# Armstrong's War



## cannondale_boy (May 6, 2004)

I'm not saying anything outright. Just read it.

http://tinyurl.com/7b3dz

Click on "search inside this book" and scroll afew pages until chapter one.

What do you think of this book? Trash or Truth?
No trolling here, what do you honestly think?


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

cannondale_boy said:


> I'm not saying anything outright. Just read it.
> 
> http://tinyurl.com/7b3dz
> 
> ...


This is the guy who was given an insider's access to the team, etc. right?
Given Armstrong's propensity to sue, I would assume it's not trash or else Armstrong would have him in court by now, and since there was some kind of agreement probably approved the book before it was released?
I've heard it's pretty good, but I haven't read it yet. Suppose to give a good behind the scenes look at professional cycling.


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## Alpedhuez55 (Jun 29, 2005)

It is funny, at least in the first chapter, that they refer to Dr. Ferrari and "Lance's longtime trainer" and Chris Carmichael gets no such title. Does Lance own an interest in Carmichael Training Systems?

It sounds like it is a good read. It sounds like they gave the author access to Armstrong and his inner circle. So it does not sound like it is a tell all book of any type.


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## Henry Chinaski (Feb 3, 2004)

Sintesi said:


> I'm just about done with the book. I didn't detect even a whiff of trash. Coyle is a fairminded guy and he's not a muckraker. He's a good writer, although he gets a little cutesy at times while going for a joke. I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn about what goes into training and preparation for the TdF.


Ditto. Finished it yesterday. Very good book.


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## Sintesi (Nov 13, 2001)

I'm just about done with the book. I didn't detect even a whiff of trash. Coyle is a fairminded guy and he's not a muckraker. He's a good writer, although he gets a little cutesy at times while going for a joke. I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn about what goes into training and preparation for the TdF.


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## Henry Chinaski (Feb 3, 2004)

Alpedhuez55 said:


> It is funny, at least in the first chapter, that they refer to Dr. Ferrari and "Lance's longtime trainer" and Chris Carmichael gets no such title. Does Lance own an interest in Carmichael Training Systems?


Yeah, Carmichael comes off as a joke. Big surprise. When the author asks Floyd who is the coach, Ferrari or Carmichael, Floyd says (something like) "you've talked to both of them, who would you listen to?"


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## blackhat (Jan 2, 2003)

*Haven't received it yet*

but here's an <a href="http://www.booknoise.net/armstrong/qanda.html">interview</a> with coyle. I agree, he doesn't appear a muckraker. should be a good read.


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## PJay (May 28, 2004)

*a good read; clear about fact, speculation*

I finished the book just after the TDF started.
The link provided by Blackfoot gives a good explanation of how the book came to be.
This experienced sports journalist spent a lot of time and effort. You get a lot more depth into the management and strategy of Team Lance than in the several brief stories that have been online or in rags like SI.

There is a fair amount about training strategy, equipment, skills, and strategy that RBR folks will enjoy.

There is a fair amt of coverage of the story behind the writing of "LA Confidential."

Also, it doesn't overlap much with Its Not Abt the Bike. I haven't read the other Lance book yet.

As far as writing goes, this is around the top of sports writing - often, you have to endure some weak writing skills to get the story (like Krakauer's book abt Everest), but Coyle's writing is really good. My only criticism of the writing is that he included a lot of lingo, phrases, expressions, and idioms that may quickly become dated, and may be impenetrable for non-native English or non-American audiences - and I am sure the book's audience includes Europeans and other non-Americans.


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## terzo rene (Mar 23, 2002)

Excellent book, seems to be about as accurate a picture as you will get. I have never been an admirer of Lance personally but the fact that he was given a pre-publication copy for review and let it go without comment makes him more admirable to me. I think perhaps at some level he wants a more accurate picture for history and is a little tired of the mythological diety/living action figurine he has become.


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## txzen (Apr 6, 2005)

I read somewhere that Coyle and LA sat down after the book was finished, and LA started by asking him, "So how do you like me now?". I'm interested to read it - from what I've seen it's a fair picture about a highly successful, competetive and obsessive athlete.


