My Doping Blog

So I can’t really talk about pro’s doping. I can’t really relate to that. Other than I think it’s clearly cheating, and sucks, and disappointing, I have to admit, it just seems like that’s another world from where I live.  I can’t say that if I was given the opportunity to have my dream job- something I’ve worked my entire life for, and could have it, but I'd have to take get a shot in my stomach every day that I wouldn’t do it. I mean if the choice was for me become Duncan Donuts Official Donut Taster or work a 9-5 and all I had to do was get a shot in my ass… Well, I’m not gonna try to say I understand that, or have been in that position, I’d like to think I’d do the right thing, but I really like donuts….

Here’s what I can say… I started racing mountain bikes in 1989. It was 1999 before I became an expert. Part of that was figuring out that I loved racing, and then I scrapped, fought and figured out how to ride a bike to earn my upgrades. This didn’t come easy to me. Needless to say, I’m not one of those guys that says, “if I had started younger I could have been pro” I couldn’t have. I’m not that guy. I’m your team’s mid-pack masters racer that just loves to race his bike. So I don’t feel like another life  has been stolen from me.

But I digress, let me share my doping experience with you:

I clearly remember getting ready at my car with a fellow sport rider, who was faster than me, at maybe it was Wye Mills, and he took a big hit off of an inhaler. I asked him, “dude, you have asthma? That must make racing tough” He said, “no I don’t have asthma, this opens up my lungs, and gets my HR up a little before the races, I always do it…”  I remember the sick feeling in my stomach. This guy was a sales rep, and ended up having a pretty solid racing career, but in my mind, I always remembered that exchange.  

That was my first experience with doping, and maybe I didn’t even know what that was at the time. I just knew that it was wrong. I never had any other exchanges with this guy, and never heard anything else about him, but I’ll be honest I always thought to myself, “if this guy was doing that to make the top 10 in a sport race, what would he do to be a cat1 on the road, or hell race for money…”

Look, I come from a wrestling background. A lightweight wresting background. Where there dirty dudes? yeah, but that usually meant someone who was border line too physical, or someone who had a lot of junk moves.  But this, this is like a 145lber wrestling 130...

In past I may have been kind of naïve about doping in masters racing, but as we have all seen it clearly happens.  Sadly, it’s likely more rampant than I’d like to think.  HYPOTHETICALLY, let’s say there was a team that was dominating a pretty talented masters field.  They were seriously 1-2-3 every week, beating/destroying other really good riders.  In the past, I might have said, “damn those guys must have had the best training camp EVER! “ Now, I admit that I think something much more sinister. Especially if the HYPOTHETICAL team didn’t continue at the same level of dominance after that year, or at the National Series race that year. Again all of this is HYPOTHETICALLY.  A few years ago I wouldn't have thought a thing about it, today this totally HYPOTHETICAL scenario would make me scratch my head a little bit.  That kinda sucks for all of us HUH?

But does it matter? Yeah, it does, and it's not so I can be 22nd vs. 25th in the masters races.  It matters because I believe in fair competition. I believe that we are all faced with life challenges, and train the best we can show up, and go at it. I believe it matters because I don't have to win, I want to be in the fight. I just want it to be a fair fight- Not against a cheater. It matters because when I look at the guys I race against week in and week out, I see myself, we are a mirror for each other, and I don't want to believe that we dope. But we do...  We are supposed to be peers, and frankly, I’d hate to think of myself, or the folks I race with week in and week out in my group as being cheaters.  Seriously, dope to beat me?

Myerson has said to the effect that if people were willing to dope to win a bike race, that what do they do in the other aspects of their life?  Seriously everyone that has gone to bat for a doper has said something like this:  “Joe doper made a mistake he’s really a good guys…”  It’s like the neighbor to the serial killer, who says, “he was such a quiet man…” I’m not saying that someone’s actions can't prove this wrong after the fact, that someone can’t make a mistake, and redeem themselves,  but seriously, if someone is cheating at what is in effect beer league softball how good of a person can they really be? What’s their sense of world worth? They aren’t who I want to call peers. 

I’m really pretty proud of and really like the group of guys I have raced against in and out of  groups for years. During the race I'd bleed out my eyes to beat them, afterwards I hope they had good races. I admit to banging around a bit here and there, but at the end of the day, win, lose or draw, I like these guys, and I respect them. But the damn dirty cheats, they aren’t even playing the same game, and frankly, I don’t want to deal with those sick, sad fucks.

Let me be clear, I could care less if someone smokes pot, or takes a diet supplement, allergy medicine or heck had some tainted supplement that they bought at GNC. I’m talking about masters taking EPO, Human Growth Hormone, or testosterone to make a 50 year old body behave like it’s 25. For me that’s sad. That takes away the camaraderie, and the fun of the game for me. And since we aren’t racing for our mortgage payments, it’s pretty damn ludicruous… For me that’s why it matters…

Recently, John Cutler has put forth a crowd sourcing idea to drug test, that I think as brilliant. As a former race promoter, the cost of trying to bring in drug testing in prohibitive, but at the same time, not having anything creates a safe haven. We tried to figure out at Granogue how to have it , but the cost was too much for us. The only way to put a dent into this stuff is to test. To put a threat out there, that someone could get caught. Here’s a chance for people like me, who think it does matter, to be able to contribute to something to make sure our sport is played fairly. If you think your money is better spent elsewhere, maybe on junior racing or bike advocacy, good on ya! But I think what John is doing is brilliant and I support it 100%.

thanks it. my long winded, picture of doping...

respect
fatmarc

PS. I got an A in my class.