Oh Lance

So the USADA is stripping Lance of all his Tour wins and everything else.  Well, that's grand.  Everyone was doping in those days; Lance just never got caught.  He is the preeminent rock star of American cycling, after Greg Lemond of course, but he rode in a time where if you wanted to be pro racer you had to keep up.  Lance didn't do anything that everyone else wasn't also doing, he just denied it for too long. 

Lance did beat cancer, and that's a pretty big thing that the rest of us would rather not go through.  And then Lance won seven Tours de Frances.  That might lead a person who has cancer to find a bit of inspiration.  "Hey, this guy from Texas just got over cancer and he's winning bicycle races.  That's awesome!"  Lance Armstrong, despite what he did before he got on his bike, did a lot to inspire loads of people to get on their own bikes and ride around.  He also told people that cancer is a conquerable thing and that no one should give up hope. 

Lance did dope, and so did the rest of them.  That was the nature of the sport at the time.  Lance is still a hero and has maddened and inspired millions of people. We'll see if the UCI has anything to say about things.