Fifty Plus (50+) - What will it mean to 50+ if Armstrong unretires?

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/26609987/

I know its already been reported in the TDF forum but I think that there are many here who were fans of this man for a number of years.

Edit: I don't know about you, but I am thrilled.

Retirement Sucks. My goal is 65 to retire then go pro.

I think it will be fantastic. It will be the reuniting of Johan Bruyneel with Armstrong. Together, they are one of the winningest director / athlete combinations in pro sports - 7 world class wins in a row. I recently finished reading Bruyneel's book "We might as well win." Among many things, it discusses his relationship with Lance, their strategies for winning and professional cycling. I liked it.

That's really good news to me. I've read most of the books about Lance and he truly is a pro, in more ways than one.

I hope his return to racing will save the Tour de Georgia. But I think these are just rumors. Astana has denied the whole thing.

I've gotten used to rooting for other teams and riders. If he were not able to compete with the same intensity and ability as before it would be sad; few pros seem to compete much past 36. Maybe he will still be the same old Lance (with the same controversies?) and that would be interesting.

Yes, BD, I read that the TdG is in danger. That would be a real shame! Is it lack of sponsorship or lack of interest in the state (or both?)

I'm a Lance fan, but somehow, I don't really want him to unretire. I like the fact that he's moving on. I am always a bit disappointed when athletes unretire (are you listening Favre?). But I wish him the best.

I'm still waiting for Michael Jordon's next comeback.

It would be a lot different than Favre retiring. Favre unretired 5 weeks before the next training camp. Technically, he barely missed a practice. And he never fully committed to retiring, never once telling the Packers that he was sure he was going to retire.

OTOH, Armstrong has missed 3 years of competitive racing.

What makes it more difficult for someone like Lance to unretire is that he probably wouldn't be satisfied with a 10th place finish in the TdF. Most athletes can slip a bit and still be satisfied. Say a baseball player who hit .310 with 40 hr in their prime, but in their later years slips to .280 w/30 hr. Or golfers that slip from winning 3-4 tournaments a year to having the occasional top 5 finish & rare win.

That's a problem for Favre too. He can't gracefully slide from being the ace pitcher to being an effective #4 starter for his last couple of years. He's got to be a starting NFL QB leading his teams to wins.

Lance could come back and compete for top 10 finishes or wins in minor races. Or compete for age group titles. But I'm not sure that would be enough for him. He'd want to make a run at major wins. At least that's my impression. I could be wrong.

He could be the catalyst for creating great interest in Master's events. Much like golfers like Arnold Palmer made the PGA Senior Tour more significant.

Referring to Bruyneel's book, Lance and Bruyneel are winners. Anything other than winning is not acceptable. If Lance returns, he must believe he can win. Otherwise, it will be similar to other so called comebacks that in many ways tarnished professional athletes' records. Unlike golf, this is no masters pro tour.

Bruyneel portrays Lance as having much more capability than he allowed him to use in winning the 7 TdFs. There were specific races where Lance was told to hold back. One of my favorite examples of this was a race up Alpe D'Huez. Bruyneel wanted Lance to let a credible racer but not a contender win the stage. As Lance is going through the motions of appearing to chase the lead group he radios Bruyneel that he could beat these guys on a tricycle. Assuming it is true, Lance is very tough. His retirement was more about "Hey, I am tired of the grind to do what is necessary to win. He is a smart guy and although nothing is certain, he must believe he can do what it takes to win....again. Welcome back.:)

I'm a Lance fan, but somehow, I don't really want him to unretire. I like the fact that he's moving on. I am always a bit disappointed when athletes unretire (are you listening Favre?). But I wish him the best.
I keep thinking of the great Willie Mays and his last few pathetic seasons when he was in the lineup only because he was Willie Mays. Sad.

I keep thinking of the great Willie Mays and his last few pathetic seasons when he was in the lineup only because he was Willie Mays. Sad.

