# Poll: What to Do w/ Armstrong Memorabilia?



## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

*What to Do w/ Armstrong Memorabilia?*

I know that several people were really big fan(boy)s. What are your plans for your Armstrong stockpile?



EDIT: I need to cleanse myself of a pair of Nike cycling shoes and a copy of "It's Not About the Bike" so that I can move on with my life. Your vote will decide the fate of these products. I will post a video if you vote something interesting, like Burn.

Caveat: We need at least 50 votes in this poll.


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## 3rensho (Aug 26, 2003)

I'll put it in my 'Cycling' box and leave it there. It'll slide right in next to my Tyler's Tough Tykes for Kids t-shirt we got for my son. (With a pic of Tyler and Tugboat, natch)


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## old_fuji (Mar 16, 2009)

Before anyone dumps a USPS bike on the side of the road, let me know where I can pick it up.


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## rydbyk (Feb 17, 2010)

I have a photo of LA (time trial) stage at the 2001 TdF that I took. It is framed and on the wall. It was an amazing and exciting day with some good memories attached.

I am struggling with keeping it on the wall or taking it down. I have "known" for a long time that LA most likely doped, but the jerk factor is new to me.


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## trailrunner68 (Apr 23, 2011)

Halloween costumes.


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## Skinner222 (Aug 31, 2012)

Going camping this weekend. My "Not About the Bike" book, SI magazines from 2000 and my Nike "What are you on?" poster will light up my campfire.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

If you're going to abandon your 1999 USPS Trek be sure to deactivate it before leaving it on the side of the highway. If you don't crush the offending bicycle in a hydraulic press it may fall in to a child's hands. If that child goes on to dope, it's on you. 



Skinner222 said:


> Going camping this weekend. My "Not About the Bike" book, SI magazines from 2000 and my Nike "What are you on?" poster will light up my campfire.


I hope to see a video on Monday! :thumbsup:


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## c_h_i_n_a_m_a_n (Mar 3, 2012)

I have a 2005 discovery jersey that I do wear quite often when it is not so cold. Guess I will still wear it. It is only a jersey anyway. And there was always the knowledge that doping was involved but now that it is confirmed ... really unsure how I am feeling ...

And I also have a USPS jersey that I do not ride with. And videos of the 7 'wins'. I will keep that. Everybody in that peloton doped so it evens out the field ...


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## EuroSVT (Sep 15, 2011)

Evil-Bay it while you can


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## Creakyknees (Sep 21, 2003)

I'm keeping my signed yellow jersey, it's got my name on it so it'll be kind of hard to sell. 

The books, all received as gifts, went to Half-Price a long time ago. Never even bothered to read "We might as well win". 

I think I might have one or two wristbands somewhere.


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## pmf (Feb 23, 2004)

Hold onto it. Someday it'll be rare since they're not making any more of it.


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## c_h_i_n_a_m_a_n (Mar 3, 2012)

pmf said:


> Hold onto it. Someday it'll be rare since they're not making any more of it.


And then 30yrs after when everyone has been racing clean and on the same 'playing field' ... I can advertise the 7 videos for sale, to show how doping will make you a super human???


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## Mailmover (Mar 29, 2011)

I have a USPS Jersey.. I still work for the Company and was on a "team" made up of all USPS employees when I lived in San Antonio. So, I won't be trashing it... 

MM


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## tnvol123 (Sep 11, 2012)

I don't have anything other than a couple of books.


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## MarkS (Feb 3, 2004)

Here are pics of the jersey and helmet I wore on my commute to the office this morning. I am no fanboy, but I am not throwing them away either.

BTW: The jersey was a gift and I got the Livestrong helmet on sale last year for less than $100. If the price were right, I still would buy LA-related stuff.  I have the same USPS jersey with short sleeves with Frankie Andreau's autograph (from a ride I did with him ceveral years ago). I wear that one, too.


