Letters to Cyclingnews - October 12, 2007

Here's your chance to get more involved with Cyclingnews. Comments and criticism on current stories, races, coverage and anything cycling related are welcomed, even pictures if you wish. Letters should be brief (less than 300 words), with the sender clearly identified. They may be edited for space and clarity; please stick to one topic per letter. We will normally include your name and place of residence, but not your email address unless you specify in the message.

Please email your correspondence to letters@cyclingnews.com.

Armstrong on Landis
Bike design originality
Cycling drama
Doping is unfair; but so is discrimination
It’s not doping that's...
Landis case - everyone's a loser
Length and cost of the Landis case
R & R
The Landis decision
Tour of America

Armstrong on Landis

Lance Armstrong said that Floyd Landis would have gotten off had he been tried by a jury in the USA. Perhaps he would have, if it were a criminal prosecution. In that case, the jury would be bound to the standard of ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’. Then the shoddy standards of the first test would be an important concern. However, the case was NOT a criminal prosecution. It was a civil matter. In that case, ‘preponderance of the evidence’ is the standard. Certainly, with the finding of synthetic testosterone in his blood in the second test would be very important by the second standard.

As an example, the jury in the criminal case against O.J. Simpson was bound by the ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ standard and they acquitted him. However, in the civil, wrongful-death suit against Simpson, ‘preponderance of the evidence’ was the standard and the jury found it easy to strip him of all he was worth and give it to the family of his ex-wife.

Lance is correct that it is easy to get acquitted by a jury in a criminal trial. That's why they say that if you're guilty ask for a jury trial. In the criminal proceeding, if you're guilty you go to prison or, as we're prone to do in the USA, get put to death. In a civil proceeding, if you're found at fault you pay some money or give up your yellow jersey and a couple of years of your career. That's why the standards are so different.

But Lance should really be very familiar with all this since he has been in several civil suits against people who spoke ill of him.

Richard Marks
Watsonville, CA
Wednesday, October 3, 2007

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Bike design originality

What is going on with all the ‘new’ bike designs? I just caught a glimpse of the new Yeti Versatile 575 and all I can think of is how much it looks like the Santa Cruz Nomad.

The Ridley Helium looks like the Scott Addict with the integrated seat post, the new Trek Madone looks like a TCR, BH Global Concept or De Rosa.

It seems that manufacturers are just using proven technology, like how the Noah top tube now emulates the BMC. I think Cervélo and BMC are probably the only manufactures right now not afraid to stray from the beaten path while still improving technology.

I used to work for Motorola and their concept design engineers had some crazy ideas. I just wish the bike industry thought along the same lines and started getting more original. No wonder every shop owner I ask if they went to Interbike they respond with a dull, "yeah it was ok," instead of 3-5 years ago when I would ask the same question and the response was more along the lines of, "hell yeah, it was amazing, you should see the stuff they are coming out with this year!"

Bart Boma
Sacramento, CA
Monday, October 8, 2007

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Cycling drama

What? Truly organize professional cycling within a logical, sensible scheme? Are you nuts? What would we read about on a daily basis? Bicycle racing? Oh yeah, good idea! After all, that's what we're really here for... the racing, not the carnival side shows we've been hammered with the past few years! I'll vote for Perry to be the first dictator of the sport. Whatever it takes to straighten out the chaotic mess that world cycling is in today. Meanwhile I’ll try to ignore it and just keep turning my own cranks, because all of the madness can't take riding away from me.

Let's get back to debating crank arm lengths, training methods, legal supplements, aerodynamic-gimmick components, etc. The varied and different legal systems of the world can't interfere in that arena. I just pay attention to what the pros are using and what they aren't breaking. That way the decision as to where to spend my cycling dollar is much easier.

Dennis T. Miller
Tujunga, CA
Thursday, October 4, 2007

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Cycling drama #2

In response to Perry Longinotti's letter on Thursday, September 27, 2007...I've mentioned this to several athletes.

As a semi-pro mountain biker and husband of a professional mountain biker, I've found it frustrating how sponsorship is handled by both athletes and sponsors. I've mentioned a union to several athletes and a couple of industry insiders. The response has been the same across the board...“No one would get sponsored.”

A rider ranked in the teens on the national circuit can't get a free bike, while other riders who race sport or expert are getting free bikes and entry reimbursement. This basically means that sponsorship isn't based on results, but on whom you know and how well you market yourself.

A union would force sponsors and riders to follow a set of rules. Sport riders with friends who own shops and have money to sponsor a regional or local team might have to turn down that offer of a free bike or entry reimbursement. I use trivial amounts of sponsorship such as entry reimbursement because I know pro riders who don't get that.

