Nigel Irritable
Five, Ten, Fifteen Years
I think Wiggins proved today that he could have been an actual contender if he'd concentrated on the cobbles over his career.
The Bicycle Racing Thread 2014
- Thread starter The Boy
- Start date
Nigel Irritable
Five, Ten, Fifteen Years
There's no reason to give him any more of the benefit of the doubt than that given to any other pro cyclist who hasn't been popped.
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
Yes and no. He's watched far more than your average pro.
Nigel Irritable
Five, Ten, Fifteen Years
So was Lance. There's no reason to think that Froome is subject to any more OOC tests than anyone else. If he spends time in Kenya he probably gets tested less often rather than more.
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
Yeah, I suppose so. Although that kind of assumes that either he's got an undetectable programme or that Brailsford, etc, are in cahoots which is harder to buy.
Nigel Irritable
Five, Ten, Fifteen Years
Anyway, I'm sure we will have plenty of time to talk about whether GC riders are doping when they are going up the side of mountains in July.
Sigmund Fraud
893 all the way.
Boonen showed his desperation but I still think Thor and Thomas should have got onboard and said why the fuck not. Chinny and Sagan showed some power but flattered to deceive...I think everybody was totally fucked after Mens en Pevele. From such a class group at the finish it was an oddly sterile finale. There was no moto1 troubling acceleration on the pave today, maybe a combination of hot weather and less hooched riders
Ted Striker
Foot's on the other hand
Just got back from the velodrome...a brutal but awesome weekend. Too bad the ridiculous head group didn't make it to the end to duel it out in (or closer to) Roubaix, tho kudos to Terpstra choosing when to hit it.
Caught Arenberg forest too - absolutely mental to see the 'train' go through at pace (when not 24 hours prior I was chugging it nearly getting thrown out of my saddle).
Caught Arenberg forest too - absolutely mental to see the 'train' go through at pace (when not 24 hours prior I was chugging it nearly getting thrown out of my saddle).
DownwardDog
Riding a Brompton with a power meter.
http://www.cqranking.com/men/asp/gen/rider.asp?riderid=5789
Look at that CQ ranking graph - "not normal" as Lance was fond of saying. You don't get that dizzying spike upward in performance from fucking "marginal gains".
ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
Depends if you buy the bilharzia excuse. I've never known which way to go on that. Besides, CQ isn't a measure of physical performance, is it? It could be argued that the peleton is recalibrating as it gets cleaner.
Anyway, all that sounds hopelessly naive, I know. I'm just exploring the idea of a clean Froome. It strikes me that the likes of Brailsford, Kerrison, etc, and even David Walsh wouldn't risk their careers on a doped rider. So it comes back to a toss up between Froome having undetectable (with current tests) doping methods that others haven't or Sky having organised doping. Both seem hard to believe. But then so do Froome's performances.
I'm pretty sure I typed out the exact same series of posts during the last TdF.
Anyway, all that sounds hopelessly naive, I know. I'm just exploring the idea of a clean Froome. It strikes me that the likes of Brailsford, Kerrison, etc, and even David Walsh wouldn't risk their careers on a doped rider. So it comes back to a toss up between Froome having undetectable (with current tests) doping methods that others haven't or Sky having organised doping. Both seem hard to believe. But then so do Froome's performances.
I'm pretty sure I typed out the exact same series of posts during the last TdF.
DownwardDog
Riding a Brompton with a power meter.
There are two possible scenarios really:
1. Froome is clean, he's a once in a generation athletic prodigy whose full potential was masked by a tropical disease - including for several years before he actually contracted it. Also, as he's laying waste to the peleton, the top 20 GC contenders must also be clean.
or
2. He's doping and so is everyone else.
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ChrisFilter
Like a boss.
Well, when you put it like that...
sleaterkinney
Well-Known Member
But would you get it from being properly trained, rested etc at Sky as opposed to Barloworld?. I find him getting a doping program past British cycling a bit hard to believe - unless they're in on it. does he get his performance from coming from Kenya's high altitude, same as the runners?
sleaterkinney
Well-Known Member
In case you're wondering what to do with your Monday evening:
Nigel Irritable
Five, Ten, Fifteen Years
Barloworld were not some tiny team and others who moved on to bigger teams did not undergo a Froome like transformation - and his happened years after he joined too.
It certainly isn't about an advantage from being Kenyan, as his family moved there recently. Unless of course Lysenko was right after all. The degree to which Kenyan runners have benefitted from a genetic advantage as opposed to benefiting from living and training in a country with no EPO testing is not clear, but as Froome certainly isn't descended from people adapted to high altitude living it isn't relevant to him.
