Atlanta Cracker Posted July 20, 2008 Share Posted July 20, 2008 I don't agree 100% with comparing cycling to team sports. Maybe to other individual sports like sprinting or swimming and come to think of it those have their pretty storied histories of cheating too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted July 20, 2008 Author Share Posted July 20, 2008 Team CSC is the other I believe, that has been at the fore of the voluntary anti-doping campaign. Correct as always, ts. I didn't know cycling was even on your radar. That aside, CSC apparently has the most rigorous anti-doping program out there, headed by a top-notch doctor name Rasmus Damsgaard. I don't agree 100% with comparing cycling to team sports. Maybe to other individual sports like sprinting or swimming and come to think of it those have their pretty storied histories of cheating too I can see how with the accolades the individual gets that you'd think that cycling is an individual sport. And I don't know that you're wrong, but I don't think that you're right either. IMO cycling kinda is in some negative zone between the "pure" team sports and the "pure" individual sports. Because even the best rider won't win jack sh*t if he doesn't have a good team supporting him. Heck, Robbie McEwen won several TdF stages in '06 and has had more than enough stage wins this year where it's apparent he hasn't lost it - but Silence-Lotto is all about Cadel Evans right now, so he gets no support - and he has been a total non-factor. The best he could do is a 5th place when Cavendish left him in the dust after being led out by his team. I'm not confusing McEwen with a GC contender, but he's a pretty good example of the difference team support can make. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted July 20, 2008 Author Share Posted July 20, 2008 Today's stage was a blast. Never thought I'd see Frank Schleck in yellow, glad to be proven wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
detlef Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Everyone made such a huge deal about Sastre's great ride today but if Evans is, in fact, one of the best time trialists in the field, then he could have put enough time into him to take the yellow jersey. After all, the winner of the stage beat Sastre by a large enough margin to win the whole thing had he been in Evan's place. Hell, I think Evan's could have finished even a minute behind the stage winner and still won the whole thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atlanta Cracker Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Despite all the cheating stuff again I still enjoyed watching. At least the leader didn't get booted in the last week of the race. Evans seems to be really good at all apsects but not GREAT at any. Good enough for second place which is nothing to sneeze at but not quite enough to get over the top. Last year a lot of people seemed to expect him to possibly pull into the lead on the final time trial but it didn't happen then either. You have to admit, having the yellow and only an hour ride between you and a victory of the Tour has to be the best motivation out there so it's no wonder that Sastre had the ride of his life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ts Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 I'm glad Garmin-Chipotle climbed back into the Top 5 GC... fantastic results for their first tour. Great result for the team in general & for Vandevelde in particular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted July 27, 2008 Author Share Posted July 27, 2008 Despite all the cheating stuff again I still enjoyed watching. At least the leader didn't get booted in the last week of the race. Actually, the cheating news was LESS than it had been the previous couple years. But it kinda piles up in the mind. Evans seems to be really good at all apsects but not GREAT at any. Good enough for second place which is nothing to sneeze at but not quite enough to get over the top. The criticism of the last few tours in particular are that there are no "great" riders out there. Which is true, I guess - none of the current crop of prominent guys is a Big Mig or Armstrong or Hinault. But what is missed is that a Tour with several VERY GOOD riders provides more entertainment value IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted August 9, 2008 Author Share Posted August 9, 2008 Sammy Sanchez gets gold in the Olympic Road Race. My man Cancellara gets bronze, pretty good for a guy whose specialty is the ITT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ts Posted August 9, 2008 Share Posted August 9, 2008 Sammy Sanchez gets gold in the Olympic Road Race. My man Cancellara gets bronze, pretty good for a guy whose specialty is the ITT. Oops ... I forgot the Olympics started already ... Cavendish do anything, or have his events not yet begun? Dude is a machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chavez Posted August 10, 2008 Author Share Posted August 10, 2008 Oops ... I forgot the Olympics started already ... Cavendish do anything, or have his events not yet begun? Dude is a machine. What was Cav going to ride in? The road race is over. I think the TT is upcoming, and am not sure about the track events. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ts Posted August 10, 2008 Share Posted August 10, 2008 (edited) What was Cav going to ride in? The road race is over. I think the TT is upcoming, and am not sure about the track events. I believe that he pretty much started his pro career as a track cyclist. For whatever reason, the Olympics (summer, winter, fall - whenever they have them) have never really been on my radar, but I recall that during this year's TDF, supposedly one of the reasons that Cavendish dropped out (well, aside from the Alps) near the end was to allow him to "focus on preparing for the Olympics", so, I'm curious to see [a] how well he does did the TDF effort wear him down enough to hinder his Olympic performance. E2A: Gotta love Google ... likely more "Cavendish info" than you'd ever want, but, apparently - yes he would be in the track events in this year's Olympics: Mark Cavendish (born 21 May 1985) is a Manx and British racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI ProTeam Team Columbia. Originally a track cyclist competing in the Madison, points race, and scratch race, he moved on to become a professional road racing cyclist in 2007. He made his track debut for Great Britain in the 2004 Moscow World Cup. As a road cyclist, he has quickly risen to prominence as a sprinter. This was exemplified in the 2008 Tour de France where he dominated the bunch sprints to win four individual stages; an act completely unprecedented in the history of British cycling. Cavendish was introduced to the world of cycling about the age of 12, having previously been a keen BMXer. He now splits his time living and training between Manchester and Tuscany, Italy. Edited August 10, 2008 by ts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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