Who would enforce such standards? Would riders who bitch about a USA Cycling license be willing to pay to join a union? Would riders cross a picket line just to compete for $500 at a regional race? For UCI races that have the prize money (Europe), the ProTour teams that participate at least have to show a minimum budget. Would a manufacturer who is able to get several hundred riders to purchase a bike on pro-deal really be willing to stop that practice in order to give bikes to only 4 or 5 riders?

If promoters had to meet certain standards and only union riders who received a certain salary could participate in their event, we'd see riders shift to events like 24 hour racing....or maybe we have already seen that. Would you go as low as making all cycling event promoters meet these standards? Would you make the promoter of a fund raising event such as El Tour of Tucson prevent people from wearing a certain jersey since they aren't getting paid to wear it? Or if they were getting paid, would that promoter have to provide a certain amount for an appearance fee or a prize purse?

Trying to standardize the sport and make it fair would be great, but you'd be messing with a tar baby. At the higher levels, the riders won't let sponsors take advantage of them. If they do, they don't really care. At the lower levels of the sport, sponsorship equity is frustratingly non-existent.

If a rider can't handle that mess, then they'll quit competing or compete in a different sport...and nobody would care.

David Wilson
Friday, October 5, 2007

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Cycling drama #3

It is both the doping and the bad management that is killing competitive cycling. This only points to a deeper problem of ego and greed. Perry Longinati wrote in his letter "Leadership is making some big errors. Too much of this negative publicity will kill cycling as a viable advertising medium. We can all agree that it is already becoming quite ill." As long as we see athletes as advertising mediums and continue to pay ever more for popular and "successful" riders, you create this chaos.

I have no problem with professional athletes being paid large sums of money; just accept the consequences of super egos clashing for a slice of the pie and athletes trying anything to gain the competitive edge. If the money dried up tomorrow, these problems would disappear. Maybe so would professional cycling as we know it.

Shawn Rohrbach
San Diego, Ca, USA
Monday, October 8, 2007

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Doping is unfair; but so is discrimination

Just as well I was sitting down when I read Susanne Eisenmann's reason for declaring Eddy Merckx 'persona non grata' at the World Championships: "... because there was so much doping going on in his time." Of course the lady is a politician (Deputy Mayor of Stuttgart, responsible for Sport, Culture and Education) but her statement made me think she could do with a bit of Education herself. No need to do much digging through cycling's archives to realise that there was doping going on in EVERYONE'S time. All this stripping titles and jerseys from those who've admitted to using dope is bad enough, but now she (and she's not alone!) wants to discriminate against people who are merely suspected, or who may have associated with 'undesirables.'

Where does this stop? Apply these suspicions to cycling over the past 100 years, strip the titles and we'll end up with every record book consisting of blank pages! This attitude of suspicion is destructive. It's reaching the point where, if a rider turns in a great performance, the Powers That Be react with: 'Hmm. What's he on? Target that man.' That's every bit as unfair as doping.

Liz Cochrane
Malaga, Spain
Monday, October 8, 2007

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It’s not doping that's…

It may be your American way of thinking Jeff, but plenty of us will agree with you. A successful anti-doping program is one which catches out the culprits, not those merely accused by the culprits. Cycling is doing a stellar job of ridding itself of its own form of cancer. Positive test fallout is never pretty, but at least cycling catches them. The accused riders proclaim they haven't cheated, and they have yet to fail a test. Yet they have to fight in court of law for the right to earn their living. So what is the issue here?

Imagine having to get a court clearing to do your job based on what another bitter soul has said. That’s where the riders are at the moment if an ill-informed parrot talks. Is there a European cycling bureaucracy/power struggle? Is there a deep seated dislike of international success on ‘home’ soil? Are certain riders being targeted? Maybe. Unless your an Italian..... in pink..... in Italy.....in Milan on the last day of the Giro!

Ryan Sorensen
Sydney, Australia
Wednesday, October 10, 2007

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Landis case - everyone's a loser

I agree in part with Rich Hardart (letter, August 21, 2007); Landis and Pereiro were held in limbo far too long. Pereiro was denied his victory celebration and Landis was essentially sentenced not to a 2-year suspension, but to nearly 3 years (including the time spent waiting for the hearing). There are no winners in this situation. Many have said the only winners are the lawyers, in essence blaming them for the delays in the process.

The American legal system is the absolute best in the world. Part of being the best also makes it very complex and difficult to navigate, causing us to need trial attorneys. We curse trial attorneys when given the chance – until we desperately need one, that is. While it may seem that attorneys charge high hourly rates, there’s more than meets the eye. Behind every high priced attorney are paralegals, assistants, office managers, and more. Each of these individuals is supported by those hourly rates. Mr. Doug Lister (letter, August 31, 2007) complained that his attorney bills him for every 10 minutes spent on the phone. One would wonder the occupation of Mr. Lister and whether or not he provides services for free on a regular basis.