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## crankee (Aug 2, 2003)

*It's a good read - highly recommended*

Like a lot of sports-related books, it's a quick read - and this one's good. It's entertaining and informative. On balance, I think it portrays life in and around planet Lance fairly. And Lance is king and everyone (including LA) knows it and acts accordingly.

What really surprised me is how much LA depends on Michelle Ferrari. I thought Dr. Ferrari was more of a consultant, but in reality he (is/was) a key player.

Equally surprising is Chris Carmichael. The guy comes across as a hanger-on - a water boy. Floyd Landis treats him with clear disdain. I've wondered if Carmichael is merely a leech - this book confirms it.


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## mgp (Feb 3, 2004)

Excellent read. The insight into the professional life is great. I still chuckle about the chapter devoted to their asses! (read it and you will understand)


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## Old_school_nik (May 21, 2002)

*A good read - fair but quite critical of the man at times*

I enjoyed it alot - I even learned a few things about Ferrari etc.. how they test the athletes and what its like to livein Girona with 15 other us pros...

One of my friends who lent me the book and was real unbashed Lance fan and thought he could do no worng before the book now says to me: "It doesn't sound like Lance is too nice a guy really." So no the book does not blow smoke up his arse . It has some funny stuff about the pros and how they check out each other asses all the time...


Nik


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## wheezer (Sep 21, 2004)

*i second, or third, or fourth ....*

oh, screw it. i recommend it as well. 

excellent read with much context for bike-minded folks. i liked the bikers' laws of energy conservation:

don't stand when you can sit. don't sit when you can lie down!

then there's one about not showering before a race because it softens the muscles. 

speaking of ferrari, accoring to the book, he'd calculated how much energy it takes a rider to recover from a crash, grow skin back, etc... 

coyle's writing is clean and balanced. his chapter on floyd is freaking hysterical.


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## rs3o (Jan 22, 2004)

wheezer said:


> his chapter on floyd is freaking hysterical.


Yep. I loved that chapter and so did my wife who has a propensity for wearing long socks while riding.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

Old_school_nik said:


> "It doesn't sound like Lance is too nice a guy really."
> 
> 
> Nik


This is why Lance is not my hero.....I've never met the man... Unless a person has, they have no idea what he is really like. I admire him tremendously as a cyclist and really admire his work for the cancer community but hero worship can lead to disappointment.


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## cannondale_boy (May 6, 2004)

*Really?*

speaking of ferrari, accoring to the book, he'd calculated how much energy it takes a rider to recover from a crash, grow skin back, etc... 

WoW!! I can see why Lance would recruit this guy knowing how Lance is finantical about his training and calculations.. It's too bad a guy like that got into doping his athletes cause it sounds like he really would help a cyclist grow without them.


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## goose127 (Jun 9, 2004)

*The War*

I finished the book a couple of days ago. I really enjoyed the read and wish there was more books like this about cycling. The book touches upon segments other than just Lance such as his main competitors in the 2004 tour. I was suprised to read that Lance is almost more on the insecure side as appossed to the agressor. The book suggests that he is equally obsessed about the other riders as he is about his well documented training habits. I think the book is acurate, and what I mean by that is accuracy from what the author witnessed or the potrayals of his interviews. That and the author does stray away from providing any strong opinions of his own.

I also think one would conclude that Lance's relationship with the good Dr. was something much more than what Lance or anyone else has aluded to. It appeared to me that Ferrari does the heavy lifting and Charmical just writes out suggested training plans for Lance based upon Ferarri's assesments. I think Charmical has profited mightly for the work (or minimal input that it might actually be) with Lance. Almost to the point where you wonder if Lance's relationship with Chris Charmical was partially one of deflection for time spent with the "Notorious" Dr. Ferrari. It would be mighty interesting to learn more about what that relationship triangle was actually about.

Great book.


