Photographs trigger memories and emotions within the human psyche that last a very long time, and remind us of where we were, what we were doing, and how we felt at any given moment of our lives. The above image, although still fresh in the time/space continuum, nonetheless brings back happy times for myself.
It reminds me of Australia, of my friends, as we watched the late-night telecast of Stage 8. It reminds me of the banter between us, with one member of the viewing audience vehemently trying to defend the merits of Armstrong’s challenge for an eighth win. He was systematically taken apart with vigour, backed up by the performance unfolding on the road before us.
Astana was on the front of the peloton, with Tiralongo driving a frantic pace as they hit the base of the climb to Avoriaz. There was a dark figure sitting on his wheel, with a look on his face that said he was already well into the red, but knew that soon his time would come to up the intensity a notch further and put the other teams a little bit deeper into the box of hurt. I wasn’t sure who he was, but he was soon to be a new hero when he buried himself for kilometre after kilometre in service of his team leader. Daniel Navarro was a stud that day, and for the days to follow.
The heat of the day was intense, and I commented on how the riders must just be about cooking themselves, with whatever enhancements were flowing through their veins adding to the risk of their blood boiling and their hearts exploding out of their chest cavities. I was excited beyond belief; it was top-fueled racing, almost like the old days. But this time, it was Armstrong who was feeling the brunt of a dominant team working against him. I was almost screaming at the tv as he struggled to keep the furious pace being dished out at the front. “Go on, bend him over and fuck him, like he’d do to you!” is a pretty close approximation of the words I used. Did I mention I was excited?
When Pharmy crashed the first time, he was done. He chased back on with all his old vigour, but you could see that the effort had taken its toll on his aging legs, and when Astana turned up the heat again, his Tour glory days were fading rapidly in the rear-view mirror. By the time the above scene took place, he was a well-broken man, a shadow of his former self, an empty shell going through the motions, taking his team mates down with him as he threw in the towel like he’d never even contemplated before.
I wonder if, as he stood there in the middle of the road, without any urgency or desire to get back on the bike, that his famous words were swilling inside his head; “Pain is temporary, quitting is forever”.
Adios, Huevo.
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Fair enough, and so it should be. I'm a Pantani fan, he was a flawed individual and a doper, I acknowledge that. Still a fan. You're an Armstrong fan, and that's all that matters if that's all you want to matter.
We'll agree to disagree, haven't we done that before? We all love the sport, that's the gist of it. People love football equally as passionately, and Chelsea and Manchester United fans will always disagree, but they'll still share the passion of the sport. It'd be pretty boring if we all supported the same team/riders.
Hang around mate...
You see, it's comments like this that irk me. He demonstrably could TT and climb well, as his dominating Tour DuPont victories and near misses showed. Perhaps his age and inexperience back then were the reasons he didn't go as well as his amazing potential would have suggested. Remember, many people (like Eddy Merckx, for example) were calling him a potential Tour winner before he even won Worlds - where was Indurain in the results of his first couple of Tours? Lots of people gain new perspective and focus as they grow older, and especially in the crucible of a near-death experience.
You state "he was juiced pre-cancer" like you know it for a fact, when you don't have a clue for sure. I can understand not liking him because of his bullying or any of his other perceived character flaws, but if it's the doping you hate him for you don't have a leg to stand on! Especially when you lionise guys like Ullrich, Virenque or Pantani, none of whom technically tested positive or admitted to their doping (well Richard did eventually...).
I'm sorry, but a lot of superiority and condescension wrapped up in gossip and opinion is posited as facts around here, and for me it detracts from the other great writing on this esteemed website.
As I say though, that's not your problem it's mine...
Cheers, Oli
Is there any chance we could have some Rule that forbade discussion of Pharmstrong / the greatest cyclist of our time* (*delete as appropriate) except should he feature in that day's news?
It is pointlessly polarising. Many of us think he's an obnoxious prick and others prefer to think of his racing achievements. In the same way that Obama is the best thing since sliced bread to some and a ridiculous buffoon to everyone else, nobody is likely to change their mind.
@George
Don't go starting political flame wars now man ;-)
All in all I think that's a fine suggestion. Nobody is going to "win" this argument and Merckx willing, LA will not soil the spirit of this site. Wouldn't it be nice if this were the only place on the interwebs where the Armstrong Chronicles weren't ever further than a comment or two away?
New rule suggestion: Like religion and politics, Lance Armstrong discussions can be divisive and spoil the mood of a perfectly good social climate. Whether you are a fan of his or not, it is best to keep your opinions to yourself unless you are sure you are in the company of people who are drinking the same Kool-Aid from their bidons. So unless he features in the news of the day, it's best to do your liking or loathing of him in like-minded company.
@Marko
Does that mean I can't wear my Livestrong socks with my Velominati kit?
@Steampunk
Only if you wear them like a closeted cross-dresser wears lingerie, covered up by socially acceptable clothing so they remain your little secret.
@Steampunk, @Marko
Besides, they don't really match the kit - the black is too Spinal Tap and the yellow is, well, not orange enough.
@Oli Brooke-White
Personally, I really appreciate yours and every other discenting opinion on the site. Everyone's disagreements are always measured, always persuasive. They make me stop and think, and question. This is a great community here because people don't all have the same opinion, it keeps the conversation rolling. Everyone is encouraged to say what they want, believe what they want. If everyone had the same opinion, well, it would be boring, wouldn't it? So, keep it coming.
It's an interesting observation that the two most divisive topics on the site are Lance Armstrong and Compact cranksets.
I agree with you that until he admits to doping, we'll never know for certain if he did or not, and in that context "know" should loosely be read as an equivalent to "strongly believe".
This is for another post, but I recently read "We Were Young and Carefree". In that book, I don't think Fignon has any reason to lie about whether he did drugs or not. There are many, many very interesting things in there, but what sticks with me the most is that he gives a very, very strong impression that didn't dope to win his Tours. I guess I really believed the Tour was too hard to do without drugs, even then, and his book - while far from conclusive - has really made me rethink the whole thing.
I'm just glad Pharmy never rode a compact.
@frank
"It's an interesting observation that the two most divisive topics on the site are Lance Armstrong and Compact cranksets."
That may reflect the religious nature of the Velominatus' devotion to cycling. Both topics are essentially about guilt. Armstrong - his guilt (or not); and compacts - our guilt in using them. I'm sure more have dabbled with the dark side than would admit it.
Give lance a break - he had another kid yesterday. Two things about him which cannot be argued against - i) he has picked up a lot of chicks; and ii) he breeds very well for a guy with one nut that has copped a serious amount of radiation.
Chapeau COTHO!