Confession of a doper

[Waldo]

After much soul-searching and inspired by the examples of riders of Team Telekom, I've decided to come clean. In the past nine months it has been extremely difficult living with the knowledge that I have benefitted from taking performance-enhancing substances. Therefore, I have decided to confess and to throw myself at the mercy of the governing body.

During the 2006 Napa Century, which I rode woefully undertrained, I liberally helped myself to Advil, Tums, and Carbogen. I have notified the sponsoring club Berkeley Bicycle Club/Napa Eagle Cycling Club of my transgression and offered to return my patch and reimburse them the cost of post-event meal, as well as for food and beverages I consumed during the ride.

I expect no mercy from the event organizers or my peers. However, I make this admission in humble hope for forgiveness, ask that my punishment be just and not excessive, hope that my suspension is brief (brief enough to allow me to ride Sequoia Century on June 3), and pray that I do not succumb again to the temptation of aiding my performance through use of chemicals.

I encourage all fellow users of performance-enhancing substances to admit their use here in the hope of cleaning up our beatiful sport.

:p

[Bill Bove]

I too have used both performance enhancing drugs and performance dehancing drugs. I am however unrepentant :butt: I have a milestone birthday coming up and a small bag of shall we say "something to put a smile on my face" I plan to turn 40-10 with a buzz :D

[Louis]

"something to put a smile on my face"

Bill,

Is that Geritol, or Viagra? :p

[97CSI]

Bill, Is that Geritol, or Viagra? :pCod liver oil, most likely.

[Ti Designs]

Rumor has it that our very own Sandy will have his past titles taken away for the use of performance enhancing dogs.

[93legendti]

Just last week I gave up Fructose...the guilt was too much.

[saab2000]

You can have my Diet Pepsi when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.

[paulh]

Coffee!
All the t-shirts are in a box in my garage at home. They can come and collect them. What matters to me are my memories.

[Bud_E]

My soigneur has been smuggling snickers bars and meat pies he obtained from Dr. Fuentes into my hotel room. I've been "juiced" with 15 extra pounds of body fat. But I refuse to give back the yellow jersey -- it's the only one that's big enough to fit me anymore.

[michael white]

I already used my t-shirts to clean my chain, so all y'all can go to hell!

[Xyzzy]

My confession isn't as tongue-in-cheek as everyone else's, but I will admit to using amphetamines once on a real fast group ride. I was curious how they would affect me.

While most of that ride is a blur in my memory, it was the fastest ride I ever did, and I was off the front nearly the entire time. I had "the urge to surge" as I like to call it. It destroyed everyone behind me on that particular day. I love doing a surge off the front on a hill, and as they catch me, surge again. Very very few (recreational) riders will respond to the second surge because their brain tells them to stop. Plus it gives me a chance to perfect "The Look".

I'd like to think it was just the drug enabling me to push my body more than I was ever could before, and the performance was what my body was really capable of, but I do feel a bit guilty about it.

On an interesting note, the amphetamines really scared me. My heart was racing and skipping beats. I nearly passed out at the end because all the blood in my body was being pumped around by the muscle contractions in my legs, so when I stopped it pooled in the legs and gave me orthostatic hypotension. I also had tunnel vision and on the hardest/longest hill I lost my hearing and color vision. That can't be a good sign I suppose.

I asked my friends if I was a safety hazard or anything during the ride and they indicated that since I was off the front so much it didn't matter. When I was in the group I hung out in the back waiting for the next hill. They did say I talked about 100x faster than I usually do, so I must have sounded like the guy who reads off the disclaimers on televised prescription drug commercials.

I'm not taking them ever again, but I don't regret taking them. I now know that when I think I'm at 100% that I'm really only at 70%. It was a valuable lesson and a scary one too.

Are pro riders on something? You bet. A simple over-the-counter amphetamine turned me from a pussy cat into a raging animal. Imagine what they can do for a rider who has ability. Especially under a doctor's close supervision.

When I read the Tom Simpson book and Paul Kimmage's book everything made sense. Especially the part in Kimmage's book where he was doing an after Tour crit and boosted for the first time. That's exactly how I felt.

http://www.mersenneforum.org/images/smilies/extra/blahblah.gif

[Johny]

.

...I now know that when I think I'm at 100% that I'm really only at 70%....
[/IMG]

Actually only 30% if you also took EPO, HGH, and steroids.

[chuckroast]

I am currently under the influence of a medium DQ peanut butter cup Blizzard. I hope it has cleared my system by tomorrow's ride but I fear it will be around my waist for quite some time.

[fiamme red]

I'm not taking them ever again, but I don't regret taking them. I now know that when I think I'm at 100% that I'm really only at 70%. It was a valuable lesson and a scary one too.

Are pro riders on something? You bet. A simple over-the-counter amphetamine turned me from a pussy cat into a raging animal. Imagine what they can do for a rider who has ability. Especially under a doctor's close supervision.

When I read the Tom Simpson book and Paul Kimmage's book everything made sense. Especially the part in Kimmage's book where he was doing an after Tour crit and boosted for the first time. That's exactly how I felt.

http://www.mersenneforum.org/images/smilies/extra/blahblah.gifGreat post! Very enlightening. :beer:

[soulspinner]

I too have used both performance enhancing drugs and performance dehancing drugs. I am however unrepentant :butt: I have a milestone birthday coming up and a small bag of shall we say "something to put a smile on my face" I plan to turn 40-10 with a buzz :D


Be careful riding after consuming said contents...you have a tendency to fixate on beautiful women and may ride into the back of a Honda...thats what my friend told me anyway.. :D .happy milestone day.

[znfdl]

I have to admit that I can not live without my prozac. I guess that I have to give up cycling, because there is no way I can get clean. ;)

[saab2000]

A buddy of mine in Switzerland also took amphetamines and reports having had the exact same reaction as Zyzzy. Fast, irregular heartbeat. Sweated all night. Awake 'til 4 AM. But very fast on the bike for a day. He also said, "never again".