WADA consider removing cannabis from the naughty list.

[Caruut]

WADA are to consider removing cannabis from the list of banned drugs in most fast-paced sports, where it presents no appreciable performance enhancement. In events like snooker and shooting, it is considered that the importance of a steady hand means that it could give an advantage.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/may/03/wada-cannabis-banned

A good move in my opinion; WADA's job is catching drugs cheats, not enforcing a moral code upon athletes. Hopefully this can free up some resources that were being used to go after a star getting high, which can now be used for what they were originally intended.

 

[Cloxxki]

WADA are to consider removing cannabis from the list of banned drugs in most fast-paced sports, where it presents no appreciable performance enhancement. In events like snooker and shooting, it is considered that the importance of a steady hand means that it could give an advantage.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/may/03/wada-cannabis-banned

A good move in my opinion; WADA's job is catching drugs cheats, not enforcing a moral code upon athletes. Hopefully this can free up some resources that were being used to go after a star getting high, which can now be used for what they were originally intended.

Imagine you're a 100m sprint specialist, but awefully sensitive to pressure. In training you run 9.8's but in races you tense up.
OK to smoke one before the race to loosen up?
I've never smoked anything, not one inhale, but even second hand pot smoke had an effect on me. I flew on the bike. I bet that one inhale would sort my nervousness greatly, possibly outweighing response time.
Unrealistic for a situation to exist where pot bears an advantage?

Example: I once (more than once) took d-ribose (totally legal as far as I know). The undesirable side-effect only I shared with no-one else: it made me sissy mentally. Not good in MTB racing, especially the first lap. I'd grant everyone in proximity priority entering singletrack, and otherwise just follow the pace, no overtaking initiatives from my end. It's however vital to get in front early. Fading later on will barely lose you positions. Losing places early on costs a lot of time you can't make up later on. Anyway, I'd just ride along and not give my maximum. Reluctant rather than lazy.
I found that downing a caffeine/sugar "energy" drink before the start offset the sissy effect, and I'd keep the advantageous mid-race recovery, reduced lactate buildup and increased overall power output effects.
If there should be legal additives to offset any negatives, I could see pot being a starting prep for some athletes. that said, I have no factual experience as a first hand user.

 

[Don't be late Pedro]

Imagine you're a 100m sprint specialist, but awefully sensitive to pressure. In training you run 9.8's but in races you tense up.
OK to smoke one before the race to loosen up?
I've never smoked anything, not one inhale, but even second hand pot smoke had an effect on me. I flew on the bike. I bet that one inhale would sort my nervousness greatly, possibly outweighing response time.
Unrealistic for a situation to exist where pot bears an advantage?

On the flip side they may never make it out of the first food stop.

 

[ElChingon]

Unrealistic for a situation to exist where pot bears an advantage?

How about a scary descent where certain riders are known to hold back (brake too much), now they'd be a bit more relaxed and possibly take extra risks or at least not panic. Or a rider that is normally a nervous wreck could use it to calm down and perform better (not in a crazy nervous state), this can also be used to calm a rider who just put himself in a nervous state by another infraction.

 

[Kiara is a rational girl]

Imagine you're a 100m sprint specialist, but awefully sensitive to pressure. In training you run 9.8's but in races you tense up.
OK to smoke one before the race to loosen up?
I've never smoked anything, not one inhale, but even second hand pot smoke had an effect on me. I flew on the bike. I bet that one inhale would sort my nervousness greatly, possibly outweighing response time.
Unrealistic for a situation to exist where pot bears an advantage?

Example: I once (more than once) took d-ribose (totally legal as far as I know). The undesirable side-effect only I shared with no-one else: it made me sissy mentally. Not good in MTB racing, especially the first lap. I'd grant everyone in proximity priority entering singletrack, and otherwise just follow the pace, no overtaking initiatives from my end. It's however vital to get in front early. Fading later on will barely lose you positions. Losing places early on costs a lot of time you can't make up later on. Anyway, I'd just ride along and not give my maximum. Reluctant rather than lazy.
I found that downing a caffeine/sugar "energy" drink before the start offset the sissy effect, and I'd keep the advantageous mid-race recovery, reduced lactate buildup and increased overall power output effects.
If there should be legal additives to offset any negatives, I could see pot being a starting prep for some athletes. that said, I have no factual experience as a first hand user.

If it came to light that weed was being used to gain a measurable, game-changing performance advantage, it could be rebanned. Until that happens, however, it seems unnecessarily strict to ban it.

There is a possibility you'll make a post warranting a permaban some time in your lifetime, but no one would suggest banning you precautionarily, would they? The same applies here: it's absolutely daft to do things with inevitable, tangible consequences when the possibility they seek to address is highly unlikely to occur.

