bike-pure: fighting for a cultural shift in cycling

I'm a romantic realist, and I can accept that doping will never be completely eliminated from sport - just like cheating is a regrettable facet of life for some people. However, thanks to Bike-Pure, fans of cycling can now unify their voices and deliver loud-and-clear the message that we do not accept the fallacy that to be successful in cyclesport you have to dope. We want clean champions and those sponsors that fund ethical squads are the ones that will enjoy our patronage.If you haven't already, join the bike-pure movement, and tell 'em I sent ya.

Competitive Cyclist

It's been several years since I was first "wowed!" by the online and print advertisements for Competitive Cyclist, but I've finally had cause to do business with them. And I'm happy to report that the experience was wholly positive. I've often wondered who it was who wrote their two blog entries in which my name appears, because I would have loved to have chatted with him (or her?), but perhaps it was better going through the transaction anonymously - it gave me a true taste of the Competitive Cyclist (road) customer experience. If for some reason your needs can't be met by your local bike shop and you're thinking about making an online purchase (especially if you're considering a high-end road bike like a Pinarello, and you are determined not to buy it from a brick-and-mortar bike store) I recommend giving C.C. a whirl. If you call them for road stuff, be sure to ask for Andy. [Disclaimer: Ads for Competitive Cyclist have appeared on this website, though they were placed by Google without any feedback from me. Example below.] But before you call, how about a glance at a Pinarello Prince, in 2008 livery:

 (c) Competitive Cyclist

And below are examples of the ads that have appeared on Pappillon.

I know, I know...it's been a lean week for blogging. The good news is that an interview with Jesus Manzano is in the planning stages, and Pappillon contributor Duane Corbett reports that his interview with Michael Kalinski may be ready for publication by next week. We eagerly await it. Enjoy your weekend!

Last image: the actual CC website - rejoice!

UPDATED: Bernhard Kohl - from KOM to Retail

As Hedwig Kröner reports for CyclingNews.com, Bernhard Kohl, who confessed to doping during a career that saw him reach the final podium in the 2008 Tour de France while boosting with CERA, recently opened a bike shop in Vienna, Austria. Kohl started following me on Twitter just before the opening of Fitstore 24 - Bikepalast Kohl, and if it wasn't for the automatic email notice I received when he listed me, I probably wouldn't be writing about Kohl now. His success in the '08 Tour included winning the KOM competition, but it came at a moment for me when I was still very much not interested in riding my bike (much less following the Tour!) and subsequently didn't have any emotion invested in the Austrian. So I wasn't particularly happy for him, but nor was I crushed when news of the positive test came out.

While I was aware of the involvement of his former manager in the doping scheme, and winced at the harsh treatment dealt Kohl by less sympathetic fans and pundits, it wasn't until I read a forum post where Kohl was mocked for becoming a shopkeeper after having nearly won the Tour de France that I devoted any reading time to the guy. I find the braying of Mark Cavendish and others to be off-putting at times, and don't see how their attempts to ostracize riders who've served doping sanctions but are returning to cycling does anything to encourage other dopers to come forward with information that could fight the system. I also found the personal attacks on Kohl and the disparaging comments about his opening the bike shop to be offensive. After all, the guy simply got caught doing what many riders have done and still do (without testing positive, of course), fessed up, did his time and chose not to return to racing.

Maybe he thought he would have the same difficulty finding a team as Michael Rasmussen, or maybe he worried that he simply wouldn't be competitive enough without some form of blood manipulation. Regardless, Kohl made the gut-wrenching decision not to attempt a comeback. No one who hasn't been there can truly understand the horror one feels when forced to accept the reality that racing - such a major part of most cyclists' lives - will no longer form an active component of their identity. It's atomizing, and a punishment infinitely worse than a two-year ban given to a younger rider who has time to restart his career and carry-on after serving a sanction.

The example set by Floyd Landis last year could change the equation somewhat. To go from Tour de France WINNER to struggling domestic pro being assessed $20 fines for mid-race littering is a helluva step-down. Maybe Kohl is counting his lucky stars that he didn't get back on the bike. [Note: I couldn't find a link to the results sheet that listed Landis's placing and the fine, nor do I remember the event date - if anyone can help out, please leave a comment.] Here is a link to the communique detailing Landis's littering fine.

So, in reading Kohl's response to the following question from the interview with ORF.at, I couldn't help but smile for the new shopkeeper, while at the same time I lamented the lack of news on a 2010 contract for Landis. Good luck to both men!

