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Friday Ride to Piermont, NY - Dopers Suck

I decided to take a decent longish ride today as the late July NYC weather was perfect (low humidity, sunny with poofy clouds, high in the low 80s) & Maggie had the kids. Today, July 30th, really was about the best day weather-wise in NYC during July.

My planned route was as follows:

Go across the Manhattan Bridge from Brooklyn; then go up the west side bike/jogging path; cross the Hudson River via the George Washington Bridge; and finally cruise the famous 9W route to Nyack or Piermont. The return route was to be basically the same except I’d ride part of the way south through Manhattan on Riverside Drive.

Now here’s the funny thing, today for the first time I wore my new “Dopers Suck” Twin Six jersey (it’s not a new jersey I know as it’s been around awhile). It arrived last night with a couple of others and it seemed like the jersey to wear as I’ve really become disillusioned with the hypocrisy of Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs) in sports (MLB, NFL, Track & Field, etc.) in general, and particularly in professional cycling (more to come on this soon). Cheating is cheating full stop. That said, I understand friends who say they should just go ahead allow athletes use them although in my my opinion it’s kinda an ethically grey area.

Anyway so I was off just before noon. Not mile one into my ride I get asked about my “Dopers Suck” jersey while waiting at the stop light at Smith and Atlantic Avenue. A nice guy on a hybrid pulls up and asked, “Hey, so you think all the pro riders are dopers?” I kinda chuckled and said, “Well a lot of them are, particularly the good ones since the 90s. It’s a dirty sport but it’s no different than the NFL or MLB. I mean a 300 lb. guy who can run a 100 in 10.4 is just not natural.” We laughed, the light turned green, and off I went.

The ride was great although I was worried about my legs as I was riding north on 9W. They didn’t seem to have “get up and go” power so I ate a Clif Shot mocha and a Clif Shot Bloks and got on with it (I forgot I rode hard Thursday morning in Prospect Park with the “grupetto” peloton). I rode out to the Piermont Marsh that is really a jetty that goes midway into the Hudson River. Then I had a quick lunch at Bunburry’s Coffee Shop in Piermont. Apparently Lance Armstrong stopped there once and really liked the scones. The “Dopers Suck” jersey got funny looks from other cyclists at the coffee shop, especially the guy wearing an Astana jersey. Whatever.

I started back and hit the 9W hills. Decided not to kill it as the Thai chicken wrap from Bunburry’s was kinda bubbling in my belly. Went slow on the steeper inclines but when I hit the flats in between I took off and hit good cruising speeds (+20 mph).

The rest of the ride was great but uneventful except for the spectacular weather.

In Chinatown on Grand a tourist yelled out, “Yeah Dopers Suck!” I couldn’t turn around or stop as it was crazy crowded touristy Chinatown and I just wanted to get home. When I was home washing my bike on the stoop, a random dude walking by stopped and said earnestly, “Excuse me, Dopers Suck. What are you referring to?” “Performance Enhancing Drugs - in sports, you know,” I responded. He gave me a nod and walked on. Maybe he was thinking about other drugs and their abuse which is bad of course. Or maybe he thought I was a random Park Slope douche wearing a stupid jersey. Whatever. It still was weird. That was the 3rd or 4th reaction that I got from wearing the jersey.

Still it was a great ride - my second favorite long ride of Summer 2010. My favorite was riding to the end of the road on Padre Island, Texas, with my bro-in-law Pablo. Nothing beats jumping in the ocean when you are hot.

Here are the computer ride details: 4 hours, 16 minutes of riding, 169 max heart beats/minute, 143 avg heart beats/minute, 3070 calories burned (I still have a gut :P), 63.3 miles, 14.9 avg speed (includes lots of slow city riding), 34.8 max speed.

Off to the showers!

30.07.10

+ 1

#Dopers Suck #Piermont NY #GW Bridge #9W #Twin Six #Hudson River #Brooklyn #New Jersey #New York #MLB #NFL #Track & Field #cycling #professional cycling #PEDs #Piermont Marsh #Astana #Vinokourov #Bunburry's Coffee Shop #Chinatown #Bike Snob NYC

I’m Riding the Livestrong Philly Challenge With Mixed Emotions

First off, a big thank you to friends and family who have already supported my ride in the 100 mile Livestrong Philly Challenge on 08/22/10 with a donation. YOUR SUPPORT MEANS A GREAT DEAL TO ME!!

