diehli Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 The man is amazing. 'Nuff said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidwiz Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 Considering that he was told that he wouldn't survive the cancer, much less ever ride a bike again, and then to go on and win what is, arguably, the toughest athletic event conceived no less than 5 times in a row and on his way to win #6 is simply beyond words. Lance lives for the mountain stages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TriggerT Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 When is the Tour over? Lance was in the lead this morning, but how many days to they have to go? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidwiz Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 This is the last week, 5 more stages left, including today. Last stage is on the 25th, around the Champs-Elysees in Paris. Lance was at least 4 minutes clear of his closest rival as of yesterday. Last year, he won by about 1 minute. OLN is showing the last 2.5hrs of each stage live at 9am EST, w/ the prerace at 8:30am with a repeat the same day starting at 9pm EST, with the prerace at 8:30pm EST. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilTerry Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 For full up to the minute coverage go to www.letour.com and click on the British/US flag for the English language page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlin Orr Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 16 races down - 4 to go. Today was his 19th stage win for all his Tour races. He is looking good to be the first 6 time consecutive winner. WOW! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhino Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 BigDave is a huge Lance Armstrong fan. I'm pretty sure BigDave is willing to have Lance Armstrong's baby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDave Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 BigDave is a huge Lance Armstrong fan. I'm pretty sure BigDave is willing to have Lance Armstrong's baby. Hold on!!! Lets not get silly!!! I think Lance is proof positive that there are aliens among us. They guy is just unhuman. Here are his physical stats from his website: Resting heart rate: 32-34 <--- OMFG!!! VO2ml/kg: 83.8 Max power at VO2: 600 watts Max heart rate: 201 Lactate Threshold HR: 178 Time Trial HR: 188-192 Pedal rpm's during TT: 95-100 Climbing rpm's: 80-85, sometimes faster when attacking Average HR during endurance rides (4-6 hrs): 124-128 Average watts during endurance rides: 245-280 watts Training miles/hours, endurance rides: 5- 6 hrs / 100-130miles The thing I thougt that was really cool in today's stage was that he passed the 2nd place guy (Ivan Basso) who started 2 minutes ahead of him in the Time Trial. (in TT's, the group starts at 2 minute intervals in reverse order. the leader starts last) Ivan's heart proabably came close to implosion when he saw that yellow jersey speed by him up the 7.9% grade of Alpe d'Huez. Hell, I'm not sure I'd walk up a 7.9% grade, let alone bike up one!!! Folks, the man is a freak. A very cool freak, not to mention well conditioned, at that!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry White Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 A freak he is not. But for dedication, focus, training and skill, not to mention pure guts, he is without question THE MAN. Larry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3quartertime Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 Lance is a truely amazing individual. He embodies all the attributes that America is and should be. Undeniable acheivement in spite of increadible set backs. We are honored to have him as an embassary. When the Olympic basketball 'Dream Team' was initially started it was a large boost to American pride. But in a small way tainted by the fact that basketball is undeniably American. Lance has taken a sport that is international and dominated in a way that few could even if they had the desire. His efforts are a gift to America and it's people. Some nations may dislike us for our economic or military positions, but they can't deny the simple truth that this American, Lance Armstrong, is the best at what he does. I follow the America's Cup. Sporting is just that, sporting. Best team wins. But I leap for joy when the home team does good... And when they win,,, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlin Orr Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 Very well said, 3quarter.... & what Larry said! It is something that came at a high price to Lance. Gotta have COMMITMENT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDH Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 I love Lance, he is da man!! No doubt gifted, but certainly committed with a will to succeed that is immeasurable!! Go Lance Go!! I used to feel that same way about another great cyclist, Greg Lemond. At least that was until he started his campaign to bash Lance every year by accusing him of blood doping. I follow the America's Cup. Another Hoosier that follows yachting. How could that be?? When I lived in Indiana, most Hoosiers I met thought that Geist Reservoir was one of the Great Lakes!! I thought I was the only one that had ever even seen a large body of water, let alone sailed, or raced on one! If you and I ever hook up over a cold adult beverage (or twelve), we've got one more thing to talk about... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDave Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 What impresses me a lot with riders, and people like Lance and others like Tyler Hamilton, is the pain they endure. Lance states in his autobiography that he doesn't ride for pleasure; he rides for the pain. There is an IMAX film coming out looking at pain and how the brain interprets and deals with it. The film focus' on Tyler Hamilton (who finished 4th in the 2003 Tour after crashing in Stage 1 and breaking his collar bone and pinching a nerve in his back) and the CSC team during the 2003 Tour. When I mentioned Lance being a freak, I didn't mean it in the derogotory sense. He has special gifts (a heart that is 33% larger than normal, a VO2 MAX that is one of the highest ever recorded, extra long femur, etc) and a will to win that is far beyond driven. Is he so gifted that he is unbeatable? No! There are a host of riders who, if they invested the time and effort, could really challenge Lance. But, as it seems, those who are able are also unwilling. Go Lance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bountyhunter Posted July 21, 2004 Share Posted July 21, 2004 The man is amazing. 'Nuff said. They shouldn't test him for drugs, they should test him for species.... he can't be human. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.40AET Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 My resting heart rate is 62, Lance's is 1/2 of that. When I ride and get my heartrate up to 200, I feel like my heart is going to jump out of my chest. I could not imagine having a level of conditioning like his. He is far more than what most think. He is just plain SUPER-HUMAN. He truly deserves victory 6. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooter Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 Low resting heart rate is fairly common among cyclist. Miguel Indurain (5 TdF's also) had a resting HR of 28. Technically, he's dead. It's a pain in the butt when they have to do a physical for the insurance company since most doctors aren't used to having someone with a resting heart rate in the low 30's. What's amazing is the ability to recover. They haven't mentioned much about Lance, but Indurain can go up to his max HR, around 185, then stop riding, his HR would drop to around 60's within 30-45 seconds. My resting HR has gotten pretty high ever since I got burned out on cycling and took up shooting. It used to be 48 bpm, now it's up around 60's. My max is still at 200 bpm. My TT HR is still up around 185-190's. But my endurance ride HR is about 160's. I guess my HR is just naturally high. I wish I can even come close to 600 watts. Cyclist are a wierd bunch, myself included. There's a race in the US called RAAM, Race Across AMerica. It usually starts in Irvine, California and goes all the way to Georgia, Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean. It's a non-stop race where they get about 30 minutes of sleep per day. One year, at the start, they were riding through some bike paths through Irvine, one woman hit one of the poles that prevents cars from driving on the bike path. They had to lift her onto her bike because she was in so much pain. She kept riding until the doctors finally made her stop. She was in Boulder, Colorado when she stopped because she had broken her ankle. If you look at the past TdF winners that were American, both had a near death experience. Lance with cancer in the brain. Greg LeMond was shot by his brother in law while peasant hunting. So if you want to be the next American to win the TdF, you need to have a near death experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3quartertime Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 If I wanted to win the TdF I would commit and train. The rest is desire. Not to say that I have it in me but anyone might. Devotion is the key. Lance and the others start at devotion. Then they begin to learn how... HannaBananna,,, Yes we must share a lust for blue water. I would love to crew on a Cup challenger. Sailing racing is just as complicated as IPSC. First time I raced I was the default shute man. I was so bad that I wasn't asked back!!! Flying the kite isn't as easy as it looks... I would love to get a highlander or thistle and do some racing locally. Wanna crew??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhino Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 Having a resting heart rate in the low 30BPMs and being able to go over 200 BPMs is truly unusual. Being capable of "training" down to a resting heart rate that low is very much a genetic gift. Most people can't go anywhere near it, regardless of how well conditioned they are. Then, most of those who have resting rates that low can't get them going really fast like Armstrong. He has, as BigDave indicated, some very unusual physical attributes. Combine that with an inhuman work ethic and tolerance for pain, and you have a Lance Armstrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diehli Posted July 22, 2004 Author Share Posted July 22, 2004 It's the mental game that astonishes me the most. All those guys have the "gift," but some are able to exploit it better. That'd be Lance. As crude as it sounds, I'm sure the cancer had something to do with his mental game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexmoney Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 I have really been liking all the commercials with Lance. One...he challenges a Harley rider to a race...after jumping into a pick-up game of basketball, and a chin-up contest. Another, he is on a stationary bike in a service closet of a big building...his bike is hook-up to the electricity...he is providing the power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liota Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 It's the mental game that astonishes me the most. All those guys have the "gift," but some are able to exploit it better. That'd be Lance.As crude as it sounds, I'm sure the cancer had something to do with his mental game. You might be right. I think it destroyed the "I can't do that" portion of his brain's function. My shooting would improve immensely if I could crush that little demon from my thought process. All kidding aside, I am pretty sure the cancer probably just made him more stubborn about enjoying himself and doing everything he could and wanted to do. Liota Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diehli Posted July 22, 2004 Author Share Posted July 22, 2004 Definitely. Another thing that occurs to me is that he is better able to discern between harmful pain and pain that is part of what he loves to do. That "oh-my-god-I'm-gonna-die" feeling was all too real for him at one point... he knows that riding hard isn't going to give him that feeling. I stand by my original statement: AMAZING. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDH Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 HannaBananna,,,Yes we must share a lust for blue water. I would love to crew on a Cup challenger. Sailing racing is just as complicated as IPSC. First time I raced I was the default shute man. I was so bad that I wasn't asked back!!! Flying the kite isn't as easy as it looks... I would love to get a highlander or thistle and do some racing locally. Wanna crew??? [Drift] I'm not much for the little boats. I grew up racing one tonners under the IOR rule on the Great Lakes (only done a little true blue water stuff). While there were a lot of positions I could crew, due to size I was generally in the cockpit trimming headsails (plus I was always the navigator on the long distance stuff). Since you handled the sheet on the kite, you'll love this..... I was big enough, strong enough, and agile enough, that in medium air, I used to be the kite trimmer because I could do it without a grinder. I would put one (or maybe two) wraps on the winch (with the tail of the sheet wrapped around my waist ), and stand on the rear quarterdeck where I had a good view of the luff. Due to my size, I was able to trim quicker than a tailer and grinder combo. It was pretty psycho in the heavier air or seas (and of course was impossible on that size boat in really big air or seas), but when conditions were right, it was a beautiful thing. Of course, I also got surprised a few times and either thrown really hard into the lifelines or stanchions, and drug across the deck a few times. Great memories though..... [/Drift] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dminor Posted July 22, 2004 Share Posted July 22, 2004 Lance is a very gifted person. I am lucky enough to be home in the mornings, so I have been watching the Tour. I have it on right now with the volume turned up so I can hear the show while I do my morning routine of email, forums, etc. Jerome, did you see any of the satges? Lucky Dog if you did! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diehli Posted July 22, 2004 Author Share Posted July 22, 2004 Lance is a very gifted person. I am lucky enough to be home in the mornings, so I have been watching the Tour. I have it on right now with the volume turned up so I can hear the show while I do my morning routine of email, forums, etc. Me too... studying for a final exam that I have today, forum browsing, listening/watching OLN... wanting the Peloton to catch up to the leaders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now