Stevie Blom Posted April 28, 2005 Report Share Posted April 28, 2005 To all those who dont know what this drug is all about.......check out this link below http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/epo.html Whilst i was training in Italy i was with an Xpro for 5 days. Had an Eye opener of a training excercise. He took me the limits i never knew i had plus i still have not fully recovered from that trip. On the 3rd day out my aim was to do a strength training plan. Ideal for time trialing this means riding up 6% gradient for 20 km or less in the 53 x 19 ish. This also included intervals on the mountains!!!!! they lasted 3-4 minutes a time. Major league stuff plus very painfull. My maximum heart rate that i know about is roughly 210 ish or there about but that day i had to hold his wheel for as long as i could and when i got to the top it was showing 217 I was spitting blood and it was the 1st time i could not walk , I think the weather and company with that holiday mode in mind gives you that extra energy. Anyway the point was that the Xpro Oreste (Saeco) said to me now imagine a race at this level of intensity for 2 weeks in a row. Its impossible to recover from such an ordeal to keep these types of levels of intensity going. So the answer for him and many others is EPO. Amazingly you can buy this in Switzerland for 80 euro's per unit over the counter. Interesting to hear it from the real deal for a change. Stevie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2024 Subscriptions Darryl Gunson Posted April 29, 2005 2024 Subscriptions Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 Interesting post Stevie - the link is very good at explaining just what EPO is. It's an interesting thought, is it not , that your ex-pro thinks that because he could not recover and complete the 2-week race he had to resort to drugs. Isn't the point of such a race to find the riders who are the strongest, who can recover and therefore who are able to win the race...without drugs? Unless the whole peleton is doped, it must be possible to recover. You just need to train harder cheers Darryl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie Blom Posted April 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 True True but i wasnt going to argue with a guy at that Quality -just listen to what he to say. Out of my depth 100% and will never realise what it woul be like in general. Keep the revs going eh! Stevie B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BrianS Posted April 29, 2005 Members Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 don't know the guy but do not have any respect for him if he resorted to drugs....as for his explanation....bollocks !.....after riding Giro with no rest day for 3 weeks.....1 week recovery....another 4 day race in pyrenees...2 days recovery....then won national champs....and guess what.....no drugs and water in my bottle....there is no substitute for hard training.... stevie....i would take what this guys says with a pinch of salt after his comments on pro racing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie Blom Posted April 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 Thanks Brian i was hoping you would reply to this ! Makes it all the more interesting. S. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Posted April 29, 2005 Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 Stevie you don't have to go to Switzerland to get this stuff, in fact your Italian mate could have helped you out! In most countries, apart from Italy, EPO has strict prescribing licences - in short it is usually only given to those undergoing chemotherapy for cancer (they cannot make any red blood cells) or those with kidney failure (they cannot make any red blood cells either). So, the point of this is The number of EPO prescriptions per annum in the UK and France are about 20% of those in Italy. The populations are comparable, Italy is in fact smaller. So Italy has the greatest availabillity of EPO, but a decreased need for it! Brian, it is good to hear your views on doping and as an ex pro (you not me) it must rile you to hear people saying such things. I read an article by Jaque Anquetiel's brother (may have been Bobet's brother, but anyway) , who is a journalist and was a little known pro, no where near as good as his brother. As most people know Jaque was overt in vocalising his use of stimulants and other potions. His brother thought this was wrong - talking about it rather than actually doing it. When asked why he retorted. "If a person uses drugs that is their problem and they should deal with it. I have never used drugs in my cycling, but no one will believe that. I and other cyclists are robbed of our innocence when someone does this." On the other hand, as a cycling fan it is hard to know what to think when Alex Zulle said "Of course I use EPO I am a professional cyclist" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a.yeoman Posted April 29, 2005 Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 Not too sure what to think I can't ride like that, I can't recover - thats why I'm not a pro cyclist. Its a profession just like any other and in my opinion if you are not up to it then you should be finding something else that you are up to. Not being good enough is no excuse for doping. On the other hand if everyone else is doing it its not a level playing field so you start to think