After reading Tyler Hamilton’s book a while ago I really fancied giving one of those red tablets a go just to see how it feels. I wouldn’t race, just use it to annoy DrP on the hills.

Anyone tried them? What’s it like?

Where can you get them?

I’ve tried IPA as a bravery enhancing drug. It worked.

Try this guy probably has long list of suppliers.

I’ve tried IPA as an emetic. It worked.

Not tried them but the one I fancy is clenbuterol.

I could do with a drug that converts fat to muscle (that may not be entirely correct).

Panorama reporter got some easily over the internet from China. Have you tried Googling yet?

Let us know how it goes.

I don’t believe it can be any better than the right mixture of flapjack and jelly babies.

Nitroglycerine for the win

My handlebars are from china and I’m not sure I fully trust them..

As a 1 off amphetamine would probably be better than EPO and possibly easier to get hold of.

But remember kids, don’t do drugs!

I’ve tried digital epo, now that makes you really really quick.

I am sure searching the dark net will yield a positive result….ah boom tish

This is the side of PEDs in professional sport that concerns me. The whole Armstrong-defense of ‘Oh everyone else was doing it, so I had to’ belies the wider implications of this level of ‘acceptance’. If this practice is seen as normal in professional circles, then it will become widely acceptable for amateurs also. Where does it stop there? Amateur athletes at junior level?

These substances are quite simply evil, nasty things.

Paradoxically, though. I’d love to try EPO for a month or so. I’m sure it would be like being given the keys to a Ferrari. I’m equally sure it would cause my heart to explode also, which probably wouldn’t be all that great.

Never tried any of the class A ones but I think my hayfever medicine is on the banned list.
Contemplating having a lend of my son’s asthma pump too.

Think I might try to cobble together some over the counter stuff and go on a Strava rampage.

If it’s for strava then save yourself potential health issues, and use an e-bike! 😉

I thought asthma medication has no positive effect on people with “normal” lungs?

TBH if there was a safe, reliable performance enhancing drug I knew of that I could take, I’d be taking it already. Though I suppose I would stop racing if I did, even at the low level I race at it’d be a ****’s trick, the clean dude who’s 280th doesn’t want to be beaten by the cheat who’s 279th.

Clenbuterol is easily obtained as an asthma med, it works, it’s also horrible due to long half life that will see you jittery for most of the day.
It doesn’t convert fat to muscle, that simply can’t happen, two different substances, like trying to convert steel to carbon fibre.
It is anti catabolic though, meaning you can use it on a calorie deficit diet to drop weight but hold onto muscle….and that’s the trick for pro cyclists really, maintaining power while getting as light as possible.

Tried most steroids, peptides, growth hormone, ephedrine, clenbuterol over the years…all work to a degree but there really is no substitute for a good diet, plenty of rest and structured training….think of PEDs as icing on the cake and you’ve got the right idea.

Really good american aritcle a while back about trying diff stuff – have a look here

Tried albuterol (similar effect to clen, less side effects). My reason for use was weight loss, as it raises BMR, but it also has an anabolic action. Commonly used by bodybuilders in the cutting phase of their training programme, in the immediate lead up to a competition. I didn’t see much effect, but think my dose was too low.

Also used Ipamorelin and GRF1-29, both of with increase the body’s release of endogenous growth hormone. Reason for use was healing from major spinal surgery, as GH increases rate of muscle and collagen synthesis. Major effect, even the surgeon was amazed at the amount of healing that had taken place in the short time frame between surgery and my 1st follow up.

All the above are banned substances on the WADA list. Albuterol is easy to test for, the other two are very difficult & expensive to test for, so not in your every day doping tests.

As speckled Bob says amphetamine is what you need if you want to try something as a one off,very prolific in the pro peleron back in the day.let us know how you get on.

There was a thread here where someone took part in an EPO trial and the outcome was something like a few % increase in “fitness” which may well have just been a training effect during the course of the trial or natural variability. You can’t turn a Fred in to a pro that easy! Of course the effects for the pros at the limit of the physiological performance are likely to see more benefit

I shall have a look at the articles.

I should try a series of rides on some of the old school PED’s and do a write up…

It’s the feeling of invincibility that Hamilton describes I’d be interested in experiencing, as soon as % gains are mentioned my eyes glaze over.

Tried most steroids, peptides, growth hormone, ephedrine, clenbuterol over the years…all work to a degree but there really is no substitute for a good diet, plenty of rest and structured training….think of PEDs as icing on the cake and you’ve got the right idea.

Damn. 😆

You know you have to train pretty hard as well, yeah?

