Mechanized doping? Not really new.

Check out the motor-assisted bike in this video clip.  Davide Cassani showed this on T-Giro show last week (link here and here.   Cyclingnews.com story here.)  New feature on Sporza here.

Rumor doing the rounds this week is that Cancellara used one this spring during his three-week warpath through Flanders.   Spartacus is denying it to the death.  I hope to god he's right, because if there's any truth to this in the end, it would be his Waterloo - and he'd deserve to be sent to Elba without food, water or his i-phone.

Davide Cassani said:  "With a bike like that... I could win the Giro at age 50".    Wow, the heck with Power Intervals...maybe there's hope for me yet.  (Hmmm....wicked fast Eddy?)

Utterly disgraceful.

When did sportsmanship become so passe?  Would you get any satisfaction out of winning this way?   Could you live with yourself?  

Cheaters -  in the words of the late George Carlin - need to be put on the list of 'people who need to be phased out.'   Particularly institutionalized, industrialized cheaters.

Lack of character crosses all demographics and nationalities unfortunately.  I remember when I was a kid in '73 - some Colorado boy who was a nephew in the Lange ski-boot dynasty - little Jimmy Gronan - won the All-American Soap Box Derby in Akron Ohio.  Only poor little Jimmy was DQ'd for cheating (story here).

Tuned out his father and engineer uncle had helped him rigged up a magnet in the front of the car that touched the plate that held up the kart at the top of the hill.  This apple pie eating example of all-American boyhood would lean his helmet back...switch on the magnet, the pull of which would yank him forward as the plate was thrown to start each heat--- gaining him a jump start of a few seconds.    Hey, his cousin had won the year before... why not me too?  Where's mine?


"Jeez, Beav - even Eddie Haskell wouldn't have tried that trick!"

Wonder where little Jimmy is now?   He's probably an engineer working on hiding electronic motors in road bike frames.

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