IGX

So when he seeks to compete in a triathlon—a sport whose popularity ranks far below that of, say, bass fishing—his magnetism makes an unthinkable question suddenly thinkable: Does the number of extra enrollments he brings to an event outweigh the loss of certification by USA Triathlon?

Faced with that very question this month was the Half Full Triathlon in Maryland. For two years running, it had boasted USAT certification, a distinction that lowers insurance rates while offering professionals a chance to boost their international rankings.

But when presented with a recent race request from Armstrong, Half Full for this year decided to sacrifice its USAT certification. And it paid off. After announcing last Thursday that Armstrong would participate in the Oct. 7 race, enrollment jumped 20%, said race executive Brian Satola.

On Sunday, Armstrong won the 34th SuperFrog Triathlon on Coronado Island in Southern Calif., completing the 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike “ride” and 13.1-mile run in 3 hours, 49 minutes, 45 seconds. Officials for the race, which raises money for the Navy SEAL Foundation, abandoned its quest for USAT certification when Armstrong applied. Registration spiked to a record 825 entrants, at a fee as high as $275 each. “The last 200 are the Lance effect,” Superfrog director Mitch Hall told the Wall Street Journal, Armstrong also agreed to host a postrace fundraiser.

Armstrong also agreed to host a postrace fundraiser.

tough old man wrote:

Armstrong also agreed to host a postrace fundraiser.

More proof he is a good man. He may be a do anything to win competitor, but he seems to be a good man.

Blaidd Drwg wrote:

tough old man wrote:

Armstrong also agreed to host a postrace fundraiser.

More proof he is a good man. He may be a do anything to win competitor, but he seems to be a good man.

Is is most especially a Not Good Man. He's a skinny Arnold with less charisma...but he very much appreciates that people think he is good...

Blaidd Drwg wrote:

tough old man wrote:

Armstrong also agreed to host a postrace fundraiser.

More proof he is a good man. He may be a do anything to win competitor, but he seems to be a good man.

Is is most especially a Not Good Man. He's a skinny Arnold with less charisma...but he very much appreciates that people think he is good... (he still won't answer my letters, maybe enclosing nudes was a mistake)

LIVESTRONG PRIDES ITSELF on the fact that—on paper, anyway—it spends 81 percent of every dollar on programs. This is a big improvement over 2005, when the American Institute of Philanthropy took Livestrong to task for spending 45 cents of every dollar on fundraising. Now AIP gives Livestrong an A-minus, while Charity Navigator rates it three stars out of four.

But the foundation’s financial reports from 2009 and 2010 show that Livestrong’s resources pay for a very large amount of marketing and PR. During those years, the foundation raised $84 million and spent just over $60 million. (The rest went into a reserve of cash and assets that now tops $100 million.)

A surprising $4.2 million of that went straight to advertising, including large expenditures for banner ads and optimal search-engine placement. Outsourcing is the order of the day: $14 million of total spending, or more than 20 percent, went to outside consultants and professionals. That figure includes $2 million for construction, but much of the money went to independent organizations that actually run Livestrong programs. For example, Livestrong paid $1 million to a Boston–based public-health consulting firm to manage its campaigns in Mexico and South Africa against cancer stigma—the perception that cancer is contagious or invariably fatal.

Livestrong touts its stigma programs, but it spent more than triple that, $3.5 million in 2010 alone, for merchandise giveaways and order fulfillment. Curiously, on Livestrong’s tax return most of those merchandise costs were categorized as “program” expenses. CFO Greg Lee says donating the wristbands counts as a program because “it raises awareness.”

Blaidd Drwg wrote:There are two entities. The charitable one raised 470 million total of which about 376 million was paid out to programs. not necessarily research programs. Mastly "awareness"

http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-ad ... l?page=all

This does not make you a better or worse person of course. LA is what he is.

One of the benefits of not being an ideologue like Turd is that one can be open to the thought that matters are complex.

powerlifter54 wrote:Hmmm, he is not a Christian so my guess is you don't like him because he dropped Sheryl Crow for being a pothead.

Maybe he doped, maybe he didn't. Probably did.

The truth is very few people outside USADA and ESPN care about it at all.

What is your reason for disliking a guy who is against the war in Iraq, not crazy about guns, rides really fast and trains really hard, and is pro choice?

BD's Mother wrote:I'm guessing that Turdacious isn't your real name, but please stop teasing my son about Lance Armstrong. Growing up, he always wanted to be just like Lance, and he rode his bicycle every day. Unfortunately, as he hit puberty, he started writing Mr. Armstrong letters. They were inappropriate to say the least. His father and I prayed about it, and spoke in many tongues to get him the help he needed to see the light. Unfortunately, he stopped listening to God at this time, probably as a result of his unbiblical sexual obsession with Mr. Armstrong.

Fortunately, Mr. Armstrong never responded to his letters. We tried to have a police officer talk to our son and 'scare him straight.' As you can guess, he now hates the police. We eventually had to consent to using therapy, and we spent many thousands of dollars getting our son the help he needed. It seemed to help, but not as much as it would have if he had accepted Jesus Christ as his Personal Savior.

Please don't bring this painful topic up again.

Thank you,

BD's Mother

powerlifter54 wrote:Answer please. Your lack of an answer suggests the first wise ass sentence was closer to home than the serious last sentence.

Blaidd Drwg wrote:
So No..I don't dislike the guy at all. He's an American Hero, in ways that are both heart warming and totally sinister. PL..You really should stick to spreadsheets, %s, and CF potshots on the TF, Politics, culture and paying attention are not your strong suits.

He (sic)Is is most especially a Not Good Man. He's a skinny Arnold with less charisma...but he very much appreciates that people think he is good...

Blaidd Drwg wrote:Arnold is an asshole. Not a good guy to his family etc...still. Impressive as hell. Mike Tyson, flawed and amazing....do you grok yet? Dale Earnhart? Ty Cobb.....? Unspeakable talent, work ethic and will to win. Doing whatever is necessary. One can be in awe and admire a deeply flawed person.

Blaidd Drwg wrote:I think a person can be at once a HERO and NOT GOOD at the same time Zoinks!!!!!!

Arnold is an asshole. Not a good guy to his family etc...still. Impressive as hell. Mike Tyson, flawed and amazing....do you grok yet? Dale Earnhart? Ty Cobb.....? Unspeakable talent, work ethic and will to win. Doing whatever is necessary. One can be in awe and admire a deeply flawed person.

I like the unvarnished truth.. You like it varnished. If you're still not getting it I can't help you.

Shapecharge wrote:Jack/Blade...am I'm missing something here? Aren't you both sorta on the same page? We're all pretty much in agreement about the USADA and I think we also all agree that Lance is a monumental prick but that's not uncommon for winners with a huge desire to crush all that stands before them. Now simmer down and start arguing about something serious.