My French girlfriend says that Monsieur Lance will win

[Marcello do Guzman]

I just spoke with my French girlfriend and I finally got her to admit
that France has absolutely no one worthy of winning the Yellow Jersey
or she would say the maillot jaune. I totally agree.

 

[Richard Adams]

Marcello do Guzman wrote:
> I just spoke with my French girlfriend and I finally got her to admit
> that France has absolutely no one worthy of winning the Yellow Jersey
> or she would say the maillot jaune. I totally agree.
>


Oh, I wouldn't say that. There's probably a dozen guys around France
who could have kicked Lance, Jan, Iban or anyone else off the top step
of the podium, but they probably are in a different line of work. Every
now and then the right body with the right head meets the right sport
and sparks fly. I'd love to see France produce another winner.

 

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article <[email protected]>,
Richard Adams <[email protected]> wrote:

> Marcello do Guzman wrote:
> > I just spoke with my French girlfriend and I finally got her to admit
> > that France has absolutely no one worthy of winning the Yellow Jersey
> > or she would say the maillot jaune. I totally agree.
> >
>
>
> Oh, I wouldn't say that. There's probably a dozen guys around France
> who could have kicked Lance, Jan, Iban or anyone else off the top step
> of the podium, but they probably are in a different line of work. Every
> now and then the right body with the right head meets the right sport
> and sparks fly. I'd love to see France produce another winner.

You're kidding, right? If there's one country where any kid with even a
chance of becoming a pro racer would be discovered, it's France (well,
and Benelux, too).

The right head is probably more common than the right body, but I don't
think it makes sense to talk about a mind-body duality (heck, in my
religion, that's heresy . There's lots of people who think Jan has
more body than Lance, only less mind. More body plus less mind equals
less cyclist. Or, more to the point, it doesn't matter how you allocate
it.

To be a cyclist, you have to choose your parents well, as the old joke
goes, and then you have to have the discipline to do the training, and a
little luck along the way.

Have video games and television so reduced France that the kids no
longer ride their bicycles? "France, what a future!"

Not that there's anything wrong with video games and television, they're
just for the recovery days.
--
Ryan Cousineau, [email protected] http://www.wiredcola.com
President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

 

[Robert Chung]

Ryan Cousineau wrote:
> If there's one country where any kid with even a
> chance of becoming a pro racer would be discovered, it's France

Hmmm. Why would you say that?

 

[trg]

Ryan Cousineau wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>,
> Richard Adams <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> Marcello do Guzman wrote:
>>> I just spoke with my French girlfriend and I finally got her to
>>> admit that France has absolutely no one worthy of winning the
>>> Yellow Jersey or she would say the maillot jaune. I totally agree.
>>>
>>
>>
>> Oh, I wouldn't say that. There's probably a dozen guys around France
>> who could have kicked Lance, Jan, Iban or anyone else off the top
>> step of the podium, but they probably are in a different line of
>> work. Every now and then the right body with the right head meets
>> the right sport and sparks fly. I'd love to see France produce
>> another winner.
>
> You're kidding, right? If there's one country where any kid with even
> a chance of becoming a pro racer would be discovered, it's France
> (well, and Benelux, too).

That's questionable (I'd give the nod to some place where people bike a lot,
like Denmark or Holland). But his statement is true even for the US. Most
likely, The World's Greatest Bicyclist doesn't know that he is and is a
second rate football player.

 

[David Off]

Ryan Cousineau wrote:
>
> Have video games and television so reduced France that the kids no
> longer ride their bicycles?

to a certain extent, yes. I think the drugs issues have discouraged
parents too. France was never a great sporting nation, bike racing was a
way for working class kids to progress (ok Fignon was an exception). Now
everyone is more affluent bike racing is less popular. Mountain biking
has also captured a big part of the yoof market...

