Wednesday Roundup

News
At Eurosport.com Ivan Basso considers Pereiro the "moral" winner of the Tour....

But I find it normal and even necessary that Landis has the chance to defend himself to the end. In any case, until the moment when the federal and legal institutions will allow him to go.

Reuters has Landis the #2 story of the year, behind Tiger Woods.

ESPN says Landis unlikely to appear at this year's "tougher" Tour of California. I'm not sure about the toughness -- there's more climbing, but the time trial is less than 15 miles long. And it doesn't go near TBV's house this year, which kind of bites.

Forums
DPF looks at our calibration story, thinking the E might be reported low due to non-linearity that wasn't accounted for. RH keeps trying to show Landis did not have a naturally high T/E ratio, but no one but him cares anymore. Duckstrap's "opinion" thread has wandered into general philosophy about doping test statistical validity.

Bicycling Forum has a thread following Jeanson that decries testing in general, noting the dopers have "won" the 2000s about as thoroghly as they did the 1990s, and the current approaches to combat them just aren't working.

Toxic still has pit bulls arguing the IV after stage 16 means something, if only to distract attention from the real arguments at DPF that are never addressed.

Blogs
Dugard looks deep into his schedule and commitments, and decides he must pass on the Landis book.

Rant looks at the calendar, compares to Hamilton, and says Landis' 2007 tour may be shot if there is a CAS appeal.

Neil@Road looks at the Tour of California schedule and routes for spectators, and wonders if Landis can defend his title. Not looking good for that, unfortunately.

Whoa also notes the Cyclingnews blurb about The David Witt Memorial Holiday Cycling Classic presented by OUCH to benefit the families of the United States Fire Service engine #27 who lost their lives battling the Esperanza forestry fires in October in Riverside Co. California.....

300pour100 (French) has a funny that Marc has translated for us as:

Fancy that ?!!

I was trying to get a handle on this article from one of our neighbors in St. Pons, from the Nov/Dec issue of Sport et vie.

A double standard

Sunday Sept. 3, 4:30 p.m., on Stade 2 they were going on about Andre Agassi, who had just beaten Baghdatis at the U.S. Open. Everyone seemed very enthusiastic, and, incidentally, we learned that in order to hang on the hero of the day had had to receive (off-court) several sizable injections of cortisone, since he was suffering from pain in his legs and back. Decoded: he was loaded up like a mule, while his opponent that day, undone by cramps from the fiercely fought match, finally had to fold his tents and give in.

No one dreamed of being offended by this!

Aren't you surprised after a month's worth of scandal at the Tour de France? !!

I advise Floyd Landis to switch to tennis. Jonathan Vaughters, too. In 2001, this American rider for Crédit Agricole had been severely stung on his face by a wasp. To reduce the swelling, which was hampering him from seeing the road, he had to take a shot of cortisone. And that put him out of the race.

Moral:

Cycling isn't tennis, neither in the seriousness of its fight against doping, nor in the way it's covered by the press!!!

Sports Frog thinks there may be a Floyd Landis Conspiracy, noticing the "hacker" at the LNDD.

Last Row Sports knows whose fault it was... Carl Lewis.

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