Kohl blood doped at the Tour. Wow. You're surprised? Maybe he used gel-test., too?Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, May 25, 2009
Birthday Peloton
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Gmail Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Risk Takers - Talkin' Sh*t on Cuba
Until Obama was inaugurated, I could have counted on Manuel Tellechea or KillKastro to expose the stupidity of the US govt's anti-Cuban policy, but those days are gone. If they were still with us, MaT or KC would deliver a scathing critique of the commentary that accompanied the "Coast Guard" episode of the Discovery show "Risk Takers," which aired for me last night on the HD Theater channel. It was actually an entertaining, engaging show, and I would have walked away giving it two thumbs up but not paying it a second though...until they closed with footage from an actual "mission," in which a Coast Guard crew out of Key West interdicted what they described angrily, with bile in the throat and bitterness on the tounge, as "human traffickes": two guys piloting a boat bringing a family of Cubans to political and personal freedom in the United States.
The sanctimonious hypocrisy that leads otherwise well-intentioned, Johnny Appleseed Americans to draw weapons and point them at a husband and wife and frightened children who are attempting to escape Castro's gulag for the freedoms and opportunity that most fat, lazy, apathetic, complacent, weak, ignorant, loser Americans take for granted is sickening. Though I suppose it's possible, I can't imagine that these same "defenders" of America (and American Policy) would have thrown East Berliners back over the Wall and to their certain imprisonment and perhaps death during the Cold War. But that's functionally what the US Coast Guard does each time it stops - at gunpoint - unarmed Cubans fleeing totalitarianism and returns them to the waiting torturers of the godless, criminal Castro regime.
The sanctimonious hypocrisy that leads otherwise well-intentioned, Johnny Appleseed Americans to draw weapons and point them at a husband and wife and frightened children who are attempting to escape Castro's gulag for the freedoms and opportunity that most fat, lazy, apathetic, complacent, weak, ignorant, loser Americans take for granted is sickening. Though I suppose it's possible, I can't imagine that these same "defenders" of America (and American Policy) would have thrown East Berliners back over the Wall and to their certain imprisonment and perhaps death during the Cold War. But that's functionally what the US Coast Guard does each time it stops - at gunpoint - unarmed Cubans fleeing totalitarianism and returns them to the waiting torturers of the godless, criminal Castro regime.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Gold Shoes and Soviet Warplanes
I'm going to start riding again just for the gear. Gold shoes? Where were these when I was racing?
And electronic shifting? I thought that went out with Mavic Zap?
Thankfully, somethings never change - like the size of the sh*t-eating grin that pops up on my face when I'm in the presence of fighter planes and attack helicopters:
Friday, May 15, 2009
Shannon Rowbury sounds off on doping
The title of this article should be "Shannon Rowbury Whines About USADA's Not Giving Her a Free Pass to Use Supplements Containing Banned Substances." Sheesh.
Rowbury whines:
"Rather than making a blanket statement that essentially leaves us (the athletes) to try to makes sense of the hundreds of products out there on our own or spend thousands to test our vitamins independently, why doesn’t USADA instead use it’s resources to find 1 or 2 safe companies for the athletes to use? All I ask is that USADA help me in my quest for clean records and a clean sport."
But she seems to understand that USADA doesn't certify nutritional products because of liability concerns and the fact that there are simply too many products on the market. She writes:
"USADA admits that it is hard to be sure about the quality, even of a multi-vitamin: Supplements do not appear in DRO™ because USADA is not able to provide a definitive answer as to the status of each product. This is due to a variety of reasons, but primarily to limitations in the regulation and ongoing quality control over dietary supplement labeling, purity and many of their ingredients..."
The reality is that it's unfortunately "Buyer Beware" for those of us athletes who are in the OOC testing pool (I don't even train full-time anymore but I still have to submit my whereabouts in the form of a guaranteed 1-hour availability for testing time window, just like Rowbury). USADA isn't going to pick two out of 200 supplement manufacturers and certify them, because neither Travis Tygart nor his board are going to risk the legal liability or claims of commercial favoritism that would accompany such an action. As long as the government says that we can get the RDA of vitamins and minerals from eating food (regardless of whether or not people do), USADA won't get into the business of certifying non-essential nutritional supplements that themselves aren't regulated by the FDA.
