I am baffled by the ineptitude of cycling to not only monitor their sport but also the Tour De France officials who seem to have a hatred of all riders and continually bungle ever regulation they try to impose. It's a true shame because cycling is one of the great tests of endurance, a sport that demands respect from the sheer suffer factor that must be undergone to succeed. Instead of hearing of great deeds, exciting sprints, and heroic pushes all we hear about are doping scandals, testosterone boosts, HGH, and criminally accused pee in a test tube.
I've seen church bake sales run with more efficiency and professionalism. The sad truth is either a huge performance enhancing epidemic has inflicted the sport or the governing council cannot tell their cranks from their shifters, metaphorically speaking. No matter what, cycling has received yet another black eye with the expulsion of current leader Michael Rasmussen, who was cruising to his first Tour victory until recent allegations forced his team to withdraw him.
Cycling just isn't going to catch on in America like our "big three" sports but with every doping scandal, it slips farther off the radar. I hope there eventually is some redemption for cycling because despite the garish uniforms and decidedly Europy-ness of it all, it is a tremendous sport that deserves better than the rogues who define it today.
