Flandis to go for the hour

cougie

FJ - where i live theres a few pro riders and yes they're like they have motors on their bikes when they choose to turn on the power. Its impressive - and I'm sure Landis is almost as good (as Boardman held the record - I'll not say that Landis is better yet)

But its the denials that get me and the piss poor excuses.

When Boardman took the hour - he was willing to give whatever samples they wanted to prove it was a clean record. Now his records been beaten by a doper - the dopers Hour should be removed too I think.

I dont like Landis - he cheated, and I'd respect him more if he confessed. Until he does that - I have no respect - even if he is a fantastic cyclist.

FransJacques

There is something really weird about Landis though. I think he's exorcising a lot of demons - from childhood, adolescence, his pro years - in full public view as he makes his comeback and it's showing something weird is brewing in him.

Look at 09: He's riding for OUCH-Maxxis and quits them to go where? RR? Or did he try to grasp at the ring and chase the Shack? There was something big in the works in late Dec early Jan but frankly he's now embarassing himself by not taking things seriously, not following a standard professional path. It makes the chance of a big team for 2010 a long shot.

In my mind I can't get over the fact that I watched him beat all comers in 2006, as ugly as it played out eventaully. But he's not gotten over that. He messed around with Lemond and dug up some ugly sheit on him that one of his "associates" threw in Lemond's face. He seems flippant in interviews. He wants to snub his nose at the establishment.

I hope he's not another Michale Zanoli or the belgian guy who offed himself. Elite athletes can be more subseptible to depression, esp when your life is just geared to winning and losing. And turning his back on the beliefs of his family for fame, coming close and losing it all - where does that leave him now?

Kléber

"I honestly don't know," continued Landis. "I don't know even if [team owner] Ball has thought about the team these last two weeks. I have no clue what's going on. After the Tour of the Bahamas I'm going back to my shack behind the car wash. Maybe I'll write a book."

Random speculation: I think he's going to write a book on his time at US Postal and Phonak, "warts and all". It'll pay off his debts and let him dump on those who have screwed him. Yes he's behaved like an idiot but it's naive to assume he was doping alone. Floyd's got photos

DaveyL

FransJacques wrote:

He messed around with Lemond and dug up some ugly sheit on him that one of his "associates" threw in Lemond's face. He seems flippant in interviews. He wants to snub his nose at the establishment.

As I understand it, Lemond told Landis this stuff of his own free will, in a one-to-one with Landis, to try and show him how it was better to come out with the truth than to bottle things up for years. Landis's associate then used this in a (drunken) call to Lemond.

afx237vi

I have some sympathy for Landis in the same way I have some sympathy for Hamilton. Yes, they are liars and cheats, and yes that crap Landis pulled on Lemond was utterly despicable - but at the end of the day they were both part of a bigger system and were used, chewed up and spat out.

Landis would be a brave man to write a tell-all book, especially considering who he would have to do the telling on. Would you put yourself through all the hassle? After all the legal crap he's already been through? I know I wouldn't.

dennisn

afx237vi wrote:

I have some sympathy for Landis in the same way I have some sympathy for Hamilton. Yes, they are liars and cheats, and yes that crap Landis pulled on Lemond was utterly despicable - but at the end of the day they were both part of a bigger system and were used, chewed up and spat out.

Landis would be a brave man to write a tell-all book, especially considering who he would have to do the telling on. Would you put yourself through all the hassle? After all the legal crap he's already been through? I know I wouldn't.

I can fully understand any riders reluctance to write a tell all. These people are their friends. They know them. They know their families. Not much to be gained except money.
They would then be basically friendless and shunned. Doesn't sound like all that great of an option to me. It's pretty tough to RAT OUT a friend or someone who has never done anything wrong to you. It probably wouldn't accomplish much anyway. Anyone mentioned would simply deny and say he wrote it for the money. In any case I'm sure there would be lawsuits.
I recall an old Spanish CURSE that went something like "May your life be filled with lawyers". And who wants that?

afx237vi

dennisn wrote:

I can fully understand any riders reluctance to write a tell all. These people are their friends. They know them. They know their families. Not much to be gained except money.
They would then be basically friendless and shunned. Doesn't sound like all that great of an option to me. It's pretty tough to RAT OUT a friend or someone who has never done anything wrong to you. It probably wouldn't accomplish much anyway. Anyone mentioned would simply deny and say he wrote it for the money. In any case I'm sure there would be lawsuits.
I recall an old Spanish CURSE that went something like "May your life be filled with lawyers". And who wants that?

On the flipside, though, Landis is already shunned and friendless. His career is more or less already over, his reputation is non-existant - what does he have to lose? He is an outcast from the cycling fraternity, so why should he keep it buttoned?