Wasn't just Mays either. Lots of baseball stars have hung on too long. Consider the following:

Name - BA - HR - RBI

Mays .211 - 6 - 25
Aaron .229 - 10 - 35
McCovey .204 - 1 -16
Mantle .237 - 18 - 54 (and Mantle was only 36)
F. Robinson .224 - 3 - 10
Killebrew .199 - 14 - 44
Santo .221 - 5 - 40
E. Matthews .212 - 3 - 8
Ruth .181 - 6 -12

And so on and so forth. These were the stats from the last season played by these great players.

He`s going to come back and ride for Astana? Can`t imagine Contador is going to be riding as a domestique for Lance. He`s won the Giro, he`ll very likely win the Vuelta. I`d be pretty shocked to see him riding in support anyone in a Grand Tour. In anycase, it`ll be interesting...:)

Just my opinion, but I think he's a fool to do it.

I think that at this point he would do better to run a team or focus on inspiring kids. :thumb: But as far as I know, Lance has yet to ask me for my opinion. :lol:

I'm glad he is back BUT he is going to ride for free but I'm sure he will get endorsements.

I'll enjoy The Tour next years

That's a very good point.

I think it'll suck the oxygen out of American cycling.

Not to start another rumor, but I wouldn't be surprised if the reason Astana is unaware of this whole thing is because Columbia is still tying to ink the deal. Perfect fit for that team. Back with George and Kirchen for support. Think about it... an american team with great sprinters and great climbers all in one. Fantastic marketing move for Columbia.

Not to start another rumor, but I wouldn't be surprised if the reason Astana is unaware of this whole thing is because Columbia is still tying to ink the deal. Perfect fit for that team. Back with George and Kirchen for support. Think about it... an american team with great sprinters and great climbers all in one. Fantastic marketing move for Columbia.

Something like this seems more likely to me....just can't see the stars in Astana laying down for LA to make a comeback. Levi is no spring chicken, how many years does he have left? Contador got cheated out of his chance to repeat. Don't know where Johan fits in, but....who knows?

Seems that this all started because LA signed back up for out-of-competition drug testing....

Something like this seems more likely to me....just can't see the stars in Astana laying down for LA to make a comeback. Levi is no spring chicken, how many years does he have left?

Levi is 35, just two years younger than Lance, and a year older than Lance was when he retired.

If Lance does ride in the TdF next year, he would be just a couple of months short of his 38th birthday.

But then again, Dara Torres did well for herself at 40+, and the aforementioned Brett Favre was 2nd in the NFL MVP voting last year at 38. Michael Jordan averaged 20 points per game in the NBA at 40. Sometimes the great ones can perform at high levels well past what would be a normal person's prime.

It is possible, that Lance might come back as a mentor, perhaps as an assistant manager on wheels (sort of like the player coaches in lower tiers of professional sports). This might point toward a position as team manager down the road. Certainly he has a wealth of knowledge to pass on to others.

He'll probably get traded to the Jets.

It would be interesting. I'd enjoy watching as long as he has a good attitude. I think the odds of him winning are infintesimal. If he's okay with not winning, should that be the case, then I'm for it (though of course I'd enjoy seeing him win his eighth; it would be even more miraculous than seven!) However, I'd MUCH rather see him get 19th place or 102nd, or not finish at all than to have him do well, only to find out that he'd been doping. I'm still giving him the benefit of the doubt on that. He's never tested positive and he says he didn't so he's innocent until proven guilty, as far as I'm concerned. It would really make me mad and disgust me if he doped this time.

It was just on the news that Lance himself said he's coming back. Too raise awareness of cancer worldwide.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,419862,00.html

Here is the fair and balanced version of the story. Lp

He'll probably get traded to the Jets.

Now, that's funny.:roflmao2:

Here's the announcement with a video from Lance via the Livestrong website.

http://www.livestrong.com/lance2009/

Could LeMond be next? :)

does lance's announcement make this thread a moot point?

be well,

jim

Could LeMond be next? :)
...And Merckx, he's looking rather fit these days.

How 'bout a senior TDF kinda like they have in pro golf. Yeah, that's the ticket.

I've been retired 13 years and love it.
He ain't old enough to join BF 50+ anyway.
Maybe he's just bored . . .

