Exactly. He busted his butt pre-race to get the job done,knew every bump in the road by heart, and it was just such a joy to watch somebody with so much drive and obsessive dedication reap the benefits of that intensive preparation. I just don't see any passion in any of these other guys. Yet. I have to keep reminding myself it's still so early. I don't know. I guess I'm also really bummed out having read via the TdFBlog that the spanish doctor says that "The List" that knocked out Ivan & Jan & half the procycling world is totally out of whack. He says that he's never treated some of the people who were named by Operation Puerto and that some of his patients are still riding in the race. The whole tour this year seems almost irredeemably tainted and I'm wondering if the final results, no matter who wins, will be haunted by so many what-ifs. Sigh.
All it's going to take is one implicated rider to bring down the whole house 'o cards.... I suspect we'll start seeing the evidence soon enough, like race & training schedules of top riders, along w/ their doping schedule / regimen. I fully believe that the doping is widespread, and so stealthy that many who 'haven't ever had a positive' are EPO'ing & blood transfusing to the max.
And yes, I think this includes(ed) Lance Armstrong - I think he had the best doping doctor $$$ could buy, why else would he be hanging around w/ the Italian doctor who, besides doing real jail time in Italy now, is considered to have been a cut above the Spanish methods.
Not that I think that LA deserves an asterisk - I think the playing field was level in that all the top dogs were doping...
...the spanish doctor says that "The List" that knocked out Ivan & Jan & half the procycling world is totally out of whack