A losers cry for attention...

[bostondrunk]

http://www.pedalmag.com/index.php?module=Section&action=viewdetail&item_id=2961

[e-RICHIE]

matt is a 20 something who has the right message but may have used too much stanislovsky ( a johny most reference for you, bd ) to make his point.
he sent me this letter on saturday pm so my shock was then and i'm over it now. try to read his words and remember he's a young man and perhaps does not have the gift of the pen that you possess. his story re the drug culture in cycling is no less diminished.
e-RICHIE

[bostondrunk]

Yes, not many people have my gift of the pen, just as not many builders have the gift of welding..

[Andreu]

.......but his heart is in the right place. Is he American by any chance?
A :beer:

[bostondrunk]

Its one thing to speak out against drugs, its another thing to publish a letter talking about how you tried to off yourself, but were too tired to do so.
Either:
1. The boy needs serious help and counseling (in which case I am not trying to make fun of him)
or
2. He is trying to cash in on the 'war on drugs'.

I'm sure sponsors are going to be rushing to give him money for a new team after reading his letters. Race in the giro??? yeah...

[e-RICHIE]

Andreau asked:
".......Is he American by any chance?'


yes.
and i believe he's a former national champion in the 40k event.
not 100% certain...

[Andreu]

I had never heard of the guy ...did a google search and he is everywhere (well ..not in the omnipotent god-like sense of the word).
He certainly has a bee in his bonnet!
His approach to the rid the world and its wife of performance enhancing drugs is obviously not working in Boston and I doubt whether it would work over on this side of the pond.
But at least he is trying!
A

[bostondrunk]

I'm sure his postings will do wonders for his iturnpro coaching business....
Seriously, he needs to stop his war on drugs and start the war on depression.
I'm not sure what anyone can do to rid the sport of drugs. At this point, as a few of us have stated (and obviously, we on the serotta board know everything...:):)), the UCI has to simply ban people for life, or drop the subject and leave the riders alone.
How about all the team directors meet with the UCI, agree on lifetime bans, give the riders a year to completely clean up, and then put the rule into effect.
Then comes genetic doping.. :crap:

[e-RICHIE]

he has already handed his business to his partner, justin.
u r right about the lifetime ban stuff.

[Roy E. Munson]

e-RICHIE,

Any truth to Adam Bergman testing positive for EPO? He's no longer on the Jelly Belly roster. Look's like EPO may be in the domestic racing after all!

[e-RICHIE]

jeez i don't know.
he was reported to have tested positive last winter or so. it
iwas in all the cycling press. that's all i know about that story.

[bostondrunk]

more importantly, can anyone tell me what Roy's avatar is???

[Andreu]

----a view of Donald Duck (looking upwards) in one of those really trendy bars that as a glass dance floor.
I think.
A
:beer:

[BigMac]

While I think much of this kid's diatribe is tongue in-cheek, or at least I hope so if not he really needs to be in a rubber room, the basis of his contention is disturbing and waaaay off base. This is one of the most frustrating aspects of the drug rumors, folks are led to believe that a donkey somehow is transformed into a thoroughbred through good chemistry.

David Millar seems to be the latest poster child for the drug warriors but the fact is David had a spectacular jr racing resume long before he arrived on peloton. I suspect his drug use is limited to the most recent 12-18 months of his professional career when he has battled various illnesses and injuries. From personal experience, I played in a sport noted for steroid usage, probably during its peak of usage. I can literally count on a single hand the men I knew who were longterm users. There was considerably higher usage by players on very limited basis still less than 25%, basically guys fighting through injuries. Now I know many of the cycling designer drugs are far different than what was used by American football players in early 70's but I do not believe the concept has changed much. The majority of players, including yours truly, never touched the juice under any circumstances and those that did were already talented enough to play pro ball, they just looked for an edge to work through injuries and the like.

This performance drug use is perhaps closer to my home than most, I lost 2 very dear friends to horrific brain cancer illnesses that neurologists believe may have been linked to steroid usage. I continue to train young college and high school athletes, some of the best in the nation. These kids are totally clean, including recreational drugs and alcohol. They have called me on occasion for feedback on special diets or supplements, most of which I advise them to avoid. If the talent and work ethic is there, the prizes will follow. If either is lacking, honestly its usually the former, no amount of performance enhancing drug is going to rectify the problem. Lance Armstrong was a phenominal talent before his battle with cancer, he made a remarkable recovery from cancer that defied all odds and was able to further capitalize on his tremendous talent.

Unfortunately for the young author with a very disturbing style of prose, its not performance enhancing drugs that prevents him from achieving a roster spot on a D1 team and riding in TdF or Giro as he wishes, its simply an issue of talent. Hey, there's probably not a single person on this forum who did not have aspirations for a successful professional athletic career, no matter the sport, unfortunately those that have the talent to realize the dream is a very finite few..."performance enhancing" drugs doesn't change those numbers.

Ride on! :banana: :banana: :banana:

[e-RICHIE]

"David Millar seems to be the latest poster child for the drug warriors but the fact is David had a spectacular jr racing resume long before he arrived on peloton."



BigMac -
btw, so did matt decanio.
he was among the brightest young u.s. stars during the late 90s...

[Roy E. Munson]

Sometimes I got the feeling Decanio was more interested in looking and acting like a rock star than bike racing around the year 2000.

Genetics make a great bike racer. You can take all the dope you want and train until your head falls off, if you don't have the natural God given gifts it takes to be great cyclist, it won't happen.

[e-RICHIE]

agreed.
but he did make it to the top...
world's teams, trips w the nat team, td langawi,
mengoni, hot tubes, prime alliance, etcetera...
as far as his side trips go, he's young. that's what
young folks do.

[Roy E. Munson]

e-RICHIE - that last comment was more general commentary than pointed at Matt D, I was kind of vague in where it was directed. I remember him racing Fitchburg with Prime Alliance - most impressive!

[e-RICHIE]

no worries.
i just had the feeling that some folks didn't
know how much matt accomplished as a junior
and U23 racer before he exited the sport and
went to college...

[Bruce H.]

I work with young track athletes. I also follow our extremely talented 5 times state champion football team. What I find is astounding. Most parents are trying to push their kids for a scholarship and possible big money pro career.
What I found as well as read is that a miniscule number of kids get scholarships and an even more miniscule will ever make it to the pros.
Our HS football team is successful due to incredible work ethics. They begin wt training in Jan and begin w/o pads in may. By the 4th quarter the other teams are gurting really bad and ours are raring to go.
Lance is the same as is Michael and others. Drugs may help those with a poorer work ethic compete, but hard work is what enables you to finish first.
Bruce H

PS: Last time I looked, alcohol was considered a drug????