I didn’t get to see watch the final stage this morning but I just finished watching the re-broadcast. I was struck by the apparent respect and even affection of the other riders for Floyd Landis. It was different with Lance Armstrong, who was respected to be sure, but also feared.
Armstrong was an intimidating presence; Landis is viewed as a regular guy who rides his heart out, and is much more approachable.
The next big question is his future in professional cycling, given that he may well be facing hip replacement very soon. I theorized that this might have been his last professional race, but I started thinking about some American cycling history. Greg Lemond won a TDF after he was blasted in the back with a shotgun in a hunting accident. Lance started reeling off wins following a life-threatening bout with cancer.
I don’t know if it’s American in origin, but we’re fond of saying that what doesn’t kill you will make you stronger. It may well be, then, that putting a titanium hip into Floyd Landis’s body is about the worst thing that could happen…to the rest of the Tour de France peloton.
I’m already looking forward to 2007!
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I don’t know if it’s American in origin, but we’re fond of saying that what doesn’t kill you will make you stronger.
I think it might have been Nietzsche: “What does not destroy me, makes me stronger.”
Interesting point about American TDF winners. Just the fact that Landis won on a bum hip is pretty amazing.
The saying isn’t American in origin … it was coined by a Friedrich Nietzsche, a German philosopher of the 1800s … but it has enjoyed an almost unversal appeal and application, from the sublime (such as Lance Armstrong) to the ridiculous (the “Survivor” / “Fear Factor” crowd) …
Speaking of Lance, did you watch his hosting of the ESPY’s, last week?
Back to original post, though … congratulations to Floyd Landis!
Congrats Floyd, I knew you could do it (easy to say now but the truth). There was a great article on Landis and Zabriskie in last months Bicycling BTW. As for the titanium hip, tour officials will probably deem it an unfair advantage…. like your tires are too round, your handlebars are too high… blah blah blah.. we hate you because you’r eamerican. Hope Brother Landis continues to gut it out. I rode myself in the dirt last weekend on the MS150 and developed an even greater respect for those guys.
Scotty, I read that article…those guys were having way too much fun! Can you imagine Armstrong saying some of that stuff?
You’re probably right about Landis’s hip. The TDF will like install a metal detector next year and if you set it off, you’re out.
Congrats on doing the 150. That’s a great accomplishment.
While I am a big Lance Armstrong fan, I find it very easy to believe he said those things. Still, I find dumb and dumber to be endearing, though I think there’s a chance Lance didn’t mean it that way. I also appreciate that FL doesn’t weigh his food, wear a HRM and prefers the “In and Out” burger to a protein shake.