 

[Caruut]

Almost all of the advantages I can think of are offset. For example, if you wanted ballsy descending, it would be coke or alcohol to deaden your risk evaluation, I reckon I would go more into "why bother risking it all on this descent when I can just go slow and look at the beautiful mountains" on weed. Good luck making it up the mountain when you've become lazy and hungry too.

I'm aware that's a strawman, was just amusing thinking about riding while high.

I get your point - some of them could confer advantages, but I think they are banned because they are illegal drugs, not because they are PEDs. Pretty sure coke has a short ban OOC, but is considered a PED in competition for some sports.

 

[Maxiton]

Almost all of the advantages I can think of are offset. For example, if you wanted ballsy descending, it would be coke or alcohol to deaden your risk evaluation, I reckon I would go more into "why bother risking it all on this descent when I can just go slow and look at the beautiful mountains" on weed. Good luck making it up the mountain when you've become lazy and hungry too.

I'm aware that's a strawman, was just amusing thinking about riding while high.

I get your point - some of them could confer advantages, but I think they are banned because they are illegal drugs, not because they are PEDs. Pretty sure coke has a short ban OOC, but is considered a PED in competition for some sports.

LOL. Exactly.

The thing about marijuana, at least in my limited experience, is that you never know what the effect is going to be. It might be performance enhancing, but more than likely it'll be the opposite; it'll make you paranoid, or sleepy, or dreamy; or it'll have you thinking, thinking, thinking, the wheels upstairs spinning furiously -- while the wheels down below lag. You come to some great realization that may or may not correspond to reality, but in any case you forget why you're there -- to race bikes -- and why it's important.

I think if there's some chance a drug could be performance enhancing, it should be banned. But if a drug has no chance to enhance performance, it should not be on the banned PEDs list, even it's illegal.

 

[Fausto's Schnauzer]

Wait, I thought that when they tested downhillers for THC it was to make sure they met a certain minimum level. >

 

[MarkvW]

What is the UCI thinking?!?!!
Are they high?

 

[hughmoore]

I think its to do with Australian Rules Football Drug testing. They have requested it be moved from the "performance enhancing" to the "illicit" drug section.

Still illegal, but just different penalties.


Hugh

Edit: The names of the sections, are probably wrong, but most would understand what I mean, too much dope this morning, so not performing very well on the keyboard.

 

[ElChingon]

Some of you's need to re-run the experiments you ran in college

 

[Zam_Olyas]

Riding while high on weed will be really cool ...freewheel would be like flying

 

[simo1733]

Any drug that gives you a sense of well being could be considered as a PED.

 

[Caruut]

Have you ever smoked weed?

 

[richtea]

I can't imagine a single scenario in which smoking reefer is going to be anything other than detrimental to your performance in road cycling. It would affect motivation, willingness to put training hours in, slow your reactions, reduce your ability to take risks, sap your energy etc. And I can't think of a single upside.

Riding a bike stoned (at least in central London) is absolutely terrifying by the way...

 

[RownhamHill]

How about a scary descent where certain riders are known to hold back (brake too much), now they'd be a bit more relaxed and possibly take extra risks or at least not panic.

Not sure, but I think any advantage you'd gain in an extra fast descent wouldn't make up for having to stop at the top of the mountain to skin up and smoke a joint.

Not unless, I suppose, the entire peloton stopped to join you for a smoke. And even then Team Sky would probably take relay tokes in rapid succession without getting off their bikes, and then take off down the mountain first with the jay still half smoked - marginal gains and all that.

And one could only imagine what the Schleck brothers would look like behind a bong (Andy would probably complain after the race that it was hydroponic weed, while he prefers hash, and no one wants to see the race settled on that Amsterdam ****).

 

[Zam_Olyas]

They say this place has the best hash http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malana,_Himachal_Pradesh

 

[gillan1969]

Imagine you're a 100m sprint specialist, but awefully sensitive to pressure. In training you run 9.8's but in races you tense up.
OK to smoke one before the race to loosen up?
I've never smoked anything, not one inhale, but even second hand pot smoke had an effect on me. I flew on the bike. I bet that one inhale would sort my nervousness greatly, possibly outweighing response time.
Unrealistic for a situation to exist where pot bears an advantage?

Example: I once (more than once) took d-ribose (totally legal as far as I know). The undesirable side-effect only I shared with no-one else: it made me sissy mentally. Not good in MTB racing, especially the first lap. I'd grant everyone in proximity priority entering singletrack, and otherwise just follow the pace, no overtaking initiatives from my end. It's however vital to get in front early. Fading later on will barely lose you positions. Losing places early on costs a lot of time you can't make up later on. Anyway, I'd just ride along and not give my maximum. Reluctant rather than lazy.
I found that downing a caffeine/sugar "energy" drink before the start offset the sissy effect, and I'd keep the advantageous mid-race recovery, reduced lactate buildup and increased overall power output effects.
If there should be legal additives to offset any negatives, I could see pot being a starting prep for some athletes. that said, I have no factual experience as a first hand user.

really?????????????????????

