FanPost

What if Rasmussen is telling the truth?

Rasmussen is sticking to his story that he was in Mexico in June. He says Davide Cassani is just mistaken and saw someone else.

What if he's telling the truth?

It ought to be easy enough to verify that he was in Mexico.

Rabobank's deRooy claims Ras admitted he was in Italy. But since Ras is sticking to his story, I wonder whether Prudhomme's pressure on Rabobank to do something tempted deRooy into telling a little stretcher to justify his action.

If Ras is telling the truth, then we have a situation where a rider in compliance with the regulations was ejected from the Tour. While wearing the yellow jersey. Based only on an unverified report by a cycling announcer.

Why can't deRooy tell us his unspecified "new information"?

This whole episode reeks. Chicken was unpopular with fans and with riders. "Chicken" is an unflattering name people used as a proxy for their vague dislike of the guy. We didn't like his lone, 100 km breaks. He didn't seem like a team rider, or a classic Tour winner.

People react to appearances, and Ras is ugly. He looks like a plucked chicken. During this tour I found myself imagining him with a monocle, cigarette holder, riding crop, and German officer's hat of any war since 1871. I think people have this primordial revulsion to him.

It shows in the posts here on PC. Most people are so glad to get rid of him, they don't care whether there's any actual substance to the accusations.

I'm willing to believe he lied. Just show me the evidence.

And I do believe the bovine hemoglobin story from five years ago.

But I'm a process guy. And there's been no process here at all. Just a mob.

Oh, and if Ras is telling the truth: I hope he gets a killer Dutch lawyer and goes after Rabobank, the sponsor, for ending his career and his near certain TdF victory. Good thing for him they're a Netherlands bank with deep, deep pockets.