The EPO Era threw up some surprise World Champions from the early ’90s to the mid ’00s. Riders juiced to the gills meant that the rainbow jumper could go to anyone who not only had the form on the bike, but their program sorted and the luck on the day. You could throw a dart at the start list and wherever it stuck, you’d be a pretty good chance of picking the winner. Confessed juicer Bo Hamburger came close in 1997, finishing 2nd to perennial mullet-sporter Laurent Brochard, who along with the likes of Camenzind in ’98, Vainsteins in ’00, and Astarloa in ’03 wouldn’t have been on many of our radars if the VSP existed back then.
The Burger King was in the decisive break and finished 6th in Hamilton, Ontario in ’03 and did it in style. Check him out; his Gios looks damn sharp in the traditional azzura, its alloy frame with carbon fork and seatstays the pinnacle of the day’s technology. Deep dish carbon hoops and skinwall sew-ups… check. Campa. Obscure Italian Team-issue shorts and helmet with national jersey. Arm warmers neatly pushed down to the wrists. He even manages to pull off the long red socks. Tanned, shiny, sinewy legs and arms straining, head bowed and burying himself under the effort of Rule #5; Badass.
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Boo! Stop glorifying the dopers!
Let's hope everyone in the Netherlands is less souped up! Fed up of seeing people sent home in disgrace.
Do like the rims though.....
@Oli
Says the Armstrong apologist!
Only glorifying his bike and kit Oli...
Bianchi has Celeste, Wilier has Bronze and Gios has Azzura, got to love the tradition, these bikes always look superb.
@MarkP
find it a shame Wilier has moved away from it's red copper colour in recent years
@Adrian
They need to bring back a classic steel frame, don't think the bronze / copper would suit carbon frame. Coming from me who is on my second Wilier!
He's clearly looking for his V decal to remind him of Rule #5...
@brett Can't you find someone better to do that with? For such an anti-doper your values seem a bit out of whack here. And I think you should know I'm not apologising for Armstrong in the least, and I'm certainly not blogging him and glorifying him. It seems like a weird choice to me, but then I am a wanker cunt.
@MarkPozzi
Agree the ramato cromovelato finish would be hard to recreate on a carbon bike but would have loved for them to have made the graphics for the lampre bikes copper rather than that fluro yellow colour.
@Oli Nipple lube.
Saddle bags and now this.
BTW we need to come up wiith s shorthand for wanker c**t. Wiggo's muse?