Plus, if you believe what you read on the internet, he wasn't exactly the best of buddies with the people he would be dishing the dirt on.

Like I said - it would be brave of him, and perfectly understandable if he took the option of a quiet life - but it would probably be hell of a read.

FransJacques

He was with Postal for the last 2 or 3 Tour wins so could tell some good tales. Now, to write a steamy tell-all about life on Postal does anyone here know libel laws regarding how you must phrase things to NOT have a lawsuit on your hands. I think that anything written about LA has resulted in lawsuits. I read the Walsh book in French and my conditional and subjunctive verb tense understanding is ok but I wouldn't know what would or wouldn't constitute libel.

If FL wrote that he "witnessed" this or that behaviour but not link it to doping can one say this with impunity? Walsh had "behaviours" in his book like late night dumping of syringe filled bags by unmarked cars at roadside garbage bins. Or sending a masseuse across Europe to pick up some medicine. All circumstantial and not proving of anything.

Which is different from "someone took x drug" or "x was doped at the 20XX Tour" etc.

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dennisn

afx237vi wrote:

dennisn wrote:

I can fully understand any riders reluctance to write a tell all. These people are their friends. They know them. They know their families. Not much to be gained except money.
They would then be basically friendless and shunned. Doesn't sound like all that great of an option to me. It's pretty tough to RAT OUT a friend or someone who has never done anything wrong to you. It probably wouldn't accomplish much anyway. Anyone mentioned would simply deny and say he wrote it for the money. In any case I'm sure there would be lawsuits.
I recall an old Spanish CURSE that went something like "May your life be filled with lawyers". And who wants that?

On the flipside, though, Landis is already shunned and friendless. His career is more or less already over, his reputation is non-existant - what does he have to lose? He is an outcast from the cycling fraternity, so why should he keep it buttoned?

Plus, if you believe what you read on the internet, he wasn't exactly the best of buddies with the people he would be dishing the dirt on.

Like I said - it would be brave of him, and perfectly understandable if he took the option of a quiet life - but it would probably be hell of a read.

I don't follow cycling like some people do so I would have to ask what Floyd did to become
this cycling outcast???? Hard to believe that he hasn't made and kept a few friends in the course of his cycling career. Just because he's not the big threat anymore doesn't mean that everyone gave up on him as a friend. :? :? :?

FransJacques

On the eighth day God invented Google and Wikipaedia. Please use your God-given tools. It would take too long so here is the reduced shakespeare company's take:

Basically he's a mountain-biking Lance postal protege to TdF contender to TdF winner to drug convict to nasty legal struggle a la Hamilton (with same outcome) to modest comeback to joke of this thread mennonite.

shinyhelmut

FransJacques wrote:

I think that anything written about LA has resulted in lawsuits.

The majority of which were quietly dropped before LA actually ended up in court. It could make one hell of a read!

dennisn

ShinyHelmut wrote:

FransJacques wrote:

I think that anything written about LA has resulted in lawsuits.

The majority of which were quietly dropped before LA actually ended up in court. It could make one hell of a read!

You could very well be right. I guess people don't really want to hear about a celeb's
great life and their loving family life. It would seem that most people want the DIRT and
I can see why that might end up in a lawsuit. I order to sell, some of the DIRT may be exaggerated or just not true. Nobody wants to read about a pleasant family life.

iainf72

dennisn wrote:

You could very well be right. I guess people don't really want to hear about a celeb's
great life and their loving family life.

They do. You get mags in the UK called Hello and OK and all they are about is celebs lovely houses, loving relationships and kids. Sell bucketloads of them. I've seen similar magazine in airports around the world too.

dennisn

iainf72 wrote:

dennisn wrote:

You could very well be right. I guess people don't really want to hear about a celeb's
great life and their loving family life.

They do. You get mags in the UK called Hello and OK and all they are about is celebs lovely houses, loving relationships and kids. Sell bucketloads of them. I've seen similar magazine in airports around the world too.

So much for me being a student of human nature. Doesn't seem like the reading public wants wholesome fun. More like they want bad news and ugly stories. Maybe things are changing. Great.

FransJacques

dennisn - of course this is what they want. I'm a sailor and sailor write stories. Trust me, no one wants to read a story like this:
- we went sailing
- it was beautiful weather
- we drank beer and enjoyed the sun
- swam a little
- then saled back to the dock.
Who's going to read that sheit? Try this:
- we went sailing
- the met office said to expect force 10
- breeze was 60 knots, waves were 30 feet high
- we were rolled twice
- lost the mast
- lost people over the side
- the boat got holed by a sunk container
- we bailed vigorously but had to take to the life raft
- we got marooned a desert island and ate each remaining memeber of the crew as they died in order to stay alive.

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