It is unfortunate that the USADA took the offensive position they did; opening up all documents would have placed them in a light demonstrating their willingness to find the truth in the matter. While it may seem as if the only winners in this case are the lawyers, it is obvious they played an important role. USADA did not play fair; because of this, Landis’ attorney was required to spend hundreds of unnecessary hours on this case.

Kim Owen
Tuesday, October 9, 2007

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Length and cost of the Landis case

Sadly, sanctions for doping presume valid positive lab results, assuming ‘scientific finding’ of guilt before innocence. Think DNA testing. UCI and WADA set the standards, tests, and the height of the bar. We all know that the ‘science’ and ‘Bayesian’ probabilities used to determine the height of the bar are not eternal or fixed. Therefore, impeaching the test results procedure(s) are required to win at arbitration. The dissent in Floyd’s case clearly showed that the burden of proof to establish doubt was met by Floyd and summarily ignored by the rest of the panel. This would indicate a serious problem with the arbitration process.

Was the arbitration really necessary? Yes. A valid contract was created between Floyd Landis and USA Cycling. Floyd agreed in his UCI license application to be bound by the USADA process. He agreed, “the sole jurisdiction for resolving disputes that may arise shall be in the courts … of the UCI.” Voluntary submission to arbitration is that process.

Or was it really ‘involuntary’ submission to arbitration? Considering the fact that the UCI is a self-policing international monopoly it is not quite clear that, given the economic value involved, the arbitration was entirely voluntary. Self-policing state-regulated monopolies are often accused of holding ‘licenses to steal’, such as lawyers, doctors, etc. However, it is assumed that the ‘state’ will regulate the monopolies conduct and the ‘state’ is expressing the ‘will of the people’. In the case of the ‘international’ body such as UCI, who is that?

No one? Or, just an economically interested marketing group? (Think F1 racing)

Brent Hadley
Seattle, Wa, USA
Wednesday, October 10, 2007

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R & R

"I told these guys you have to win," he said. "I said to Rahsaan half way through the season, 'I'm not paying you for second or third place. You either win or you're fired.' Same for the rest of them."

This is exactly the kind of attitude that makes riders dope, right? Win or be fired! If you're racing against dopers, they can't always be beaten, and the riders' job security is put in jeopardy! Kudos to Ball for ponying up the cash for the team, but he should change his attitude to simply ask his riders to race to their maximum natural ability, and represent the sponsor as best as they can.

Mike
Monday, October 8, 2007

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R & R #2

I agree with RK in that M. Ball's views are unrealistic and detrimental to the team, if in fact they are applied in the way his words suggest. It seems Mr. Ball is trying to live out his idea of what it is to be a hard assed, no-nonsense businessman, but it does the sport no favour in the current situation. This mentality/policy has prevailed in Europe in some teams with budgets way bigger than R&R's, giving rise to the problems we all grapple with today.

Pierre Lacoste
Canada
Tuesday, October 9, 2007

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The Landis decision

Congratulations Mr. Rick Beauheim for stating so clearly what many have realized throughout this ridiculous farce that became the Floyd Landis case. I do feel for Floyd as he has become the scapegoat in the supposed ‘search for a clean peloton’ and the man who can take the fall for the incompetent handling and mismanagement of the entire process.

Unfortunately it all boils down to the fact that every supposed managerial body involved in the entire process would all have been shown to be incompetent had he not been found guilty.

To request Dr.Amory to examine the process and then ignore said advice by the only person who is qualified to offer an opinion because it did not produce the results expected by those persons who have the most to lose i.e. credibility and most importantly their income is, in my opinion, tantamount to admitting they were wrong. The problem they faced though was the case had been beaten into such a crusade by this stage they had nowhere to go, nowhere to hide and so the simple out for everyone was ‘Floyd is guilty’.

I don’t know if he is or isn’t guilty, and frankly it will have no effect on my life so I don’t care, however I have watched the entire procedure with interest and I see that it is not the cyclists who are ruining a wonderful sport it is the self centred, self interested hangers on who would not even have a job or an income if all sports were ‘clean’ (or maybe they are clean but we, the fans are led to believe they are all not, so as to justify the very existence of these people and the expensive rates they charge to produce the required answers?).

I ask myself, just what would the ‘anti drug agencies’ or the ‘accredited labs’ do without these compulsory tests on athletes. Surely their income would fall dramatically so as to threaten their very livelihood, which in turn must be construed as being a self interest and a good reason to find people guilty, even if the entire process is found to be fatally flawed.