ORF.at: What do you feel at the thought of the new cycling season?

Kohl: That's a different life. It was beautiful, but now I have new goals. Luckily I have the gift of being able to concentrate on new goals with the utmost dedication. And it gives me great pleasure. If it were not so, today I would probably cry, sit there and I wish to once again allowed to ride on bicycle races. But now I'm satisfied.

I'm glad he can say he's satisfied, and isn't dead like too many others. Read the complete interview with Bernhard Kohl here.

UPDATE: I just saw that Twisted Spoke dedicated some column inches to Mr. Kohl and his bike shop. Great quote:  

"First, we’re happy for Bernhard Kohl in his post EPO life stage as a bike shop owner. He’s moved on, made amends, spoke honestly of his mistakes and most importantly, relocated his soul. Which makes the whole face-in-mirror routine a lot more fun."

And writing like Matt Walsh's makes reading about ex-dopers a lot more fun, too. So give TS a whirl, here.

My Only Cycling-related Prediction for 2010

My only cycling-related prediction for 2010 that I think is worth noticing by the pundits and punters alike is that young pro/elite riders will realize the value of making their own independently articulated anti-doping stances, and @bikepure (BikePure/bikepure.org) will be the vehicle of choice by which they release these statements and give meaning to them through ongoing action and commitment. They will eschew traditional cycling media and hired-gun PR flaks, and will use "established" blogs and outlets as secondary or tertiary distribution vehicles. Likewise, non-elite riders will make the same kinds of declarations through @BikePure because there is finally a critical mass or fans who are frustrated enough with the rot that has festered inside cycling for so long - a cancer with which I, too, was infected and that I even - to my most profound shame - helped to spread for a time - until the insanity stopped.

While I support @BikePure, the prediction I refer to in this post is based on my own analysis and soundings taken at various points throughout our sport. I'm not paid to promote Bike Pure, or otherwise lobby on their behalf. I'd do that anyway - for free!

But if you believe in clean cycling, and you are bored with endless forum discussions about the doping problem and feel powerless to effect change - rejoice! In Bike Pure, you may have a means to turn individual frustration into collective, game-changing action. I know that I'm wearing MY blue wristband and have a blue headset space on the bike I can't ride! I don't agree with every aspect of the proposals BP would like to put forward to fight doping in sport - but, in the sign of a truly "open" and inclusive organization, Andy and Myles don't require orthodoxy from their supporters. Dialogue leading to action rids cycling of dope. Bike Pure has a role to play in that process, and I'll let the organization speak for itself below:

BIKE PURE MISSION STATEMENT:

Bike Pure is an independent, global organization for fans, riders and the cycle trade to join together in a united stance for a new era of positive cycling.

Bike Pure will spearhead constructive, structured reform, to restore the integrity of cycle sport and create a nurturing environment for future champions to succeed.

CYCLISTS WORKING FOR CYCLING:

Bike Pure is committed to redirecting trust to Professional cycle sport. Bike Pure is an umbrella group for all concerned parties in cyclesport. A medium to let the fans, riders, teams and cycle trade join together in a united stance for an new era of clean cycling

For decades cycling has had a problem with endemic drug use. The cheats have destroyed the public image of cycling. Although the sport is cleaning up, there were over 60 riders caught cheating in 2009 using artificial, performance enhancing methods. Cycling fans worldwide deserve heroes they can believe in: Clean up or clear out. We desire a truly clean sport, with real riders that the fans, sponsors and media can have faith in.

HOW:

With the aid of our global, talented membership we are proposing structural reform to the system that is failing the next generation of champions. Each member has a forum to let his voice be heard through Bike Pure.

Bike Pure encourage the athletes and teams to sign an 'Honour Code’, declaring that they race clean, without performance enhancing drugs and with a pledge that will encourage our sport to flourish. If any rider should be deemed positive, Bike Pure are lobbying for stiffer penalties for offenders - 4 year ban minimum and life bans for repeat offenders [Editor's Note: Here is an instance where Joe Papp does not blindly follow Bike Pure - he does not support a four-year minimum ban for a first-time offender.]. It is through the actions and support of our members that we can apply pressure on authorities for these measures to be implicated.

Riders responsible for their own behaviour, their sponsors can have faith that their investment is safe, and the public can have confidence in the results if they are clean.

We are not naive to think this is a complete solution, but it is an important first element getting the clean riders to joining forces with the supporters and laying a foundation to protect the mental and physical health of future champions and the integrity of our wonderful sport."