's pre-race press conference, Millar said, "Well there you go, Paul."
"I wanted to believe it was a really good day [for Vinokourov]. It makes me very sad. Vino is one of my favorite riders. He's one of the most beautiful riders in the peloton. If a guy of his stature and class has done that, we all might as well pack our bags and go home right now."
Millar later backpedaled on that statement, saying, "The Tour de France should go on. If it stops, I would have to retire tomorrow."
"The irony here is that I was hoping to make an announcement today about my future plans," Millar said, likely referring to rumors that next year he will ride for Slipstream Sports, the strict anti-doping squad run by Jonathan Vaughters.
"I have some projects in the works. I am hoping to work with young riders, to show them that you don't have to dope to succeed."
Millar broke down into tears when he was asked by British journalist Jeremy Whittle if he was all right, saying, "I just feel like crying right now."
The third positiveIf Vinokourov's B sample does indicate the presence of a secondary population of red blood cells, the man from Astana will be only the third rider to have ever triggered a positive on the homologous blood-doping test introduced in 2004.
American Tyler Hamilton tested positive for the presence of foreign red blood cells after a time trial victory at the Vuelta a Espana on September 11, 2004. His then-Phonak-teammate, Santiago Perez, tested positive soon after and both men were suspended for two years. Hamilton, however, embarked on a lengthy and costly legal fight to clear his name. Hamilton continues to maintain his innocence.
Hamilton's suspension ended last fall. He signed a contract to ride with Tinkoff Credit Systems, but has been in limbo with that team since being suspended purportedly for his involvement in the Operacion Puerto drug scandal in Spain.
The homologous blood doping test is based on the recent application of a relatively old technology designed to sub-type populations of red blood cells.VeloNews's Andrew Hood, Neal Rogers and Charles Pelkey contributed to this report

I just can't believe it!!

Just when I was hoping we would get through this Tour de France without a major doping scandal, Vinny and crew are sent packing. As much as I love cycling, it gets harder and harder to answer the naysayers when they claim that professional cycling is nothing but a bunch of dopers. I always defend them, its only a few dummies here and there. Now I really begin to wonder. I have always defended Lance and Floyd, do I need to start worrying about being naive? What about Rasmussen? He is wearing the yellow and is still under suspicion. Is Contador next? Surely he couldn't be doing so well as a young rider without assistance from doping.

Some wise advice

One of the things I love to do is Spinning. If you are not familiar, Spinning is a particular type of workout on a special Spinning stationary bike. It was invented by a guy named Johnny G and is a terrific cardio workout. A class generally lasts about 45 minutes. I have been known to do two classes on a Monday night with 50 minutes on the bike on my own in between classes, a total of about 2-1/2 hours on the bike. I like the way I feel after one of these workouts. I have an online Spin buddy who is also a personal trainer. She tells me that these long sessions may be counter-productive. Her point is that anything over about 45 minutes can start to burn muscle mass rather than fat cells, especially if done at an intensity that approaches VO2 max.

I have to do some thinking about this. I definitely don't want to burn muscle, but at the same time I want to train to be able to stay on the bike for extended periods of time. There is no way I can get into a Spin class and not work intensely, so I may need to re-think the double sessions.

What to eat

Staying healthy as a senior has to involve a combination of proper exercise and proper eating. I think many of us handle the exercise pretty well. Especially as cyclists, because we love our bikes and our rides so much that no body has to tell us to get out and exercise. On the contrary, some of our family and friends think we need to get off the bike and get some other stuff done.

Where I struggle, and I have a feeling I am not the only one, is eating the proper foods in the proper amounts. There are so many things to think about - calories, carbs, sugar, preservatives, artificial this and that, cholesterol. If I pick a food that is low calorie, it has too much carb. Something that is low in cholesterol and sodium is too high in calories. On and on it goes. I need to lose about 15 lbs. There are just some things I shouldn't eat. Chicken wings, pizza, ice cream........ What generally happens is that I eat anything I want in moderation and end up eating too many calories so that when I subtract the calories burned with all my exercise, instead of creating a deficit so that I lose weight, I end up breaking just about even, which means I maintain my overweight condition. Grrr......