I also think of the day Floyd rode that magnificent stage 17 ride to Morzine and ask myself this: Could a man ingest any substance (not just testosterone), that would make him perform as well as he did that day? More importantly, if it were possible to ingest synthetic testosterone which would make a man perform the way he did, it most certainly would have been so much that it would have been literally oozing from his pores, not an abnormal imbalance as suggested. And also note, previous and post stage 17 tests were clear? Just how do you purge your body of synthetic product in 24hrs?

Rod Skeggs
Friday, October 5, 2007

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The Landis decision #2

As I've written before just read 'From Lance to Landis' by David Walsh, it's a hard read if you like me love cycling and was amazed by Armstrong, but it's the poor people who didn't do it that I'm sorry for. Look at the way Astana destroyed French hopes in this years TDF with a display of echelon riding that hardly anyone could keep up with, only to be tested positive a little later. Now Bruyneel is maybe running that team and Contador maybe riding for them. A TDF winner who can't get a contract? When did that happen before? How would you all feel if your children had to try and keep up with those cynical cheats from our recent past?

Richard Evans
Fri, October 5, 2007

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The Landis decision #3

Excellent comments by Justin Reynolds. Landis may very well have doped, but when the lab makes clear and blatant errors as even the arbitration panel found, you have to let him off. The idea of having tests at a minimum of two separate labs is one that should be taken up immediately.

It is not justice to convict someone based on what we would call in U.S. constitutional law faulty procedural due process. And don't get me started on Puerto and other stuff where people are suspended based on what amounts to suspicion. I happen to believe that many of those suspended were guilty, but I have no proof of that, and that shouldn't be used as a standard.

The only sport that has come as close to the kind of bad publicity from doping is track & field. It's not coincidences that track and field, like cycling, has a rigorous doping program compared to many other sports. But unlike cycling, when a series of positive tests that had question marks hit U.S. athletes between 1995 and 2000, quite a few of them sued the federation. Probably, they were guilty, but several of them resulted in settlements, and track & field had to change their procedures to make sure that they didn't violate the athletes' rights. The result has been not a lack of testing, but improved procedures and standards. It is far from perfect, and I wish track & field tested as often as cycling, but they seem to have found the proper balance between suspensions and athletes' rights.

Ed Parrot
USA
Saturday, October 6, 2007

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Tour of America

It's entertainment baby, that's all. The organizers and promoters throw out these monster and ridiculous routes to make headlines and grab people’s attention. If this race ever happens at all I would be very surprised. I can get better odds in Vegas! The Tour of California however does show that we as a Nation can support racing on US soil, to what extent and for how long remains to be seen. It does have exciting promise in the current format in terms of length duration and its promoters being realistic towards their goals.