I think he's overreacting to coming in second in a bike race a couple of weeks ago. I honestly don't think the guy handles being second very well. You can't win 7 Tours, with or without drugs, without an insane level of personal motivation bordering on obsession. When I was watching the Tour this year, I couldn't help but wonder if Armstrong was watching and thinking, "I could still beat those guys!" And I wouldn't bet against him...ever.

What does it mean to 50+ for Lance to unretire?

Why it means that each of us has a new opportunity to whip his butt.

does lance's announcement make this thread a moot point?

be well,

jim

Did I ever tell you about my pet peeve that I took for a walk out on moot point?

Lance short video on the subject here;

http://www.velonews.com/article/82965/lance-armstrong-returns-to-professional-racing

Scroll to bottom of page for video.

Rick / OCRR

A really good book on how Lance thinks is "Lance Armstrong's War ...." . Winning is the only thing he will have on his mind if this return to cycling is for real(I am not totally convinced it is). Now if he can team up with Floyd again it might be real interesting.

Bike racing takes a terrible tole on the body. My thought is why do it?

Maybe he found out the TDF is easier than running marathons or racing MTBs at 12,000 feet. :lol:

OR,....he's gonna use the stage races for training, and go back to Leadville in 09 and kick Dave Wiens' butt!

I can't shake the feeling that we're all about to be delivered yet another cautionary tale about hanging on too long. No matter, folks like Lance will not be deterred even in the face of providing example ad absurdum. Luckily for him, the opinions of the proles is not part of the calculus.

Comments from the viewers on the Vuelta TV coverage- seems to be about 50/50.

Its a great idea for him to come back- but it could be a big letdown. Then what team? There is a long way to go before the TDF and he will still have to be selected for the TDF by the team he is riding for.

Too many if's and But's at present- but personally- Although cycling needs a hero like Lance- I think he will be a fool if he tries to come back.

And the comment passed by a Frenchman- Lance would be welcome but he has to realise that a lot has changed in last couple of years.

If Lance rides the TdF next year and finishes 5th, I wonder how he (and his fans & detractors) would view it?

I think it would be an admirable achievement.

And the comment passed by a Frenchman- Lance would be welcome but he has to realise that a lot has changed in last couple of years.

A thinly veiled reference to the crackdown on doping...I don't believe Lance has to worry about that.

Lance is an athlete who has always used power measurements and benchmarks to esatablish his training and goals. Over the years he has been so calculating and articulate in his preperation that his performances were predictable to his coach and himself. He must have seen some power numbers or indicators from training or competing that enable him to be confident in this comeback attempt. I think he knows what he's capable of and has assurances that he can regain the level of fitness needed to complete a 21 day race event.

Did I ever tell you about my pet peeve that I took for a walk out on moot point?

good thing for you that peeves aren't an endangered species:innocent:

It was just on the news that Lance himself said he's coming back. Too raise awareness of cancer worldwide.

I thought he retired so he could raise awareness of cancer worldwide.

I thought he retired so he could raise awareness of cancer worldwide.

Now he is unretiring to raise awareness of cancer worldwide.

I thought he retired so he could raise awareness of cancer worldwide.

I think that every time he is on TV or the newspaper he is saying "hey look at me"
I had cancer

I sure hope if he comes back, that the drug testers don't figure out what he was doing and come up with a new test that catches him, tarnishing his entire career.

Lance won't mean much to me. Lance rides for Lance; I ride for me. That said, I'll probably pay a little closer attention to the TdF next year.

Chris out.

I think that every time he is on TV or the newspaper he is saying "hey look at me"
I had cancer

+1
He's saying:
Hey, look at me. I had cancer. I survived it and went on to achieve things beyond my wildest dreams. So don't give up. You can beat it too. My foundation can help you get the information and help to make it happen.
Hey, politicians. Why aren't we we doing more to prevent and cure these diseases that affect so many people and cost so much to treat? Why aren't we doing more to find less toxic and destructive means of treating cancer so people can lead normal lives after beating cancer?