# Olympian Bobby Lea



## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

Popped for oxy. 16 month suspension

Olympian Bobby Lea suspended for doping violation - VeloNews.com

This guy kicked my ass on the track a few years ago. Nice dude. He's pushing the _Whoops! _defense. "I failed to check my prescribed medication against the prohibited list"
Bobby Lea // 2-Time Olympian // 23-Time National Champion



Pro cyclist Logan Loader has also kicked my ass multiple times. He used the same excuse when he was popped: "I will take full responsibility for my failure to properly read the manufacturer’s label and check for prohibited substances and fully understand the consequences."

It was effectively a career ender for LoLo. Will it be the same for Bobby Lea?


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## AlanE (Jan 22, 2002)

A real bummer. I've been following Lea's racing at Trexlertown since he was a teenager. Always one of my favorites and always seemed like a stand-up guy. It would be a real shame if this ends his career, especially with what would be his third olympics in 2016.


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

Local Hero said:


> This guy kicked my ass on the track a few years ago. Nice dude.


When did you race against him? I don't see any NCNCA/Hellyer events in his race results.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

I don't know why you're asking but it was not at Hellyer. It was 2013. FYI, some track results wont show up in USAC results, this is especially true with atra events. 

Do we know eachother? Are you a Cat 4 guy on squadra/terun?


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

Local Hero said:


> I don't know why you're asking but it was not at Hellyer. It was 2013. FYI, some track results wont show up in USAC results, this is especially true with atra events.
> 
> Do we know eachother? Are you a Cat 4 guy on squadra/terun?


I don't think we know each other but you posted that you raced in NCNCA before.

I raced a bit but don't anymore. Too much waking up early and I'd rather sleep in.


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## CabDoctor (Jun 11, 2005)

Local Hero said:


> I don't know why you're asking but it was not at Hellyer. It was 2013. FYI, some track results wont show up in USAC results, this is especially true with atra events.
> 
> Do we know eachother? Are you a Cat 4 guy on squadra/terun?


What team and cat are you?


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## pedalbiker (Nov 23, 2014)

Raced against him just a few months ago in a couple of crits. He won one and took home probably a grand in prize money.

So hard to buy any of the "oh, I didn't know" BS since nearly everyone spews it. He's not a new pro. 

Why did he even have that drug in the first place without knowing every single thing about it?

Adios, dude.


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## bigbill (Feb 15, 2005)

He took a Percocet, a pain killer. I'm sure it helped him win all kinds of races. If you read his response letter, you can see how it happened.


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## pedalbiker (Nov 23, 2014)

bigbill said:


> He took a Percocet, a pain killer. I'm sure it helped him win all kinds of races. If you read his response letter, you can see how it happened.


I'm sorry, what? See how it happened? No, I most emphatically cannot see how it happened. 

I seriously question why A) a pro cyclist has prescription meds that he apparently takes with some regularity:


> an action I have correctly executed *hundreds of times* over the years



and B) why he has prescription meds that he apparently takes with some regularity yet still has no idea that they're banned?!

WTF?! But how could this happen? IThese guys are so clean and innocent. Who knew the crap they were popping was banned? I mean, Contador ate a steak, Floyd had a beer, and Tyler had a twin in the womb. How did it all happen? Whatever.

He shouldn't have written that letter. It makes it sound even worse for him 



> and having run out of my *normal sleep aid*, I made the poor choice to take my prescription Percocet hoping it would help me rest. *This medication had been prescribed by a doctor to help me manage pain and sleep while traveling for competition, especially in the event of a crash. *


How the hell do you get prescriptionpain meds _in case _you crash_?
_


> Had I done that simple check, the same simple check *I’ve done in pharmacies all over the world*


.

Good riddance.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

I don't feel any of that righteous indignation but you have a point. Lea's explanation doesn't make sense. 

_This medication had been prescribed by a doctor to help me manage pain and sleep while traveling for competition, especially in the event of a crash. Because it was late at night, and I was trying to sleep, I failed to check my prescribed medication against the prohibited list..._

He can't really have it both ways -- taking these pills regularly to sleep/for pain AND having the one-time accident of being tired and out of it and forgetting to read the label. If he is taking them all the time he should really know better. Of course, he should know better either way. 