Wolfgang Meyers
USA
Saturday, October 6, 2007

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Recent letters pages

Letters 2007

• October 5: Cycle drama, It's not doping that's "killing" the sport, Why is VAM a benchmark, Tour of America, The Landis decision, DYNEPO, Worlds, Rock & Republic's CEO Michael Ball, Please explain, Giuseppe Guerini, FICP
• September 28: Tour of America, World champion zany-ness, The Landis decision, ASO v UCI, McQuaid vs ASO vs the riders, Please explain, Why is VAM a benchmark, Giuseppe Guerini, Menchov felt betrayed by Rasmussen, ProTour and Le Tour, Where is the due process
• September 21: Astana's future and Bruyneel, Bruyneel's afterlife, Floyd Landis decision, Why is VAM a benchmark, Lifetime bans, Menchov felt betrayed by Rasmussen, Ungrateful Levi, Spanish cycling, Where is the due process
• September 14: Astana & Bruyneel, Cycling vs. soccer, Cycling will survive, Floyd Landis decision, LeMond's comments, Menchov felt betrayed by Rasmussen, Ungrateful Levi, Why is VAM a benchmark?
• September 7: Cycling vs. soccer, Floyd Landis decision, UCI, ASO, LeMond, et al who cares? Riders, Lawyers in the Landis case, LeMond's comments, Riders taking the fall?, US Postal/Discovery R.I.P.
• August 31: LeMond’s comments, Farewell De Peet, Cycling needs a Norma Rae, Vino & human rights?, Cadel was robbed, Floyd Landis decision, Market beliefs, Sinkewitz Positive.
• August 23: Biting the hand that feeds you, Cadel was robbed, Congratulations to grand tour organizers, Cycling needs a Norma Rae, Discovery folding, Drugs and cycling, Fewer ProTour teams, Floyd Landis decision, Petacchi’s asthma, Science of doping, Sinkewitz positive, Tailwind withdrawal, The good news...., Unibet, what a shame, World’s exclusion, Vino: "a clear violation of human rights"?,
• August 17: Dying from within..., Cadel was robbed, Biting the hand that feeds you, Discovery folding, Astana-Tour cover-up?, Christian Moreni, UCI may lose it all, Drugs & cycling, Aussie proTour team, Valverde and the worlds, Klöden: are things getting out of control?, Congratulations to grand tours organizers
• August 10: Smarter Drug Testing, Cassani and Rasmussen, Bruyneel: take doping seriously, The dubious Disco boys, Spanish ethics, Who's to blame for doping?, Untrustworthy authorities, Insurance for pro riders, Science of doping, It's working?, State of cycling, Less mountain stages, Positively false, Sinkewitz positive, Team suspensions, Tour ethics, Vino response, Editorials call for ending Tour, Revoking le Tours jerseys, LeMond, the voice crying out in the desert, WADA vigilantes
• August 3, Part 1: What about team suspensions?, WADA vigilantes, Vino response, Vino excluded, but why the whole team?, Unanswered questions, Tour de France doping "scandals", State of cycling, Spanish ethics and the A.C. joke, Sinkewitz positive, Secondary testing?, Editorials calling for ending Tour, Rasmussen's location, Quality control and anti doping, Positively False, McQuaid: not the Godfather of cycling, Less mountain stages
• August 3, Part 2: LeMond, the voice crying out in the desert, Le Tour, L'affaire Vino, It’s the culture, IOC questioning cycling in Olympics, Greg LeMond is not surprised, Greg LeMond, German TV, Due process, Evans v Contador - the real margin of victory, Doping, the media and the MPCC, Doping, Evans, Dope tests and the tour, Different perspective on doping, David Millar, Cycling revolution, Cadel was robbed, Bruyneel a 'man in black'?, Another drug test result leaked, Andy Hampsten
• July 27 Part 1: 80's style back in fashion?, A great few days for cycling, Vino excluded, but why the whole team?, Another drug test result leaked, ASO discretion in administering Tour justice, Astana in stage 5, Astana’s tactics, Bad day for Australia, Bloody dopes, Cadel Evans, Catching Vino is good news, Conspiracy?, David "what a joke" Millar, Doping, Doping controls, Tour ethics, German TV, LeMond, the voice crying out in the desert, How many big bastards in the peloton?
• July 27 Part 2: How will cycling survive, Kazahkstan Pie, Kessler's lie, Landis and lie detector, Landis testing, Le maillot jaune is gone, LeMond and mitochondria myopathy, The'Vino' scene, Losing time and bouncing back, Losing my religion, Moreau, No, not Vino, Out of season testing and baseline tests, PED's, Revoking le Tours jerseys, Petacchi out
• July 20: What about team suspensions?, Tyler Hamilton, Stuttgart Worlds, Sinkewitz positive, Petacchi out!, Bad day for Australia, Kessler's lie, Landis and lie detector, LeMond and mitochondria myopathy, Intestinal problems, Greg LeMond, the voice crying out in the desert, Fair doping tests, Drug testing and sequence of recorded results, Revoking le Tours jerseys, Advice for Stapleton and Sinkewitz, Astana in stage 5, Crashes, bike changes & team cars
• July 13: Fair doping tests, Tyler Hamilton, Tour downright exciting!, Stuttgart(?) Worlds, Rocketing Robbie v tormented Tommy, Armstrong's comment to ASO, Petacchi out, LeMond and mitochondria myopathy, Intestinal Problems, Incentive for doping, Imagine, UCI agreement, Does the UCI test for blood transfusions?, The real heroes, Bicycle options,
• July 5: Tour de France boring!, The real heroes, The flying Scotsman, Signing the contract, No Zabriskie?, LeMond and mitochondria myopathy, Incentive for Doping, Bicycle Options, Anti-doping charter, Sale of the century
