I raced amateur racing in Southern California for 25 years (mostly masters). WITHOUT question! Doping was not only present but prevalent in amateur cyclists....mainly masters as they can afford it and they are generally type A professionals in life that have such huge egos they will do anything to win. I quit racing in 2020 and I would bet it is still happening.
It’s crazy how important beating other old guys is to some people , here let me spend thousands on equipment ant travel and than more on a coach , hey what’s a bit more on dope …hey I’ll win 50 bucks
I was a Cat 3 back in the late '80's and early '90's and used to race against this guy who became famous for his amazing 'history'. At the age of 40, he was an overweight, chain-smoking, beer- drinking middle-aged man. He suddenly had a sort of epiphany due to his son - who warned him that his 'lifestyle' would kill him and he didn't want to lose his father. So, the guy decided to get fit - and took up cycling. He bought a bike, joined the local cycling club and despite being mocked by some of the club members after being 'dropped' on the rides, persisted and trained incredibly hard. He applied for his Cat 3 licence and competed in races. In fact, he did so well, he got his Cat 2 licence in less than a year. And in less than a year after that, he got his Cat 1 licence - one of only two UK cyclists ever to achieve that! [the other was a very successful professional who rode the Tour de France]. The club I rode for organised a very well-known and tough 141km [88 mile] race - over an extremely hilly course. This guy always used to just ride away from everyone and would usually come in on his own. But one year, he had another very strong rider up against him. [who had been selected to represent the British National team]. The two of them broke away early and worked together until the last lap - when the other rider punctured. So yet again the 'old guy' won the race. Years later, I met this other rider who by that time had 'hung up his wheels' as a competitive cyclist and worked in a bike shop. I mentioned to him that I watched that race and that he had really bad luck, puncturing on the last lap. He said yes, he was very strong that day, and had just attacked and had quickly dropped the 'old guy' when he punctured and that was it. Then he laughed. I was puzzled by that and he told me that the 'old guy' was ''on the juice'' and had been for years. All the other riders knew it.
Around 2010 a lot of guys I raced against started getting busted for doping. I raced with the pro 1,2s as a 44 year old. I never took even vitamins or aspirin. Nothing. In one year the speeds jumped an average of 2 miles an hour. At the state TT it was announced that there would be doping controls post race. It was amazing how many registered riders didn’t show up for the race. I suffered an injury and sickness about that time and never went back to racing. It was obvious what was happening. Now I occasionally do some gravel races and see people show up on e bikes and witnessed people cutting the course. Cheating has become blatant. There is very little integrity left. It’s really sad.
i took part in the Maratona dles Dolomites about 15 years ago and came 84th. A few months letter I got an email to say I was now 81st as three riders ahead of me, picked up by pro teams, had failed medicals for drugs. At last I felt like a true racing cyclist!
I live in Brazil and they regularly test and catch 25 to 40% of the fields of amateur races. Doping isn’t really going to help in road races … WTF. Of course it does … better recovery = much more training volume, EPO = better O2 uptake, more test = more muscular strength and recovery. A friend of mine went on TRT - easy and fully legal here - and it transformed his cycling out of all recognition!!! Get real guys
Here in NL an elite (without contract) rider can make 35k per year in prize money from criteriums. There is almost zero chance of a doping control. It's well known that some guys (especially older ones) are 'charging'.
1000%..I remember where half the field left the race on the last lap because the government doping testers turned up and everyone could see them when we rode past.
US domestic bike racing has seen significant doping since the mid-1990s. It’s gotten more sophisticated and multi-dimensional since TRT and hormonal supplementation has become medically widespread.
As an ex pro who quit when they all began to dope. I was raised by very responsible, parents and a great grandmother who taught me do not cheat and I also have the opportunity of being able to go to graduate school. The big problem is that many of these riders have nothing else and so this all or nothing and then they start thinking that people do and the only way to compete is to dope. And unfortunately, doping does not create an equal field. Some people get the effects of doping more than others so the whole thing is a giant crime scene and nobody wins, except a very few for people to not do. They have to have alternatives in their lives. This is all they have this is what’s going to happen.
Absolutely they are. Look at the documentary on the Russian doping scandal. He was doping and still couldn't keep up. Do you think those riders were natural? No chance.
