Taylor Phinney and the future of elite bike racing, part two.

Taylor Phinney was once the future of American bike racing.  Now that he’s out of the sport, he could well be pointing to what the future of elite bike racing could be.  Hint: it includes […]

We won’t get fooled again?

Livestrong bracelets. the stuff dreams are made of.

2020 was an exciting vintage of the Tour de France. Possibly the most exciting in years. The defending champion and his team didn’t have the goods. The Green Jersey race was a battle through the […]

As the Tour Turns, 2020: Ineos Drama in the lead-up

Thomas leads Bernal 2019 tour

Two former Tour de France champions were taken off their team roster this week. Four-time champ Chris Froome was seen as not good enough to ride for his team. Same goes for 2018 winner Geraint […]

Reviewed: One-Way Ticket by Jonathan Vaughters

Cheating can pay.  Especially if you can live with yourself. Jonathan Vaughters can. It’s a skill he seems particularly good at. His skill set seems to include a considerable amount of charm, ruthlessness, and impeccable […]

Book Review: The Death of Marco Pantani

Just over fifteen years ago, Marco Pantani committed suicide via a cocaine overdose.  Every year, there’s a news item about someone, usually from his family, calling for an investigation into his death.  His death was […]

Department of Irony: Landis-Armstrong Edition

It was announced today that Lance Armstrong settled the federal fraud case that arose out of Floyd Landis’ whistleblower lawsuit back in 2010. Armstrong has agreed to pay $5 million. Landis gets $1 million of […]

Forget Mechanical Doping: The Tech Story of the 2016 Cyclocross Worlds Is Hiding in Plain Sight

Yes, the motorized bike found in the pits at the 2016 Cyclocross World Championships in Zolder, Belgium is a big deal.  However, it was caught during the race and it didn’t, so far as anyone […]

Problems With This Testosterone TUE

Let’s stipulate there’s a racer out there who feels tired.  He blames it on his work.  But when he changes his job, he’s still tired. He goes to a doctor.  The doctor comes up with […]

Malcolm Gladwell Isn’t Really Trying

Malcolm Gladwell’s writing doesn’t break a sweat. His game is taking complicated-seeming ideas and, over the course of a breezy tour, reducing them to fairly simple explanations. It’s a great skill and an act that […]

Read Run, Swim, Throw, Cheat

  Doping is not going away. It’s everywhere in sport and has been around for longer than most realize. I find the dismissive wave of “everyone’s doing it,” both overly simplistic and entirely missing the […]