I'm watching MacGyver again. Yes, that means I'm back on my trainer, and it's the off-season. I decided to give Trainerroad.com another chance, especially because I'm still in the transition phase of my season. In truth, I'm still in vacation mode after Boards. I have to recertify for Internal Medicine every 10 years, and this was the year. I spent the past couple of months studying fairly hard and took Boards just under 2 weeks ago. Since the last time I took a really meaningful test was 10 years ago, my study habits and ability to concentrate for long periods of time are pretty poor. And the test was harder than I expected. 10 years ago, it seemed like the test was pretty easy. This time, there were a lot of tough questions. Well, hopefully, I passed.
Now that it's over, I seem to have a lot of free time. Maybe it's the combination of extra time, and relief that I no longer have to feel like "I should be studying." I've spent the past week enjoying down time, watching some TV guilt-free. And of course, now that I can golf, ride my bike and run, the rainy season has started. That's why I'm back to MacGyver. Just sitting on my bike pedaling and mindlessly watching MacGyver escape from the brink of danger (usually Cold War oriented) is therapeutic, even if I'm not pushing myself very hard. Last Saturday was a 1.5 MacGyver unit ride, and was pretty low intensity. But MacGyver saved a cruise ship, so the universe is orderly once again.
I'm now reading Tyler Hamilton's book, "The Secret Race." Before all of the doping surfaced, I respected Tyler Hamilton as a rider. He seemed down-to-Earth, humble, and not a megalomaniac. Then, the whole "twin" thing came about after he got busted, and I lost all respect for him. After watching the "60 Minutes" interview, I had a little bit of respect for him again, as he admitted quite a lot. As I read his book, with all of the Lance brouhaha in the background, he is earning my respect again.
I never believed that cyclists were clean, but I never realized the extent of the doping. Today, I took a look at the TdF list of podium finishers, and there isn't a "clean name" from 1996-2005. Everyone on the podium has been implicated in doping. In 1994, I had the opportunity to ride with Graeme Obree, and he mentioned that 70% of the pro peloton was on drugs. At that time, we all kind of nodded and said, "Yeah, right." In retrospect, he was wrong; the number was certainly higher than 70%.
When contemplating which road one is going to take, the biggest decision really "should" be whether your chosen path will allow you to sleep at night with a clear conscience.
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