“The Phonak Cycling Team was notified yesterday by (world cycling body) the UCI of an unusual level of testosterone/epitestosterone ratio in the test made on Floyd Landis after stage 17 of the Tour de France,” Phonak said in a team statement.
Freakin frogs, trying to destroy cycling. If Floyd’s a doper, then he should be strung up by his nether bits, no question.
But there’s a part of me that wonders if the elevated testosterone might have just been a natural physiological reaction – fight or flight, whatever.
(Insert French Joke Here – I’m too livid to make one up)
What is it? Is there too much money tied up in sport? Have we invested too much in the big stage?
Actually, that’s probably part of the problem. We expect others to provide excitement, instead of doing it ourselves. The solution is to get off our butts and enjoy the summer. Enough moping for me.
Are you part of the solution? Who are you racing? Who is being thrilled vicariously through what you’re doing?
i think there is a book with that title “get off our butts and (do something..)”
You hit the nial on the head: the western world is becoming a society of watchers, rather than a society of active folk. Neil Postman was right: TV is creating a lazy nation with the attention span of a gnat (especially with regard to the truly important stuff in the world).
Does all of this madness piss me off? Sure. It brings a bad name to road cycling and cyclists of all shapes, sizes, abilities and disciplines. As I note in today’s blog entry, I even get asked the questions with regard to my non-racing cycling club – it’s totally insane.
So how am I handling it? By throwing a leg over the bike and riding!
Tell me Landis, the Quaker, didn’t play it straight. What’s the world coming to? There are meant to be boundaries in civility and competition, which seems to not include the UCI.
I shared your reaction as I read the newspaper about Floyd, it stinks!
I don’t know if I am thrilling other vicariously with my running and racing, but I am sure having a good time going out there and DOING it!