• June 29: "The Flying Scotsman",Cancellara,The real heroes, Categorised Climbs, Tour for Devolder and Zabriskie?, Tour de France, boring!,Nationalistic pride, Anti Doping Charter, Bicycle Options, Doping, Doping Coverage - Enough already..., Who dopes? Who doesn't? Who cares!
• June 22: Anti Doping Charter, The real heroes, Basso's "suspension", Categorized climbs, Bicycle options, Greg LeMond and record ITT's, It is about us!, Finding the clean winner of the TdF?, Tour de France, BORING!, Prudhomme and the 1996 Tour farce, Riis, the '96 Tour and Prudhomme, Amnesty for doping..., Cycling, doping....???, Who dopes? Who doesn't? Who cares!
• June 15: Bicycle options, New Trek Madone, A week of confessions, Cycling - not yet a real professional sport, Di Luca's finest win..., Three Tour wins for Ullrich?, Ullrich getting screwed, Giro fever, Amnesty for doping offenses, Greg LeMond and record ITTs, Is drafting a known doper cheating?, Let's sort this mess out, Doping hypocrisy, Cycling, doping....?, Prudhomme and the1996 Tour farce, Simoni goes 1850 meters / hour
• June 8: Di Luca's finest win, Simoni goes 1850 metres / hour, What ever happened to Iban Mayo?, Andy the Dandy, Three Tour wins for Ullrich?, Ullrich getting screwed, Percentage of pros with asthma, Amnesty for doping offenses, ling - not yet a real professional sport, Doping and cycling, Greg LeMond and record ITTs, Meaningless defense, We are out of denial - Let's look forward
• June 1, part 1: A thought for cycling's true heroes..., A cunning plan, A great opportunity for the UCI, Admissions of guilt, Let's have some real confessions, Amnesty is the way forward, Suggestions for an amnesty, Amnesty, Amnesty or punishment?, ASO's double standard, Tour Clowns, Bjarne Riis, Bjarne Riis confession, Riis must go, Riis, Basso, Zabel, et al..., Repairing the Magenta Express, Tip of the iceberg, Riis and winning the tour on EPO
• June 1, part 2: Confessions?, Honour - Seemingly rare in cycling, How deep do you go?, Who do we give it to?, A week of confessions, Peer pressure, Mind boggling hypocrisy, Pro cycling - Sometimes you make it hard to love you, Meaningless defence, Riding with Lance, Lucky Lance, Cheating by proxy, LeMond trying to tear down US riders , So, if Floyd is right..., Thank you Floyd, Floyd Landis hearing, Mr. Young's closing arguments, Something more important..., What ever happened to Iban Mayo?, Percentage of pros with asthma:
• May 23: Landis case live coverage, LeMond a true champion, Questioning LeMond's motives, LeMond trying to tear down US riders, Saint LeMond, Landis and his character, Landis has made cycling a joke, Landis had his drink spiked?, Landis in a corner, Landis polygraph?, Landis' disclosure of information, The quality of Landis' character, Landis' behaviour, Joe Papp
• May 18: Armstrong can defend himself, Di Brat, Chris Hoy's world kilo record attempt , Hoy in sixty seconds, What ever happened to Iban Mayo?, Hypocrisy of the cycling world, Italian Reactions to Basso, Who's telling the truth?, Basso + Ullrich = Armstrong?, Basso still a legend, Simoni vs Basso, Basso, Landis etc The new mafia?, Landis to ask UCI to boot Pound, Vinokourov to claim second in '05 TdF?, Percentage of pros with asthma, Unibet at Dunkerque
• May 11: An attempt at doping?, Almost as bad as Ullrich, Basso admission, Hats off Basso, Basso still a legend, Basso's attempted plea bargain, Basso and Discovery, Discovery's PR, Basso vs Simoni , Truth and Reconciliation Commission, A means to an end, Hypocrisy of the cycling world, Vinokourov to claim second in '05 TdF? , New Puerto plan, Where is the Puerto money?, Time to start re-stating race results, The morals and math of cycling, Chris Hoy's world kilo record attempt , Unibet at Dunkerque, Davide Rebellin
• May 4: Call that a race?, Reflecting on Schumacher's win, Pose with Landis, at a price, Danielson should leave Discovery, Davide Rebellin, The year of the clean Classics?, Basso and Discovery, Basso this, Landis that, Ullrich the other..., Basso, DNA and whatever else, Basso's DNA, Say it ain't so, Johan, Let's cut them some slack!, Armstrong, head and shoulders above?, Landis, Armstrong vs the Lab, It's not all about the Tour!, Puerto Affair
• April 27: The year of the clean Classics?, David Rebellin, Call that a race?, Reflecting on Schumacher's win, Danielson should leave Discovery, Inspirational O'Grady and those cobbles, L'Equipe does it again!, Tour de France speaks out, The morals and math of cycling, Basso and Puerto, Puerto, part deux, Gilberto, you were right!, Landis, Armstrong vs the Lab, Pose with Landis, at a price?, Taking blood, Gent-Wevelgem and the Kemmelberg, Gent-Wevelgem and water bottles
• April 20: Stuey wins Roubaix, O'Grady Rocks!, An Aussie in Arenberg, Deep-dish carbon versus the cobbles, Gent-Wevelgem and water bottles, Unibet/FdJ/Lotto - Help!, U.S. Open Cycling Championships, Racing in America, Retesting Floyd's B-samples, Taking blood
• April 13: Thoughts on Flanders, Crashes at Gent-Wevelgem, Gent-Wevelgem and water bottles, What about that loose water bottle?, T-Mobile one-two, Popo for the Classics, Racing in America, U.S. Open Cycling Championships, Unibet/FdJ/Lotto - Help!, French hypocrites?, Bjarne Riis, Floyd Landis 'B' sample fiasco, Taking blood, Ullrich DNA match