that the only way you will win is to make it level and join in. Not a view point I agree with but then I have no idea what pressure these guys are under to perform day in day out with little or no recovery. Then again there are those that have done it so it must be possible and they surely are the true winners. I can sympathise with dopers, we (or is it just me) have all looked for the easy option at some point and in some cases have taken it (think about your life not just cycling). But this doesn't make it right and I think I can honestly say that I have never cheated in serious sport or competition unless you include Monopoly when I am always the banker Just my thoughts and accept that not everyone will agree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougie Da Rosa Posted April 29, 2005 Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 Alan,funny enough I have thought for a wee while now you were a banker!!. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougie Da Rosa Posted April 29, 2005 Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 Stevie,this guy,did he seem quite pleased to tell you about his cheating or did it kinda slip out?. Either way I feel that the company who employ this guy should be made aware of this and if they already know this then they are as guilty as he is.If I was aware that the guy who was in charge of my holiday training trips I for sure would not be booking with them,harsh thoughts Doug you may think but I feel very strongly about these people,they should not be allowed to make money from our sport. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie Blom Posted April 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 No further comment! Stevie B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BrianS Posted April 29, 2005 Members Report Share Posted April 29, 2005 most people that look for shortcuts do not train as hard as others....you cannot substitute hard training by anything else as i have said earlier....Lance train's alone most of the time because his training methods would kill most others....you either have it or you don't....the biggest drug is your mentality...how do you feel when you look out of the window on a sunday morning ?....raining or sunny....if you think it is sunny everyday you look out then you have the mentality to be a pro cyclist.....can you walk away from your mates on a friday night when they are drinking to go home to bed ?.....can you live in a land where you struggle to converse with others ?.....can you live away from your loved ones ?.....when things aren't going well can you overturn the negatives by yourself ?.......answer yes to all these questions and you have a good mentality to be a pro cyclist.....now think about all the others in the world that said yes to all these questions....after all these sacrifices would you risk everything to get caught for using drugs.....better to have been there an earned an honest crust than to have the rest of your life tarnished by shame....i can hold my head up high and say i done my best....the thought never crosses my mind what i could of done with the use of other substances....you cannot turn a mule into a racehorse.....enjoy riding the bike and watching the spectacle of the top pro races....just remember that most riders suffering out there are riding natural and for the love of the sport ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hertz Van Rental Posted May 1, 2005 Report Share Posted May 1, 2005 ..............can you walk away from your mates on a friday night when they are drinking to go home to bed ?..... Aye you could Smiddy, especially when it was your round !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Evidence - Backchat Disco, up a close, Forbes Place, Paisley c.1983/4, cider and blackcurrant, chaka khan, chaka khan - oh those were the days! I looked sooooooooooooooo good in burgundy!!!! Witness for the prosecution, Drew Wilson esq.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 30, 2005 Report Share Posted May 30, 2005 big dave here - what has been said above is all fairly true - but to beleave that everyone is born on a level playing field and everyone can become a champion is rubbish. the hole ethics of the olympics and sports can be viewed as eugenics / biological eliteism. if mr a has weaker genetics for a given sport he is esensially handicapped compared by mr b. if both partied train equally then on mr b would become the supperior athlete. however if it a drug / steriod / dna chancing substance could be measured and used to put mr a on the same starting point as mr b then would it no be "sporting" to give him a equal chance to compete by allowing him to use it??? - if not then we fall into the darwinian ethos of survival of the fittest and this does not sit well with the pc world of today. of course the the amount of drugs or dna advantage are imsesurable. but if it ever could be equilised out would any of you cyclist object to this. do any of you guys think its a "fair sport" to see caucasion europians running middle / long distances against the kenyan athletes just a different point of view to mull over before everyone starts shouting at "all" the drug cheats - the world is shades of grey - - i suspose we like to break things down in black and white for easy thinking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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