 

[ChrisE]

I can't imagine a single scenario in which smoking reefer is going to be anything other than detrimental to your performance in road cycling. It would affect motivation, willingness to put training hours in, slow your reactions, reduce your ability to take risks, sap your energy etc. And I can't think of a single upside.

Riding a bike stoned (at least in central London) is absolutely terrifying by the way...

When I was in college there was a young kid who shall remain nameless who used to smoke weed before riding. I couldn't understand it, but he was stupid strong and it didn't seem to effect him.

 

[Fearless Greg Lemond]

Now we know the reason why pro - cyclist wore those great sunglasses, they were all high on wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet.

 

[Cloxxki]

really?????????????????????

Yes. Having never taking actual first-hand pot smoke may have made me more sensitive. I'm Dutch, but we leave the junkie stuff mostly to tourists.

 

[Stingray34]

I was gonna win the Giro, but then I got high

I was gonna ride the Tour, but then I got high

I was gonna start the Vuelta, but then I got high

I was gonna go trainin', but then I got high

I was gonna wash my bibs, but then I got high


...at least it'll encourage you to eat and avoid the bonk!

 

[Merckx index]

When I was in college there was a young kid who shall remain nameless who used to smoke weed before riding. I couldn't understand it, but he was stupid strong and it didn't seem to effect him.

I went skiing on LSD once. I like to think I was the first person in history to try that, it was back in the late 60s. For those of you who have never dropped acid, it can be like a much more intense version of MJ (though it can also be lots of other things). Had a wonderful time, but as I recall, it didn't affect my performance one way or the other. I was probably a little more cautious than I normally would have been.

The only negative aspect of the trip came much later, in the lodge/hotel where I was staying with some other people who worked in the same lab, and our Ph.D. advisor. The drug made me very honest and perceptive, to the point where I started to verbalize some impressions of my advisor that really upset his normally mild-mannered wife. As I recall, she threw a plate at me. But that was OK, it came at me in slow motion.

 

[Maxiton]

I went skiing on LSD once. I like to think I was the first person in history to try that, it was back in the late 60s. For those of you who have never dropped acid, it can be like a much more intense version of MJ (though it can also be lots of other things). Had a wonderful time, but as I recall, it didn't affect my performance one way or the other. I was probably a little more cautious than I normally would have been.

The only negative aspect of the trip came much later, in the lodge/hotel where I was staying with some other people who worked in the same lab, and our Ph.D. advisor. The drug made me very honest and perceptive, to the point where I started to verbalize some impressions of my advisor that really upset his normally mild-mannered wife. As I recall, she threw a plate at me. But that was OK, it came at me in slow motion.

Great story.

 

[WillemS]

In 2011, Huestis, Mazzoni and Rabin wrote an interesting review about cannabis as doping in the scientific journal Sports Medicine (volume 41, number 11, page 949-966). An important remark they make is that the amount of THC or other cannabinoids when they're used for doping purposes are usually much lower than the intake for recreational uses. Even at lower concentrations, most cannabinoids will alter/modulate central nervous system activity.

In rodents is has been found that anxiety-related behavior diminishes after administration of low dosages of THC. Studies with human subject tend to show that cannabis lowers anxiety and risk-aversion, while it does not affect decision making. It also tends to suppress anxiety-related memories, such as traumatic events during sports. Not surprisingly, a survey under college athletes in France showed that cannabis is regularly used in 'sliding sports' such as skiing or snowboarding; users claim that it helps them overcome anxiety, which helps them during their descents. Another often claimed positive effect is the easing of (the sensation of) pain, enhanced creativity, and less disrupting thoughts.

There are also some indications that cannabinoids will reduce muscle tension and tremors and, although disputed, might enhance the oxygenation of tissue*. There were no studies indication increase in grip strength or other strength enhancing effects. Recreational quantities do, however, disrupt coordination and fine muscle movements, not something you want with riders riding in the peleton.

If you take these findings together, I think you can say that the use of cannabinoids might benefit athletes and not only those relying on fine muscle movements. Dosing at lower than recreational quantities might benefit riders who are scared of descending (hey Frandy!) or have problems with disruptive thoughts (which I think a lot of riders have during training or races). Thus, it might benefit you.

*) This is actually from a study done with cyclists. While the overall performance of cyclists was reduced 10 minutes after cannabis use (administered by smoking a cannabis cigarette), there were some signs that the oxygenation of tissue was enhanced, such as dilation of the air ways (bronchodilation) and dilation of the blood vessels (vasodilation). The question at hand is if taking cannabinoids via other ways than smoking will also have those effects and if using lower quantities of cannabinoids will have the same effect. If the latter holds than using cannabinoids might help oxygenation while not having the negative effects on performance.