First, Read This: http://redkiteprayer.com/?p=1864
I think the thing I love the MOST about cycling is the one swept under the rug; what cyclists were before they were cyclists and why they started riding. Greg Lemond said something among the lines of that cycling was an escape from his everyday life. Many cyclists have said this. In Europe, cycling in the beginning was a way for a miner to get x-amount of months of wages riding a bike. I hear that many Russians are gaining interest into cycling to escape their dismal lives. Cyclists are a little bit like rock stars. They want to make so much more of theirselves. Maybe this was something Marco Pantani was aiming for.
I really long to get a real in-depth investigation on what kinds of lives that pro/amateur racers and just sportive cyclists have and had. I know I use cycling as my coping mechanism in life for stress or situational anxiety, but what about others? This is a question that pulls deep in me whenever I see pedals spinning.
Marco Pantani – What was he trying to find or escape with cycling that he eventually replaced with drugs/cocaine?
Cycling does increase endorphines, dopamine output, and other neurotransmitters/hormones. Depression, I think is more common in the peloton than what we know. Of course we heard Tyler Hamilton’s story, but I’m sure there are more instances. Many more; maybe even Pantani.
I wish I was Omniscient enough to have the answers to all of these things; If I did, maybe I would be a more complete person, myself.
[...] A Reply and Inquiry to Pantani’s Problems: [...]