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Comments - The First Addiction
July 23, 2010
Thanks for refreshing the memories I hold dear from riding when I was stationed LR AFB. I always enjoyed starting downtown heading up to the Heights and screaming back down to the river. You never realize how good you have it. . . Soon to be USAF, Retired. . .
- Rob, FWB, FL
July 19, 2010
NYVelocity is great- it is one of the few honest media outlets in the business covering what is the greatest sporting frauds of the last 100 years. They were one of the first sites to annouce Lance V2 and they are one of the few sites that brings real experts (an example: asheden interview) in the field of doping for their perspective.
- fat chance, NYC
July 18, 2010
those are some very interesting photos
- Tim, Australia
July 17, 2010
Exactly when did "shorts" become "half shorts"? I have both "shorts" and "bib shorts", and the difference is quite obvious. Why do we need another term to confuse things?
- Brian, Nashua, NH
July 15, 2010
Blood doping is an artificial increase in your body's blood volume. How could that be considered anything but cheating?
- Chris, Brklyn
July 14, 2010
I believe brajkovic has been rocking half shorts too. (http://cdn.media.cyclingnews.com//2010/07/11/2/pic125503694_600.jpg)
- Josh, LA
July 14, 2010
Check out Chris Horner's race reports on Oregon Live: http://blog.oregonlive.com/horner/index.html
- Siggy, Washington, DC
July 14, 2010
I like nyvelocity because they have (along with very few others, Cosmo is another) a quality that is sorely lacking among pro or amateur writers on cycling: irreverence! (And courage). Why so few writers from the cycling press can rise above the role of a cheerleader when it comes to Lance is a sad thing indeed. And those that do are vilified (Kimmage, Lemond). I guess it is about money and at least you are clear about that: you like the guy because in part he helped line your now deep pockets through his popularity...
But enough with this fashion police stuff! Half the blogs are about what is "pro" what is not : really who cares: I feel like I'm in an American high school (a fate I've been lucky enough to avoid if South Park is any indication). Again, you make money from this sartorial obsession (it's like the GQ of cycling: so-so style, little substance) so it does make sense. But you should see what Bernard Thevenet (and other ex-pros) rides and wears on a ride! Then again, perhaps you should not: you'd probably faint!
- Oliver, Carrboro
July 14, 2010
Serious question, then, not snarky or rhetorical: do y'all think Schleck/Contador, having crashed in that place, had it in them to pull back to the lead group with enough left to climb and stay in the top five?
- patrick, sewanee, tn
July 13, 2010
To Patrick, Sewanne: judging by the quotes, LA wasn't considered to a real GC contender by the peleton -- or he had worn out his welcome. Clearly they were right. He didn't have it in him.
- JM, Boston
July 13, 2010
I'm fine with the human, all-too-human story that unfolded Sunday. I just wish we could have watched it gracefully rather than with the soundtrack of sniveling Phil and Paul making excuses for a once-great champion. Cadel crashed too and didn't get dropped. He rode into yellow with a broken elbow. Lance had some road rash. So what.
- mark, Salt Lake City
July 13, 2010
Thanks for the pics of LR. Makes me homesick.
- Clint, Somerville
July 13, 2010
How do Andy Schleck and Cav ever find their way to the podium? Must be impossible to see anything with those Jawbones on? Really?
- Big D, Toronto
July 13, 2010
Great pics from around the Little Rock area! I do hope you continue doing this in your articles! Thanks for your info, I know I am looking forward to my next ride in Paris (Tx.) this coming weekend
- Lance, Benton, Ar.
July 13, 2010
The ethical basis for the ban on autologous blood doping is that it constitutes recourse to extraordinary means in order to gain an advantage over the competition. Think about it. It requires medical assistance and long term conservation of blood, with severe health consequence if something should go wrong. Do we really want people to HAVE to do that in order to be competitive? In that sense, popping EPO pills is much less extraordinary and much more accessible to the common man.
The ethical question revolves around obedience to rules. It is ubnethical to cheat in order to win. Whether or not there should be a rule against autologous blood doping is not an ethical issue. It is a question of how the game should be played. Do we really want cycling to be a game of doctors and portable freezers?
- François, Montréal
July 13, 2010
Silly CC. Things aren't unethical because they're dangerous; they're unethical because they're unethical. It's its own category. Autologous blood doping isn't against the rules because it's dangerous; it's against the rules because it's cheating.
