Yeah, I was thinking about that. If I were there and had everything invested in one guy from my country and had saved up my whole life to be standing at the side of the road, I would probably scream and run alongside him waving a flag too.

Okay, I probably wouldn't. But I would understand the sentiment.

But I also can't imagine trying to ride through that mass of flesh. Although I did awww at them pushing up whatshisname as he fell back.

Although I did awww at them pushing up whatshisname as he fell back.

Menchov. Though that's more or less illegal, but it's up to the referees to make an issue of it. It's pretty awesome, in a freaky way, to watch the guys work so hard that they suddenly just go *boom* and have trouble even moving their legs.

I know. At first I thought something had happened, but then I realized he'd just totally spent himself. Athleticism at this level is just amazing to me.

Which makes the doping stuff just all that much odder. I can certainly understand the pressure that would cause it, but man, how can you not think you're going to get caught at this level?

Boat in a bag.

Text your bathroom.

eta:

how can you not think you're going to get caught at this level?

If it's as prevalent as rumoured, lots of people aren't getting caught. They're just cheating right.

If it's as prevalent as rumoured, lots of people aren't getting caught. They're just cheating right.

But the more successful you are, the more you're tested. Which would imply that the guys who aren't getting caught are probably the workhorses of the team. But stage winners are tested. Yellow jersey, tested. Plus random tests.

I don't know much about bike racing and how they dope or test, but from what I've been told about athletics the tests don't catch the dopers. Ben Johnson was a moron.

I just caught a couple minutes of Lance Armstrong on Hardball. Man, Chris Matthews is a schmuck.

amych will know more about the testing than I do.

t /Tour de France likes carrots

After reading the article, I'm still wigged by the idea that people are using blood transfusions (!!) to recover! Where it says that Vinokourov had two different types of blood in system do they mean blood types? And how is that possible unless one of the types is O?

In other news, did anyone see the CNN/YouTube debate, or coverage thereof? A semi-worker was totally all over all of it! Jon Stewart told her she could "do better" than her partner! Bananas!! (Semi-coworker because she works for the NYC local branch and I work for national, but we're in the same space.)

do they mean blood types? And how is that possible unless one of the types is O?

I don't think it's type, no.

From velonews:

Homologous transfusion is now the focal point of the current doping controversy. All individuals have a specific and consistent genetically programmed blood type. Each blood cell in the body has markers or antigens that hang off the cells. These specific antigens determine an individual's blood type. The major blood types are A, B, and O. The positive or negative value added to the ABO type refers to another antigen on the blood cell called Rh(d). If you have both the A antigen and the Rh(d) antigen, your blood type is A positive. In addition to these major antigens, there are numerous other "lesser" antigens that make up each person's blood composition. It is possible to test not only for one's major blood type (A+ or O-, for instance) but also for the lesser antigens on one's blood cell. By this test, we can define even more specifically the makeup of an individual's blood.

Home Improvement star bilked by older woman. Who's younger than I am...

Cate Blanchett fans should watch her new Elizabeth movie.

Profane kids are not cute. Nope. Well, to a non-parent, maybe sometimes.