Interesting... a Lance-sponsored series of endurance events? He could make a fortune if they're well-run.Armstrong to Detractors: “It’s Their Drama, Not Mine”
Armstrong talks with LAVA senior editor Jay Prasuhn about USADA's case against him, a potential new race series, his Kona pick and his future as an athlete. And Speedos.
Posted on October 4, 2012 by Jay Prasuhn
Photos by Jay Prasuhn
Shortly, the findings in Lance Armstrong’s U.S. Anti Doping Agency case will be made public. In the interim, the 41-year-old Austin, Texas resident maintains confidence that the seven Tour de France titles he amassed remain his. In fact, he very pointedly selected racer No. 7 to be stamped on his arm for the race, attributing to the seven tour titles.
After the race, Armstrong signed the LIVESTRONG t-shirt of a spectator, who also wore a homemade badge, which read FU USADA. After signing the shirt, Armstrong smiled and added an exclamation point to the end of the badge.
I sat with Armstrong Sunday after the SuperFrog Triathlon in Coronado, Calif., just before he spoke to an assembly for a SuperFrog Forum. As much tumult currently surrounds his name in the global media, he’s quite clear about it all; it’s behind him, and more important things to him—family, foundation, and yes, endurance events, from triathlon to mountain biking—are where he lay his focus. And perhaps it’s those things that serve as the counterpoint to the summation of a man that many are convinced cheated his way to seven Tour de France titles.
Case in point: an unsolicited text from Armstrong, an aside from our interview the previous day that spoke to the things that currently maintain his attention:
“Yo. Good to catch up. One thing— I heard from (SuperFrog race director) Mitch (Hall) last night that Nike did donate those shirts for (race) volunteers. I wasn’t sure—nice of them to do that.”
LAVA: First off, the Speedo.
Armstrong: “Man, I give you credit on that. I was gonna wear the race kit I wore in Panama, and brought the Speedo just ‘cause I was going to swim in Portland. But I got your Tweet about doing the race in it, pulled the Speedo out, and said “what about this?” (My friends) looked at me like I was nuts, but then they were like “he’s serious.” It was great.
LAVA: It seems you’re enjoying the moment currently, putting the USADA stuff in your rear-view, just going out and enjoying playing, whether it’s a mountain bike race, or a cross-country race back home in Austin, or SuperFrog… simply having fun.
Armstrong: (laughs) “Y’know, some of this stuff at distance aren’t that fun. They’re so hard, and for whatever reason, for whatever reason you don’t have the day you want, and you don’t enjoy yourself, you’re suffering so badly. Today I planned to go conservative. I hadn’t swum much since I left Nice, and I haven’t ridden very much either. Just running, a little bit of mountain biking here and there, a couple days a week on the road bike.
SuperFrog runner-up Leon Griffin of Australia congratulates Armstrong on Sunday's win.
So I didn’t want to blow up on the bike and have a miserable experience—especially with that sand. I knew that was gonna be so hard. But I’ve been running my ass off. This summer, I was running a lot with this kid Ricky Gates, this trail runner. Long ascents. I did some big runs with him, four, five-hour runs, middle of nowhere. We did the four-pass loop in Aspen, unsupported, out there with our hand bottles and iodine tablets filling up our bottles in the stream.
So yeah, in the race, I had a blast. Most fun I’ve had in a while. The people were great.
LAVA: Was part of that due to the old-schoolness of the race? No Kona points chasing, no singlet top rules, like it was when you were last here?
Armstrong: Very informal. Even last night, (my manager) was like “you’re not even into this.” And I was like “whatdya talking about?” I went to warm up for the swim, just got in having not done an open-water swim in a while. I’m waist-deep and I hear the guy… one minute to go! Running to the start line, I get there and they’re like “20 seconds!” I was thinking, “oh, this is not starting well.” Then it was ok. I was rolled by a couple big waves.
