Book Reviews: Racing Through the Dark, The Secret Race
I must admit to not having read most of the cycling memoirs in the Works. I may eventually but the local public library doesn’t carry any of them and never will so I’ll have to buy them or ask Frank to tote everything he has to Hawaii. I did get off my wallet and buy these two and it was money well spent. David Millar and Tyler Hamilton have produced two excellent cycling books, parallel stories in very general terms and times. The contrast of how two people in similar straits handle the truth and the divergent roads it puts them on is compelling.
Doping in professional cycling is still secretive enough that it is best told from someone all the way on the inside. Journalists will be lied to by cyclists. Federal grand juries do better at getting the truth but we usually don’t hear it. Cyclists who lived the lie and need to unburden themselves make a good conduit. I can’t begin to explain it as well as Tyler or David did; their inner world of professional cycling is nothing we hear much about. In the 1990s it was the wild west where the law was absent. Spanish “doctors”, syringes and mini-centrifuges ruled the day. It’s such a huge subject, too interwoven with passion and pressure, so much grey area. For a person like me who likes to talk about doping in black and white, I’ve learned how institutionalized and insidious it was (past tense, I hope). It’s not so simple. It’s tragic. To feed the young ambitious athlete into a system where there is no choice but to accept the drug system is criminal. When money is at stake and the UCI is complicit, as is team management, those are some criminals.
Racing Through the Dark-by David Millar. I’ll also admit to being a long time admirer of David Millar. He has always been well- spoken and not afraid to confront, two qualities I admire and personally lack, but they make a good writer. Millar is a military brat who found his cycling talent in the 10 mile British time trial club races. He ended up living his dream, riding on the Cofidis team, France’s well- funded but dysfunctional squad. He spent his first few years with Cofidis riding clean, yet watching how others “prepared”.
“In my youthful exuberance, I was telling anybody who would listen that I’d won in De Panne and broken the course record with a hematocrit of only 40 percent. I went to see Casagrande and his roommate, whom I refer to as L’Équipier (the teammate), so that I could show Casagrande the test results.
I stood there, a big grin on my face, expecting Casagrande to congratulate me and say something morale boosting. But he didn’t. After a pause, he handed the results back to me and then turned to speak to his roommate in Italian.
“Perché non é a cinquate?” Casagrande asked L’Équipier, puzzled, Why isn’t he at fifty?
No one talked about doping and no one talked about not doping. Eventually, after VDB self-destructed and Casagrande was busted, Millar became a team leader. And with that mantle came the responsibility to produce results, be a professional. And eventually he was implicated by a teammate, evidence was found, he was out of cycling, deeply in debt, and drinking his way to the bottom.
For some interesting video here is a recent Spanish documentary from the inner ring.
The Secret Race-by Tyler Hamilton and Daniel Coyle. Tyler Hamilton and I grew up in the same end of Massachusetts, he went to the same prep school @rob and I dropped out of, so I always felt slightly connected to him. So I was a fan boy and stood by his fantastic excuses for too long.
The whole wretched story of doping in cycling is right here. Tyler Hamilton cheated and lied for so long, it took until 2011 before he could tell his parents the truth. And despite his decade of lying, this book rings true. His reward was getting out from under the lie. I think he would have written the book for free just for the unburdening. He states many times the lightness of being after testimony and though he knows it’s very unlikely, hopes Lance can feel the same lightness that comes from telling the truth. This book is Tyler Hamilton’s story but it is closely linked to part of the Armstrong saga.
Like Millar, Hamilton was unaware of systemic drug use until he had joined the professional ranks. US Postal drugs were at first team- provided and paid for. Once you proved yourself as one of the best riders on the team, as someone who could help Lance win the Tour, you earned the right to use EPO. It is fascinating reading, it’s horrifying, it’s depressing. Most unsettling is Lance Armstrong’s behavior. There are many revelations regarding Armstrong’s psychotic need to win. I’ll share just this one.
Tyler was eased out of US Postal because he was too strong a rider and perceived as a threat to Armstrong. So Tyler left and signed with Phonak in 2004. There was a time trial up Mont Ventoux in the 2004 Dauphiné Libéré weeks before the Tour de France. Tyler beat Lance in the TT. Later during the Tour, Floyd Landis, who was still riding for US Postal rode along side Tyler.
“You need to know something”
I pulled in closer. Floyd’s Mennonite conscience was bothering him.