I have been Amateur racing in the U.S. since 2006. (Masters) Never won a race but had several top 10 finishes. Unusually a midpacker. Something seemed to change around 2013-14. While my training didn't change, I suddenly was no longer competitive and would often get dropped. It just so happens that around the same time T.R.T. became fairly mainstream especially for older masters age men. I cannot say for sure What caused the sudden increase in performance in men I had been racing with for years But something seemed very fishy. I continued racing unsuccessfully Until The end of the 2017 Season.. But quit out of frustration.
Doping is endemic across all endurance sports……..testing is a joke, easy to beat, no chance of getting caught. This applies equally to age groupers as well. I laughed when the host started talking about how you have to tell the anti-doping people your whereabouts, same rules applied to Lance Armstrong and Co……..that really was a disincentive 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
lol yeah, just recently a top track and field athlete said doping is worse now than 10 years ago, people are just getting better and better at not getting caught. No way I believe today’s peloton is clean compare to the years of Lance Armstrong.
I live in Spain (Barcelona) and I am Irish ...madre mia...if I had a euro for every story I hear of "Dopage" here, the problem is doping isn't frowned upon, en serio!! Valverde still shows up at events like a hero, Contador is given media contracts, others just go about their day. Pedro Delgado does the TDP cycling sports commentary, you know the guy in 88 who dodged a test. Spain still fails to address this problem and no one seems to care.
recently a masters rider (I thibk he raced in the 60+!) got popped for: epo, test, hgh, speed, viagra and hydrocodone.......he was a walking phramacy. as long as humans compete in anything humans will dope/cheat.
The cost of setting up doping controls and processing samples means that amateur participants have a high probability of escaping detection. Cycling has a long history of doping and the sport still struggles to change perceptions among the general public. Such suspicions contrast with the actual evidence. Consistently, year on year, UK AntiDoping's annual reports show that one sport, by a huge margin, dominates the list of banned participants......rugby. Currently, in a list of 44 participants undergoing lengthy bans (up to 4 years) 27 are rugby players, mostly from the lower leagues. Every major cycle race will have blood samples taken after the race. During a 3 week Tour some riders will be tested several times. It would be useful to compare different sports on the basis of test frequency among top participants.
I like when you interview smart guests but these were some of the dumbest comments I have ever heard. "Cheap protein" powder does not contain expensive performance enhancing substances, they contain cheap whey.
I’m a USAC level one coach. This topic came up at a clinic. You can find all of the athletes suspended in the US on USADA site. Some cyclists (usually men, 45-65) who were crushing the local crit races with a little too much power, lots of mixed martial arts competitors and para-olympians. A few years ago there was a 60+ guy on the east coast who was found to be buying EPO, HGH, and testosterone from Mexican pharmacies.
Seen a parking lot empty in a hurry on 1 occasion testers showed up. Most times they ‘lock the pen’ tell all riders at start of a category they want to test and they cant drop out. Disappear and it counts as missed test. -U10
@@phillippitts6294 look it up man. It’s not just one study. PEDs has been heavily researched for years since they first appeared all the way back 50+ years ago. This isn’t just in performance enhancement but also muscle gain as well. No wonder so many amateur cyclists like yourself are bitter in the comments. You all think you would be tour riders if you had the special supplements. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. Majority of riders are average at best.
I raced amateur racing in Southern California for 25 years (mostly masters). WITHOUT question! Doping was not only present but prevalent in amateur cyclists....mainly masters as they can afford it and they are generally type A professionals in life that have such huge egos they will do anything to win. I quit racing in 2020 and I would bet it is still happening.
It’s crazy how important beating other old guys is to some people , here let me spend thousands on equipment ant travel and than more on a coach , hey what’s a bit more on dope …hey I’ll win 50 bucks
This clip needs to be 25 seconds long. "is there doping in amateur cycling?" "yes......"
I was a Cat 3 back in the late '80's and early '90's and used to race against this guy who became famous for his amazing 'history'. At the age of 40, he was an overweight, chain-smoking, beer- drinking middle-aged man. He suddenly had a sort of epiphany due to his son - who warned him that his 'lifestyle' would kill him and he didn't want to lose his father.
So, the guy decided to get fit - and took up cycling. He bought a bike, joined the local cycling club and despite being mocked by some of the club members after being 'dropped' on the rides, persisted and trained incredibly hard. He applied for his Cat 3 licence and competed in races. In fact, he did so well, he got his Cat 2 licence in less than a year.