Oh well. 


I would rather have heard him say something like, "I knew that it was banned in competition but thought it would be out of my system. I just wanted some sleep." 

Also, for all we know this guy is addicted to the pain pills. These things are super addictive and countless athletes are hooked. That might actually elicit more sympathy: "I was prescribed these after breaking my collarbone and getting reconstructive surgery. Unfortunately I became addicted and I am paying the price. I checked myself into rehab last night."

Why do I always feel like we're not getting the full story with these confessions?


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

CabDoctor said:


> What team and cat are you?


Cat 2 on the track and I ride for _Bloodbag Transfusions p/b American Red Cross_


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

Local Hero said:


> I would rather have heard him say something like, "I knew that it was banned in competition but thought it would be out of my system. I just wanted some sleep."


Even that would be a lie. Opiates block out pain receptors and you can push yourself hard and harder.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

deviousalex said:


> Even that would be a lie. Opiates block out pain receptors and you can push yourself hard and harder.


Do you think his current story is a lie?


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

Bobby Lea Tests Positive for Banned Substance | Bicycling


interview


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

Local Hero said:


> Do you think his current story is a lie?


I put it on the same level as the master's racer in the UK who said he needed B12 and used his friend's tainted need to inject it.


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Being friends on Facebook and having many mutual friends on there I've seen this explode. Seeing both updates from him and others.

Having raced against Bobby several times (and gotten my ass handed to me) and met him: this is a really disappointing mistake on his part. From the looks of it he had no clear intentions to dope. The amount in his system after the points race (that race hurt) do line up with his story. 

While percocet is a no brainer I can say that it is pretty easy to take a prohibited substance without knowing. I once had to open up the WADA app in an LA target trying to figure out how much clariton my friend could take. They don't have a clear amount so we had to try and figure out how much would be present in his urine (the only parameter given.) I've also had to take medications without choice (or face asthma death or debilitating pain) and it isn't always easy to know what it banned or not. For the most part it is clear but there are times when it is confusing. 


Bobby and pretty much everyone else knows that what he did was really stupid. He didn't think and look what happened. He isn't arguing that he shouldn't have a suspension. He is arguing the length of it. I have yet to check but the average suspension for this is apparently 4-6 months. Not 16. With 16 months is takes him out of the Olympics and ends his career.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

Is claritin really on the WADA list? I had no idea. I occasionally get bad hay-fever and drive around with a generic (Wall-itin) in my glove box. I probably have taken it before races. Whoops.


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Local Hero said:


> Is claritin really on the WADA list? I had no idea. I occasionally get bad hay-fever and drive around with a generic (Wall-itin) in my glove box. I probably have taken it before races. Whoops.


Yup. It's on there last I checked. It is only banned in race after a certain dosage. Think we determined it was 2 pills. I can't remember the dosage we had but it's something to look out for.


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## Alaska Mike (Sep 28, 2008)

waldo425 said:


> I've also had to take medications without choice (or face asthma death or debilitating pain)


There's always C.) Don't race.


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Alaska Mike said:


> There's always C.) Don't race.


Riiiiight. Okay. Forgot why I don't come to RBR anymore. 


I use allergy and asthma meds so that my airways don't close up during hard exercise. They aren't even banned or prohibited. Don't even need a TUE. Many racers use inhalers. It doesn't actually do much for you unless you medically need it. 

I have had to take prednisone for Cluster Headaches. It helps in small stints so that I can continue to train at the Elite level. It is not prohibited out of competition. Only in competition. 

All of my medications are approved by WADA and USADA. I've gone to great lengths to make sure that they are legal.


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## Alaska Mike (Sep 28, 2008)

waldo425 said:


> Riiiiight. Okay. Forgot why I don't come to RBR anymore.
> 
> All of my medications are approved by WADA and USADA. I've gone to great lengths to make sure that they are legal.


That's really neat. 

So, if they're legal out of competition but prohibited in-competition, the choice is easy. Don't be overly dramatic about life-and-death choices- I find it offensive in the context of adults racing around in their underwear on kids toys. If you need to use a prohibited substance to survive, don't race under its influence. Simple.

Follow the rules. 