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## bayAreaDude (Apr 13, 2012)

I've noticed an increase in yellow livestrong clad homeless in these parts.


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## jarbiker (Sep 29, 2009)

*My question would*

have to be, why would anyone have any Armstrong memorabilia to begin with?


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## Ejdo (Mar 14, 2010)

Don't dump the bike on the side of the road. I know a great paint shop, give me your unwanted LA associated bike.


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## MarkS (Feb 3, 2004)

jarbiker said:


> have to be, why would anyone have any Armstrong memorabilia to begin with?


My LBS is a Trek-captive shop. Over the years, I have been given lots of LA stuff as freebies by the shop at Christmas and at other times inconsideration for my continued patronage. Also, when family members have gone to the LBS to buy presents, they sometimes have bought things like USPS jerseys, etc. Finally, as I said in the post with the pic of my Livestrong helmet, if stuff is on sale and the price is right, I will buy it notwithstanding its having an Armstrong association.


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## jwl325 (Feb 3, 2010)

Wear it/ride it with enjoyment? Isn't that the point?

FFS, it's gear. Wear it, ride it, and enjoy it. It's a sport, a hobby, whatever....it's not a life-statement.

Or at least it shouldn't be, IMHO.

Lance is flawed, so WTF. Who amongst us isn't? I'm still inspired by him, and still believe in the good he's done.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

jwl325 said:


> Wear it/ride it with enjoyment? Isn't that the point?
> 
> FFS, it's gear. Wear it, ride it, and enjoy it. It's a sport, a hobby, whatever....it's not a life-statement.
> 
> ...


Easy for you to say. Can you explain how I'm supposed to get on with my life without a backyard pyre for my 30+ pieces of memorabilia, including a life-sized cardboard Armstrong?


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## brady1 (Aug 18, 2011)

I have a VeloNews that Lance signed years ago when I met him at 5K race. It's been in a box for a while. It will probably stay there.

He was actually really cool when I met him. Not trying to defend his behavior from all that we've heard lately, but he seemed really cool. Like an idiot, I lost (or didn't have) my Sharpie when I asked him to sign the magazine. He ran over to his SUV and dug through the glove compartment for one. Nice move, I thought he could have easily blown me off.


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## bayAreaDude (Apr 13, 2012)

brady1 said:


> I have a VeloNews that Lance signed years ago when I met him at 5K race. It's been in a box for a while. It will probably stay there.
> 
> He was actually really cool when I met him. Not trying to defend his behavior from all that we've heard lately, but he seemed really cool. Like an idiot, I lost (or didn't have) my Sharpie when I asked him to sign the magazine. He ran over to his SUV and dug through the glove compartment for one. Nice move, I thought he could have easily blown me off.


Narcissists always seem cool to strangers because they put a lot of effort into making you like them - it's of paramount importance to them to be liked by a large number of people so they can feel better about themselves. You have to talk to the people who are actually close to them to find out what they are really like, which is far from cool.


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## velodog (Sep 26, 2007)

jarbiker said:


> have to be, why would anyone have any Armstrong memorabilia to begin with?


Good question.


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## TheWanderer (Jun 19, 2002)

Skinner222 said:


> Going camping this weekend. My "Not About the Bike" book, SI magazines from 2000 and my Nike "What are you on?" poster will light up my campfire.


I dunno...that poster has sold for good money on eBay for a while now. I could see it being worth even more now.


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## brady1 (Aug 18, 2011)

bayAreaDude said:


> Narcissists always seem cool to strangers because they put a lot of effort into making you like them - it's of paramount importance to them to be liked by a large number of people so they can feel better about themselves. You have to talk to the people who are actually close to them to find out what they are really like, which is far from cool.


Definitely. I figured that out a long time ago. He is THE definition of narcissist.


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## kbwh (May 28, 2010)

I have none. 
But I will not part with my pink Mercatone Uno-Bianchi jersey.


