hrotha said:
I find it hilarious that these people's response to "No proof, but suspicions arising from several sources" isn't "Investigate!" but "Forget it, they're all bitter."
Absolutely true. It amazes me when if nothing else you try to be openminded and look at the issue from both sides you suddenly have become a lifelong hater.
For the record i would prefer LA to be as clean as the driven snow. I take no delight in his downfall other than an example being set to future riders that is you cheat you might get away for awhile but eventually the deception will be revealed and you would be better served to play by the rules than give in to the temptation of fame & fortune.
On a personal note, i truly believed LA in his comeback was clean. What opened my eyes that i was naive occurred soon after one of his early TDF wins. I had a friend who was on the team with Lance. A very affable guy and someone who always has a smile on his face and would make Bobke look depressed. I asked him"Boy that must have been great, winning the Tour with Lance?"
that comment immediately wiped the smile off his face and replaced it with a expression that really took me by surprise."Evil eye" would be the closest explanation i can think of. I don't remember if he actually said
"don't ever ask me about it again" but that was the obvious implication.
It went far beyond someone being a pain in the *** or playing their music too loud etc etc. I had just mentioned something that threatened this man's career if he discussed it. I have know this guy for twenty years and never seen him act this way before or since. It took all of five seconds for me to figure out what this person was telling me without speaking, Lance was dirty. It felt not unlike being broadsided by a car, i kind of made it through the next few hours in a daze wondering wtf had just hit me.
I would prefer if this never happened but i can't turn back the clock and pretend it didn't. I guess in some people eyes that makes me a hater, and of course there is no way to convince them otherwise. So be it.
And to the apologists who even now are saying its OK, everyone does it Christopher Bassons never had the stones to be a winner etc etc it reminds me of a friend of mine from England.
When we were riding the train from Milan to Lugano he said
"Say what you will about Mussolini but at least he kept the trains running on time"
personally if i had my druthers i would most definitely prefer to suffer British rail if it meant living under Churchill...