Lance drops the hammer

“The July (?) 'Outside article on Mr. Armstrong was excellent - and did not avoid the divorce question, IMHO.”

“They have 3 small kids.
He's screwed.”

“SS, he's not screwed, He's and adult who helped cause the situation. His kids are screwed cause they get the pleasure of a divorce.”

“The Outside article did mention their separation, and I think attributed it to her wanting a normal life, which she was never going to see with Lance. He is as driven off the bike as he is on.”

“Maybe it was too much time riding the bike and not enough time riding his...”

“birch - You ever gone thru a divorce? I have. He and the kids are screwed.
Unless his wife agrees, he will lose his children and have no say in how they are raised. He'll be a checkbook dad.”

“Who gets the testical?”

“Nigal, that was BAD! (LMAO)”

“The pathologist...”

“huh? I thought you meant the good one.”

“"birch - You ever gone thru a divorce? I have. He and the kids are screwed.
Unless his wife agrees, he will lose his children and have no say in how they are raised. He'll be a checkbook dad."

StoveStomper
08:29:00 AM
09/05/03

I respectfully disagree. I think his influence on his children's upbringing will be directly proportional to the level of dedication.

Visitation is just that....if you perceive it to be that way.

I don't visit with my children every other weekend,,,,hell, I live with them. The things we do, share, enjoy and talk about have a reach much more than 2 out of 14 days. Goals, aspirations, dreams and ideals can be nutured just as effectively in shorter amounts of time, if you dedicate yourself to it.

While I hate to see any child go through the pain of divorce, I really hate to see the I'll pick them up when I can dads (or moms). Just picking kids up every other weekend doesn't make one any more a parent than "just living in the same house with them".

Checkbook dad? Well, my philosophy is that I brought them into the world and in doing so, I assumed responsibility for their upbringing. The fact their mother and I divorced has no bearing on that. How she spends the money is immaterial as long as the kids are provided for.

People assume children are naive. Bull#&%!$. Kids grip reality quicker than most adults. The parent with 12 days of custody is often balanced against the parent with 2 days of custody. Kids learn quick and grow to appreciate the parent who dedicated him or herself to them.

I firmly feel that I have a better relationship with my children and have a greater impact on their deveopment than does their mother. Perhaps because I focus on them more than I do myself.

No, StoveStomper, I have to respectfully disagree with your statement. I think in generalizes a common tragedy, but often that tragedy is self induced by the non custodial parent.”

“stove stomper, nope...no divorce here. The reason I said that the kids were screwed and not him is simple. He is an adult who aided in the failing of his marriage, it takes two to make it or break it. You seem more bummed that he'll have to pay child supprot for HIS kids. That strikes me as odd.

I can however speak as a child effected by divorce,to the grand total of 4 times. They occured when I was 5,15,15.5 and 19. I have the utmost empathy for any and every child who is forced to go through a divorce. A child in a divorce is a true victim and has no control nor say nor voice. Parents who are focused on their financial lose cause of a divorce are incredibly self-centered. I could give a flying phuck about lance and his wife. Its his children who will lose no matter what type of custody,visitation and support is mandated by the judge.

Yes children are adaptable, so are amputees and people in prison camps.

If you are a divorced parent and are active in your childs life,the things I have said have no application in your case. But to those who are more focused on money and on yourself...I have one word for you. SHAME!”

“Get a grip.
You both seem to think all I see is the money. You are wrong. Don't put words in my mouth.
What I see is this man's loss of his children, and the childrens loss of him. Joint custody or the man getting custody is very rair. If the divorce turns nasty, the law will always favor the woman unless she has killed a couple of the kids.
All she has to do is move the kids away to another place and all he'll be able to do is write a check each month. That's what I meanth by checkbook dad.
Kids need both parents to grow up well.
My opinion isn't PC but I'll be damned if I'll be ashamed of it.”

“He is the real reason the French hate the USA.”

“SS I didnt put words into your mouth. The first thing you mentioned was that lance was screwed, not his kids.

Who is to say that he wont get custody? My father had custody of me, my brother in law has primary custody of his(and his divorce is by the far the ugliest I have ever heard of,$50K plus in 4 years of litigation). Countless fathers have primary custody, you imply that the mother get custody automatically. I reckon lance can hire a big enough lawfirm to insure he gets what he wants.

Regarding the custody holder moving (the mom in the case you cite) any attorney worth his title can get language in his settlement that sets limits on geographical distance that the custody holder can move,it happened in my brother in laws case and now he is stuck where he is till the kids are 18.

No one mentioned your opinion being PC or not, frankly I dont even see how "PC" applies. You brought up Lances lose and mentioned money first.