You accomplish what you can with hard work and training and talent and determination. If you want to use more than that, then it's not sports anymore; it's entertainment.
- Joe, Saint-Jean-de-Fontuckienne
July 13, 2010
I noticied you're riding a Canyon...any possiblity you'll pick up distribution duties in the US?
- Matt, Sea Cliff, NY
July 13, 2010
Simple reason why autologous blood doping should be banned - you get stronger without being on the bike or in the weightroom. That's my personal line in the sand: getting stronger on the bike should require being on the bike. Period.
- JClev19, Newton, MA
July 13, 2010
Where did you get the SRAM kit? I've seen it on their website and coveted one since then. How can you get your hands on one?
- Tyler, Gilbert, AZ
July 12, 2010
The Service Course and Boulder Report complete my reads, but for the newly emerged text of the year, the Proycling daily digest has been great. Toes the line somewhere between tweet and blog, but great.
- Joakim, Cupertino
July 12, 2010
I too thought Navarro was wearing 1/2 shorts, but if you look closely - they look like Castelli Free bibs - straps very close to the sides.
From La Gazzetta Della Bici: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Uzq0Ac7cmI4/TDuCrhqj7_I/AAAAAAAAG_U/VBN41FYYrYA/s1600/IMG_7772.jpg
If you look closely at the shorts you can see the triangle of fabric that would indicate their "bib-ness". Cheers.
- Peter, Toronto
July 12, 2010
On the blood doping thing - I think it's worth having this debate because it ultimately helps us confirm why we (or at least I) think it's wrong. After all, pro riders are apparently still doing it, and surely justifying it to themselves on the argument that they are just injecting stuff back into their body that it had made on its own. The justification for EPO is a tiny step away: it's just adding more to what the body already makes anyway. Testosterone? Same thing. (Hey, on an unrelated note: I wonder if any of these guys get lipo in late winter, to help work off fat they put on over Christmas?)
Anyway: it's unethical because it involves creating an artificial physiological advantage. Your own biology did not create the advantage on its own thanks to better training. After all, you can increase your blood volume by training harder. But doing it artificially (regardless of the source) creates an artificial advantage that does not reflect the hard work you did or didn't do. It only reflects that you want to win really, really badly, which is not the basis for deciding who wins.
- Marc, Ontario Canada
July 12, 2010
Agreed on the ethical debate of the blood exchange. After all, we take things like Endurox or Hammer Gel or other sythetic recovery agents all the time. Despite that those items are not technically banned items, the root fact is that they do indeed boost our performance and aid in recovery in ways not otherwise possible. So when it comes to the idea of extracting your own lactate free blood and re-installing it on a day when you are trashed...I'm of the opinion that so long as you have not modified said blood chemically...then whats the issue? It just seems like good science for higher performance tuning of the engine to me. Its in the same book of practice as altitude tents or altitude training.
- Mike , Houston
July 12, 2010
Even though they aren't that great for group road riding, I don't notice my Jawbones at all when I am mountain biking or running, or even while riding alone on the road. I still want a pair of Radar's, though, for when I'm riding with a group.
- Andrew, Morgantown, WV
July 12, 2010
I'm not convinced Navarro has half/shorts. Levi looks like he's got half shorts as well but in another view you can see they're bibs. alot of the bib straps on these skinny bastards are way to the side maybe because of the bare "nipple chafe thing?"
- Jim, Troy,NY
July 12, 2010
Interesting on the Prolight, because earlier in the season almost all Giro-sponsored Pro Tour riders were using the Ionos. I am not sure if it just comes down to weight-weenieism at the Tour, or if Giro applies subtle pressure to use the Prolight during the high visibility (Tour) season. I'm with you though, I prefer a little more meat around my skull. And basing your helmet choice on the fact that a majority of Pro guys who only wear helmets when they race is maybe not the best policy.
- EKH, YVR
July 12, 2010
Brifter is the worst sniglet in history.
- Todd, Los Angeles
July 12, 2010
No bibs for Navarro? Maybe he doesn't like the "emery board effect:" either. "Brifters" is sort of like "clipless pedals"-- a term that has generally outlived its relevance. Integrated brakes/shifters have long been the norm even on entry-level machines. The implosion of Armstrong may be just the thing to win the hearts and minds of a French public who have long admired racers willing to take a beating and hang in there. I don't get your ethical argument regarding autologous blood doping. You are adding stuff to the system that is not there by nature or adaptation just as you are when injecting synthetics and drugs.