I’ve often thought a little bit of EPO would be a godsend on a week-plus long bike trip TBH, if it really does let you feel fresh as a daisy each day.

You’ve heard about e-bikes, right?!? 😉

I thought asthma medication has no positive effect on people with “normal” lungs?

Depends what it is, I thought the inhalers where basically steroids

I would be willing to give human growth hormone a go for injury rehab, there was an artcile posted on here from years ago about the doctor who tried all the various meds

I know someone who took EPO, but I think that was because he had donated a Kidney to his brother. The net effect on his riding ability was negative.

Personally if I was going to go down this route then buying drugs of the internet would not be my choice. Maybe buy an altitude tent instead?

Wasn’t there a journalist who took some of these drugs to write about the effect?

apparently 33 units of alcohol has pretty much the same effect

faustus – Member

If it’s for strava then save yourself potential health issues, and use an e-bike!

I think DrP might notice the e-bike, unless he’s just come off a 72 hour shift.

It is anti catabolic though, meaning you can use it on a calorie deficit diet to drop weight but hold onto muscle….and that’s the trick for pro cyclists really, maintaining power while getting as light as possible.

Deviant – For an engineer that’s close enough to turning fat into muscle. You are of course correct when you say technically it can’t be done.

You’ve heard about e-bikes, right?!?

Electric Pedalled Objects?

I wouldn’t race, just use it to annoy DrP on the hills.

Genuine LOL at that!!
You do make me laugh 😀

I’ll look to see what’s in my bottom drawer for you. Celeste any good? Can’t hurt..

DrP

I once had a steroid prescription, for an infection. I run most days of the week, and after about 3-4 days of taking the drugs, found my running to be about 10% quicker than my best ever times.

It wasn’t as though I felt I could run any quicker, just no sign of lactic acid build up in my legs. I could keep running at a fast rate, without the pain/tiredness that gradually builds up.

Checked the ingredients, and they were banned on the WADDA list.

Nick

I have a repeat prescription for the two common asthma drugs: The blue one is a muscle relaxant and is a very effective cure of the symptoms. I use this a lot as my lungs tighten up, this relaxes them. If you don’t have Asthma this would have no effect and would possibly have a negative effect overall in terms of PED.

The other one is the brown inhaler which includes Beclometasone dipropionate which is a common steroid. I have never bothered with this much but it is banned as a PED. I am tempted to get a new one but at my level of performance, less pie and loafing would have far greater effect.

Earlier this year at a race, the guy behind me got a little bit vocal about me having a toot on my blue inhaler before starting a stage.

Apparently it was an unfair advantage!

no_eyed_deer – Member

These substances are quite simply evil, nasty things.

Apart from that they were developed as drugs for medical issues and were then abused. The substances aren’t evil. The abusers are evil.

Without synthesised EPO you’d have a lot of cardiac patients who would be dead.

I tried Evo once as a kid.
Dave Lennox ran into a tree and split his head open.

Holland and Barrett sell it though I am unsure which size to get??

EPO

Tried most steroids, peptides, growth hormone, ephedrine, clenbuterol over the years

Deviant, what did you make of HGH? Did you experience any of the other benefits (skin, eyesight etc)? What dose were you running and how long for?

apparently 33 units of alcohol has pretty much the same effect

When racing in youth and cultivating an interest in underage drinking, one of the better results I had was after an unintentionally heavy night on the beer, got picked up by my dad from a mates house on the way to the race. A potent mix of loads of carbs and still being very slightly pissed so I couldn’t feel the pain 🙂

Asthma is one thing, there’s also a phenomenon called exercise -induced -brochospasm (EIB) which basically means that your lungs tighten up on exertion, but not to the extent of asthma. This is also treated with also salbutamol. It’s very easy to get a diagnosis of asthma since the tests are effort -dependent so if you know what you’re doing, you can get salbutamol from your gp without any trouble. A diagnosis of asthma requires >10% lung function variability but you can imagine that even a 1% difference might make a difference in the tour.

I have heard reports that 80% of the pro peleton have either asthma or EIB.

The last time I checked, salbutamol itself isn’t banned by WADA. You’re allowed 16 puffs of a blue inhaler before it becomes illegal. So yeah, a lot of them will undoubtedly use it.

@jonba – the journalist in the Panorama report mentioned earlier went on EPO for a period using micro-dosing as he was looking at being tested at the end of it and was trying to determine if he could fool the passport system. I think he’s a triathlete, he commented that he stopped going for a ride with his mates as he improved that much it was embarrassing.