If you’d like to support my 2010 ride, here are three ways you can - click on the name of the organization you’d like to support:

Dan’s Livestrong Philly Challenge Donation Page

Susan G. Komen For The Cure Donation Page

Davis Phinney Foundation For Parkinson’s Donation Page

Anything you could donate to any of these fine organizations during these tough, recessionary times is much appreciated!

PLEASE SEND IN DONATIONS BY WEDNESDAY, 08/18/10.

If you can’t donate or don’t want to, NO WORRIES.

Last year I rode the Philly Livestrong Challenge course (or the course rode me) and had a great time. It was a perfect thing to focus on while we went through Maggie’s treatment and care. We turned the ride into a nice family weekend in Philadelphia. Plus you helped raise $1,400 for a good cancer charity. Win-Win-Win.

As soon as I finished, I thought, “I can’t wait to do it next year and attack the hilly course again.”

Here’s why I have mixed feelings this year:

*It’s become abundantly clear over the past 12 months that Lance Armstrong cheated by using illegal Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs) repeatedly throughout his cycling career. See here and here and here and here and here.

*On the other hand, the Livestrong Challenge is one of the best run century tours I’ve ridden. The volunteers are awesome and a couple of the hills are tough for this here flatlander.

*Lance Armstrong’s public defense has become very shrill and has mimicked other athletes who later have been proven to have cheated. Here’s his quote from this year’s Tour: “Do the American people feel like this is a good use of their tax dollars?…But I’m not going to cooperate in any kind of witch hunt. I’ve done too many good things for too many people.” Hmmmm…not good.

*On the other hand, like most other century tours, there is a positive vibe on the day with everyone pushing themselves through it. There’s a lot of fun and camaraderie among the riders.

*I’ve felt uneasy & funky about raising money for a charity whose founder appears to be an inspirational athlete and cancer survivor but is also essentially a cheater. Yet it’s kind of nuanced too. Click here to read the best description of my ambivalence. The premise and inspiration of being a cancer survivor who then won the Tour de France seven times just rings false for me now. Along the same lines, Hank Aaron, not Barry Bonds, is my MLB Home Run King with 755 HRs. And he still will be even when A-Rod hits 763. And Eddie Merckx is the greatest Tour de France winner and greatest cyclists ever.

*On the other hand, I have a good excuse to ride my bike 100 miles.

I seriously thought about passing on the ride up until this week. I was embarrassed…that I had believed in Lance Armstrong’s word on doping.

Then I figured - I’ll go down and come back the day of the ride. It’s not ideal waking up at 3 am to go to Philly but I can do it and I’ll save on expenses (plus I’ll pretend I’m a club rider). I’ve already committed to it and I like to finish what I start. I’m in better riding form this year than last year (I hope). Annnnd I thought I’d wear my “Dopers Suck” jersey but I don’t think the Lance fans would appreciate it much.;)

Whatever. At the end of the day - I’ll go ride, have some fun with it, and realize that we are all human, we all make mistakes. Pobody’s Nerfect. Just love our friends and family and do the best we can every day.

So if you’d like to support my ride, click on the links above. If you’d like to follow me now and on the day of the ride check out:

Twitter at http://twitter.com/dkcholo

Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/dan.manco

Tumblr at http://danmanco.tumblr.com/

AND THANKS A MILLION!!!

XOXOXO,

Dan

14.08.10

+ 2

#Livestrong #Philadelphia #Philly #Philly Challenge #Lance Armstrong #Performance Enhancing Drugs #PEDs #Doping #Cheating #Century Ride #Susan G. Komen For The Cure #Davis Phinney Foundation For Parkinson's #Witch Hunt #Cancer #Cancer Survivor #Tour de France #TDF #MLB #Home Run King #Hank Aaron #Barry Bonds #Alex Rodriguez #ARod #Dopers Suck #HGH #EPO #Human Growth Hormone #Steroids #Blood Doping

theeconomist:

In recent months, illegal betting syndicates have cast a lengthening shadow over international sport - both soccer and cricket have been mired in scandal. So why has American sport remained largely free from corruption?

