[dh girlie]

The intercomparison of accomplishments or relative talents in different disciplines is pretty meaningless. Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer put it very well...

"Comparing Armstrong's accomplishments with those of other athletes is always a difficult business because his sport of road racing on a bicycle is unique, and because his particular story won't be replicated....

...Is his seven victories in the greatest bike race in the world bigger than 755 home runs for Hank Aaron or 197 touchdown catches for Jerry Rice? More impressive than 894 goals for Wayne Gretzky or 11 championships for Bill Russell? Silly to even ask, really. Does a shark swim better than a leopard runs?"

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2002400380_tourcomment25.html

ZACTLY what I was tryin to say!

 

[OGRipper]

"Does a shark swim better than a leopard runs?"

That's awesome, says it all right there. It's fun to debate this stuff but there is no answer. Hell you can't even really compare cyclists from different eras or disciplines. Like, who is the greatest, Armstrong or Merckx? What about Armstrong or Tomac? Armstrong or Matt Hoffman? I mean come on...

 

[Kihaji]

Don't get drawn down to Bayless' level. Basketball is hard. If you think all they do is "walk" for 30 minutes, you are wrong. Try stepping into a local playground game and see how long you last.

Yeah, they spend at least 6-7 hours a day whining about how they "only" get paid a few million a year, all while they can't even demonstrate expert grasp of the fundamentals. (I still find it hard to believe that a pro basketball player shoots less than 80% in free throws.)

The reason cycling is the greatest sport in the world is not because of the Armstrongs/Ullrich's, it's because of the Hincapie's. Guys who know they wont win a thing, but lay their entire soul out on the pavement for the betterment of their captain. I can't think of another sport that has that sort of relationship.

 

[dh girlie]

"Does a shark swim better than a leopard runs?"

That's awesome, says it all right there. It's fun to debate this stuff but there is no answer. Hell you can't even really compare cyclists from different eras or disciplines. Like, who is the greatest, Armstrong or Merckx? What about Armstrong or Tomac? Armstrong or Matt Hoffman? I mean come on...

mmmmmm....Matt Hoffffmmmmmmaaannnnnnn...

 

[golgiaparatus]

"I believe Lance Armstrong miraculously recovered to become the greatest endurance athlete and most inspirational sports performer.

But he is not the greatest all-around athlete or clutch performer. That's no knock on him and no attempt to rain on his reign. That's just honest perspective."

I think that about sums it up...

I think this guy just talks through his azz sometimes and doesnt know much about the sport. He F'ed up when he said that Lance's stride is controlled by the bike so it does the technical work for him... thats BS. But he is right when he says he isnt the best all around athlete, because he's not.

 

[OGRipper]

Yeah, they spend at least 6-7 hours a day whining about how they "only" get paid a few million a year, all while they can't even demonstrate expert grasp of the fundamentals. (I still find it hard to believe that a pro basketball player shoots less than 80% in free throws.)

The reason cycling is the greatest sport in the world is not because of the Armstrongs/Ullrich's, it's because of the Hincapie's. Guys who know they wont win a thing, but lay their entire soul out on the pavement for the betterment of their captain. I can't think of another sport that has that sort of relationship.

I'm not going to defend whiny pro ball players or the money they make, it's obviously ridiculous and it's more ridiculous for them to complain, even if the team owners and coliseum owners make exponentially more. But this sounds no better than Bayless: Bashing something you don't understand.

There are plenty of pros in every sport that never get any recognition. I know road racing is supposedly an individual sport but come on, everyone that cares at all knows it takes a strong team to win a stage race. And as much as I respect big George and all the other domestiques, most of them wouldn't get a fraction of the success they have achieved if they were trying to succeed for themselves. The sacrifices you understandably hold in such high regard are not exactly charity.

 

[OGRipper]

mmmmmm....Matt Hoffffmmmmmmaaannnnnnn...

Stay with us DHG, all of your e-stalkers are gonna get jealous.

 

[Reactor]

"Does a shark swim better than a leopard runs?"

You can't really compare hitting a 100mph fastball to descending a mountain on a square inch of rubber, although both require exceptional skill. You can't compare the perfect explosive sprint with throwing a 50 yard pass.

To be fair there are some comparisons you can make.

To win the Tour, you have to spend about 100 hours in the saddle riding, that's somewhere between half a season and a whole season for most "ball" athletes. Although you are on a "team" You can't ever come out of the game, you can't ever go to the sidelines to get a hit of O2. And a single mistake can ruin your chances of finishing, much winning the tour.

Instead of an individual game it's like trying to win the golden glove, and the batting title, without ever missing an inning.

Who is the best... Who cares, you're right you can't compare two different sports, but disrespecting the acomplishments of Lance Armstrong is just stupid.

 

[Reactor]

Stay with us DHG, all of your e-stalkers are gonna get jealous.

Yeah Loco and Poland are starting to scare me.....