 

[Roger Hughes]

On Tue, 06 Jul 2004 11:46:17 +0200, David Off
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Ryan Cousineau wrote:
>>
>> Have video games and television so reduced France that the kids no
>> longer ride their bicycles?
>
>to a certain extent, yes. I think the drugs issues have discouraged
>parents too. France was never a great sporting nation, bike racing was a
>way for working class kids to progress (ok Fignon was an exception). Now
>everyone is more affluent bike racing is less popular. Mountain biking
>has also captured a big part of the yoof market...

Not so much working class, except in the north, but more the rural
poor and peasant demographic. Nobody much seems to come into cycling
from the banlieux of Paris or the slums of Marseilles (they go into
football or basketball). Hence the, ahem, colour difference between
the French football team and the national cycling team.

Roger

 

[David Off]

Roger Hughes wrote:
> more the rural
> poor and peasant demographic. Nobody much seems to come into cycling
> from the banlieux of Paris or the slums of Marseilles (they go into
> football or basketball). Hence the, ahem, colour difference between
> the French football team and the national cycling team.

Good point, and maybe it is these fashionable sports that attract
youngsters (les djeunz) rather than cycling due to their associations
with 'cool' anglo-saxon nations.

 

[Steven]

David Off <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> Ryan Cousineau wrote:
> >
> > Have video games and television so reduced France that the kids no
> > longer ride their bicycles?
>
> to a certain extent, yes. I think the drugs issues have discouraged
> parents too. France was never a great sporting nation, bike racing was a
> way for working class kids to progress (ok Fignon was an exception). Now
> everyone is more affluent bike racing is less popular. Mountain biking
> has also captured a big part of the yoof market...

And everyone knows you can't jump from Mt. Biking and be succesful on the road....

 

[Erik Lusseault]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ryan Cousineau" <[email protected]>
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.racing
Sent: Tuesday, July 06, 2004 7:13 AM
Subject: Re: My French girlfriend says that Monsieur Lance will win


> You're kidding, right? If there's one country where any kid with even a
> chance of becoming a pro racer would be discovered, it's France (well,
> and Benelux, too).
>

Actually, it's no longer true mainly due to numerous doping scandals which
occured over the years and the fact that it gets huge media coverage around
here. To the French audience, cycling ( not only pro cycling but also
competitive amateur cycling) equals doping. Therefore there are less and
less young riders registered in clubs. Parents are less enclined to see
their kids choosing that sport wich deals with drugs. And even if actually
doping doesn't seem to affect that much the business of the sponsors (Cf
..Festina and Cofidis), it does scare off potential sponsors. We can safely
say that pro cycling is almost dead in France, at least for a decade.
It doesnt mean that there won't be crowds along the roads of the Tour de
France. There will still be passionnate the riders wherever they come from
( and whatever they use to entertain that crowd) because the Tour de France
is to the French is what Wimbledon is to the Brits, a very old tradition.

 

[Robert Chung]

Erik Lusseault wrote:
> To the French audience, cycling ( not only pro
> cycling but also competitive amateur cycling) equals doping.

That's why I got into cycling. I was hoping I'd be able to score some pot
Belge.

 

[Erik Lusseault]

"David Off" <[email protected]> a écrit dans le message de
news:[email protected]...
> Ryan Cousineau wrote:
> >
> > Have video games and television so reduced France that the kids no
> > longer ride their bicycles?
>
> to a certain extent, yes. I think the drugs issues have discouraged
> parents too. France was never a great sporting nation, bike racing was a
> way for working class kids to progress (ok Fignon was an exception). Now
> everyone is more affluent bike racing is less popular. Mountain biking
> has also captured a big part of the yoof market...

Actually the paradox is that France is much more a sport nation that it used
to be and at the time French pro cycling never been so disastrous. It used
to be the number one sport of the rural areas and then of the working class.
There are less and less farmers and the working class is and endangered
species. Yet it does not explain everything rugby and handball are still
very popular and successful in the rural areas and on the international
stage, and the same for football (soccer), fights sports, basketball with
the working class. The fact is Festina and then all the other doping
scandals killed the image of cycling both with parents and sponsors. The
media coverage in France does show cycling as totally corrupted by
drug-enhancing massive consumption. For instance, there is not a week
without a joke about Richard Virenque and the Tour de France on the very
popular satiric show Les Guignols. Then which parent would let his kid
practice Cycling at a competitive level?

