No sympathy for Armstrong here in his "hometown"

[rainbow4321]

After he trashed our city in his autobio book...distanced himself from any kind of Armstrong recognition day that they held years ago, including when they were going to name a hike/bike trail after him. I think after enough rebukes from him, the city just took on a "whatever" attitude. For the record, I was a single mom (health care field) who raised kids, middle class, and my kids never felt out of place here. One of his main gripes was him not fitting in because he was the son of a secretary, middle class, not a "polo shirt wearing, football player", etc... His mother has said that the chip he got on his shoulder from those days helped with his later life ambition/competitiveness, etc.
Do us a favor, Armstrong camp, please don't refer to Plano ever again in a bad or good way...we want nothing to do with your later-in-like filthy escapades. Maybe everyone back then had seen the real you (that is coming out now) and wanted nothing to do with you...who is the "soul deadening" person now???


http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/To-Armstrong-hometown-just-a-bad-memory-1482413.php

In fact, Plano officials invited Armstrong back on at least four occasions in 1999 and 2000 to celebrate his own day and to name a hike-and-bike trail in his honor. "We never received a response, so we dropped the effort," said Don Wendell, director of parks and recreation. "In his book, he wasn't very complimentary about us."

(snip)

In his ghostwritten 2000 autobiography, It's Not About the Bike, Armstrong calls this Dallas suburb of 240,000 residents "soul-deadening" and conformist to a fault.

Born in Dallas, Armstrong moved with his family to an apartment in suburban Richardson, then to a house in Plano, when he was young.

"It was the quintessential American suburb, with strip malls, perfect grid streets and faux-antebellum country clubs in between empty brown wasted fields," he writes. "It was populated by guys in golf shirts and Sansabelt pants and women in bright fake gold jewelry, and alienated teenagers."

If you were not upper middle class or a football player, he writes, "you didn't exist."

[PM Martin]

1. As there should not be.

[nilram]

2. I've been to Plano, my sister lives there.

And, with apologies to DUers that live there, I pretty much agree with the "'soul-deadening' and conformist to a fault" idea. And, having spent a few weeks in the Dallas area for work, that's my impression of the whole metro area (though not other parts of the state).

That being said, I'm more and more of the opinion that a guy who aggressively flaunts rules he's agreed to, of a sport that he supposedly supports, for ten years running is a real creep. If he really wants to redeem himself, he should quit the idea of competing in any sport, get a degree in drug rehab, and go help others kick their addictions, after admitting his own.

[hobbit709]

9. +1 on that.

[jsr]

3. Meanwhile, Austin has no plans to rename the $3.2-million Lance Armstrong Bikeway

http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/local/austin/no-plans-to-rename-armstrong-bikeway

Mayor Lee Leffingwell told KXAN, "As for the Lance Armstrong Bikeway, we have not heard any outcry from the cycling community or the public at large in Austin to change the name, and I know of no plans to do so." He also called Armstrong a personal friend, a friend to Austin, and a hero to millions of cancer survivors and their families.

[DollarBillHines]

4. I remember when he fucked up Austin

All of those wanna-bees cruising around Mt Bonnell and Lake Travis.

They fucked up everything.

We used to bump them off the road. Three-wide and our doors were out.

Fuck him.

Good riddance, asshole.

[Jim Lane]

5. He fucked up Austin by encouraging people to ride bicycles instead of driving?

So you had to retaliate by getting in your smogmobile to burn some fossil fuels while harassing people for trying to live a more healthy lifestyle?

Perhaps a better response would be to support bike paths, bike lanes, and other ways for cyclists and motorists to accommodate each other. "Share the road" has always been my cycling philosophy.

[hobbit709]

10. The problem was the wannabees didn't want to share the road, they wanted all the road

there were some that even rode on Mopac-which is a limited access highway and got upset when told to get off.

[TexasTowelie]

7. I truly hope that you don't feel that way about bikers.

One of my friends from college, Walter P. “Wally” Meyer, died in 2004 following a bicycle accident in Austin when he was hit while riding his bicycle to work (I believe it was on Bee Caves Road).

Wally was an Austin native and a 1986 graduate of Southwestern University who was a math major and also played as a guard on the men's basketball team that went to the NAIA National Tournament his junior and senior years. In addition, Wally went to Africa to serve in the Peace Corps. He was smart and personable young man.

In honor of Wally, a "Pirate Bike" program was started at Southwestern that provides yellow bikes for the students to ride across campus. “My brother loved to ride,” says Meyer’s sister, Heidi Meyer Curry, who provided funds for the bikes. “I wanted to do something to keep his memory and spirit alive.” The new “Pirate Bikes” have decals on the rear fenders that say “In memory of Wally Meyer ’86 and his zest for life and cycling.”

I realize that you may have issues about Lance like most people here, but the fact that you take that out on others is insensitive to those that have lost friends and to those that still ride bicycles for leisure, exercise and to take care of business.

By the way, I used to live about a mile or so north of Mt. Bonnell back in the 1990's so I hope it wasn't you that bumped me or any of my other friends off the road then. None of us were wanna-bees--we were there to enjoy the scenery.

[rosesaylavee]

8. Sounds more like you did

more to f - up Austin than Lance.

Way to go 'big' guy.

[Ron Green]

6. I helped fit him for a bike in a shop

in Richardson when he was hotshot triathlon kid in the late '80s. I remember him as arrogant even then.

He's right about Plano, though. It's a soul-killing place.