And in less than a year after that, he got his Cat 1 licence - one of only two UK cyclists ever to achieve that! [the other was a very successful professional who rode the Tour de France]. The club I rode for organised a very well-known and tough 141km [88 mile] race - over an extremely hilly course. This guy always used to just ride away from everyone and would usually come in on his own.
But one year, he had another very strong rider up against him. [who had been selected to represent the British National team]. The two of them broke away early and worked together until the last lap - when the other rider punctured. So yet again the 'old guy' won the race. Years later, I met this other rider who by that time had 'hung up his wheels' as a competitive cyclist and worked in a bike shop.
I mentioned to him that I watched that race and that he had really bad luck, puncturing on the last lap. He said yes, he was very strong that day, and had just attacked and had quickly dropped the 'old guy' when he punctured and that was it. Then he laughed. I was puzzled by that and he told me that the 'old guy' was ''on the juice'' and had been for years. All the other riders knew it.
Around 2010 a lot of guys I raced against started getting busted for doping. I raced with the pro 1,2s as a 44 year old. I never took even vitamins or aspirin. Nothing. In one year the speeds jumped an average of 2 miles an hour. At the state TT it was announced that there would be doping controls post race. It was amazing how many registered riders didn’t show up for the race. I suffered an
injury and sickness about that time and never went back to racing. It was obvious what was happening. Now I occasionally do some gravel races and see people show up on e bikes and witnessed people cutting the course. Cheating has become blatant. There is very little integrity left. It’s really sad.
i took part in the Maratona dles Dolomites about 15 years ago and came 84th. A few months letter I got an email to say I was now 81st as three riders ahead of me, picked up by pro teams, had failed medicals for drugs. At last I felt like a true racing cyclist!
I live in Brazil and they regularly test and catch 25 to 40% of the fields of amateur races.
Doping isn’t really going to help in road races … WTF. Of course it does … better recovery = much
more training volume, EPO = better O2 uptake, more test = more muscular strength and recovery. A friend of mine went on TRT - easy and fully legal here - and it transformed his cycling out of all recognition!!!
Get real guys
Guess what we have launching next week? youtube.com/@Roadman_Podcast_Portugues?si=1HZY_i65FgGt-WF4
Here in NL an elite (without contract) rider can make 35k per year in prize money from criteriums. There is almost zero chance of a doping control. It's well known that some guys (especially older ones) are 'charging'.
1000%..I remember where half the field left the race on the last lap because the government doping testers turned up and everyone could see them when we rode past.
US domestic bike racing has seen significant doping since the mid-1990s. It’s gotten more sophisticated and multi-dimensional since TRT and hormonal supplementation has become medically widespread.
As an ex pro who quit when they all began to dope. I was raised by very responsible, parents and a great grandmother who taught me do not cheat and I also have the opportunity of being able to go to graduate school. The big problem is that many of these riders have nothing else and so this all or nothing and then they start thinking that people do and the only way to compete is to dope. And unfortunately, doping does not create an equal field. Some people get the effects of doping more than others so the whole thing is a giant crime scene and nobody wins, except a very few for people to not do. They have to have alternatives in their lives. This is all they have this is what’s going to happen.
Absolutely they are. Look at the documentary on the Russian doping scandal. He was doping and still couldn't keep up. Do you think those riders were natural? No chance.
Full natty brah! 😉
he couldn't keep up because ped's are not magic.
Look at the doc. again and why he didn't had a good performance
I have been Amateur racing in the U.S. since 2006. (Masters) Never won a race but had several top 10 finishes.
Unusually a midpacker. Something seemed to change around 2013-14. While my training didn't change, I suddenly was no longer competitive and would often get dropped. It just so happens that around the same time T.R.T. became fairly mainstream especially for older masters age men. I cannot say for sure What caused the sudden increase in performance in men I had been racing with for years
But something seemed very fishy. I continued racing unsuccessfully Until The end of the 2017 Season.. But quit out of frustration.
For sure TRT helps enormously
Doping is endemic across all endurance sports……..testing is a joke, easy to beat, no chance of getting caught. This applies equally to age groupers as well. I laughed when the host started talking about how you have to tell the anti-doping people your whereabouts, same rules applied to Lance Armstrong and Co……..that really was a disincentive 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
lol yeah, just recently a top track and field athlete said doping is worse now than 10 years ago, people are just getting better and better at not getting caught. No way I believe today’s peloton is clean compare to the years of Lance Armstrong.