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## ggusta (Dec 31, 2004)

Old_school_nik said:


> One of my friends who lent me the book and was real unbashed Lance fan and thought he could do no worng before the book now says to me: "It doesn't sound like Lance is too nice a guy really."
> Nik


After reading (listening on CD, actually) to Every Second Counts, even in his own words he seems like he can be a real pr**k at times. He doesn't try and claim to be a person without flaws. He seems very very focused, uncompromising and driven and often times to a fault. The strain of his profession and fame becomes ever more apparent on his doomed marriage. And the ever more intrusive drug testers whose officiousness and lack of respect drive him and his wife nuts, particualrly when banging on the door of their home early in the morning just days after the birth of their twins. His wife totally loses it at this point. It's painful to hear the narrative written prior to and right up to their separation when one knows the outcome of their struggle to make it work.

By his own admission, prior to the cancer, he was largely a wasted talent. Tons of potential with little to show for it. The change that cancer made in his life cannot be understated.

This book should be an interesting companion to Every Second Counts. Hopefully the wait at the local library will be less than a biography of Ben Franklin that I have been waiting for for months. 

There's anothe longer excerpt from Armstrong's war herehttp://www.booknoise.net/armstrong/excerpts.html


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## Squint (Jan 22, 2004)

goose127 said:


> It appeared to me that Ferrari does the heavy lifting and Charmical just writes out suggested training plans for Lance based upon Ferarri's assesments.


I don't even think Carmichael even does that. Have you ever met someone and within the first few minutes of hearing them talk or talking to them, know that they're really stupid? Let's just say that Landis' comments in the book are very telling.


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## bill (Feb 5, 2004)

Enjoyed the book tremendously. Guy writes with his eyes wide open, unsentimentally, with insight to what's going on behind, etc., etc. And he's a good writer.
I've heard for years that Carmichael was more of a businessman, and more of a business partner to Armstrong, than a coach. I used to know a rider who raced for CTS; she said that no one listens to Carmichael.
Celebrity (a major theme of the book) can be darned interesting. The new royalty. Lance is not a saint but a human being with mountains of raw physical and mental talent and a fair amount of emotional baggage that he's turned into an incredible career that ain't hardly over, even though he's off the bike. Still, he takes his noblesse oblige seriously. Others have done far less with their celebrity. I think if you're disappointed in Lance, or in any other celebrity, you ought to be looking harder at your own expectations.


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## dasho (Apr 8, 2002)

*Why all the negativity about Chris?*

I question the negative comments about Chris Carmichael. After all, Lance stated in an interview that Chris is the one who told him he would oneday win the TDF (after his bout with cancer) and got him to believe it. And wasn't it Chris who talked Lance into going to Boone for a week of riding for one last time after Lance had lost his interest in cycling and was about to quit? Lance said that trip made him realize how much he loved cycling and rekindled his interest.

Lance also stated Chris is his best friend and the one he calls after he has a good workout. Maybe he's no Ferrari when it comes to knowledge, but at least he uses legal techniques. I don't think Lance would keep him around if he wasn't helping him.


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## Squint (Jan 22, 2004)

The problem with CC is that he's a fraud. For years, we've been told that he's "Lances personal coach," when it's clear he's not. If we were told that he was Lance's retarded friend who he just hangs out with then it would be more acceptable.

If I have a good training ride or race, I'll tell people who aren't even into cycling. When Lance does the same with CC, I think it's as a friend and not within the context of a coach-athlete relationship.


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## hawker12 (Oct 19, 2003)

Has anyone read Inside the Postal Bus by Michael Barry? I'm about half way through. Barry is not a particularly good writer and really it's more of a journal. Nothing "too" inside, but interesting.
Steve


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## upstateSC-rider (Aug 21, 2004)

blackhat said:


> but here's an <a href="http://www.booknoise.net/armstrong/qanda.html">interview</a> with coyle. I agree, he doesn't appear a muckraker. should be a good read.


That's an excellent interview with Coyle. I liked the "War" book and was surprised, also, at how much the good Dr. was mentioned/utilized.
Lou.


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## Gelo di Cervello (Nov 30, 1999)

*A fascinating (and bizarre) amalgam ...*

of Wayne's World and the Nixon Whitehouse. Never thought I would be able to use those references in the same sentence.

Worthwhile read.


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