 

[Erik Lusseault]

Stick with pot, you won't race as fast but it could be fun and you might
even live past 50.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Robert Chung" <[email protected]>
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.racing
Sent: Tuesday, July 06, 2004 10:35 PM
Subject: Re: My French girlfriend says that Monsieur Lance will win


> Erik Lusseault wrote:
> > To the French audience, cycling ( not only pro
> > cycling but also competitive amateur cycling) equals doping.
>
> That's why I got into cycling. I was hoping I'd be able to score some pot
> Belge.
>
>

 

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article <[email protected]>,
"Robert Chung" <[email protected]> wrote:

> Ryan Cousineau wrote:
> > If there's one country where any kid with even a
> > chance of becoming a pro racer would be discovered, it's France
>
> Hmmm. Why would you say that?

Well, further messages have disabused me of my notion that France was
still a cycling nation.

But there's enough PE in most first-world countries that I think there's
precious few kids who are little cardio machines with undiscovered
potential. But they don't all become cyclists.

Part of the problem is there's several sports that high-cardio athletes
will excel in. Many waste their talent and become marathoners.
Fortunately, triathlons act as a gateway sport to get some of these
glorified joggers to overcome their early mistake.

It worked for that guy from Texas,

--
Ryan Cousineau, [email protected] http://www.wiredcola.com
President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club

 

[Dan Connelly]

Ryan Cousineau wrote:
> Part of the problem is there's several sports that high-cardio athletes
> will excel in. Many waste their talent and become marathoners.
> Fortunately, triathlons act as a gateway sport to get some of these
> glorified joggers to overcome their early mistake.
>
> It worked for that guy from Texas,
>

That was, what, late '80's? Look at the participation in Junior racing in
the US from then compared to now. Armstrong is too old to provide a good
example.

The "capture cross-section" of potential junior cyclists in the US is extremely
small, I suggest.

Dan

 

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article <%[email protected]>,
Dan Connelly <d_j_c_o_n_n_e_l@i_e_e_e.o_r_g> wrote:

> Ryan Cousineau wrote:
> > Part of the problem is there's several sports that high-cardio athletes
> > will excel in. Many waste their talent and become marathoners.
> > Fortunately, triathlons act as a gateway sport to get some of these
> > glorified joggers to overcome their early mistake.
> >
> > It worked for that guy from Texas,
> >
>
> That was, what, late '80's? Look at the participation in Junior racing in
> the US from then compared to now. Armstrong is too old to provide a good
> example.
>
> The "capture cross-section" of potential junior cyclists in the US is
> extremely
> small, I suggest.
>
> Dan

Well, as I said, there are lots of high-cardio athletes who go into
other sports. You can claim they've missed out on their chance to become
great cyclists, but that's a bit like saying that Bo Jackson should have
concentrated more on his hockey skills. Sadly, some triathletes and
marathoners like what they do .

If we haven't seen more crossover triathletes, I think it speaks to how
extraordinary Lance was, and perhaps how lousy most triathletes are on
the bike . While a Euro-pro salary might not lure most NFL kick
returners into becoming the next Petacchi, it should look pretty good to
the average tri-geek.

The real North American feeder series for new cyclists tend to be youth
cycling sports, which means BMX and mountain biking. Locally, we have a
healthy high-school MTB racing program, and lots of BMXers supporting
three local tracks (one indoors). What happens is the kids who are good
in these sports start cross-training on the road as they get better, and
that leads them to road racing.

--
Ryan Cousineau, [email protected] http://www.wiredcola.com
President, Fabrizio Mazzoleni Fan Club