Another one bites it...

Zirbel's B sample also positive from Velonews. com. Oops, looks like someone tested positive 2 times now, and will be banned for a couple of years. Say goodbye to the career you never really had doper. Don't let the proverbial door hit you in the arse on the way out. Seems as though, he has read the excuse list though, because just like everyone else who has ever gotten busted (well, almost everyone), he's got several excuses, all of which are 99.9% lies. Sure there is a small, very small, almost miniscule chance he's telling the truth, but those chances are not very good. I think it goes back to the old slim and none, and instead of slim just leaving town, slim and none both RAN outta town. Anyone have the over and under on how many doping positives we'll get this year during the race season once it gets cranked up? How many more times will Boonen get busted for recreational drugs? He does seem to like to snort the powder. My wife has officially jumped off of the Boonen fan wagon, after she found out he was dating a 16 year old girl (well, she's probably 18 or so now I guess, or getting close to that age). Now, she finds him creepy. She's moved over to liking Cavendish, or Millar. She has a thing for pale lanky Englishmen. How she ended up with me (swarthy, dark, hairy, Frenchman) I'll never really know, but I'm not going to question it. She pretty much rocks my world.

Anyway, regardless of doping going on, I'm still pretty psyched for the real season to start. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, spring classics are where it's at. This is where the hard men (or the best dopers) come into their own. I think I read somewhere the Lancey-poo is going to be riding the Classics this year, which makes me like him, just a little bit. I know, another Lance hater. Don't get me wrong. I completely respect what he's done on the bike, and I respect what he's done off the bike (Livestrong and cancer stuff and things like that), it still doesn't make me a fan of him though. That's all I will say about that for now. But, get out there like you did in the old days Lance, and get in the mud, it'll be good for you. Ride some cobbles. Taste some cow shit from the roads in Belgium. It's going to be another great Spring season.

Cross Worlds happened this weekend. And I'm disappointed and sad for one Katie Compton, who had cramp issues this weekend, and didn't finish the race. I feel sad, because she's is one fucking super fast woman out there, and she's not yet gotten her World Championship, and this year, she was on FIRE. Vos won, again, which doesn't surprise me, because after Compton, she's got the goods as well. Here is hoping that Katie can figure out her leg cramping issues, and come back again next year, and put the smack down on the women 'crossers of the world. Maybe she needs to pull a "Page" and just pack up camp, and just stay in Europe from late August until World Championships, because it does appear that her cramping issues come up with lots of travel. She doesn't need to come back to the US to ride National Championships, she's already proven, time and again, that she can kick the shit out of the women's fields here (most of the time) without really trying. Stay in Europe Katie, and bring home the rainbow jersey. What I hope she doesn't do though, is give up, because she seems to be getting stronger every single year (when she's not cramping). Good luck Katie, here's hoping you come back stronger next year, and kick the ass that most of us know that you can.

Mulsim Obama hates Charlie Brown...

