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Cortisone, however, is a steroid, and it has obvious benefits with injuries, whether allowing someone to perform while injured or helping them to heal from an injury.
The younger you are, the more HGH your body naturally makes. Some people have imbalances and make too little, or make too much - ESPECIALLY people who have had head injuries, because the brain stem controls this. One of the main FDA-approved reasons for prescribing HGH is repeated head trauma in your medical history.
Obviously, racers have this. All of them.
So racers can pretty much all, legally, get HGH. That's number one. Prescribed, by a doctor. And if you have a prescription, and you present it, even if they catch you in the IOC, you're allowed to have this substance.
Number two: If a 19-year-old that you're racing against has an HGH level of X, and you are 29 and your HGH level is 1/2 of the 19-year-old's, is it really "cheating" to supplement your HGH to his level so you're on a level playing field?
Remember, this is the definition of "cheat":
Verb: Act dishonestly or unfairly in order to gain an advantage, esp. in a game or examination: "she cheats at cards".
Noun: A person who behaves dishonestly in order to gain an advantage.
Supplementing your HGH to a younger person's level, who you are racing against, is not gaining any sort of advantage. It's taking away the other person's advantage so you're on a level playing field.
So what's the big deal, anyway?
I'm not saying no one is using. Honestly, I don't really care that much. I just resent being thrown in with "all the top guys are doing it" or "if they train with a cycling guy they're cheating".
The Shop
Diet.
The fuel you put in your body.
That's the big key to cyclists as trainers, they know how to fuel a body.
Personally I would say it is cheating unless there was a drug which could somehow give 19 year olds (for example) the experience a 29 year has.
There are so many variables that come in to play, but IMO it comes down to altering or enhancing your natural performance, which to me is cheating, IF there are rules that is.
You would have to have read Super Hunky's book to understand what the industry did to him for exposing the fact that many racers back in the 70's were smoking pot before a race. They literally blacklisted him for doing that article. A friend from school had bought me that issue for Christmas, and when my parents saw it, they took it away, as they didn't want me to get involved in drugs, but it also almost kept me from ever getting to race, since my parents saw the MX crowd as potheads because of that.
I lost all respect for the Baseball players that admitted to being "juiced" it would be really interesting for blood testing to be introduced effect Jan 1 2012 and see if anybody fails.
Just saying, the sport is full of unfair advantages. Seems silly to focus on this one, which we don't even know for sure the extent.
Pit Row
This isn't about rest or eating right.
I think its funny how the "insiders" dont find it a big deal...its cheating, especially if there are rules against it, which there are no?
Ummm... You just described motocross racing perfectly. Nice work.
"An advantage is a factory bike or a trainer. An unfair advantage is being allowed to have a bike that is 10 lbs. below the legal minimum while everyone else has to be above 220 lbs."
What about the fact that factory bikes are 220 lbs., and everyone else's is 15-20 pounds heavier than that?
im not sure if there are rules written that ban some of the more extreme stuff that goes on. as far as i know, its just a few recreational drugs that are banned.
ive been told that IV re-hydration between moto's is banned, but ur a fool if youre not doing it. and that isnt even a health risk. but technically its cheating. some here will agree, others like myself simply call it being more competitive than the next guy.
and even if the more serious stuff is banned, its isnt REALISTICALLY tested for so it isnt exactly illegal. its pseudo-illegal. i know im talking in semantics but its the truth. and i believe this threads initial question.
the ama needs to just try and police the technical side of things with regards to legal bikes. they cannot even do that properly. and that's worlds easier and cheaper to police than PED's.
raceface brings up valid points, but the whole "comptetitive balance" argument is flawed. for the very reasons i outlined in my initial post and expanded upon later, and also because of what nerd is talking about. WHERE DO YOU DRAW THE LINE?
are we to ban the use of oxygen chambers that riders can sit in to simulate high altitude riding in prep for the colorado national? its expensive. it could easily be rationalized as a unfair competitive advantage by some here. im told that its not a health risk yet has nearly the same performance effects as doping so whats the difference? and if we are going to ban high altitude simulations, should we also ban high altitude training altogether?.....hell, for that matter, should private tracks be banned? they provide a serious advantage that no privateer can compete with. some of you may not like the outlook of myself or others on this topic, but you have to admit, the competitive balance debate is seriously flawed.
unless a rider is sacrificing as much as lance, jordan, RC, or dungey did/do in their careers for as long as they did/currently do.......they have no right to complain about competitive imbalance. the biggest competitive imbalance in this sport lie between the average riders ears. not wallet.
we are going further and further into the grey areas of this topic, and that grey area is growing which is fine, but perspective isnt so this discussion is turning into a convoluted mess imo.
and for trey's mom. i apologize if you think i was implicating your son. i sincerely mean that. the last thing i'd do is discredit your kids efforts. im very aware of just what a huge accomplishment his outdoor lites title is. in a perfect world, we could discuss the topic of this thread openly and rationally and he'd get the credit he deserves for that title in that he overcame more than just a huge points deficit against a very talented pourcel. imo, trey's championship that year is arguably the most amazing feat in the last ten years of this sport in my personal opinion.
Bleh, might as well eliminate factory bikes then! Really? That is rational reasoning to you?
Otherwise, all you're doing is taking a stance against something that frankly you don't even understand because someone once told you it's bad.
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