• April 6: April Fools, Ullrich DNA match, Taking blood, T-Mobile and Puerto, The song remains the same, Ullrich and Hamilton, Tyler Hamilton and flu, Unibet and access into France, Bjarne Riis, Popovych, The death of irony, Armstrong boring?, Ullrich/Armstrong comparisons
• March 30: Basso wind tunnel testing, Bjarne Riis, Riis' response, Drugs in other sports, Dominquez at Redlands, Armstrong boring?, Ullrich/Armstrong comparisons, Popovych - the new Armstrong?, ASO wildcard selections, ASO-UCI split, Boys atop the sport, Cycling at two speeds, Puerto shelved, Tyler Hamilton.
• March 23: Popovych - the new Armstrong?, A few years ago, Tyler Hamilton, Operación Puerto not complete, Puerto shelved, ASO-UCI split, Drugs in other sports, Basso wind tunnel testing, Water bottle and cage sponsorship, Bates' article on Jan Ullrich, Ullrich's retirement, The current state of cycling
• March 16: Don Lefévère, Lefévère tries to reinforce omerta, Spring fever, Ullrich's retirement, UCI has no power, Puerto shelved, Who's been taking what?, ProTour a flawed competition?, UCI-Grand Tour organizer dual!, ASO-UCI split, ASO needs to see benefits in ProTour, Sponsorship, drug use and dinosaurs, The current state of cycling, New Pro Cyclist Union, Congratulations to Unibet, Unibet situation, Unibet.com marketing, Tour of California mistake
• March 9: ASO - UCI split, UCI has no power, UCI vs. ASO, UCI vs. the world, ProTour and contracts, The Unibet fiasco: is it that bad?, Unibet and French law, Unibet situation, Pete Bassinger's Iditarod Trail record ride, Bates' article on Jan Ullrich, Ullrich's retirement, Tour of California expenses, Discovery's profile in Europe, Discovery's reasons for pulling sponsorship, Floyd's big ride
• March 2: Ullrich's retirement, Altitude tents and EPO, Home-made altitude tents, Tyler Hamilton and drug testing, The agony of Unibet?, Discovery's reasons for pulling sponsorship, Discovery's world upside down?, Upside down Disco solved, Tour of California mistake, Graeme Brown, Hats off to Dick Pound?, Grand Tours, who really cares?, ProTour and contracts, ProTour vs wildcards, RCS' decision, UCI vs. the world, Floyd's big ride, Asthma everywhere
• February 23: Altitude tents and EPO, Tour of California mistake, Chavanel's training regime, Discovery's reasons for pulling sponsorship, Discovery's world upside down?, Tyler Hamilton and drug testing, Grand Tours, who really cares?, The Unibet fiasco: is it that bad?, A solution to the Unibet situation, UCI and the ASO, UCI vs. the world, Will the fight never end?, Paris Nice and others, Pro Tour and contracts, RCS decision, Hats off to Dick Pound, Armstrong owes Dick Pound nothing, Graeme Brown, Asthma everywhere, The sorry state of pro-cycling
• February 16: T-Mobile, Adam Hanson and doping, Unibet's new jersey, Double standards for Unibet?, RCS decision, A letter to ASO, Hamilton and Tinkov, Discovery Channel, Asthma everywhere, Bart Wellens' comments at the cross worlds, Best moment?, Crowd control at the cross worlds, Doping reconciliation, Get into 'cross racing, Pound still wants answers from Armstrong, The sorry state of pro-cycling
• February 9: Unibet show they won't be put down, Double standards for Unibet?, Unibet's new jersey, Asthma everywhere, Bart Wellens' comments at the Cross Worlds, Crowd control at the Cross Worlds, Jonathan Page's mechanic beaten, Cheers to Bradley Wiggins, Bradley Wiggins' comments, Jaksche lashes out, Get into 'cross racing, Le Tour was created to sell newspapers, The stakes are too high, Doping reconciliation, Best moment of 2006?, Ivan Basso interview, Ullrich's DNA sample, Ullrich to Relax-GAM?, Ullrich partners with sports-clothing company, Still love to ride, My perfect state of mountain biking, A terrible model for cycling
• February 2: The sanctimonious need to be taken out back, Confidentiality of test results, Oscar Pereiro cleared, Cyclo-cross reader poll results, Fairness in Operation Puerto?, Riders' nicknames, Doping reconciliation, Help for Floyd Landis, Museeuw's insults, Sven Nys, The Floyd Fairness Fund, The sorry state of pro-cycling
• January 26: Drug testing methodologies, Museeuw the PR man, Museeuw's insults, Johan Museeuw and Tyler Hamilton, Sven Nys, Conduct in the pro peloton, McQuaid unhappy with Pereiro, Put doping in the correct context, Moreau wins 2006 TDF, Who wins the 2006 Tour now?, Drapac Porsche's exclusion from the TDU, Bike sponsorship, Compact geometry, The Floyd Fairness Fund
• January 19: Drapac-Porsche and the TDU, Bettini to win the Ronde?, Frame geometry, Phil Liggett's recently stated views, Prudhomme's zealotry, 3 cheers for Christian Prudhomme, Deutschland Tour, 3 cheers for Saunier Duval, Dick Pound, Fairness in Operation Puerto?, Do the maths, The Floyd Fairness Fund
• January 12: Dick Pound, Just 'Pound' him, Pound casts doubt on Landis, Pound comments, The Dick and Pat Show, McQuaid starts cultural polemic, Why the Pro Tour model will never work, The Floyd Fairness Fund, Riders' union, Cyclo-cross reader poll results, Danny Clark - an inspiration, Allan Peiper, Do the maths, Peter Van Petegem's secret, Justice and America, Lance in Leadville, Tubeless road tires
• January 5: Danny Clark - an inspiration, Legal standards and cycling, Peter Van Petegem's secret, Lance a no show for Leadville, Cyclo-cross reader poll results, Do the math, A fair trial, Tubeless road tires, Manzano's polygraph test, Blind trust in implicated riders, A terrible state of affairs, Armstrong's credibility - the conspiracy theories, Best ride ever