We were going hard on the bike. Halfway way through it was 330’s (watts). Every time I looked down were in the mid 300’s, and I was like “this is plenty.” Those other races in the spring, I think Panama I rode 309, the other races I rode 315, 320, (Ironman 70.3) Hawaii I rode 330 or 340. (Ironman 70.3) Florida I rode 330. But for not having been on the bike much, that’s enough for me.
Armstrong, with SuperFrog race founder and Navy SEAL veteran Moki Martin after the race Sunday.
And to Leon’s credit, he was fine with that. A lot of these other guys (Armstrong laughingly coughs the word “Lieto”) woulda been back there yelling at you, making you work. I couldn’t; I had to run still.
And off the bike, I went to put my running shoes on and there was an old dirty sock crammed down in one of ‘em! The shoe had been in the bag, probably since St. Croix… I hadn’t even checked ‘em out! It was hilarious. So yeah, super laid-back…. I loved it.
LAVA: How was it coming back to the old stomping grounds where you cut your teeth?
Armstrong: It was great. When I was here, I guess ’87, those roads wouldn’t be the same. Even when I was here in the mid-90s, even then, Ramona was just .When we came out with Subaru-Montgomery, we lived in Escondido, and there was no one there. It was a dumpy ol’ down. We’d just head out, and now I’m sure it’s all paved over. And it seems like a lot of the triathletes have left, gone to Boulder.
LAVA: When we spoke a few days ago, you said that the USADA decision, the discussions, the banter, the coming release of their findings, you said it’s truly not affecting the quality of your life.
Armstrong: It’s their drama. Not mine. I was raised in a way, and maybe my mom was this way, and her life wasn’t perfect, it was complicated. But she always looked forward. She looked a day, and a month, and a year, and 10 years from now. Some people don’t do that. They sit around and talk about the past. You always get high-school friends who sit around and talk about “hey remember that time…” and I’m like “why are you asking me about that?”
That’s the funny thing. What else do they want to strip? The Tour of Colorado? Tour of the Gila? It’s so dumb.
I don’t care. Honestly. And I mean that. I wake up and my mind and my conscience and my view on my life and my world, my future and my kids’ future is perfectly clear.
And I said it after my mountain bike race in Aspen when I raced. Nobody needs to be shedding any tears for me; I’ll find stuff to do. My foundation’s gonna keep rockin’, and my kids are going to remain unaffected. Movin’ on.
LAVA: Are you aware of the vocal opposition, whether it’s from bloggers, or media, even other pro triathletes?
Armstrong: Yeah, others won’t move on. It’s sad. I’m aware that it’s out there. It’s like, why are you continuing? You got what you wanted; Lance Armstrong never did anything in his life. Great. For some, it’s like, shouldn’t you be out training and focusing on what you’re doing? Fucking move on. So strange.
LAVA: That established, it seems, by virtue of even this SuperFrog event, that triathlon has been rather welcoming. Some are claiming triathlon as something of a haven.
Armstrong: I heard a lot of that support, riding and running today. It was great. Obviously there are detractors, but they don’t say anything—which is fine. And if they did say something, that’s fine too. Look, this is a polarizing subject. There are gonna be people strongly pulled to either side. But I’m always humbled and blown away by people’s responses. Today, and going to talk at the Leadville pre-race riding briefing, the support I get, it’s like, “whoa.” Some are true believers that nothing ever happened. Some are believers that something did happen, and some are believers that don’t give a shit what happened. They’re all over the place, but again, I don’t take it for granted. Every time I show up, I expect picketers. And when they don’t show up, I’m like, “cool.”
So, we’re gonna just move along.
LAVA: With that in mind, there’s been talk about a LIVESTRONG race series. Any details or game plan on that?
