LA Times digs into Lance

From Bicycle Retailer we get linked to an indepth news article from the Los Angeles Times titled Allegations Trail Armstrong Into Another Stage.

The LA Times has published testimony from the insurance trial between Lance and SCA Promotions regarding his 2004 Tour de France victory. Lance and his lawyers are working to force the LA Times to reveal their sources, but so far with no success.

This article is lengthy but well worth taking time to read. It includes information about instant messages between Jonathan Vaughters and Frankie Andreu as well as conversations involving Lance, Frankie, Frankie's wife Betsy, Greg Lemond and past teammates as far back as Motorola. There's more information about the EPO test results from Lance's 1999 victory as well.

We find out that SCA Promotions ended up settling because they risked losing a total of $15 million if they lost the suit. Certainly SCA Promotions intended to win the suit outright and pay nothing, but I'd say paying $7.5 million ($5 million plus interest & attorney fees) is acceptable risk management involving a case of circumstantial evidence.

There is one thing I find fascinating to read coming from Lance, and in this article it marks the second time I have noticed. Lance will not attack Frankie Andreu no matter what either Frankie or his wife says. The first time I noticed this was when Frankie corroborated his wife's testimony about Lance admitting to doctors about taking performance enhancing drugs. Lance's comment in that instance was, and I'm paraphrasing, something to the extent that he's not mad at Frankie and expected him to totally support his wife.

Then in the LA Times article we read about riders on the Motorola team discussing ways to compete in Europe. This discussion included Motorola teammates Stephen Swart, Frankie Andreu, Lance and others on the team. Evidently the team was unable to compete at that level since everyone else was using EPO, but it's a particular bike ride in Italy that Swart recalls where EPO use was talked about as a method the team should undertake.

Frankie recalls the same bike ride in his testimony, remembering the discussion, the implications intended about EPO and their need to compete in Europe. Lance denies taking part in any of these discussions by stating, "I was never party to that conversation. If it took place — I'm not calling Frankie a liar, but there … there are many other people he could have had that talk with."

My impression is that Frankie knows a lot but is keeping his mouth shut unless he's ordered to testify, which has already happened once. Frankie continues to not say a word in public regarding Lance and doping, while at the same time Lance does not shred Frankie and his wife over their latest testimony. Let's not forget that Lance shreds every other person on the planet who betrays him. Sure, Lance denied their claims, but it didn't rise to the level of ire Lance has displayed towards others.

In each situation Frankie has stood firm and not backed down from his sworn testimony. It's very much like watching two people unwilling to throw the other under the bus because they know too much information about one another. Most times nobody comes out clean when mudslinging takes place.