But if Rowbury feels this strongly about the issue, perhaps she can develop the framework for a program whereby the supplement industry itself can fund the analysis of its products. Oh wait - what industry is going to intentionally invite increased government oversight just to satisfy a few whiny elite athletes who typically don't even have enough money to pay retail price for their nutritional products?
Rowbury whines:
"Rather than making a blanket statement that essentially leaves us (the athletes) to try to makes sense of the hundreds of products out there on our own or spend thousands to test our vitamins independently, why doesn’t USADA instead use it’s resources to find 1 or 2 safe companies for the athletes to use? All I ask is that USADA help me in my quest for clean records and a clean sport."
But she seems to understand that USADA doesn't certify nutritional products because of liability concerns and the fact that there are simply too many products on the market. She writes:
"USADA admits that it is hard to be sure about the quality, even of a multi-vitamin: Supplements do not appear in DRO™ because USADA is not able to provide a definitive answer as to the status of each product. This is due to a variety of reasons, but primarily to limitations in the regulation and ongoing quality control over dietary supplement labeling, purity and many of their ingredients..."
The reality is that it's unfortunately "Buyer Beware" for those of us athletes who are in the OOC testing pool (I don't even train full-time anymore but I still have to submit my whereabouts in the form of a guaranteed 1-hour availability for testing time window, just like Rowbury). USADA isn't going to pick two out of 200 supplement manufacturers and certify them, because neither Travis Tygart nor his board are going to risk the legal liability or claims of commercial favoritism that would accompany such an action. As long as the government says that we can get the RDA of vitamins and minerals from eating food (regardless of whether or not people do), USADA won't get into the business of certifying non-essential nutritional supplements that themselves aren't regulated by the FDA.
But if Rowbury feels this strongly about the issue, perhaps she can develop the framework for a program whereby the supplement industry itself can fund the analysis of its products. Oh wait - what industry is going to intentionally invite increased government oversight just to satisfy a few whiny elite athletes who typically don't even have enough money to pay retail price for their nutritional products?
Giro d'Italia TV
I've been enjoying the Giro on internet TV these last few days. The set-up is to use the video feed from Universal but with the audio muted, and in a second window open a feed from the RAI. It's like being back in Italy, except without the doping, focaccia, beautiful roads, cycling, my friends, cappuccino for breakfast, etc. haha. I'd move back to Tuscany or Liguria in a second, without hesitation. Alas, it's not to be - at least not right now, and certainly not to race bicycles. Maybe someday...hopefully.
You know I love Formula 1, and watching today's stage I caught a glimpse of one of my favorite drivers, Jarno Trulli, who looked to be padding around the finish area in Chiavenna! Bravo, Jarno! The Giro is a bike race that transcends sport and is a fundamental part of modern-day Italian culture and identity. This being the 100th anniversary of the Giro has imbued the race with an even more special quality, and I wish I was back in Italy and part of the spectacle.But anyway...while watching the race, I've had the chance to chat with other fans and viewers, and enjoyed the conversations - even the ones that dealt with doping (unfortunately, today the site we were using to grab the RAI feed doesn't have that stream - so there is no chatting to go along with my coffee, bagel and Giro). I can appreciate Michele Scarponi's perspective, however, evident when he was asked about Puerto yesterday after his stage win in Mayrhofen im Zillertal: "I simply answer that what belongs to the past isn't to be talked about anymore." Bravo.
There are only about 50km left to race, so if you're not at work, or even if you are but think you can get away with it, check out the last hour-plus of racing:
Ok, I'm outta here. But before I go, lemme give shout out's to Andrea P., The Chicken, and Alfonso Gatto. Ciao a tutti!
Thursday, May 14, 2009
The Freiburg Affair
Detailed by CyclingNews.com here, the systematic doping of Team Telokom/T-Mobile at the Freiburg University Clinic should come as a surprise to no one, especially in light of the revelations and testimony of several riders since Jose Manzano, including myself.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Giro d'Italia
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Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device.
Thursday, May 07, 2009
Richard Huerta Special Merit Award
Congratulations to Officer Erik Hove of the San Jose Police Dept. for winning the Richard Huerta Special Merit Award!
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Poll # 2 - Astana: dead or alive?
---------> Has the sun set on the team from the former Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic? With the UCI threatening within a week to revoke the team's ProTour license, held by Bruyneel, it's up to Tex to save the day. Will he? Vote now.
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