My daughter went to a birthday party for a classmate today. One of the other fathers came up to me, knowing that I'm a "bike guy" and asked me, "so is it true that all the pro riders are on dope?"
Ugh.
Tim
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12 comments:
Funny the images that people have without understanding the reality of worlds they are not involved in.
actually, this is great information. If that's indeed the perception then as marketer you know the perception you need to change. And as both bike guy + extraordinary marketer you're just the one to change hearts and minds.
I don't think you guys are all on dope, btw ;-).
And I am so happy about your daughter's bear!
Tim, all cyclists enjoy psychic connectivity. Didn't you get the memo? Even here in the bowels of Oklahoma, I have an intimate knowledge of the goings-on in the pro ranks, just as I have an instant awareness of the rampant lawlessness of cyclists in, say, San Francisco or New York. It's a natural ability once you swing your leg over a bike and ride it in traffic, unless you're one of those people who lines his helmet with a thick layer of aluminum foil. Please tell me you're not one of them!
did you ask him if all fathers are dorks?
Not all pro riders dope, but they all sure seem to have very bad asthma. sheesh!
The perception that the media (and in some cases individual situations) equals reality for much of the world. I've lived the "perception = reality" thing so I can totally understand this guy's question. He doesn't know anything about cycling other than what he sees on the tv news or reads in the paper, I'll bet. When the lead story in the sports sections isn't about baseball, but is "TdF Winner Charged with Doping" and it's followed up with something like "Top Riders Out of Le Tour for suspected doping", what is the 'outside' world to think? Perception is their reality...and it stinks for the sport.
Sorry...just my little rant before I finish my tea with sugar!
Hope the rest of the weekend was a good one and that Father's Day was the BEST! :)
Soo...given all the news and confessions of the recent past, weren't all pros dopers? How can you blame the guy?
Now, are we upset that that is the image that the pros have given us or that the media have chosen to only focus on this negative aspect of our beautiful sport?
I say blame the dopers, not the media.
Haha! I'm glad I wasn't the dorky dad who asked that question! Having been at the same party, I can guess who it was--and if you asked his ex-wife, she'd probably agree that he's a dork!
Glad to see I'm not the only actively blogging Dad in the class, Tim!
Toby- Yes, true. The media paints things with a wide brush- too wide. ALL sports have doping problems, not just cycling.
CK- Rainbow Bear is safely home and all is good there. You are right that it takes some marketing to change minds and I try hard all the time and will keep trying. Fighting each battle one at a time.
Ed W- Yes, I wrap my helmet in foil- you kidding me? I know the spies at Trek have a satellite following me 24/7. They want my ideas.
Squirrel- Nope. I know the answer already. Sad, really.
Rich- Yep. I am developing breathing problems right now... cough... cough...
DMT- Yep. We've had this conversation too many times, haven't we? The public only knows what they are told and the bulk of the public doesn't dig any deeper than the surface, so it is easy to see why they think what they think.
Bikeracingfan- Dude, I'm with you. Really, I only blame the media for painting the picture that all cyclists are dopers- not that they dope. I get miffed that other sports, with worse drug problems (baseball, football, basketball) get much less press. Why? Much bigger businesses with much more significant revenues. Cyclists dope, but let's make sure that the other doping sports get beat up too.
e'l roy- Dude, you rock! Seriously. Your blog and the video kick ass. And, to be fair, I didn't call him a dork and didn't mean to imply that. My frustration is that the sport of cycling is so beaten up right now. It is totally unfair. I mean, I never hear anybody ask "is it true that all baseball players are on steroids?" I mean... d'uh!
So the next time any off you get this lame assed kind of question from some Meet Head, your response should be,
"Yeah!. They get all the good shit from Barry Bonds"
(or you can insert any other pro athelete you can think f at the time)
Hey, I know I'm a dork, so don't sweat it--I know what ya meant. Come to think of it, I might've had the wrong dad in mind. We're all capable of letting dumb sh!t flow out of our face holes, so it could've been any one of those guys. I'm sure you've had your share of, "Dude, can you score me a deal on a Masi?" Kinda like when someone learns that I do massage, invariably I get, "Ohhhhh, so do you, like, do massage?" and, "Hey, if you ever need someone to practice on..."
btw, did you catch THIS POST or the actual article from Wired.com? Funny stuff.
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