Armstrong: We have a rough business plan, but we’re not ready to make an announcement next week or next month. We’ve got good, experienced, passionate people who are involved, and we’ve got I think a lot of people willing to support events, people that want something else, whether it’s lower entry fees or a better experience or a better after-party or swag bag. Not to say existing series around are not good. But to pick up on some things would be great. There’s been thought that we could acquire some stand-alone, one-off events, events that could either be bought or partnered on. And then there’s the events we could create.
And these aren’t simply triathlons. They’re run the gamut: tri’s off-road tris, mountain bike races, gran fondos, marathons, trail runs… just a hodge-podge of endurance junkie porn.
LAVA: Thinking back to your long runs in Aspen, do you think you’d have any interest in ultrarunning?
Armstrong: I have no interest in a 100-mile run.
LAVA: A 50-miler?
Armstrong: Nope. That would hurt so badly. Why would you do that? Lemme rephrase that, because I understand why somebody else would do that. So… why would I do that? When I did four-pass, I got home, my kids were there and I was useless… I gotta have a nap and a massage.
LAVA: For the triathlons, would you be using existing distances, or something different?
Armstrong: We would not be duplicating what currently exists. We won’t just sit there and copy someone else’s distance; that’s their distance. And some of these halves and fulls, people can’t do many of ‘em; they’re damn hard.
LAVA: I guess that’s where some alternates, with long bikes and short runs, make for quicker recovery.
Armstrong: Yep. The (TriStar) 111s, people can do those every weekend.
LAVA: Or you could opt for a an event like the Leadman Epic 250 had, with a long swim.
Armstrong: Dude… that’s a 5k swim!
LAVA: But you’re a swimmer…
Armstrong: I swim 2000 to 3000 a day! To do a swim like that, you gotta go in the pool and do repeat 1000s. Screw that! Seriously, I wouldn’t wanna do that. It’d be different if I was in Kona and it was open water. I don’t mind going out and ripping open water for an hour.
LAVA: Would you be participating in some of your LIVESTRONG events?
Armstrong: Yeah, definitely, But I won’t race every event.
LAVA: Do you think you’d do a full series points chase across the sports?
Armstrong: I don’t think so. In reality, even with WTC—and I totally respect the pros and that the points are important for Kona—but (points-chasing) is not what the sport’s about. It’s about supporting hundreds of thousands of other athletes out there, growing the sport. And I think with unsanctioned events—because these events we’d put together would be unsanctioned—that current pros might not want to do them. I don’t know, though; maybe they would.
LAVA: Do you have picks for next weekend’s Hawaii Ironman?
Armstrong: I’ve asked Jimmy the Greek (longtime friend Jimmy Riccitello). He picks Crowie. I’ll read the results. I’ll read the data. But I’m not gonna sit in front of my computer for eight hours. But if you want me to pick, I guess you gotta pick Crowie. Not to keep going back to Jimmy, but he thinks (Sebastian) Kienle has a shot if he doesn’t swim too bad, rides fast and gets some help.
LAVA: Perhaps if he had someone like Lieto or yourself there this year.
Armstrong: Yeah—he’s gotta have someone. That was always gonna be my problem, was if Lieto didn’t qualify and get in—which is what happened; he got injured. And then you’re stuck trying to ride out there by yourself.
But I would have run a lot faster than people think. I’ve run a lot. I wouldn’t have shown up to that race without being run-ready. Woulda, coulda, shoulda… but that’s alright.
LAVA: Do you still hold out any glimmer of hope that something may reverse, something may come out that makes way for a rescinding on the ban, allowing you to race Kona, if not next year, sometime down the road?
Armstrong: I’m 41. Next year I’ll be 42. At some point, you time out here. There’s no fountain of youth. I’m still surprised I succeed at the level I do now. At 41, running hard in a collegiate cross-country race, getting destroyed, then coming out here? I didn’t expect to go that well here, and was like, really? It won’t be like that much longer. Even if you feel good, you just don’t go as fast. And that’s ok, too.
LAVA: You said it in your public statement that your time now will be of focus on the LIVESTRONG foundation, your kids and, well, racing in general.