Turns out, the mayor of Arlington, TN thinks that he really and truly knows the reason for Obama's speech the other night on Afghanistan. It was to pre-empt the Charlie Brown special, because, you know, Obama is a dirty Muslim, and doesn't believe in the Lord our Savior, Jesus H. Christ (does anyone know what the H stands for anyway??). Check out the link here on the story itself. Oh, of course, it was all much to do with nothing. Have people lost their ever loving minds though? Seriously? Obama is an evil Muslim who doesn't want people to see the Christmas Charlie Brown special? And this guy, is a mayor of a town, sure, it's probably a small town, but still. He's supposed to be a leader, and he's a fucking moron. Turning towards Afghanistan though. Obama pledged more troops. I don't know how I feel about this really. On the one hand, it's probably overdue, and on the other hand, I'd rather have all of our men and women back instead of in harm's way. So what do we do here? In speaking with some of the guys I work with, they're behind this troop escalation (it's not a surge, since the word surge indicates that there is some sort of plan for "winning" whatever that means). They have thought for a long time that we needed more guys on the ground in Afghanistan, and they are also proponents of letting them get out there, do their jobs. The Big A Army is good at blowing shit up, and killing bad guys. This much is true. Maybe, they're one of the most proficient groups we have at doing this, although, the Marines are right there with them. Our Army and Marines were never meant to be out and about within the people, building societies back, and doing counterinsurgency efforts. Our Green Berets, and SF soldiers though, are very good at this. It is a key component of their training. I believe what we need to do though is to kill as many of the bad guys as we can, and make it a price that they're not willing to pay any longer, again, remember, we're good at destroying things, and killing bad guys. We need to bring in specialists, being SF soldiers, or civilians that can show folks in Afghanistan how to create a society, and we also have to learn that, what functions as a government, or what functions as a society in Afghanistan is not even remotely going to be like what we have here in the United States. They're not going to have a Starbucks, and a Target on every corner in their country, and there is going to be a certain level of chaos almost always, but they are also a tribal nation. Run by local leaders, more so than a central government. We have a hard time wrapping our heads around that paradigm. Anyway, like I said, I just wish we could get all of our troops home. Garrisoned, and safe stateside. That might put me out of a job, but then again, that's a hit I think I'd be willing to take, if it meant, no more fighting for us. I also have come to believe that eventually, some guy in Pakistan is going to rat out Bin Laden, yeah, more than likely, he is somewhere in Pakistan. They're going to get sick of Predators dropping bombs on houses and people around them, and they're going to finally give him up, sick of his shit, and the trouble that he brings along with him. We'll probably snatch him up then, or kill him, but what will that really solve? Nothing really. At this point in time al Qaeda has been basically wiped out, and or spread out around the globe. We're looking at an organization that doesn't have a "central command" any longer so to speak, but what we have to be vigilant about is smaller cells, of 1-10 guys plotting smaller scale attacks against soft targets. Which means, that yes, battling terrorism is probably going to become more of a police action, than a military action. Why am I writing about this? Not sure really. It's that time of the year when cycling is in its down cycle, except for 'cross, and well, there are only 2 words I've got say about cyclocross. Katie. Compton. That woman is fucking hardcore no doubt. If she doesn't win the world championship this year, she's cursed, or something like that. Because really, she's on a tear, and she would be only the 2nd American to be a world champ in 'cross, the first being Matt Kelly. Whatever happened to that guy anyway? Didn't he just burn out, and disappear? I seem to remember him making a "comeback" so to speak at some point in time, but haven't heard from him since then. He was a world champ, and then, gone. Why do our young racers all seem to end up in that situation anyway? Going back to Compton, she'll be on the top step of the podium this year at the world championships, I can only hope. She's been killing it so far this year, and I'm pretty sure she'll keep on that path. If she doesn't, I'd be surprised, since she is head and shoulders above the rest of the women in the US at least. None seem able to keep up with her at all. She's a few gears higher than the rest. We'll see, we shall see. Good luck to her.

Paging Page...

No doubt, most of you out there have seen this little item about Jonathan Page missing a drug test post race after a recent outing. When reading the article, you see that, the Page’s have a ton of excuses about “why” Mr. Page missed his doping test after the race. He crashed. He didn’t finish the race. Nobody came and told him he was due to be tested. None of his friends didn’t tell him about his test. And so on and so forth.

Look, I’ve got to believe that this is NOT Mr. Page’s first time at the rodeo as far as large scale UCI cyclocross races go. Meaning, he’s done this before. He knows, as does just about everyone else racing in these races, that he might get pulled for a random drug test, and if he does well in a race, he will get tested after he finishes. OK, sure, he didn’t finish this race. He crashed hard, and was feeling the ill effects of said crash as he went back to his motor home to call his doc, and wait for his support team (mostly his wife Cori) to head on back to the motor home to see how things were going.

Now, again, he’s been here before. He’s done these races. In this situation, Mr. Page has nobody to blame for his missing his required test, other than himself. He had plenty of time to head back, change, call his doctor, go over things with his wife and friends, and then head back towards the finish line to see or to check the testing list. Apparently, he even went and collected his travel money for the race, which is presumably somewhere near where the testing list is posted. Wouldn’t you think, maybe, just a little due diligence would have been a good thing? Walk over. Check the list, and if you’re on it, go and pee in a cup and get it done and over with. Now look, I’m not casting any aspersions towards Mr. Page. I don’t believe that he’s a doper. Nope. Not in the least. I don’t think he was trying to dodge the test on purpose. I think he was just stupid in not following up, and again, there is nobody to blame except for one person. Jonathan Page.

He goes on to say his “entourage” isn’t as big, or even as close to as big as other racers. Sure enough. Sven Nijs no doubt has hundreds or maybe even thousands of people hanging around him before, during, and after his race, but again, you couldn’t blame his supporters if he missed a doping test. Again, only Nijs would be to blame.

I see this recurring thing with Mr. Page, over and over again. Bad things happen to him, but those things never seem to be his fault, or he never makes himself accountable for what happens. He has a falling out with sponsors? Not his fault, nope. Someone else. He doesn’t get good support during races? Not his fault, must be someone’s else’s. Can’t find new sponsors? Must be some sort of conspiracy against him. Thing is, when something bad happens to Mr. Page, it appears that the only connecting factor to the bad things happening to said person, is Mr. Page. This latest incident is no different. Except this time, it could very well affect his living, the way he makes his money. Why? Because a missed test is an almost automatic admission of guilt of doping, whether or not you have doped or not. Meaning, it’s pretty likely that Mr. Page is going to get suspended, and won’t be riding his bike for money in the near future.

