Armstrong Taking IV's to Continue Tour Race

CBS News and the BBC/OLN Coverage ^ | July 19, 2003 | Phil Liggett

[Akira]

I'm waiting for the Lance of previous years to just take off on a mountain climb and leave the others in the dust

I think today (along with yesterday's TT) made it clear that the Lance of previous years might not be making an appearance in 2003. That look on his face is not a bluff, he's at his limit on those climbs. It didn't help that Heras left Spanish body parts all over the mountain today, but the bottom line is that Lance just doesn't seem to have that overdrive. For the first time in their 3 Tours against each other, Jan has confidence and that can be a dangerous thing. Before today, I wasn't worried about the TT b/c Lance has lost TTs to Jan before, but never a mountain stage like this (except for a few years ago when he bonked due to not eating enough).

Today was a bummer.

As for the turd brain that said cycling is not a sport, every year you get those types. ESPN.com (page 2) had an article on this just yesterday, some moron trying to stir the pot and make a name for himself. I'd be very curious to hear your definition of "sport". Are you also going to echo other idiots and say that Lance is also not an athlete?

[TomB]

Are you also going to echo other idiots and say that Lance is also not an athlete?

Yes! I remember that!

Lemme see, if I recall the argument correctly it goes something like "Lance isn't an athlete because to be an athlete you have to be able to do something difficult very well, like throw a ball, kick a ball, hit a ball or catch a ball (see a pattern?). And since we all know how easy it is to ride a bike, it doesn't take any special skills, so Lance isn't really an athlete".?

That was an actual post (paraphrase) by some knuckle-dragging moron from a thread during last year's Tour.

[Akira]

Exactly. They argue that a true athlete must have hand-eye coordination, ala Barry Bonds. I've seen 350 pound fat men hit a softball 500 feet, so I guess that counts, too.

Everybody has different definitions of what a sport is, and I try to respect that. Some say it must involve a ball. I've got a friend who says if you can drink a beer while doing it, it is not a sport. To each his own. But the athlete argument is mind-boggling.

Oh well, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a Lance miracle. At least a Frenchman isn't leading.

[glorgau]

As a former masters class amateur, I can vouch for the fact that bicycle racing in one of the toughest, most demanding sports around.

I have to agree. I used to play lots of Water Polo - where the object of the game was to keep the other guy's head under water for as long as possible. :-) - but bike races would just wear me out. I realized that I just didn't have the genetics for it.
I did find that I can climb better than most, but get passed on descents. 60 mph on a bike going around turns in the mountains is seriously scary.

[TomB]

60 mph on a bike going around turns in the mountains is seriously scary.

That's where much of the SKILL (ahem!-are you still here?) comes in. It is hard enough doing that in a car, let alone on a bike. It takes nerves of steel, split-second timing, and nads the size of boulders.

[VOA]

Go Lance...
and all due respect to Ullrich and the other contenders...

[randita]

Are you also going to echo other idiots and say that Lance is also not an athlete?

Au contraire. I think pro cyclists, at least the caliber of those who participate in Le Tour are arguably the most highly conditioned athletes of any sport. What other sport requires a participant to exert him/herself to the utmost for an average of 3-4 hours a day for 3 weeks? I can't think of one.

There are NO stages of Le Tour that are easy. You can't take a breather on even the non-mountain days.

Le Tour cyclists are SUPERB athletes.

[randita]

Everybody has different definitions of what a sport is, and I try to respect that.

Agreed. But I still think it is a bit of a stretch to term "fishing" and "hunting" sports. Skills, yes. But to me, to be a sport should require some physical exertion. But to each his/her own.

[Prodigal Son]

What other sport requires a participant to exert him/herself to the utmost for an average of 3-4 hours a day for 3 weeks? I can't think of one.

Cross country skiing. If you put in any less than 20,000 kilometers a year in training you have no legitimate hope of being in the cream of the crop in that sport. That's at least 54 kilometers per day everyday- just training. My wife used to run 5 hours every day- just for training. She did that for over 10 years. For her a marathon would not even have been a decent training session. Also, their sport requires the use of the arms as much as legs and they have really balanced, powerful physiques.

[randita]

Yes, I agree that the exertion by a competitive cross country skier is comparable, but are there competitive CC ski events that require an average of 3-4 hours a day at top exertion for 3 weeks?

[baseballfanjm]

But Ullrich is surging and confident. I'm really worrying.

[Prodigal Son]

Well there are some long range races that are days in duration. But I was simply pointing out that there are endurance athletes who do exert themselves 5 hours a day. My wife ran a marathon every single day of her life in her latter days of competition and her training was considered substandard. And keep in mind- my wife trained that much, it was good enough to make it to the world class level. She was on the German National Team- actually the first unified German team- but she would not have been able to get close to the skiiers at the top on a consistent basis. My wife could only put in around 8- 12,000 kilometers of training a year on average. In her better years she was able to push that up towards 15-16,000.

But yeah, they would run up mountains as well. Even to this day, after not having trained seriously for a decade, my wife would think nothing of running up a mountain or just running for 2 or 3 hours. Her heart rate has climbed some since I first met her but it is still very slow. I'm just saying there are athletes out there that are on that level of conditioning- not just cyclists. Nobody is ever going to say the Tour is not the most grueling sporting event in the world- at least I won't.

[Akira]

My post was really directed at some national sports writers who tried to say that Lance was not an athlete last year. I could not agree with you more. Beyond the time trials, the tour stages are more on the order of 5+ hours, occasionally 6+. I've been on a bike for 5 hours before, I was useless for a week. These guys do it, in the friggin Alps, for 3 weeks straight. It's unreal.