27.09.10

+ 22

#Gambling #NFL #NBA #Football #Cricket #Soccer #MLB

All Tour de France Winners are Dopers & Cheaters Until Further Notice

Well it’s come to this…AGAIN.

First it was bistec contaminated with clenbuterol. Alberto Contador sounded sincere last week even if his story wasn’t and fell apart quickly with some logical thought.

Then came the news yesterday that plasticizer that comes from IV bag usage was found in his blood eight times over the levels allowed. Now it’s clear el Pistolero blood doped, using clembuterol and God knows what else while “training” before the tour, then transfusing pre-race blood that he thought was clean during a rest day, and subsequently testing positive on a rest day.

Bang bang bang Pistolero you are done.

And you had a month to get your story straight before going public? UCI, why did you give him that much time? Or any time at all for that matter? UCI President Pat McQuaid, please stand down.

And why the fuck should I have to know what “the clear” or “the cream” or HGH or clenbuterol or EPO or plasticizer are? All I want is to enjoy and watch my favorite sports - baseball and cycling - played fairly. Is that too much to ask? Or should we just give in like we do tacitly with the NFL and let athletes take what ever they want?

Juliet Macur’s NYT’s article was pretty damning of le Tour, UCI, et. al. but the last two paragraphs quoting banned former pro cyclist Benhard Kohl were the worst:

“It’s impossible to win the Tour de France without doping,” said Kohl, who was in Leesburg, Va., to speak at the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s science conference. “You can tell by looking at the speed of the race. Every year it has been about 40 kilometers per hour. It’s the same the year I raced, the year Floyd Landis won, this year. It shows riders are still doping.”

Kohl, who said he retired from the sport to avoid having to think about doping every day, has no specific knowledge of Contador’s case but said most of the top riders rely on transfusions of their own blood and of designer, undetectable drugs like different types of the blood-booster EPO.

“I was tested 200 times during my career, and 100 times I had drugs in my body,” he said. “I was caught, but 99 other times, I wasn’t. Riders think they can get away with doping because most of the time they do. Even if there is a new test for blood doping, I’m not even sure it will scare riders into stopping. The problem is just that bad.”

Oh and sorry fans of Lance Armstrong but he was doper too.

http://velocitynation.com/content/interviews/2009/michael-ashenden

http://bit.ly/9FLZBt

Effing sad and pathetic.

05.10.10

+

#Armstrong #Contador #Dopers Suck #Kohl #UCI #USADA #TDF #Tour de France #clenbuterol #HGH #EPO #MLB #Alberto Contador #El Pistolero #Bernhard Kohl #WADA #Pat McQuaid #The Clear #The Cream #The Festina Affair #cycling #NFL

sbnation:

Mission Uncomplished

#Epic Nolan Ryan Face, Game 1, 2010 #ALDS as the NY Yankees came back from 0-5 deficit to win 6-5 with 5 runs in the 8th.

(via soupsoup)

16.10.10

+ 104

#nolan ryan #george w bush #yankees #rangers #mlb #alcs

RIP Freddy “Freddy Sez” Schuman

Just got the sad news via @julieandthecity and @baldvinny on Twitter that Yankee Stadium institution Freddy ”Freddie Sez” Schuman has passed at the age of 82.

Me & Freddy “Freddy Sez” Schuman, New Yankee Stadium, The Bronx, NYC, 06.03.10

Along with the electric/obnoxious Yankees crowds and the late great Bob Shepard’s “Voice of God” on PA, that “plink plink plink” sound from Freddy banging his spoon and skillet was an early part of my Yankee Stadium aural experience.

I remember hearing Freddy the first time in the Summer of ‘96 after my MLB strike boycott ended (I moved to NYC in ‘95). “Plink plink plink.” A friend explained “Freddy Sez” roaming through the Stadium and I was like cool - some ol’ school noise making. Then I saw his home made signs, general goodwill, and positive fandom and I was like, “Hellayeah!” I think I even banged his pan in ‘97 for the first time.

Through the years, for me “Freddy Sez” was just part of baseball. Part of the Yankees experience. Part of Yankee Stadium. His pan and spoon are in the Baseball Hall of Fame! It’s funny how you can take that simple sound for granted…”Plink plink plink.”