Letters 2006

• December 29: Lance in Leadville, Leadville Trail 100, Manzano's polygraph test, British Cycling and the Tour de France, Tell me, what's the problem?, "Disco" team?, Presumption of innocence, Landis and the Landaluze case, Landis' defense fund, American culture, Armstrong's credibility, Back room politics and the IPCT
• December 22: Scott Peoples, Hypocrite?, Landis and the Landaluze case, Landis' defense fund, Rumours and innuendo, Bjarne Riis interview, Enough already, Back room politics and the IPCT, Armstrong's credibility, American culture, Bjarne's ignorance factor, Deutschland Tour and Denmark Tour, Operation Puerto and the UCI
• December 15: A totally predictable situation?, Armstrong's credibility, Deutschland Tour and Denmark Tour, Back room politics and the IPCT, Holczer and others, Holczer and the Discovery exclusion, Bjarne's ignorance factor, Can't we all just get along?, DNA safety, Floyd Landis on Real Sports, Genevieve Jeanson, Mark McGwire, Operación Puerto bungled...deliberately?, Operation Puerto and the UCI
• December 8: Genevieve Jeanson, Floyd Landis on Real Sports, Deutschland Tour, Bjarne's ignorance factor, USADA does it again, Labs and testing, Astana denied ProTour license, Isaac Gálvez, McQuaid, Question about DNA testing, Le Tour de Langkawi 2007
• December 1: Hamilton, Isaac Gálvez, USADA does it again, Bjarne's ignorance factor, Shorten the Vuelta?, Vuelta short, shorter, shortest, Labs and testing, Ullrich to CSC, Clean up cycling's own house first, Fed up with doping, Strange sponsorships, What about Leipheimer?, French anti-doping laboratory, Basso agrees to DNA testing, Basso to Discovery, What's going on behind the scenes?, Graeme Obree
• November 24: Graeme Obree, What about Leipheimer?, French anti-doping laboratory, Basso agrees to DNA testing, Basso to Discovery, Richard Virenque, UCI are the problem, What's going on behind the scenes?
• November 17: Saiz and Tinkoff, Countdown to the 2007 Tour, Improving the reliability of testing, Basso to Discovery, Cycling and DNA testing, Forgetting Tom Simpson, Operación Puerto and national federations, Refusing DNA testing - an admission of guilt?. Reverse blood doping, Richard Virenque, What's going on behind the scenes?
• November 10: Forgetting Tom Simpson, Tour Route, Basso to Discovery, Cycling and DNA testing, What is DNA testing?, Refusing DNA testing - an admission of guilt?, Jan Ullrich, Operación Puerto and national federations, Reverse blood doping, What's going on behind the scenes?, Comments on McQuaid
• November 3: Tour Route, Return of a real good guy, Cameron Jennings, Future Australian ProTour team, Neil Stephens, 2007 Tour Intro Video Snub, Richard Virenque, Reverse blood doping, Comments on McQuaid, Marc Madiot, Who's more damaging?, What's going on behind the scenes?, Wada & Cycling's Governing Body, UCI and Doping, The Pope of Cycling and the Spanish Inquisition, Refusing DNA testing - an admission of guilt?, Put up or shut up!, DNA, its so ‘easy', DNA Testing In Cycling

The complete Cyclingnews letters archive