“Lance called the UCI on you,” he said. “He called Hien, after Ventoux. Said you guys and Mayo were on some new shit, told Hien to get on you. He knew they’d call call you in. He’s been talking shit nonstop. And I think it’s right that you know.”
This little story is amazing for many different reasons and the only good one is Floyd Landis telling it to Tyler. I’m guilty of saying some negative things about Floyd, mostly because he was such an idiot liar. But at a point, when he has nothing to gain and he has lost everything else and he starts telling the truth, he gains back my respect, just like Tyler Hamilton has.
I ended up reading these books one right after the other. As I said before, I recommend them both. David Millar is a better writer. He actually has more demons to battle than Hamilton so his story of redemption is inspiring. Tyler Hamilton’s story is more depraved (in a doping sense) but both books are important. A lot of people in cycling are now admitting to past deeds in very unspecific terms. These two authors are both shining lights into some dark corners and making the inevitability of drug use in cycling more human and understandable. Also, in reading these books back to back, it highlights the contrast in how these two people dealt with their fates.
Both had the bad luck to be nearly singled out as dopers when a large percent of the riders were dopers. Millar realized it was the doping that killed his passion for even riding a bike. He took no joy in his EPO-assisted victories, only a temporary satisfaction that the task at hand was completed. He decided to come clean and to become an advocate for clean racing and changing the corrupt system.
Hamilton could not admit to anyone but his wife (who already knew) that he had been a cheat. His lie was so crushing he couldn’t even see a way out. He then spent all his money and energy protecting the lie for years, for nothing, obviously. It was the threat of perjury in that finally broke open the dam. It’s a cruel lesson to learn; the truth will set you free, even if it takes forever.
Horner appears to be one of the redacted names from the affidavits, among other interesting ones. You’ll have to read the affidavits to find out the details…
@Ken Ho
Given the lack of body fat I think most pros would have negative bouyancy which means they are innocent. But if they don’t drown then it only proves they have over-oxygenated blood so we can burn them anyway.
Agree completely about only fools opening their mouth to say anything other than carefully scripted expressions of outrage. Alex Dowsett’s comments about Lance being a legend were somewhat offputting – for a team run by a media company Sky have appalling PR skills.
I am just curious and in now way trying to defend them, but; apart from the similarities with US Postal, what is it exactly about Sky that gives rise to so many doubts? Are there nasty rumours of specific incidents floating within the pro cycling band wagon?
I read a bit of Kimmage’s twitter thread yesterday and he was pointing out their withdrawal from the agreement that he travel with them on the bus with full access, etc. I understand this appears to be shying away from full transparency and I agree Brailsford’s and Wiggins’ responses were less than perfect but is there something substantial other than just doubting their total dominance of the Tour and similarities with US Postal? Also there may have been other reasons why Kimmage might have been denied access (I could imagine a personality clash between him and Wiggins for example and Wiggins not wanting someone agitating him during the biggest race of his career)
@frank @buck rogers and @brett
I like to think Dave Brailsford, Sean Yates et al are just paying homage to a classic…
@Ali McKee
First of all I must categorically state that I do not travel by bus and I am not a pro rider but if Kimmage was to sit next to me on the train into London every morning for three weeks I probably wouldn’t ride my Boris bike from the station to the office to the best of my ability.
In all seriousness I could imagine that Wiggins and Brailsford would get cold feet about giving access to someone who potential be starting from a very negative viewpoint. If they’d pulled the plug on a project with someone who demonstrated an track record of unbiased reporting such as Will Fotheringham, I’d be concerned.
I’m glad people have got behind his legal fight with the UCI because despite his whining I admire his ball for taking on establishment who are hugely complicit in the whole thing.
Seen this?
I meant The Crucible. Silly bunt………………
@Mikael Liddy
I have no insider knowledge but there is a trickle of a thought in the back of my mind about this. The most vocal riders are the ones who have or are about to retire…they have no real constraint against speak out publicly. Cycling is big business these days and sponsors have requirements that teams must meet. I would not be at all surprised if some teams put a blanket ban on PR for a period whilst they figured out what their stance was going to be on this stuff…i.e. noone talks to the media without approval from the PR team (I can imagine some of the big brands ala SKY adopting this approach). Probably making things worse is a mexican standoff where everyone is waiting for some kind of communication from COTHO himself on the matter…..”Let’s all see what he says…then we will make a press release”…
I am sure things will get very hot in the boiler room before long and once it starts they will all be giving their views….I am not sure you can read silence as guilt or even suspicion at this stage…
@Marcus
And Bodyline was as good as cheating.
wtf? This is worse than us banging on about 1966…
oh yeah, and you ate our Captain Cook, erm or maybe Hawaiians, all the same to us [img]smiley emoticom[/[img]
@meursault
@the Engine Who the hell is Cheryl Crowe?
