Professional cycling - is there a future?

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I lost interest in professional cycling after the Landis/Vinokourov Tour. I almost had to back. Now Vinokourov is the Olympic Road Race Champion and the revelations about Armstrong look worse by the day (and they haven't looked good for a while). So, I'm fed up and cynical again - what to make of Tom Boonen's stellar spring? Or Wiggins and Froome?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting the latter 3 doped but when you have believed and been fooled so many times it gets increasingly challenging to take things at face value, which is really sad.

I'm not sure what can be done to improve things - any ideas? - but for now at least, I really can't be bothered to follow professional cycling.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0OVpyvey4U



Joking aside, I gave up on professional cycling way ago.
I used to race during my teen years (amateur level), and even there it's a dirty world.
Pretty sure half of the field was using, so it can only be worse at professional level.

The whole doping thing is such a crucial part of cycling that there's no way the sport will ever become even remotely clean.
 
so have you fellas given up watching sport altogether or just cycling? If its just the latter, what makes you think the others are cleaner? is it that they dont have the same testing regime, or that they dont publicise the results and that no bad news mean you dont need to reject them ? or maybe those sports are easier and dont need dope? I dunno
 
I actually gave up on sport altogether. Wouldn't mind watching the occasional Nascar or BTCC race, but no more cycling, MTB, soccer, baseball etc.
 
It caused the death of the great Tom Simpson 45 years ago. Although I still think he was one of the greatest.

Its sport, its life :roll:
 
Of course it will go on, the popularity may wain a bit in light of the Armstrong debacle but I'd say the true fans will stick. I'll admit the Landis tour was a low point for me also and I didn't really follow much for a couple of years, but when I did start watching again I set aside any thoughts of doping and enjoyed the racing for what I could see. I now accept the system that is in place and still believe that cyclings fight against doping is the most progressive in any sport. If you can't get over any nagging doubts then I would say give up watching, I've started a few pro cycling threads this year and at some point doping will be mentioned and accusations* made without any substance. I'm not sure why people who can't believe what they are seeing are even bothering in the first place.

*Of course the accusations are rarely levelled at Cavendish/Wiggins and to a lesser extent Froome, but thats another discussion.
 
pigman":1666apuq said:
so have you fellas given up watching sport altogether or just cycling? If its just the latter, what makes you think the others are cleaner? is it that they dont have the same testing regime, or that they dont publicise the results and that no bad news mean you dont need to reject them ? or maybe those sports are easier and dont need dope? I dunno

Football seems to be in the mire too at present - doping allegations at Barcelona, the whole John Terry business, other Chelsea players being unable to use Twitter without resorting to profanities, Michael Owen falling over at international level to claim dodgy penalties, etc., etc. So it's not just cycling - all sports have their own set of problems, though possibly I'm not yet enough of a cynic to give up watching them.

David
 
Raging_Bulls":1y8bwz7l said:
I actually gave up on sport altogether. Wouldn't mind watching the occasional Nascar or BTCC race, but no more cycling, MTB, soccer, baseball etc.

I laughingly said to a pal of mine who works in motorsport that it was probably the only one without a doping problem and he simply laughed and rolled his eyes.

No drug testing in motorsport at all I think...
...hmm, perhaps an amphetamine problem in rallying and enduro? :shock:
 
hamster":151ocfya said:
Raging_Bulls":151ocfya said:
I actually gave up on sport altogether. Wouldn't mind watching the occasional Nascar or BTCC race, but no more cycling, MTB, soccer, baseball etc.

I laughingly said to a pal of mine who works in motorsport that it was probably the only one without a doping problem and he simply laughed and rolled his eyes.

No drug testing in motorsport at all I think...
...hmm, perhaps an amphetamine problem in rallying and enduro? :shock:

ha,ha Motorsport has its own doping issues maybe not with the drivers but underneath them cars bodies are all the fiddles under the sun twisting and stretching rules and everyone is doing something naughty for that extra bhp ;)
 
.

I don't think i'll stop watching the TdeF as i love the whole spectacle.

I shall just watch assuming, as i have for a while, that the one really really powerful dude who has strong rides day after day will a at later date, maybe weeks, maybe months, maybe years be found to have been a cheat :roll:
Fortunately this doesn't detract from said spectacle at the time of veiwing.

I hope the current crop of brits are clean, but who knows. :(
 
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