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## oldskoolm4 (Mar 14, 2009)

I was wondering the same thing the other day. I have a huge LA poster in my bike room. I might just leave it up for giggles. I have his 1999 tdf yellow jersey that I'll use for Halloween.


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## moskowe (Mar 14, 2011)

Yeah, some people say Armstrong is a sociopath. I don't think so, but he is definitely a narcissist.
I personally don't have any Armstrong related memorabilia, but I know my dad has a couple of jerseys, one of which he wore for a ride on Sunday.
It's just a jersey, it's still functional. Burning it or trashing it won't change the past. I wouldn't wear it, but I get where he's coming from.


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## mpre53 (Oct 25, 2011)

moskowe said:


> Yeah, some people say Armstrong is a sociopath. I don't think so, but he is definitely a narcissist.
> I.


Actually, the two disorders share several common traits :wink:

But yeah, Lance is more likely a narcissist.


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## pianopiano (Jun 4, 2005)

*loved the 'burn it' choice!*

If only he hadn't made the 'comeback' in '09. In the end, it was his narcissism that proved to be his downfall. 

Btw, I'm Canadian, so no silly USPS/Discovery team 'souvenirs' here. But I do have a Ben Johnson poster over my bed. :thumbsup:


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

piano said:


> If only he hadn't made the 'comeback' in '09. In the end, it was his narcissism that proved to be his downfall.
> 
> Btw, I'm Canadian, so no silly USPS/Discovery team 'souvenirs' here. But I do have a Ben Johnson poster over my bed. :thumbsup:


I wouldn't feel comfortable with Ben Johnson watching me...you know...do it.


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## jlandry (Jan 12, 2007)

I heard somewhere that LeMond has his one good nut in a vice somewhere.


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## Mosovich (Feb 3, 2004)

*Trash man..*

The trash man just left with my team motorola autographed water bottle that I got Lance to sign along with a couple of posters and DVDs...


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## OneGear (Aug 19, 2005)

Local Hero said:


> I wouldn't feel comfortable with Ben Johnson watching me...you know...do it.


the poster's not for him..


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## The Tedinator (Mar 12, 2004)

Back in the early 2000s, my kids bought me a USPS jersey. I would probably still wear it but haven't in a long, long time.

Like someone else said; it is a jersey, not a statement.


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## allison (Apr 19, 2006)

rydbyk said:


> I have a photo of LA (time trial) stage at the 2001 TdF that I took. It is framed and on the wall. It was an amazing and exciting day with some good memories attached.
> 
> I am struggling with keeping it on the wall or taking it down. I have "known" for a long time that LA most likely doped, but the jerk factor is new to me.


I actually feel like I got into cycling due to Lance, so I'm keeping my gear. Despite it all, the introduction to cycling has enriched my life a lot, and aside from a few minor instances, has brought awesome memories. My yellow Postal jersey (wore it the first time I did a century) and Mellow Johnny's tee (got it racing on the ranch in 2010) have meaning to me deeper than just Lance's image.


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## Bullvine (Sep 9, 2009)

I'd hang onto the stuff if you like it. If Lance comes clean and works on it for some considerable time the 
Public will forgive him It may take years in this case but time heals..


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## Brad the Bold (Jun 8, 2010)

Save it for your great grandkids! 

Black Sox memorabilia is a goldmine and they are the most reviled villians in the history of baseball.


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## PlatyPius (Feb 1, 2009)

pmf said:


> Hold onto it. Someday it'll be rare since they're not making any more of it.


This.

I have a Wheaties box from when he won the first TdF as well as a USPS team tire (no clue how I acquired it) and a 5 foot tall Lance/Michelob Ultra cardboard display thing.

I figure I'll wait until all of the Lance crap has stopped being readily available and then I'll sell this chit on eBay for mad cash.