Reread the last portion of my prior post. I didnt tell you to feel shame, I said "If you are a divorced parent and are active in your childs life,the things I have said have no application in your case. But to those who are more focused on money and on yourself...I have one word for you. SHAME!" My use of the word "you" was in a general sense, not singling you out. I dont know your situation and its not my business. I was making a generalization about some peoples priorites being all mucked up when it comes to family. My intent was not to offend you or imply you dont care for your kids,I apologize for the misunderstanding.

But I still stand firm that many many parents focus on the financial cost of divorce and not on what they have forced their children to endure.”

“My old f*ed up boss was total #&%!$ all the way, speaking of that, birch. He always #&%!$ed about having to pay for his kids.

He and his bimbo third wife were so happy when the child support was to end. But they never, ever took their two sons on a vacation with them. We just couldn't believe it. Nope, couldn't be bothered with that. "Oh, the boys are active in sports. They go on vacation, they lose out on their position on the team." Screw that.”

“I still stand firm that many many parents focus on the financial cost of divorce and not on what they have forced their children to endure."
birch
08:39:45 PM
09/05/03

Can't disagree with that.

Maybe you live in a more progressive state. I read an article in the local newspaper about divorce in MS about a year ago. I think the percentage of fathers with custody was about 10%, not what I would call 'countless numbers'. The article was about how terrible a local judge was because his percentage of custody or joint fathers was about 20% coming from his court and more shockingly, ordered a small number of mothers to pay child support. He was painted as anti mothers.
It was a real hatchet job.
He lost in the next election.”

“In 19 states reporting custody in 1997: 72% of custody were awarded to the wife, 9% were awarded to the husband. In 16% joint custody was awarded.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, National Center for Health Statistics, Americans for Divorce Reform

I'm sure the MS numbers are much lower for the fathers. I know only one divorced dad with custody and that was because the mother didn't want them. I know countless numbers of mothers with custody.”

“Outside Online

Everyone I meet these days asks the same questions: "Is he ready? Can Lance Armstrong win number six?" After spending several days at a training camp with him, I can tell you he's right where I want him to be at this time of the spring. If everything continues as it should, he's going to have a great summer.

During his most recent training camp, Lance spent an enormous amount of time on his bike; 32 hours in one week and about 35 hours the following week. He was working on climbing, more specifically climbing with a high cadence. During the entirety of climbs that lasted 10-12 miles, Lance maintained a pedal cadence of about 90-95 rpm. While both the length of the climbs and his cadence were similar to Tour de France conditions, he was using a lighter gear that allowed him to stay well below lactate threshold.

The goal of the camp was to work on Lance's climbing form and significantly overload his aerobic system. That's why the volume was very high, but the intensity of the individual climbs was sub-threshold. I didn't want him to generate a lot of lactic acid as the result of significantly tapping into his anaerobic energy system on the climbs. If that had happened, especially early in those long rides, his performance on climbs late in the day would have suffered. It was very encouraging to see that he was able to maintain good pedaling form, and keep his cadence high, throughout each climb and each successive day.

Following his training camp, Lance begins the Tour of Georgia, a seven-stage race that includes some long road races, good climbs, and a nice time trial. I expect Lance to do well in the race, but winning the whole thing isn't all that critical to his overall goals. At this time of year, we're using races to evaluate his progress, and I'm looking for markers that indicate his fitness is where it should be about 12 weeks out from the Tour de France. You have to remember: He's preparing for a peak in July, while some racers have scheduled their entire season around being successful in the Tour of Georgia. Even so, the long stages, climbs, and time trial suit Lance's strengths, so I'm pretty sure he'll be a factor in the race, if not its leader.”

“Armstrong Announces New Sponsorship Deal, Refutes Doping Allegations

June 16, 2004 Discovery Communications, the international media conglomerate that owns cable TV's Discovery Channel and 18 other brands including The Travel Channel, Animal Planet, and 120 Discovery stores, has announced plans for a 2005 sponsorship deal with Lance Armstrong and his professional cycling team. The announcement came June 15 at a press conference at Discovery’s corporate headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Armstrong's cycling team, currently sponsored by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), will be renamed the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team beginning next year. The team has been seeking a new sponsor since the Postal Service announced in April that it would end its eight-year partnership with pro cycling’s most successful outfit at the end of 2004.

In addition to his new role as ambassador for Discovery’s media empire, Armstrong stated that he hopes to compete in at least two more Tour events. "I just didn’t want to go away. I love what I do. I still love the bike," he said.