It looks like it could get a lot worse for COTHO he could be charged with Purjury..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/19921705
Interesting subnote for those that can tune in…
BBC Radio 5 live Sport will look at the Lance Armstrong saga in a special programme on Monday at 19:00 BST. “Peddlers: Cycling’s Dirty Truth” includes interviews with Armstrong’s former team-mate Tyler Hamilton, former Wada head Dick Pound, and British cyclist David Millar who was banned for two years after admitting taking performance-enhancing drugs.
@Oli
Russel’s sister
@Oli
I don’t make these things up I just blatantly copy them on here
@Deakus
Mustard was his substance of choice – however WG remained Too Fat to Climb and had to take up cricket although his first love had always been the ITT.
To part answer the question – how clean are they now, The Times wrote in an article today ” When Team SKy flew up the Joux Plane climb on the Dauphine this summer they were 2 and half minutyes slower than Marco Pantani more than a decade earlier” and “The lead riders would climb the Alp d’Huez, for example, in just under 37 minutes [pre 2007]. They are now three minutes slower”.
Not a full answer, but…
David
@the Engine I wasn’t blaming you! Perhaps the dude who PSed that up wants to avoid a libel suit…
Has anyone read ex-Motorola rider Brian Smith’s story?
Sorry, here’s the link:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-2216492/Lance-Armstrong-latest-Brian-Smith-told-cyclist-hed-drugs-sacked.html
I think this is the aspect of the Armstrong disgrace that saddens me the most, the young riders who either were forced out or forced to dope to stay in. I always thought it was essentially an individual decision to dope, but I finally realise that it wasn’t just peer pressure, in many cases it was actual applied pressure that forced/enabled young hopefuls into drug use…desperately sad and utterly unforgivable.
grr
@Oli
Wow, excellent article. Thanks for the link.
To get it from the horses mouth as it were. The USDA Reasoned Decision document is actually written in an easily readable format. It really gives a lot of insight in what was going on at the time and the level of pressure and extent of it. Worth a read for those who are interested because short of being in the court room this is probably about as close to the truth as you can get….
http://d3epuodzu3wuis.cloudfront.net/ReasonedDecision.pdf
@Mikael Liddy
But imagine if he had?
“Earlier today, Jens Voight retired from professional cycling, the only athlete to have won the Tour de France a record 12 times, including twice in 2005 alone.”
@G’rilla
That is what really strikes me about this whole thing, I now question EVERYONE. Do I really believe that Jens (whom I love as a rider) never doped? I have no idea if he did, I have no reason to think he did, but I now still question it.
I guess he was riding for GAN early on when the French were post-Festina and hypervigilant, then onto CSC from 2004-2010 which is a more questionable team and finally the Retirement Shack team with all that entails.
That is what sucks about it all but hopefully it will clear out the house and we can all move on from it. But, for the next few months (years?) this story will be captivating all the headlines, esp with the offseason upon us.
@Oli
+1 to that – there is no room in the sport for any of them who have participated for years in forcing out clean riders, either actively or through results, and shutting up everyone who spoke out against it.
Their pious exclamations about setting an example for new riders are total bollocks – the only example they set is that if you can cheat successfully you’ll have a good career and plenty of money.
Fuck Me! I have just completed the USADAs 125 page Reasoned Decision document. I am normally somewhat de-sensitised to rabid accusations from the press and prefer to believe in innocent until proven guilty…but by holeymoleymotherofawhore.. COTHO is just not an adequate description of how much of a scumbag he is. The proof is absolutely concrete that he contravened the doping rules…not just circumstantial, payment history, emails, and Perjury…the is guilty of the lot beyond any doubt!
I had not realised either that they had retested his samples and 6 came out positive for EPO…and his refusal to refute the charges was not just to maintain plausible deniability but to ensure he did not have to testify under oath!
Let’s hope he disappears off the face of the planet and is never heard from again…sadly I suspect this will not be the case..but I do look forward to his sponsors suing him for return of the money they paid him and the Perjury Court Case…!