Armstrong: I’ll just keep on keepin’ on. I’m not gonna name ‘em, but I’ve got 10 unsanctioned events on my radar that are intriguing to me. They’re interesting, they’re challenging, they’re different. They’re not gonna have 50,000 participants, but they’ll be cool challenges not just to do, but to prepare for.
And I’ve been playing a ton of golf. I’m telling ya, I’m hooked. I find it hard to believe. I’ve played forever, but I’ve played a bit in Aspen, and now I’m just starting to really enjoy it.
LAVA: Can you hit the long ball straight?
Armstrong: Not consistently. I played with (Trek president) John Burke in Austin. And when we started betting real money on the par five 18[SUP]th[/SUP], I hit a 300-yard drive straight as an arrow, laid up on a shelf with my six-iron, perfect placement, a wedge onto the green, and I effin’ two-putted. But—that was such a thrill. I was down eighty bucks and I left up forty bucks! I would go anywhere to play.
LAVA: Hawaii has some damn good courses. Is that, or more specifically, is Kona going to still remain your refuge? Last time we talked, you said you could see yourself retiring there for good at some point.
Armstrong: Yeah. Granted, I kinda made the big move there because of the race, but it’s still the best place in the world, in my opinion. I am happier there than anywhere. We’ll be there two weeks October, two in November, then four weeks over Christmas and New Years. And Spring break.
And Anna (Hansen, Armstrong’s girlfriend) is so mad, because she likes to ski and snowboard… she’s starting to see her snowboarding career evaporating!
LAVA: Thinking about getting together with Trek’s John Burke, I wanted to find out what your sponsors reaction has been throughout the USADA decision, in terms of support. They seem to remain largely in your corner.
Armstrong: I’m surprised by that. You never assume. It certainly doesn’t hurt to do things like today (SuperFrog and adjacent fundraising talks). Trek had someone here today, and they’ll report back about the support on the course, the atmosphere, which was amazing. When I first threw my leg over a Trek, they were at $100 million in sales. Today, they’re going to do a billion.
Nike is more of a joint venture. The LIVESTRONG line continues to be successful, and sales there have been completely unaffected. They’ve been very supportive. All my sponsors have been great.
LAVA: It was interesting that the day after you announced that you would not contest USADA’s findings, donations to LIVESTRONG went up…
Armstrong: They went up 25X. Not 25 percent, but 25 times. We are thrilled about that, to have that support.
LAVA: We’ll let you go. Anything else we may have missed?
Armstrong: I dunno, (laughs)… I’m still buzzing from the Speedo.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
http://lavamagazine.com/features/armstr ... z28R0URLKz
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THEBIGFISH55
- Posts: 125
- Joined: Wed Mar 21, 2012 4:17 pm
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Serial douchbag, that Lance Armstrong....
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
^^^With arms like that, how is it even possible that he is on roids? Unless his doctor prescribed him roids, because his junk was growing to be too big. 
He barely appears to be 150 in all these photos.
He barely appears to be 150 in all these photos.
There was once a person named rock
Who most here would gladly coldcock
Not afraid to look dumb
To the pub he would come
And whatever he said was a crock
Who most here would gladly coldcock
Not afraid to look dumb
To the pub he would come
And whatever he said was a crock
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
[quote=rock8591]^^^With arms like that, how is it even possible that he is on roids? Unless his doctor prescribed him roids, because his junk was growing to be too big.
He barely appears to be 150 in all these photos.[/QUOTE]
Well, there were some steroids used for recovery during heavy training, but the majority of the doping was from the use of EPO and blood doping (i.e., taking blood out, waiting until your body makes more blood, and then putting the extracted blood back in your body). These two techniques help your blood carry more oxygen and is more useful in endurance pursuits such as cycling.
Steroid use for building big muscles isn't really an issue in cycling.