Otherwise, your justifications are no better than someone with "low t", low hemotocrit, or any other natural deficiency that dopes to level the playing field. Asthma and allergies are your deficiencies, and WADA has made exceptions to allow for them. I have no issue with that. I do have issues with athletes that knowingly step outside the rules.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

waldo425 said:


> Yup. It's on there last I checked. It is only banned in race after a certain dosage. Think we determined it was 2 pills. I can't remember the dosage we had but it's something to look out for.


Claritin or Claritin D? 

The latter has pseudoephedrine or something that can be made into meth and you need to talk to the pharmacist to get it. I'm always too lazy to talk to the pharmacist and my hay-fever doesn't cause congestion (just sneezing) so I get the regular one. 

Maybe both are controlled. 

Maybe I should just look up these rules myself. I would hate to get banned for taking a generic, over the counter antihistamine.


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## waldo425 (Sep 22, 2008)

Local Hero said:


> Claritin or Claritin D?
> 
> The latter has pseudoephedrine or something that can be made into meth and you need to talk to the pharmacist to get it. I'm always too lazy to talk to the pharmacist and my hay-fever doesn't cause congestion (just sneezing) so I get the regular one.
> 
> ...


I believe it was Claritin D, specifically. It was a while back so I can't remember exactly but I seem remember both versions being on the WADA list. 
I think that we were being paranoid about it. My friend didn't want to take any chances for simply wanting to breath better. The LA smog was effecting him pretty badly. We both live in the PNW and really like our clean air ---. Our problem was that we didn't know how to figure out how many milligrams he would have to take in order for a certain amount to be present in his urine. We came to the conclusion that the standard dose would likely not effect him. Had we been wrong and he got tested (a good chance since he ended up on the podium - this was Elite Nationals) that would be a devastating mistake in the name of clear breathing.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

I can't find anything on Claritin but Claritin D could cause trouble:

*Pseudoephedrine: Prohibited when its concentration in urine is greater
than 150 micrograms per milliliter. *

http://www.usada.org/wp-content/uploads/wada-2015-prohibited-list-en.pdf


WADA recommends to stop taking pseudophedrine 24 hr before competition because of: "Large variability with high peak excretions possible at 6-20 hours post-ingestion. Seen mostly with long acting PSE"


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

You can always just snort salt water. Works like a charm. This suggestion came from a scuba diving instructor.


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## robt57 (Jul 23, 2011)

deviousalex said:


> You can always just snort salt water. Works like a charm. This suggestion came from a scuba diving instructor.


I have in my hand Ocean Saline Nasal Spray I use for an inner ear issue, OTC too.

Are you suggesting the saline over the loratadine? I use that so when I ride it allow my chubby turbinates to let some air flow through my nose. It helps me a lot, non D though...


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

Saline is good for congestion or sneezing?


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## Alaska Mike (Sep 28, 2008)

Local Hero said:


> Saline is good for congestion or sneezing?


Neti pot works like a champ for congestion for me. I've had sinus infections that no drug could touch that affected my balance and left me in a daze. The neti pot was the only thing that worked to clear all of that junk out and get me functioning again.
My nose runs like a faucet during cooler weather exercise, so congestion isn't much of an issue- it all comes out.

Edit- I will say that if I get the neti salt/water mix wrong it lights my sinuses up like I just snorted a line of wasabi at the local sushi joint. When I'm doing it regularly and my nose is used to it, it very rarely happens, but when it does it's quite the experience. Wakes you up a bit.


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## Coolhand (Jul 28, 2002)

Percocet as a sleep aid? Uh huh. . .


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## Alaska Mike (Sep 28, 2008)

Coolhand said:


> Percocet as a sleep aid? Uh huh. . .


That's about how I feel about it. At the very least, he was using it for something other than it was prescribed for. The whole "prescribed in case I fall down" line is a little flimsy, and if true his doctor needs to be sanctioned.

It's a Schedule II Controlled Substance, so it shouldn't be prescribed without a legitimate medical purpose. "Just in case" doesn't meet that standard.


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## pedalbiker (Nov 23, 2014)

Alaska Mike said:


> That's about how I feel about it. At the very least, he was using it for something other than it was prescribed for. The whole "prescribed in case I fall down" line is a little flimsy, and if true his doctor needs to be sanctioned.
> 
> It's a Schedule II Controlled Substance, so it shouldn't be prescribed without a legitimate medical purpose. "Just in case" doesn't meet that standard.