It's just not the amateurs, it's going on right now with the current professional cyclists.
I live in Spain (Barcelona) and I am Irish ...madre mia...if I had a euro for every story I hear of "Dopage" here, the problem is doping isn't frowned upon, en serio!! Valverde still shows up at events like a hero, Contador is given media contracts, others just go about their day. Pedro Delgado does the TDP cycling sports commentary, you know the guy in 88 who dodged a test.
Spain still fails to address this problem and no one seems to care.
recently a masters rider (I thibk he raced in the 60+!) got popped for: epo, test, hgh, speed, viagra and hydrocodone.......he was a walking phramacy. as long as humans compete in anything humans will dope/cheat.
WTF. Viagra on a bike saddle wearing lycra ! How does that even work 🤣🤣🤣🤣
I wonder how many gravel racers would drop out if they started testing 😬
The cost of setting up doping controls and processing samples means that amateur participants have a high probability of escaping detection. Cycling has a long history of doping and the sport still struggles to change perceptions among the general public. Such suspicions contrast with the actual evidence. Consistently, year on year, UK AntiDoping's annual reports show that one sport, by a huge margin, dominates the list of banned participants......rugby. Currently, in a list of 44 participants undergoing lengthy bans (up to 4 years) 27 are rugby players, mostly from the lower leagues. Every major cycle race will have blood samples taken after the race. During a 3 week Tour some riders will be tested several times. It would be useful to compare different sports on the basis of test frequency among top participants.
I like when you interview smart guests but these were some of the dumbest comments I have ever heard. "Cheap protein" powder does not contain expensive performance enhancing substances, they contain cheap whey.
I would 100% fail an anti doping test… wait how long does that stay in your system. I may have to visit the medical dispensary tomorrow.
I dont´think that 130 riders stepped out because of "Mary Jane" -
there are other things going on ;-)
Doping is long gone, no one does it a anymore. Nowadays everyone is clean as Greg was back in the days.
Where could one buy these doping products.
FFS 🤦♂️ The internet, your local gym, cycling club etc etc
Dr. Ferrari’s Amazon page?
Mexico.
Local cycling club. 🤣🤣🤣.
I’m a USAC level one coach. This topic came up at a clinic. You can find all of the athletes suspended in the US on USADA site. Some cyclists (usually men, 45-65) who were crushing the local crit races with a little too much power, lots of mixed martial arts competitors and para-olympians. A few years ago there was a 60+ guy on the east coast who was found to be buying EPO, HGH, and testosterone from Mexican pharmacies.
Of course. The way to evade the tests are explained in the published scientific papers.
Do you think they are perhaps doping? Hell they dope more than the pros do!
Yup
Every MAMIL watches the BIG races and want to be a pro, so of course they are doing everything pros are doing… including doping.
That accent ! Awesome 😅
I would have win TDF except I refuse to use dope.
Vets on trt
Does that mean, testosterone replacement therapy? Or something else?
@@phillippitts6294 Yup testosterone replacement therapy in this context
sorry but in order to win or even not get dropped, you better dope up like the other guys.
Greg Lamont ? 😂😂😂😂
Dope to cope .. no?
They most definitely are every sport use drugs
100%
you need Lemond on as a regular
Yes,they doped a lot.
It's pretty funny that podiums in amateur cycling are disproportionately made up of people that can write prescriptions
curfuffole 🤗
More Masters get caught than pro/worldtour. -U10
Seen a parking lot empty in a hurry on 1 occasion testers showed up. Most times they ‘lock the pen’ tell all riders at start of a category they want to test and they cant drop out. Disappear and it counts as missed test. -U10
That’s pretty sad that amateur’s feel the need to dope . Pro’s seem to have it down to a science. Marginal gains my 🫏
Every piece of literature that studies says that. It’s right around 10% at most. Whether you want it to be or not.
@@frontierlandfrank5314 I don’t believe it . Who funded the study? Ineos ?
@@phillippitts6294 look it up man. It’s not just one study. PEDs has been heavily researched for years since they first appeared all the way back 50+ years ago. This isn’t just in performance enhancement but also muscle gain as well. No wonder so many amateur cyclists like yourself are bitter in the comments. You all think you would be tour riders if you had the special supplements. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. Majority of riders are average at best.