He barely appears to be 150 in all these photos.[/QUOTE]
Well, there were some steroids used for recovery during heavy training, but the majority of the doping was from the use of EPO and blood doping (i.e., taking blood out, waiting until your body makes more blood, and then putting the extracted blood back in your body). These two techniques help your blood carry more oxygen and is more useful in endurance pursuits such as cycling.
Steroid use for building big muscles isn't really an issue in cycling.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Well did anyone read the USDA evidence? Is it damning?
Can I borrow your towel? My car just hit a water buffalo.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
I read some of the affidavits. A lot of it is guilt by association and circumstantial but there are also some fairly damning statements in there about Lance using and helping his teammates use. And it's a mountain of stuff - far too much to dismiss as merely a couple of jealous ex-teammates trying to knock him down a peg.
I used to believe Lance was clean. Not after reading some of that stuff.
I used to believe Lance was clean. Not after reading some of that stuff.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Yeah, pretty sure he is dirty after all this comes out.
“The Knave abideth.” I dare speak not for thee, but this maketh me to be of good comfort; I deem it well that he be out there, the Knave, being of good ease for we sinners.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/17/la ... g-charity/
Sponsors pulling out, Lance steps down from Livestrong.
Sponsors pulling out, Lance steps down from Livestrong.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Lost a lot of endorsement money yesterday.
Can I borrow your towel? My car just hit a water buffalo.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Titles officially gone now.
“The Knave abideth.” I dare speak not for thee, but this maketh me to be of good comfort; I deem it well that he be out there, the Knave, being of good ease for we sinners.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Article is a couple of months old, but Outside Magazine details some of the stuff in Tyler Hamilton's book:
http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-ad ... l?page=all
http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-ad ... l?page=all
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Lance's fall is just so bizarre because so many people wanted to buy into his story (including me).
He has so vociferously defended himself - going so far as to sue some of his critics for defamation (and winning, albeit in England which has notoriously loose standards when it comes to defamation) - that many thought for sure that all the accusations came out of jealousy or spite. Instead what we have is that he was doping and if you crossed him you became a target.
I'm not a big cycling fan, but Lance was one of the reasons I might watch it during a lazy summer day. All these allegations confirm one thing: the sport is dirty and still hasn't cleaned itself up. Can't say I'll ever watch it again until it's clean and there's another racer to be excited about.
He has so vociferously defended himself - going so far as to sue some of his critics for defamation (and winning, albeit in England which has notoriously loose standards when it comes to defamation) - that many thought for sure that all the accusations came out of jealousy or spite. Instead what we have is that he was doping and if you crossed him you became a target.
I'm not a big cycling fan, but Lance was one of the reasons I might watch it during a lazy summer day. All these allegations confirm one thing: the sport is dirty and still hasn't cleaned itself up. Can't say I'll ever watch it again until it's clean and there's another racer to be excited about.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
I was typically someone who would pay attention to the tour even when we didn't have a big American but that sport is dead to me. Rampant cheating. Time to take down my LA poster from my garage. Get to keep the Lemond poster though I guess.
“The Knave abideth.” I dare speak not for thee, but this maketh me to be of good comfort; I deem it well that he be out there, the Knave, being of good ease for we sinners.
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
Interesting article about how the whole Lance Armstrong investigation might have come about:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/18/sport ... wanted=all
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/18/sport ... wanted=all
Lance Armstrong interview: He don't care about it
IOC wants to strip his 2000 bronze medal, and they don't give a shit if there's a statute of limitations:http://msn.foxsports.com/olympics/story/ioc-opens-probe-into-lance-armstrongs-olympic-bronze-medal-110212
In the case of Armstrong's medal, the IOC will have to study whether the eight-year statute for revising Olympic results applies or not.
IOC vice president Thomas Bach recently told The Associated Press that the USADA report took an ''intriguing approach'' that leaves the eight-year period open to discussion.
''What we would have to check is whether this would also work under Swiss law or whether we find a way to apply U.S. law,'' Bach said.