When the new Yankee Stadium was built, the team kept him out for some crazy reason…he didn’t fit the new corporate Stadium experience? Who knows. The organization was stupid but they finally made it right after fans complained. “Freddy Sez” was back at the Stadium and he made it a better place.

This Summer at a HOT day game, I bumped into “Freddy Sez” and asked if I could hit the pan. He was just so nice and was happy to pose for a photo. I told him I was glad the team got their act together to get him back in the Stadium. I let him know I thought it was lame. He was gracious, totally cool, and wouldn’t say a bad word. I mean jeez, check out what his sign said that day:

Freddy “Sez” Nice Going Fans Yanks Love You! And I Do Too!

How can you beat that??? Right back at ya Freddy! I hope the Yankees organization does Freddy right and holds a moment of silence before Game 3 of the ALCS. It’s sad to think he didn’t make it through the season.

Rest In Peace Freddy “Freddy Sez” Schuman. Plink plink plink!

RIP, Freddy Sez - The LoHud Yankees Blog

Freddy Schuman, long-time stadium stalwart, passes away - River Ave Blues

17.10.10

+ 1

#Freddy Sez #Freddy Schuman #Yankees #Yankee Stadium #MLB #ALCS #baseball #Baseball Hall of Fame

Bronx Sunset #1, Yankee Stadium, Gm 5, ALDS, NYC, 10.20.10

Da Yankees Win!

20.10.10

+ 1

#yankees #yankee stadium #mlb #alds

Bart Giamatti on why baseball is GREAT.

thegreg:

It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops.

— A. Bartlett Giamatti

(via joshsternberg)

23.10.10

+ 113

#baseball #MLB #Bart Giamatti #Yankees #Rangers #ALDS #World Series

Professional Baseball US postage stamp

inothernews:

zachlinder:

True story: I collected stamps when I was a kid. This is a beautiful commemorative.

[via flipflopflyball]

Love love love this.

(via joshsternberg)

29.10.10

+ 48

#baseball #MLB

Nolan Ryan Face #WorldSeries Go #SFGiants! #MLB

I have the utmost respect for the Great #HOF pitcher…it’s just that his facial expressions have been classic during the Fall Classic.

01.11.10

+

#world series #fall classic #mlb #sf giants #rangers

Tim Lincecum, World Series Champion. #SFGiants

My boy Jr has a new baseball hero.

via (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

01.11.10

+ 2

#SFGiants #MLB #World Series

Yankee Frown…The 2011 New York Yankees Designated Hitter…Jorge Posada

via yankeesftw:

Jorge not happy

(Source: , via rycbar--123)

11.11.10

+ 8

#Jorge Posada #New York Yankees #NYC #Baseball #MLB #Designated Hitter

via winstonwolfe:

I hope Jeter takes it easy when celebrating his new contract.

(via sbnation)

05.12.10

+ 43

#Derek Jeter #MLB #New York Yankees

I would say this to those people who would not vote for Jeff Bagwell because they simply believe he used steroids, based on how he looked or some whispers they heard. I have a better idea: Let’s just burn him at the stake. If he survives, you will know you were right.

Joe Posnanski in his latest Hall of Fame piece. (via oldtimefamilybaseball)

If you’re a baseball fan, you should be reading Posnanski. He’s able to blend confusing statistics (the newfangled Sabremetrics) into a wonderful narrative.

(via joshsternberg)

@JPosnanski is it! Loved reading him & @WhitlockJason in The Kansas City Star back in the day when newspapers mattered ~~the most~~ (yeah I said it). Both are still my favorite sports writers and Joe is just SOOOOOO effing prolific on his blog it’s scary.

(via joshsternberg)

30.12.10

+ 18

#MLB #Baseball #Steroids #HOF #Sabremetrics #Joe Posnanski #Jason Whitlock #Jeff Bagwell

According to the New York Times, a person involved in the Madoff cases said it was possible that lawyers could seek as much as $1 billion from Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, since they are considered “net winners” in Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.

“I think he has a very serious problem,” the source said of Wilpon. “If that’s true, he might have to sell the Mets.

Continue reading… MetsBlog

Also, listen to the Wilpons discuss their decision to consider selling a 20-25% stake in the Mets here.

(via sportsnetny)

28.01.11

+ 1

#Mets #MLB #NYC #Wilpons