Ouch!

I noticed from your blog that you seemed to be a fan of floyd landis. What do you think about him now that he has had a positive drug test and everybody knows he is a cheater.

... and similar comments from several (about a dozen) other people. So, although I was ignoring it, here's my take on Landis.

First, let me point out that I'm not the only person who was enamoured with the guy. Team CSC rider Bobby Julich said on July 20:

Floyd Landis' Stage 17 ride on Thursday was the most amazing ride I have ever seen in my life and will go down as one of the best rides of all time, and Landis will go down as one of cycling's gutsiest riders.

And similar comments were made throughout the world of cycledom. And why not admire the guy? As I quoted earlier from an article, this was a guy who not only said that he worked harder than everyone else, but published his workout schedule, in a beat me if you can sort of way! That sort of open, "I have more talent and work harder, so screw you" attitude's fantastic in an athlete and worth admiring. (Incidentally, a discussion on Landis with Coach Joe of the Flyers led to one of my new favorite quotes: "The only person who trains too much is the person who beats you.") Work hard and prosper is a great thing to admire for runners especially, because unlike swimming (which is all technique) and amateur cycling (which is very equipment dependent) running is totally based on work. If you do the time, you will improve.

But I digress, let me throw out the first conspiracy theory of the day, because no matter what the results of the 'B' sample, when President Bush says the guy has "amazing strength of character," then there can be no doubt that this is all just a big French plot. Our great leader would not lie! And Lance has said that he's "skeptical" of the lab performing the tests, which has been investigated for questionable practices in the past. It must be a Frenchie plot! We believe in you, Floyd!

Nah, I'm just kidding. If the 'B' test comes out positive on Friday, which is likely, then forget it. The guy's done. Two year ban from cycling. Two more years from Professional racing. Four years out of the sport pretty much ends the Landis career. You may think of cycling as dirty, but a lot of that perception is due to its actually trying to punish (and punish brutally) people that it catches. (How effective it is at catching them is another story.) And note that there's no presumption of innocence in cycling, as shown by the reinstatement of 18 riders suspended on suspicion before the Tour, after they'd been cleared by the Spanish courts. One has to admire cycling for at least trying, unlike most American sports. And if Landis cheated, he gets exactly what he deserves for being stupid and winning a Stage on a day that (1) he knows he's doping (2) with a drug that wouldn't really help him and(3) when he knows the stage winner is always tested.

Of course, if you're an ESPN addict, then you have probably followed their advice and just don't care. For me, I'm going back to my pre-Tour pick: Levi Leipheimer, who's now switching to Team Discovery.

Here's the last few days. . .
Tuesday: 8.6 miles, 68:49 (hot and miserable), 8:00mm
Wednesday: 5.0 miles, 38:48 (treadmill, I love AC), 7:46mm
Thursday: 8.2 miles, 62:21, 7:36mm

Coming up
Saturday: 11 miles as a pace leader (8:00mm) for the NYRRC's Long Training Run.
Sunday: 4 miles, easy.