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Lance and le tour... new book

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Anonymous

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Alpe d'Huez said:
Not to bash a book I haven't read, or even seen the cover of, but do we really need another Lance book?

...........

I'd like to see someone write something new. Something that requires digging about something we don't know enough about. Say, a book on Alberto Contador. Who he is, what makes him tick. Or one on someone more mysterious, such as Tyler Hamilton, and his complete story.
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Cadel Evans: Close to Flying by Rob Arnold

Very interesting. Quite different as well. Explains alot about his troubles and frustration for the last 7-8 years of road cycling, as well as his teenage days as a MTB prodigy.

It also shows how close he was to being a superstar with 4 GTs under his belt (Giro 2002, Tours, and this years Vuelta) - alot of frustration comes out about those 4 races. Of course he didn't win those races, and some would say he never could have, but it's interesting to see how close he really was.

I suggest the people that consistently call him a whinger (aussie) or whiner (americo) have a good read. When you've come that close, i'd whinge/whine as well about the little things.

WOW - I almost sound like a promoter.. sorry haha
 
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peloton

Mar 12, 2009
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Murray said:
Here's another take... interesting that Contador doesn't feel the need to start a foundation to help other people.
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Sigh. Typical Lance fan.

That Contador does not want to build a myth of lies around himself and milk sick people along the way for a profit foundation is, well, much more honorable.
 
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Dominar

Nov 2, 2009
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peloton said:
Sigh. Typical Lance fan.

That Contador does not want to build a myth of lies around himself and milk sick people along the way for a profit foundation is, well, much more honorable.
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You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. I really don't care what you choose to spew about Lance Armstrong, but you should leave the LAF out of it. You may not agree with or support its particular charitable purposes, but by all objective accounts, it's a well-run, quality charity.
 
BroDeal

BroDeal

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Dominar said:
You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. I really don't care what you choose to spew about Lance Armstrong, but you should leave the LAF out of it. You may not agree with or support its particular charitable purposes, but by all objective accounts, it's a well-run, quality charity.
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It looks like nothing more than a way for Armstrong to stroke his ego while defrauding those with a terminal disease with his lies about how he won the Tour.
 
Race Radio

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Dominar said:
You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. I really don't care what you choose to spew about Lance Armstrong, but you should leave the LAF out of it. You may not agree with or support its particular charitable purposes, but by all objective accounts, it's a well-run, quality charity.
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Never question the myth, the groupies hate it.
 
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davidg

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Murray said:
Here's another take... interesting that Contador doesn't feel the need to start a foundation to help other people.
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I have no axe to gring either way, but I bet if AC and LA roles were reversed, there would be plenty of people saying what a great bloke Contador was for starting a foundation, and what a bast@rd Armstrong was for doing nothing with his celebrity status to help mankind.

Just a thought!
 
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rata de sentina

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davidg said:
I have no axe to gring either way, but I bet if AC and LA roles were reversed, there would be plenty of people saying what a great bloke Contador was for starting a foundation, and what a bast@rd Armstrong was for doing nothing with his celebrity status to help mankind.

Just a thought!
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Well somewhere between the brain and the keyboard there was some kind of glitch in the thought transmission. Perhaps you might want to expound further and make it comprehendable.
 
BroDeal

BroDeal

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Mellow Velo said:
With no Tour victory to crow over and his ass handed to him, on a plate, all the fanboys have left to exhault, is LAF.
So, they criticise Contador, for not having his own PR charity (money making) machine.
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Obviously Contador should set up his own foundation. After promoting it as a charity, he could then sell the brand rights to a gaggle of vulture capitalists in exchange for giving him a substantial equity stake in a pre-IPO company that is planning on going public shortly. He could then direct people to the dot com site, deliberately confusing people about which is a charity and which puts money in his pocket. To top things off, he could ally himself with a heartless, money grubbing shoe company that. when it is not paying a pennies to children to manufacture shoes, uses the charity to promote itself. After doing that, no matter how much drugs he takes and how big of a *** he is, Contador's fanboys can point to his fake charity to justify his every action.
 
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Big GMaC

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Dominar said:
You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. I really don't care what you choose to spew about Lance Armstrong, but you should leave the LAF out of it. You may not agree with or support its particular charitable purposes, but by all objective accounts, it's a well-run, quality charity.
Click to expand...

Actually....

The Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF), founded by the champion bicyclist and cancer survivor of the same name, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year. Wouldn’t you think a charity that receives massive publicity for having one of the most popular causes and most admired celebrities as the face of the organization would be able to easily raise lots of money? Unfortunately this is not the case. LAF spent as much as $45 to raise each $100, exceeding AIP’s 35% recommended fundraising ceiling by a significant margin. While LAF had difficulty raising contributions efficiently, it did prove to be a savvy merchandise marketer. LAF sold over $24 million in merchandise, including the ubiquitous yellow “LIVESTRONG” wristband, as well as clothing, sports gear and even dog leashes. Yet after spending $10 million in solicitation costs, the group brought in only $22 million in contributions, according to AIP’s analysis of LAF’s 2005 financial statements.

From this article

http://www.charitywatch.org/articles/cancer.html

and read it before you say it busts only on the LAF...
 
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progressor

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BroDeal said:
Obviously Contador should set up his own foundation. After promoting it as a charity, he could then sell the brand rights to a gaggle of vulture capitalists in exchange for giving him a substantial equity stake in a pre-IPO company that is planning on going public shortly. He could then direct people to the dot com site, deliberately confusing people about which is a charity and which puts money in his pocket. To top things off, he could ally himself with a heartless, money grubbing shoe company that. when it is not paying a pennies to children to manufacture shoes, uses the charity to promote itself. After doing that, no matter how much drugs he takes and how big of a *** he is, Contador's fanboys can point to his fake charity to justify his every action.
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That's the best anti-armstrong rant I've read here so far.

