If Contador Starts the Tour I Will:

[Wallace]

Okay, given that as any long time participant/fan of this sport I’ve had to eat a fair amount of excrement in my day—the first memorable time being when Pedro Delagado tested positive for probenecid and was then cleared to win the race—with the support of all the other racers, who felt great compassion for the suffering he endured from years of gout—but still: if Contador starts this year’s Tour, it will be the first time a rider has been caught with a banned substance—tested positive twice—and then, because he’s just so damn popular in his home country, somehow, magically, it’s been determined that with him, “positive” isn’t really “positive.” I think this marks, for me, the time when enough is finally enough. If Contador starts the Tour this year, I will do my absolute best to ignore the event—and given that I live in America and that there won’t be any Americans in contention for the overall, that won’t be hard to do. I was just wondering how many other people feel the same way.

 

[Barracuda]

Nah ... I will still be watching ... too much of a spectacle to not watch .... starting to get itchy feet already regardless of Contador. To many "what if's" to play out re Cadel/Andy etc to keep the whole show rolling along just nicely for my liking.

Not only that, but the racing through the area's I would like to go to inspires me to a) keep riding and b) keep watching.

Plus the aussie flavour of Stuey and crew is a huge factor.

I will let you know how it goes !!

 

[The Hitch]

Wont you feel this way if he gets to start and ends up winning Il Giro?

Me, meh, i will watch the Tour no matter what. I would prefer Contador there actually as i think without him, team Schlux keeping Andrew 2 minutes ahead of everyone before the mountains, then selecting 2 stages on which to increase gap, would be extremely boring.

Contador has balls. hes a doper but i knew that last few years anyway.

 

[mightymac12]

I will lose any of the faith I have left in cycling. Granted I am cynical about any professional sport, but this would be the last straw.

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

I really hope some of you keep to your word and stop watching cycling, if nothing else, just so we won't have to hear these incessant threats about every single controversy being "the last straw."

But we all know just as well as you do that you're going to watch. If you want to lie to yourself from now until July, fine. But you'll be glued to the telly come July.

 

[auscyclefan94]

Cry, watch and throw things at the telelvision! I am not happy he got away with it but I will watch Evans crush him with a fine pair of legs and nothing more!!!!

 

[pedaling squares]

If scandal and corruption could get me to stop watching cycling, I would have never started. I'll watch the race. I won't jeer for him but I'll still watch. I'll complain about it in the forum and hope that one more tiny wave will contribute to a storm rising against the corruption in this sport.

Thoughts and prayers to New Zealanders.

 

[Maxiton]

I really hope some of you keep to your word and stop watching cycling, if nothing else, just so we won't have to hear these incessant threats about every single controversy being "the last straw."

But we all know just as well as you do that you're going to watch. If you want to lie to yourself from now until July, fine. But you'll be glued to the telly come July.

+1. That.

 

[mightymac12]

I really hope some of you keep to your word and stop watching cycling, if nothing else, just so we won't have to hear these incessant threats about every single controversy being "the last straw."

But we all know just as well as you do that you're going to watch. If you want to lie to yourself from now until July, fine. But you'll be glued to the telly come July.

I fight fires during the summer months, so a no tour July is very easy thing to accomplish. I come to this forum for the insight and witty humor. I don't appreciate you being a di**.

 

[Paco_P]

Cry, watch and throw things at the telelvision! I am not happy he got away with it but I will watch Evans crush him with a fine pair of legs and nothing more!!!!

If Evans crushes Contador it will just prove that Evans has made substantial improvement to his training regimen.

 

[hrotha]

If Contador rides the Tour, it's no different from his riding the Volta ao Algarve.

 

[JPM London]

What Moose said...