Here’s the thing. Even though I just excoriated him, I don’t think anything should happen to Page. Why? He’s not a doper. I think that he can prove it. I know that he can prove that. I’d love to see USADA excuse him for his missed test, take the blood that was taken from him the day after the race, test it, and find him innocent of doping, and then we can move forward, and let him continue to race, and be able to support his family in the way that he has been accustomed to, and that they have come to expect. I think it dumb of him to have missed his doping test, but it happened. We need to move past it. We need to let him race. Slap him on the wrist, and move forward. Will that happen? Knowing the inflexibility of USADA, probably not. Meaning, he will see some suspension time no doubt. He won’t be racing at World Championships this year, and we probably won’t see him again. For America’s most successful cyclocross racer in Europe, he has said that he’d retire, and not be seen racing bikes again. It’s a shame, but, it is ALL HIS FAULT.

For your high level racers out there, make sure you personally check the drug test board. If your name is on there, go and pee in the cup. It makes things SO much easier.

American victory...

Here is something that kicks ass. Why? American Katie Compton won a world cup cross race this weekend in of all places, Belgium. Why is this a big deal? I'm not aware of any other American ever winning a World Cup Cyclocross race in the history of the sport. I do remember a bunch of years ago, maybe 8 or so, being at a mountain bike race somewhere in Pennsylvania, probably in Philadelphia, and watching the women's race. I was wondering who the really fast woman was racing for Trek-JBL at the time, turns out, it was Miss Compton. She was fast then, and I think she is faster now. She does have a pretty good little back story to her racing success.

Not too long ago, Compton was racing bikes, but as the sighted captain of a blind tandem team. She competed at the highest levels of that sport on the track with her partner, and I believe, if I remember correctly, that her and blind stoker won several gold medals at the paralympics over the years. During that time, Compton was living in Colorado, and riding cross races with the cat 2/3 men, and either winning those races, or being in podium positions most of the time. Take it from a guy who has been "girled" in several races in his career, those guys did not like that happening, but I'm sure, just like me, she earned a grudging respect from those guys during those races, and they also probably realized, that indeed, that woman was fast. She was bound to do some damage. See, thing is, she wouldn't race UCI women's cross races, because then she wouldn't be able to pilot the tandem as the sighted captain for her blind stoker. So for a number of years, she would just race the local cross races, beat the boys, and also beat the women (she would double down on races on a given weekend).

One year, she showed up for the US Cyclocross national race, looking to take the national championship jersey. She showed up, and the women who didn't know her, were wondering, "Who is this woman? She's going to get smoked.." See, women's bike racing, at least in my experience, can be very "catty". In other words, when you have core group of women who are racing against one another, week in, and week out, they are nice to one another, but if an "outsider" shows up to spoil their fun, and arranged pecking order, they seem to take offense at this. I'm sure Compton showing up to nationals looking for a big win was really no different. They started her in the back, since she had no points from the year's racing, and the race started.

Compton surged to the front in the first or second lap, took a look behind her, and then dropped the best women cyclocross riders in the US, and took her first national championship. Again though, she didn't bother competing the following year in the UCI races, for the same reason that she didn't want to lose her eligibility for the paralympics. And again, she showed up at the start line of nationals the following year, and again, starting in the back row, and yes, again, surging through the mass of women, and winning another national championship jersey. I think since that time, she's pretty much won the national championship every year since then.

She has now moved on to Europe. She took that win yesterday, took 2nd last year at World Championships, and I believe we may see her in the rainbow jersey before too long, or actually, possibly, at the end of this year's season in Europe. She's been close before, and I can foresee her winning the "big one" in the coming months, and if she does, we'll have another World Champion in cyclocross, I believe Matt Kelly was the first for the US, having taken the U23 title a number of years ago at Poprad, and hence the naming of the LeMond cross bike after his win there. Kelly though faded into the "where are they now" file after his win, and I believe Compton, will be winning for a few years yet to come, and I'll be happy to see that happen.

Not that's cross...

Check out that picture. Now that is cyclocross my friends. I'm glad to see Sven Nijs still kicking ass and holding it down over there in Europe. There have been a few chinks in his armor in recent races, but the man still dominates the sport. Adding to the hardcore type nature of cyclocross, this race was run up the famed Koppenberg, in less than desirable weather conditions (as can be seen from the picture). Amazing. These guys are as hard as woodpecker lips. Just thought that I'd share this with you.