Exactly.


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Local Hero said:


> Saline is good for congestion or sneezing?


Yes it is.


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Alaska Mike said:


> That's about how I feel about it. At the very least, he was using it for something other than it was prescribed for. The whole "prescribed in case I fall down" line is a little flimsy, and if true his doctor needs to be sanctioned.
> 
> It's a Schedule II Controlled Substance, so it shouldn't be prescribed without a legitimate medical purpose. "Just in case" doesn't meet that standard.


Not that Im defending Bobby but I have had "just in case" drug prescribed by a doctor several times, including some badass steroids. In both cases it was when I was going to be in the back country for extended periods and in both case I did not use them (once I never even bothered to fill them). 

I could see how you would want to have something like that withe you in case you crashed and wanted to medicate the pain until you got back to a doctor you could trust. However you point of using it off label is valid.


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## Habanero (Feb 12, 2007)

Local Hero said:


> Cat 2 on the track and I ride for _Bloodbag Transfusions p/b American Red Cross_


Win!!


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## Alaska Mike (Sep 28, 2008)

32and3cross said:


> I could see how you would want to have something like that withe you in case you crashed and wanted to medicate the pain until you got back to a doctor you could trust. However you point of using it off label is valid.


He got busted in _California_, which is akin to Somalia for a lot of us, but I understand there are some competent doctors there.
It was prescribed it for a trip to _Japan_ and _Taiwan_, which I understand have just emerged from the stone age but have managed to train their witch doctors to administer modern medicine.

I don't buy it, and obviously neither did USADA (judging by the length of the sanction).

I've always viewed Mr Lea as a talented and clean cyclist. However, he obviously has been skirting the gray line when it comes to pain killers and got busted when he crossed it. Hopefully this will back him away from their casual use and serve as a cautionary tale to others.


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Alaska Mike said:


> He got busted in _California_, which is akin to Somalia for a lot of us, but I understand there are some competent doctors there.
> It was prescribed it for a trip to _Japan_ and _Taiwan_, which I understand have just emerged from the stone age but have managed to train their witch doctors to administer modern medicine.
> 
> I don't buy it, and obviously neither did USADA (judging by the length of the sanction).
> ...



You missed my point completely, but hey, enjoy.


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## Alaska Mike (Sep 28, 2008)

32and3cross said:


> You missed my point completely, but hey, enjoy.


Not really. I think his doctor's justification for this prescription was questionable. I don't know the classes of the medications were that you were prescribed, but the backcountry is a little different than Japan in terms of available medical care. Given the push the AMA and others are making to limit the prescriptions of medications like percocet, "just in case" doesn't cut it anymore. 

It really doesn't matter. If he was prescribed the medication for a specific purpose/duration and he took it outside those parameters, he's in the wrong.


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## vagabondcyclist (Apr 2, 2011)

Alaska Mike said:


> . Given the push the AMA and others are making to limit the prescriptions of medications like percocet, "just in case" doesn't cut it anymore.


Sure it does. I mean you can't just show up at the local ER or urgent care facility and say "hey doc, I pushed it really hard at the races today and my legs are killing me, can I get some Schedule II Controlled Substance so I can sleep?


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

US track cyclist Bobby Lea wins appeal, will be eligible for Olympic Games | CyclingTips

He got off easy I think.


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## Local Hero (Jul 8, 2010)

From what I saw on facebook, at least one prominent track/crit star (and Olympic hopeful) was not so happy about the process. 

"Lost pretty much all faith in all things anti doping."



But I have renewed faith in anti-doping. USADA was at Chico stage race this weekend. And I heard they showed up at a prominent racer's doorstep a few months ago and just gave him a 4-year ban. More details on that when it hits the news.


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## deviousalex (Aug 18, 2010)

Local Hero said:


> But I have renewed faith in anti-doping. USADA was at Chico stage race this weekend. And I heard they showed up at a prominent racer's doorstep a few months ago and just gave him a 4-year ban. More details on that when it hits the news.


Let me guess....he was racing M123 45+?


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