It's irrelevant to how good a cyclist he is.
 
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Anonymous

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rata de sentina said:
Well somewhere between the brain and the keyboard there was some kind of glitch in the thought transmission. Perhaps you might want to expound further and make it comprehendable.
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i actually think he made perfect sense, and in many ways i agree with him

perhaps there is a glitch between your screen and your brain...;) i think your comment was rather unnecessary..
 
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mattlamy

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Well that's learnt me for writing the damn thing. Still, maybe my next one - I can't decide whether to do Saddam, Bin Laden or Ahmadenijad - will cause less grief.

But if anybody actually likes Lance then they might like the book.

As an aside - this forum is the only place I've ever seen people condemn a guy for being involved with a charity. ("Dr Barnado? He was a massive big head." "World Wildlife Fund? Where does that panda get off?" "Medecins sans frontiers? Don't doctors get paid enough without taking free exotic holidays too?")
 
frenchfry

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mattlamy said:
Well I don't know who Syler is, and it's certainly not me, but I thank them for their kind words. If they do work for CW, they haven't told me.

Dimspace - I don't think there's any need to suggest the book was "compiled". I conducted brand new interviews with 16 people involved - to varying degrees - with the Armstrong story: Ochowicz, Ekimov, Heras, Rubiera, Pena, Yates, Hincapie,... even the bloke that pulled the tumours out of Lance's brain. Every word in the book was written by me, and I'm pretty proud of it.

But, hey, don't take my word for it being a good read, just ask George (Nov 18): http://twitter.com/GHincapie.

"why do i think it could be a complete pile of ball cocks" - I'm sure there's a phrase about 'books' and 'covers' that might be relevant.

Best wishes,
Matt

(Incidentally, if you'd like to order a copy of '100 Strangest Unexplained Mysteries' feel free to order one from here: http://www.amazon.com/100-Strangest-Mysteries-Matt-Lamy/dp/0760791929)
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Looking at the list of interviewees, I think you would have saved a lot of time by going directly to Public Strategies for your information. The story line would certainly be exactly the same.

Did Ekimov share the story of how he spit on Simeoni? That was a great moment in the fight against cancer! Or did Rubeira relate his fight to suppress OP to you? Surely Heras related how he was as clean during the time he spent with USPS but how he started doping the day he left.
 
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mattlamy

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frenchfry said:
Looking at the list of interviewees, I think you would have saved a lot of time by going directly to Public Strategies for your information. The story line would certainly be exactly the same.

Did Ekimov share the story of how he spit on Simeoni? That was a great moment in the fight against cancer! Or did Rubeira relate his fight to suppress OP to you? Surely Heras related how he was as clean during the time he spent with USPS but how he started doping the day he left.
Click to expand...

Buy a copy and find out.
 
thehog

thehog

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Wilcockson spends a lot of time talking about the allegations of performance enhancing drugs that persistently dogged Armstrong's career. He makes a strong case for Lance never having taken them. He points out that from the earliest days Lance had brute strength and natural ability, which he later honed as he developed a better bike sense and riding skills. The loss of upper body muscle mass after his battle with cancer enabled him to rise to the next level. Wilcockson also points out that Lance's secrecy about his training techniques worked against him in terms of reducing others' suspicion.

The book opens with Armstrong's decision to return for the 2009 Tour de France. I thought it was odd that Alberto Contadour is never mentioned in the book and nor is Bruyneel's reaction to Lance's return. The ending does feels rushed. Nevertheless, a worthwhile read about an incredible champion.
 
Galic Ho

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mattlamy said:
Well that's learnt me for writing the damn thing. Still, maybe my next one - I can't decide whether to do Saddam, Bin Laden or Ahmadenijad - will cause less grief.

But if anybody actually likes Lance then they might like the book.

As an aside - this forum is the only place I've ever seen people condemn a guy for being involved with a charity. ("Dr Barnado? He was a massive big head." "World Wildlife Fund? Where does that panda get off?" "Medecins sans frontiers? Don't doctors get paid enough without taking free exotic holidays too?")
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I have a few questions about the content of your book.

In any form you or any one interviewed make reference to PED's made regarding Armstrong or Motorola/USPS/Disco?

Did you interview Lance himself?

Is there anything about his family life? Mother and then his wife? Anything resembling dysfunction of any sort?

What degree of detail is given to Lance's relationships with Johan Bruyneel and Michel Ferrari?

If you touch on these, most on these forums would take a look. If not, I'm sorry to say it but they probably have more knowledge from other sources

Now I could bring up how the book was financed and commissioned but you have a right to make a living and it seems you are a journalist/writer by trade so by all means promote your book. Also good luck.

Also the charity chatter, given there is significant differences between Livestrong.org (original) and Livestrong.com (latter and cash cow) and the lack of distinction given by Armstrong to the two when addressing the public, plus the level of advertising attributed to both, the cynicism is more than understandable and warranted. Who makes money of an NPO? Or at least what the public think is an NPO. Don't answer that, you may not like the answer. Add in the fact Lance proclaimed his comeback was for cancer awareness and the level of attention given in comparison to quarrels and issues with other riders, something doesn't add up when one applies critical thinking. Bottom line, it is all breaks down to dollars.
 
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richwagmn

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thehog said:
The book opens with Armstrong's decision to return for the 2009 Tour de France. I thought it was odd that Alberto Contadour is never mentioned in the book and nor is Bruyneel's reaction to Lance's return. The ending does feels rushed. Nevertheless, a worthwhile read about an incredible champion.
Click to expand...

Really? Contador doesn't even deserve a mention? No thanks.
 
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