With just weeks to go before the Tour’s July 3 kickoff, Armstrong is trying to focus on the race ahead and its individual stages rather than the historic achievement that could lie ahead. "I don’t lie awake at night thinking of a grand total," he said, in reference to the possible six consecutive titles, a feat that has eluded the Tour’s other five-time legends—Belgian Eddy Merckx, Frenchmen Jacques Anquetil and Bernhard Hinault, and Spaniard Miguel Indurain.”

“Dope or no dope, the guy can sure kick ass uphill.”

“There isn't a person on the planet who is drug tested more often than Lance Armstrong. Simply, he's the real deal.

I can't wait for the Tour to begin. This year for the first time, there will be a time trial on Alpe d' Huez. That should be awesome.”

“Yep I read about that.

In terms of pre-race strategy, the USPS team is, according to Armstrong, coming at it "a little cooler" than their 2003 pre-Tour buildup, knowing that this year’s race structure promises an "epic" final week that will demand the riders’ highest levels of performance and stamina over the final stages. This will include a grueling individual time trail on July 21 up the famed switchbacks of Alpe d’Huez—at a gradient of 7.9 percent for nine miles—that many think will decide the event.”

“That time trial is gonna be absolutely brutal. I'm glad it's not during our Ithaca trip.”

“I agree!”

“In this months Outside magazine there is a great interview with Lance. Plus some good stuff with Hamilton and Victor Hugo Pena(that bad@ss Columbian), essentially its a "tour" issue. I cant wait. I love watching OLN at night for the highlights.”

“Beat me to it, Birch. Yup, just read the interview with Lance. Am still proud as hell to have seen him and Miguel Indurain in a race at Garden of the Gods in 96, I think it was. Also Jeannie Longo. And probably a few more of the bigger names now that I didn't know then. :-) GO LANCE!”

“Why can't I have OLN!!!

Does anyone know of coverage happening on any of the networks?”

“Lance is DA Man!!!”

“Am readin gmy way through Outside as well. A great issue.

I will be on a remote island campsite on a lake in Northern NH/ME from July 11 - 17. The time trial is on the 21st, so at least I won't miss that . . . .I am very sorry to be missing the rest though”

“http://outside.away.com/index.html

They have 2 articles on Armstrong.”

“OLN TV coverage starts today!

Cyclysm”

“I was watching The Lance Chronicles on OLN the other day... It was crazy the way he was mobbed by people at race in Georgia.... thousands and thousands of people jammed along every inch of the route -- just to catch a glimpse of him.

[I wonder how many of them will be buying a Subaru in the next couple of years... <GRIN>]”

“I already own one. ;-)

While on vacation, I picked up "Every Second Counts", but hadn't started reading it. Now seems like a good time, Especially since my work is taking a major twist towards cancer research.”

“Just so long as you don't start posting those photographs again.... LOL”

“I'm missing it...my power is out. A storm just moved through!”

“The time trials put the contenders on notice-Lance is back! And how 'bout that Swiss kid that one the first stage in his first Tour de France!”

“i find the new rule on team time trials interesting. this will take the team out of the picture a bit. i realize they need them for protection and draft and such, but this about removes them as a time liability.”

“If you didn't catch it this am, catch the encore. The OLN coverage is pretty exciting!”

“I agree. I really enjoyed the coverage this morning. Of course, a photo finish sprint ending did add to the drama.”

“Another good day yesterday. Stage three coverage about to begin. I like the coverage of local history etc too. I'm hooked.”

“Have I said before, "I NEED OLN!" Called the cable company and the girl didn't even know what it was!

Keep us posted”

“It amazes me how those riders crash on the pavement. They get road rash all up and down their bodies. They slowly get up and hop back on the bike and keep going.
Wasn't it Tyler Hamilton who last yr finished the race with a broken collarbone that he had for 15-20 days.”

“Last year, Tyler Hamilton crashed on the 1st (or 2nd?) road stage, and rode virtually rode the entire tour with a broken collar bone. Not only did he finish, he finished the Tour 4th overall, and even won a stage with an astounding 80+ mile solo breakaway. Absolutely freaking amazing!”

“I hear there was a rule and points change for the time trials. I heard that the slowest time any team can get on time trial runs is -3:00 off of the winner of the stage, no matter what. If thats the case thats just bunk!!! Please tell me I am wrong.”

“BTW the Outside article on Tour riders did a great bit on Hamilton. He is a winning fool, some 400 plus races more then armstrong.”

“birch, you're not wrong. I forget the exact details, but they did put a cap on the amount of time you can lose in a time trial. What sucks is that if a team or individual falls far enough back in the early part of a time trial, they can basically coast it into the finish and save energy for the next stage.”

“Well that just sux hubcap. Hopefully riders of the tours caliber wouldnt exploit a rule like that.”