i understand Ed's point, it's wearing, the did they? did they not drug? etc, not just Lance but the others aswel. it does turn you off the sport but what gets me more is the press, the bandwagon of haters who know nothing and who voice their opinions based on the little they know or have heard.
comments like "they're all at it" etc
when Ben Johnson was caught doping no one really said "i bet every athlete is a doper" but that's what they seem to say about cycling.
every sport has had and will have cheats to some extent, it's frustrating as you get behind someone and become a fan and then they let you down.
i was a lance fan, he stood for so much, my attitude was "i hope he didn't" as opposed to "i bet he did/didn't" but sadly i believe he did now.
wiggo etc, the team was created on a no dope standpoint, if they doped it would be a disaster on so many levels, but they all signed contracts to say they would never do it and i for one don't believe they would.
cheating though works in other ways aswel, it's not just doping, it's helping another team so that they don't ride against you on another stage etc. sprints can be bought, a friend who raced pro/am in belgium for years told me once that you could make more money being better than somebody else from being paid not to sprint than you could by winning the sprint, and how much was paid depended on how close/not obvious the winner would want it to be.
but i'll still watch the big stuff, it's not always about the race for me, it's about the spectacle itself, the fanfare, and phil liggett going mental for 2 minutes towards the end of every stage.