 

[Finbouy]

Nope I'll watch it, don't care about the in's n out's of what's been going on recently with Bertie, I still love the drama, the passion, the drive and the angst and the spectacle of it all. Theres more to the TdF than BertieBoy, there are loadsa lads there who'll fight to the last stroke just to be there, just to get the chance of saying "I did it" and I'll celebrate the breaks, the rouleurs, the climbers and the crowds.. and I'll damn well love it!! I want to see Robbie Mc be there for his last year at sprinting, I want to see Tarruxka (spelling) climb out of his skin then die off, I want Basso to grind his hips and grit his teeth right to the top of the mountains, I want to see Evans gurn his way around the 25% steep bits, see Tommy V fire off a break, Nicky Roache chase him down, i want to see the flat rolling stages where nothing at all happens just riding and riding and riding, i want to see Cav lead himself out and blitz em' all, I want to see Wiggo's mop hairdo flailing out from under his helmet, I want to see a bullet hard Russian with Iron pistons for legs dig hard and string em' all out, I want to see bemused Spanish riders bunched up like frightened chickens when the breaks go then pull them all back when the hills start.. I want to see Italians ponce around then sweat like cattle..
I flippin love the TdF.. (although the Giro is way better hahaha!!!)

 

[sniper]

I'll watch, if the UCI leave the testing to an external testing-body, that doesn't give Saxo bank that extra fifteen minutes to wake up in the morning.

If not, I'll watch as well, just to see Gesink kick some *** in the mountains, on orange-juice.

 

[patricknd]

....not give a crap either way because i have a life

 

[spalco]

[x]
I will watch but I'll be very annoyed and ****ed off and wish him as much misfortune as anybody could have, so just about the same as I did with the Armstrong TdF's.

 

[Met de Versnelling]

Crying and throwing things at the television...

At the joy of seeing Basso ride the legs of everyone there!

(But yeah, i'll be pi$$ed if he rides, in the same way i was when he rode Algarve.)

 

[Winterfold]

Yes - Moose is spot on - please can all the people who say things like 'it's the last straw' 'never again' and so on please stick to their word this time.

Go away and watch some other clean sports such as baseball, american football, rugby, tennis.

I have got over every other drug expose and scandal that has occurred since I have followed the sport in the last 20 years and this time wont be any different.

Actually I am glad he's in for exactly the same reasons Hitch outlines.

May the best cheat win!

 

[Beech Mtn]

Cry, watch and throw things at the telelvision! I am not happy he got away with it but I will watch Evans crush him with a fine pair of legs and nothing more!!!!

That's a visual I could have done without.

 

[NashbarShorts]

Realize Kimmage was onto something when he said, "The sport cannot be saved"??

 

[flyor64]

If scandal and corruption could get me to stop watching cycling, I would have never started. I'll watch the race. I won't jeer for him but I'll still watch. I'll complain about it in the forum and hope that one more tiny wave will contribute to a storm rising against the corruption in this sport.

Thoughts and prayers to New Zealanders.

This + about a gazillion.

To both thoughts. (thanks PS)

 

[Escarabajo]

Thoughts and prayers to New Zealanders.

+1.

There is no point in the thread I believe. If it was for the doping, corruption, or else, a lot of us would have stopped watching long time ago.

Maybe a better thread would be to focus on the performance expectations given a case of an approved plasticizer test.

 

[davis_123]

I will be attending the TDF if he is riding just so I can wait at the top of some climb and spear tackle him off a cliff.

 

[Andynonomous]

Great theater.

I will be attending the TDF if he is riding just so I can wait at the top of some climb and spear tackle him off a cliff.

Lol. I would pay to see that.


What many of you avid fans of professional bike racing don't get is the reaction from the casual fans and sports journalists. If Contador is in serious contention for the win, there will be a collective groan out there ("ya, it's just that doped up Spaniard stealing another victory").

I believe that if Contador is half way savy, he either will not compete in the TDF, or he will not "cycle up" for the event.

 

[Cobblestoned]

Yes - Moose is spot on - please can all the people who say things like 'it's the last straw' 'never again' and so on please stick to their word this time.

Go away and watch some other clean sports such as baseball, american football, rugby, tennis.

I have got over every other drug expose and scandal that has occurred since I have followed the sport in the last 20 years and this time wont be any different.

Actually I am glad he's in for exactly the same reasons Hitch outlines.

May the best cheat win!

+1, also for moose

I will be there too and tackle people like davis_0815 off the cliff, if they touch Alberto or any other cyclists.