- PawleeWalnutz, NYC
July 12, 2010
Random points.
1. I love NYVelocity.
2. Avoriaz, not Avoraiz.
3. Autologous blood transfusions: Sure, let's have the entire peloton lie in beds with needles sticking into their arms, bags dripping into veins riders' own blood boosted by altitude training.
4. Not pro -- an amateur telling the whole world what is PRO, whatever the "F" PRO means.
- ralph, san francisco
July 12, 2010
Thanks for the Fotheringham article, which reminded me of something. Doesn't the peloton usually slow down when a GC guy crashes? Was it not done here because it was at the base of a climb? Somebody help me out.
- patrick, sewanee, tn
July 12, 2010
Wait, pave in Little Rock?...
Also, that's a Faux Doe's. I grew up in the MS Delta.
You're so right about Michael Barry, he's one of the best. The Times...grr.
- patrick, sewanee, tn
July 12, 2010
NICE ARTICLE, BUT WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THE CANYON FRAME?? ARE YOUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS GOING TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY OF PURCHASING ONE????
- MICHAEL, FLORIDA
July 12, 2010
I agree about the jaw bones. I actually pulled out the M Frames for the crit i did this weekend. I didn't mean to at first, but i reached into the bin for something else and they came along on the way out. I figured it must be a sign or something Turns out they were perfect in helping me fight off all of the corner snipers during the race. I tried to replace them years ago with the racing jacket and that plan lasted about 2 rides. Sorry M Frames, I forgot you were the best.
- Jason, Metro Dtown
July 12, 2010
I always get confused reading this blog. Anyone that disagrees with you is a "Hater" and it is ok to hate the haters. Hating the haters does not make you a hater, it makes you.....what exactly? Never question the myth, the groupies get angry.
- Fausto, Castellania
July 12, 2010
"The simple act of riding -- wasn't that the first addiction? -- has it been trumped by goal-mongering? The joy of an ordinary spin, the beauty of a vista…Instead must it always be a workout or recovery or an epiphany?"
Reading "Born to Run" http://www.amazon.com/Born-Run-Hidden-Superathletes-Greatest/dp/0307266303 right now, and the author notes that the love of running (ugh) is the secret to being a great runner...looking forward to changing my approach to riding this summer and seeing how it changes my attitudes....and maybe my performance.
- matt, denver
July 12, 2010
NYVELOCITY - if you're running light on negativity and lack something worthless to read - for sure sign up to get all the noise, retweets of other negative time consuming morons. I'd rather come to this blog for some real stories - it's balanced and entertaining
- Greg, Manhattan
July 12, 2010
Lance won a mountain bike race didn't he? I never liked the Jawbone, mostly because of the price, but the price + the frame. They look ridiculous even if all the cat 3 shop guys are wearing them.
Kudos to the hanger replacement photographer, that was my job for a couple of years at a catalog. So boring.
- grayson, california
July 12, 2010
well said re: lance. nyvelocity has a long and for the most part pathetic record when it comes to such nonsense.
- matt, new york
July 12, 2010
Thank for the reminder. Your direct mail postcard entices us to visit the site because July is the "best month to be a cyclist". Just being out and enjoying the fruits of all the training rides and intervals is one of the reasons why the high summer is the best time to be a cyclist.
- Jay, Mansfield, OH
July 12, 2010
Far less interesting than the derailleur hanger site, this one trumps it. That is, until you travel. http://www.pikapackworks.com/
- Noah, Little Rock
July 12, 2010
Please, a defense of autologous blood doping? Convenient retroactive dimishment of sins, isn't it? Sounding very Pope-ish - it's, needless to say, not the "what" it's the "why" and the "how" and more importantly, the access and exclusivity. If everyone could afford, what was it? $800,000 a year for exclusive access to the best in the business, it might be less of an issue, but really, rules are rules, aren't they? Talk to your account next time you're filing your taxes for you company - you might not agree, or even argue that 'everyone is doing it' but it's still a rule: what do you tell your employees? "It's not really cheating"...
- Roadent, Toronto
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