@Mikael Liddy
I don’t do twitter, but I know he’s said that in the past…many times. However, what I’m more interested in is his opinion on this whole thing.
@Deakus
Another good point.
@Deakus
One of the more interesting things about the refusal to acknowledge, there is more at stake than what USADA/WADA can take away. There are agreements with sponsors including one 8 million dollar bonus that was paid contingent on winning a certain number of TDF titles. The sponsor refused to pay after doping allegations were brought, and Lance won the money in court. If he admits he doped, they would certainly sue him for the money. I don’t know who the sponsor was, NPR didn’t say. He is basically in a position where even if he wanted to admit it, he can’t. The consequences are too dire.
Ironically, I got the latest issue of Velo the day before the “Reasoned Decision” was released. All the young guns discuss doping and their opinions on it. Perhaps we have turned a corner?
And I agree with Oli. I too thought it was mostly an individual decision to dope. But it is clear to me that was not the case on any of LAs teams. I suspect we’ll hear more Brian Smith type stories in the coming weeks and months.
Okay – I just finished the Reasoned Decision – holy shitballs!! It is unbelievable that the guy still denies everything. Aside from the cyclists that got caught up in the shitstorm of L.A, the people I feel for are the unknowing sheep who are going to wake up one morning and see in the news that their hero in shining yellow wrist bands is nothing more than a bully and a fraud.
It’ll be interesting to see if the UCI will go after David Millar for his latest comments in the same way that it has against Kimmage. I would guess not
@razmaspaz The sponsor was SCA promotions but I think there may be more than this, there is reference in the document to an agreement reached over renewal of sponsorship with cocacola whereby if any allegations were true they would null and void the contract and they (COTHO and his agent) would return all sponsorship monies given to date..
I sense a flurry of court actions coming his way!
Matt White has gone from Green Edge now.
I suspect there are quite a few conversations going on in team management, owners and sponsors about getting the skeletons out of the closet.
Interesting conversation I was having with a friend:
What happens with all the people that Lance sued for libel over the years (his old soigneur, various whistle blowers and journalists). Do they have a case now to try to recuperate all the money spent fending off COTHO and his attack dogs?
Seems only fair if you got dragged through court over making statements that are now known to be true…..
@Cantona
http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/betsy-andreu-no-longer-a-voice-in-the-wilderness
I’m guessing we will see a lot more of this.
This from Flandria Café today, which is worth looking at. See Keeper’s links below.
George Carlin was ahead of his time.
How much of a dope do I feel now?!
Mind you that if people found inspiration fom LA back in the day to get off their arse and do something to better themselves/others great, but I think they’d feel really gutted/ripped off.
I recall I think it was the 2000 TdF that LA was on the podium in yelllow and looking a the crowd below, and with the TV cameras on him, me thinking “Geez, that don’t look like a winner’s grin! He kinda looks guilty of someone knows what I know that they shouldn’t know, but I don’t know if that person has told someone andnow they know.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/14/us/more-scientists-quit-texas-cancer-research-institute.html?_r=2&smid=tw-share
Interesting. Too bad it seems anything with LA’s name on it right now is not really going all that well. When it comes to cycling, I can easily say, well fuck him he’s getting nothing more than he deserves, but the cancer side is really disappointing.
@minion
Wonder how this meeting is going to go down at this venue?
Yeah, big dope. Those socks should have been black.
@Giles
It’s a good story but it doesn’t allude to Betsy being able to get compensation for being dragged through the mud all these years, which is pretty hard to swallow.
Another interesting article from within the “system”
@Marcus
No problem Marcus. And yeah, one thing I learned in the army, never doubt, even when completely wrong. Maybe that’s Pharmy’s line!
Man did the comments explode whilst I was not paying attention!
@sthilzy Man, that sucks. You need to find a good cover tattooist or and good laser clinic.
Carlin. Awesome. Fuck Dr. Phil too!
@sthilzy I would give the owners of those tatts a lifelong Rule #21 exemption.
@sthilzy
Awkward. Smoking remains of RSNT.
A quick doc from ABC Australia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q03sc8Aoyk0&feature=youtu.be
@TommyTubolare yeah watched that last night when they screened it here. Don’t know if it’s the fact that there was nothing really new in it, but I found it pretty ‘meh’. I think the slightly tabloid/sensationalist style of the story really turned me off it…