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## SirVelo' (Aug 16, 2012)

I have a couple of signed, framed jerseys....1 from Armstrong(05 tour yellow jersey)...another from C.Vandervelde...I guess I could pull thejerseys and reuse the frames.
I have another jersey from the world championships...team Britan, signed by Wiggans, Cav, Miller...guess I can keep that one.


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## dmaciel (Oct 10, 2012)

I have this Trek 5200 they used while riding USPS and the jerseys short and long shelve plus the riding shorts.

I don't plan on getting rid of any of it...It's not that big a deal to me. Personally what LA did for awareness of bicycling in the US surpasses anything that I care about with his doping.


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## Mootsie (Feb 4, 2004)

The Lance and USPS stuff has been falling in value on eBay for at least the last few years. By dumb luck due to moving to a new house, I sold a bunch of Lance stuff about 6 months ago on eBay. Not sure how many buyers I would have today for the same items.


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## Dan333sp (Aug 17, 2010)

I wonder if this guy will get as much for this bike as he would have a year ago? 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/TREK-5500-U...30811082630?pt=Road_Bikes&hash=item4d05e08786
That's seemingly an awesome bike, carbon with DA, kysrium elites, and few miles, yet it may not fetch over $750, we'll see.I still have a '99 2500 in USPS red/blue/white that I've ridden in (gasp) a USPS jersey! I'm trying to sell that bike anyway and I'm always in my club gear now so the jersey will just sit in my drawer as a novelty. No desire to burn it, that's just absurd.


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## atpjunkie (Mar 23, 2002)

*Mark*



MarkS said:


> Here are pics of the jersey and helmet I wore on my commute to the office this morning. I am no fanboy, but I am not throwing them away either.
> 
> BTW: The jersey was a gift and I got the Livestrong helmet on sale last year for less than $100. If the price were right, I still would buy LA-related stuff.  I have the same USPS jersey with short sleeves with Frankie Andreau's autograph (from a ride I did with him ceveral years ago). I wear that one, too.


I have a nice autographed 2009 'Comeback' Amgen ToC poster I can send you

always enjoyed the irony of that one


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## atpjunkie (Mar 23, 2002)

*a client of mine*



jarbiker said:


> have to be, why would anyone have any Armstrong memorabilia to begin with?


was a sponsor for a stage of the ToC 2009. They knew I rode bikes and got me a signed, framed poster as a gift. 

The only cycling memorabilia I worked to get
a) 2 signed Eddy Merckx jerseys (had Eddy sign them myself)
b) 1 Bianchi Jersey signed by Gimondi ( ditto)
c) Real La Vie Clare jersey signed by Lemond (ditto)
d) Red Zinger water bottle tossed to me by Lemond from back in the day


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## spade2you (May 12, 2009)

I'm going to throw away my high cadence.


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## ecub (Sep 2, 2011)

I never really keep sports memorabilia, but if I did, I would definitely keep Lance's stuff. The guy fought and survived cancer.


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## King Arthur (Nov 13, 2009)

Local Hero said:


> I know that several people were really big fan(boy)s. What are your plans for your Armstrong stockpile?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Personally, I like the idea of placing all the "evil memorbilia" in a shipping container, sending it through the Bermuda Triangle. It's finally arrival point should be Gitmo, and the denizens may reap the rewards of these "contaminated objects.:thumbsup:


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

Dan333sp said:


> I wonder if this guy will get as much for this bike as he would have a year ago?
> Trek 5500 USPS Edition 56cm Mint Condition Mavic Ksyrium Elite Wheels Dura Ace | eBay
> That's seemingly an awesome bike, carbon with DA, kysrium elites, and few miles, yet it may not fetch over $750, we'll see.I still have a '99 2500 in USPS red/blue/white that I've ridden in (gasp) a USPS jersey! I'm trying to sell that bike anyway and I'm always in my club gear now so the jersey will just sit in my drawer as a novelty. No desire to burn it, that's just absurd.