I don't think any team, even assuming complete anti-doping honesty, can prevent an athlete from doping if they are determined to. They can make things trickier and they can provide a discouraging atmosphere rather than the traditional highly encouraging one, but that's about it.
The Froome issue centrally comes down to two explanations: he was always a freak talent but bilharzia suppressed that talent until late in his career. Or he transformed himself through "other" means. Normally a massive jump in performance has the usual cycling/pro sports explanation, but normally there isn't an actual blood disease involved, something that does actually, ahem, muddy the waters.
Speaking of dope, anyone seen this yet?
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/paris-roubaix/paris-roubaix-pills-found-120446
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/paris-roubaix/paris-roubaix-pills-found-120446
Sigmund Fraud
893 all the way.
Sceptical of this - 'Worthing based vetinary practice company Thames Medical' find the vial; so it just happens to land into the arms of a group who have access to test proceedures. There is mention of a heavily ripped jersey...did they clock which team this rider belonged to? Surely video footage would narrow this rider down? Surely if they are 'cycling fans' as stated they saw who the rider was?
Load of bollocks IMHO.
DownwardDog
Riding a Brompton with a power meter.
Plus, if you were going to dope during the race, you'd conceal it in food or something. Not ride around with a test tube marked TEST DRUGS OR SOMETHING in your jersey pocket.
I would agree with both but thought it curious/interesting. Tbh, I was assuming the ripped jersey comments were their way of identifying the rider without naming him iyswim, and was just curious if anyone knew who so we could throw around unsubstantiated rumours.
Sigmund Fraud
893 all the way.
The Roubaix tech stuff this year was a bit duller than normal I thought. Vanmarcke on 30mm tubs is a little
, that is a lot of rubber to hustle for 160 miles at those speeds. In contrast De Vlaeminck used to ride 700x18 or 700x20 tubs and his bike was exactly the same as any other race so he could predict its handling better. Can't help thinking massive tyres like that is a counter to bastard stiff mid section carbon rims that everybody seems convinced are the way forward.
, that is a lot of rubber to hustle for 160 miles at those speeds. In contrast De Vlaeminck used to ride 700x18 or 700x20 tubs and his bike was exactly the same as any other race so he could predict its handling better. Can't help thinking massive tyres like that is a counter to bastard stiff mid section carbon rims that everybody seems convinced are the way forward.
DownwardDog
Riding a Brompton with a power meter.
The Roubaix tech stuff this year was a bit duller than normal I thought. Vanmarcke on 30mm tubs is a little
I also notice gentlegreen has been moonlighting as a mechanic for EUC.
Nigel Irritable
Five, Ten, Fifteen Years
So Gilbert wins the three minutes of fun classic. Is he back to his 2011 best? I certainly hope not. Meanwhile Purito crashes and is now saying that he doesn't feel good and will be strictly riding for Moreno at FW.
And today Sam Bennett won the Rund um Koln, which I'd reckon is his biggest win to date.
And today Sam Bennett won the Rund um Koln, which I'd reckon is his biggest win to date.
Nigel Irritable
Five, Ten, Fifteen Years
Yes a weird offer. NetApp are actually good at TTTs, although not normally as good as today. And as this is apparently a selection consisting of people who are amongst those being considered for the Tour, all of the domestiques were going to be very motivated.
That said, Rusvelo may be fighting it out with Novo Nordisk, CCC Polsat and Drapac for the much sought after title of worst Pro Continental squad, but they weren't actually that bad today.
Sigmund Fraud
893 all the way.
Fuck net betting - I took a free £10 bet with Youwin on Terpstra to win P-R@16/1. As it wasn't real money they will only pay me out if I bet 30 times in 30 days at oods of 3/1 or higher on the original stake of £10. My one flirtation with online betting cos I had kids to put to bed and couldn't make the bookies. Paper slips every time.
twistedAM
Left Of The Dial
Fuck net betting - I took a free £10 bet with Youwin on Terpstra to win P-R@16/1. As it wasn't real money they will only pay me out if I bet 30 times in 30 days at oods of 3/1 or higher on the original stake of £10. My one flirtation with online betting cos I had kids to put to bed and couldn't make the bookies. Paper slips every time.
The girls at my local Paddy Power are getting used to me sticking a few quid on the Classics. They have to phone head office every time but don't seem to mind and are rooting for Stybar to come up trumps one of these days
I put a fiver each on him, Niki and Boonen for P-R
Ahhh, the old anything that isn't a horse, dog or soccerball team problem. One and only time I took a bet for cycling was day before the final stage in last year's tour. Guy was expecting the whole telephone call to race room with mispronounced names and a telephone operator who doesn't know that people race bikes business till he sees me with my feet up on the counter watching that day's stage live while trying to explain the intricacies of the Break of the Day to cashier.
