You know, I’m tempted to say, “Sucker,” although that would be easy, wouldn’t it? It would be easy to just pass judgment on the totally badass dude and say something to he effect of, “God, all that talent and he’s doing coke?”
Like I said, it would be easy to say that, but how many of us actually know the guy? How many of us can say they understand the nuances, pressure, etc., of being a world-class cyclist? The fact of the matter is, the guy gives us what we want. Sure, he’s a cyclist, but he’s also a performer. Did anyone see the 2009 Paris-Roubaix on Versus? Granted, some of Boonen’s main rivals crashed in the last twenty kilometers, but in my opinion (and, as we all know, it’s all about my opinion around here, isn’t it?), that argument doesn’t hold water. Why not? Because Boonen could’ve crashed himself, but he didn’t? The rest of his competitors, who should be just as skilled in bike handling as any professional, hit the deck and not through the fault of any other riders. Thor Hushovd was right there at the end but he slid and crashed, leaving Boonen to solo away to the finish line.
My point? That kid put his head down, went balls-to-the-wall, and gave us the show every single fan wanted to see that day. He obliterated his competition. Every single person reading this page can’t even begin to conceive of riding that hard, for that long, over that kind of terrain, matched up against the best cyclists in the world, and I say all that to say: if the kid wants to blow off a few rails of coke now and again, that’s his freaking business.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem the rest of the world sees it that way. According to the UCI, they don’t give a rat’s ass (as they shouldn’t), but apparently, everybody else does, including Christian Prudhomme (who’s last name I can’t help but hear in my head with this ridiculous French accent, as in PROO-DOHM). The Tour de France director has stated that Boonen will not be invited to the 2009 Tour which, to me, is people just passing judgment.
(I get that there’s the whole “we’ve an image to protect” argument when it comes to something like the Tour and then you get the kids involved, as in, “Well, we need to project the right image to the young cycling fans,” and all that crap, but if you wiped away most of the “image” in this world and everyone and everything showed their true colors, what you’d be left with is something like a 63 / 37 hypocrisy to bullshit ratio.)
Then there’s the Kraut, Andreas Kloden, who has apparently just been named in a doping report, something I found on Velonews last night.
Does this come as a surprise to anyone? This is the guy who’s been a front-runner in the Tour de France almost every year and has ridden for teams that have been doping their riders for freaking years. Like everyone else (except Lance . . . did I say that?), it’s only a matter of time before you get busted if you do shit like that.
Speaking of which, I remember years ago, I put up a post on a recreational cycling message board online, something to the effect of: “Think of it this way. All the guys Lance beat were doping. Is it possible Lance wasn’t doping himself? Sure. Is it likely? NOT REALLY!”
The Lance fans attacked hot and heavy and the one line I remember most clearly was from some yucca out in the middle of nowhere who said, “Obviously, you have no idea what you’re talking about.”
I love how, when threatened, some people drop the idea of debate all together and simply choose to rabidly discredit the other side with insults which, I believe, is kind of how Democrats go about their business . . . D’OH! Just kidding. Well, I’m not really kidding, but that conversation is neither here nor there.
Anyway, Universal Sports has been covering the Giro d’Italia. Two whole hours of coverage every single day. Has everybody been keeping up with this? Has everyone been watching the two former dopers, Ivan Basso and Danilo DiLuca, tearing things up on the first two mountain stages? I wonder if they’re still doping. Hmm, I wonder just how they go so fast uphill for so long, especially when you see powerhouses like Jens Voigt getting dropped on those same hills. If anything, I guess it should tell us that one can be competitive in professional cycling without having to stick a needle in your ass, just not in the mountains.
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