It's at $685 now with 16 hours to go. I guess it will go over $850.


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## MikeBiker (Mar 9, 2003)

I'm storing my Lance stuff next to my Shoeless Joe stuff.


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## HolyBull (Nov 27, 2008)

I say keep it as a reminder of where Hero Worship will get you


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## cydswipe (Mar 7, 2002)

Local Hero said:


> It's at $685 now with 16 hours to go. I guess it will go over $850.


That auction doesn't even feature a USPS bike, no decals, which all of the Postal bikes featured, it's a basic model.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

cydswipe said:


> That auction doesn't even feature a USPS bike, no decals, which all of the Postal bikes featured, it's a basic model.


It's at $1000 now. 

Trek 5500 USPS Edition 56cm Mint Condition Mavic Ksyrium Elite Wheels Dura Ace | eBay


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## g29er (Mar 28, 2009)

Maybe I can get a Madone on the cheap now.


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## trhoppe (Dec 21, 2009)

You could do this?


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## mariomal99 (Mar 4, 2012)

Mail it to:

United States Anti-Doping Agency
5555 Tech Center Drive, Suite 200
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80919-2372 USA

ATTN: Travis Tygart


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

Local Hero said:


> It's at $1000 now.
> 
> Trek 5500 USPS Edition 56cm Mint Condition Mavic Ksyrium Elite Wheels Dura Ace | eBay


I had a question for the seller: 




From:
To: samueltheman43
Subject: Details about item: sent a message about TREK 5500 USPS EDITION 56CM MINT CONDITION MAVIC KSYRIUM ELITE WHEELS DURA ACE #330811082630
Sent Date: Oct-22-12 06:52:36 PDT

Dear samueltheman43,

Did Lance Armstrong ride this bike? 

-
____________________________________________

Dear ,

Yes he did. 

- samueltheman43


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## Blue Sugar (Jun 14, 2005)

I'm proud to say I don't own one single peice of Lance memorobilia.


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## c_h_i_n_a_m_a_n (Mar 3, 2012)

I guess, keeping it, comes under 'Other'? A bit biased ...

I do not want to sound as though I am repeating this ... But he was never caught ... He was only suspected to have drugs in him, but still within limits. He could be charged with bring the sport into disrepute and fined and banned from cycling, but you cannot take what he has already won when operating within the rules. I don't think you can be legally charged for taking illegal drugs? Only possession? Isn't it?

Unless of course the UCI rules state that all riders should not be reported to be taking performance enhancing drugs.

You set up a competition, with rules, and someone comes along and competes within those rules, he is entitled to whatever he comes out with? Not? True he managed to work his way around the rules ... Is there a rule of the law which states otherwise.


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## pmf (Feb 23, 2004)

I looked on the TDF web site to see if the empty spaces are up there yet. I couldn't find them, but I did read how Richard Veronique (sp?) won the polka dot jersey an amazing seven times. And that guy failed drug tests, or at least was on a team where doping was wide spread. Why aren't they going after him. Or Jan Ullrich who has a number of podium finishes? It seems to me that the rules aren't being applied fairly here. 

And this USADA report smells bad to me. Suppose you're a pro cyclist who rode with Lance. You doped. Everyone doped. So the USADA gets you into a room and says "look we know you're guilty, we've got eye witnesses. So spill the beans on Lance and we don't crucify you like we're going to do to him. You get to keep your prize money. We'll leave you alone". What would you do? 

And now, since Lance has left, pro cycling is clean now. Give me an effing break. The amount of hypocracy is off the meter. 

I've never been a fan of Lance, but if I were on a jury, I'd have a hard time convicting him beyond a reasonable doubt. I think he's guilty, but without a positive drug test -- which is what was needed until we now have 'he says, she says evidence" -- you can't convict him. If the guy got away with this for a decade, then I think everyone at the UCI should be fired because they sure as hell weren't doing their jobs very well.


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