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- From: harry@cv.hp.com (Harry Phinney)
- Subject: Re: Cyling [sic] and Doping
- Message-ID: <1992Dec28.195944.25289@hpcvusn.cv.hp.com>
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- References: <1992Dec28.082553.20833@netcom.com>
- Date: Mon, 28 Dec 1992 19:59:44 GMT
- Lines: 38
-
- <I have to ask myself - why am I doing this?>
-
- tomk@netcom.com (Thomas H. Kunich) writes:
- : These "studies" when examined invariably are about as 'scientific' as a crap
- : shoot. Two or three individuals without double blind testing cannot demonstrate
- : _anything_ that requires statistical analysis.
-
- That is a nice condemnation of a study you've never before heard of.
- Perhaps you should read Burke's book, or (gasp!) the original paper
- before assuming that it's garbage.
-
- : One thing is _certain_, _if_ 330 mg of caffeine caused a 20% increase in
- : endurance then a couple of espressos would have a measureable and _marked_
- : effect on _everyone_.
-
- I'd wager pretty good money that "a couple of espressos" will indeed
- "have a measurable and _marked_ effect" on anyone who has not already
- developed a tolerance to caffeine. I know that "a couple of espressos"
- will leave me shaking for hours. Of course, I don't consume caffeine on
- a daily basis. Why don't I? Because I want IOC/UCI/USCF legal levels
- of caffeine to have the greatest possible impact on me. I want to feel
- a jolt when I consume a beverage containing a lot of caffeine late in a
- race. Why do I consume such a beverage? Because I believe it improves
- my performance, and I _know_ that riders I race against do the exact
- same thing. Actually, as Les mentioned in an earlier posting, some go
- much further than drinking beverages containing caffeine.
-
- : In case you haven't been following the thread, caffeine is _legal_ already.
- : Apparently it's OK to tilt the playing field only somewhat.
-
- That's exactly what's being argued here. Should caffeine be legal, or
- semi-legal as it currently is? The only reason that it is tolerated is
- because it is a socially accepted drug. The IOC/UCI rules are
- supposedly intended to prevent the use of any drug which might alter
- one's performance either positively or negatively. Do you truly believe
- that caffeine at the upper IOC/UCI limit has no physiological effects?
-
- Harry Phinney harry@hp-pcd.cv.hp.com
-