Tim Magee, 23, of Burlington County, New Jersey, arrives early this morning for the Grandview Heights bike race.
Jim Groff
Janette Murray
Diana Nauman
Chris Stansbury
By Jane Holahan And Rebecca C. Carroll
Updated Feb 19, 2007 15:40
He’d never be that stupid.
And besides, the French hate it when Americans win the Tour de France.
Lancaster County is standing firmly behind their local hero, Floyd Landis, as he fights charges that he cheated to win the world’s most grueling and famous bike race by taking illegal testosterone before his momentous comeback.
In interviews conducted at Central Market, a local diner and a bike race in Grandview Heights, about 70 percent of those surveyed said they believe Landis is innocent. Others were in the middle, not sure what to think. And a little more than 10 percent felt he thought he could get away with it and was guilty of the charges that could lead to stripping away his title.
Landis is still awaiting test results of a backup drug screening sample.
But in Lancaster, many of the several dozen people interviewed by the New Era said a guy from Farmersville with a mom like Arlene Landis just wouldn’t cheat.
“He comes from a decent community. With his history and his parents — they are just not the kind of people who would lie,” says Michele Hoover, 42, a technical support representative from Elizabethtown. “We want to remain proud of Floyd.”
Faye Givler, 65, of Lancaster, doesn’t think it’s possible for Landis to be guilty.
“He has the Lancaster County work-ethic,” she says. “Honesty and hard work. That’s what gets you success.”
Anna Rakoczy, 63, of Lancaster, agrees.
“Why would you go through all of that hard work, if you knew you would get (eliminated)?”
“I believe him,” says Deb Tucker, 50, a nutrition education adviser from Marietta. “ With his upbringing and his character, I just don’t believe he’d cheat. And I don’t think he’d be stupid enough to do it.”
“Besides, there’s a lot of politics involved,” added her husband, Steve Tucker, 52, who works for Wilbur Chocolate. “The French don’t like to see Americans win.”
“It’s sour grapes,” says Jim Groff, 49, of Columbia, who works in a body shop. “The French are just mad America won.”
Diana Nauman, 59, a hairdresser, who lives in Lancaster, agrees.
“They like to pick on America,” she says. “They wanted to find something and didn’t think an American would win after Lance Armstrong.”
But some believe Landis got caught up in the pressure to win at all costs.
“It’s hard to believe he didn’t do it, with the way the world is,” says Dave Miles, 46, of Quarryville, who works in a pallet shop. “I think he figured he’d try to cheat like they all do.”
Miles says he got suspicious when Landis made his monumental comeback near the end of the race, going from 11th place to third in one of the toughest segments of the race.
“I thought the gap he made up was too big. It seemed kind of funny to me,” he says.
“It’s disappointing if it’s true, but I honestly don’t think he’s innocent,” says Lisa Fortin, 38, a city resident who works in the Alumni Office at Franklin & Marshall College. “I think he figured everyone does it, and he wouldn’t get caught. He’s a local hero and how disappointing it is to think he didn’t do it on his own.”
“Those tests don’t lie,” says Mimi Geib, 41, of Mountville. “I don’t want to believe it, but deep down inside he is (guilty).”
But retired machine operator Janette Murray, 62, of Lancaster, says she believes Landis’ own values would keep him from cheating.
“His parents go to church and taught him right,” she says. “If he’s trying to win, he doesn’t gain anything by cheating.”
“I think he’s innocent. You’d have to be a fool to think you’d get away with something like that,” says computer consultant Joe Peifer, 40, of Lancaster Township. “But watch me be wrong.”
While most people support Landis, they are a bit jaded about the sports world and the prevalent use of performance-enhancing drugs.
“In the world of professional athletes, steroid use is running rampant,” says Chris Stansbury, 28, of Millersville, who works for Penn Flooring.
“Who cares?” he says. “Think about how many other people were on steroids and racing against him.”
Stansbury is slow to form an opinion about the allegations.
His gut feeling? “We should wait until the results are in.”
“If they followed everyone around in sports, like track and field and baseball, steroids are everywhere,” said Bruce Bailey, 39, an administrator for State Farm who lives in Lampeter. “It’s frustrating. I believe it’s not true, but ultimately, the truth will come out.”
Some noted that the press likes to blow things out of proportion.
“I think they should have tested him a second time before it hit the papers,” says retiree Millie Ewing, 70, of Lancaster Township. “They (accused Lance) Armstrong, too. It’s just a shame this is happening.”
Tim Magee, 23, from Burlington County, N.J., a junior landscape architecture major at Temple University, has been racing bikes for the past year and was in Grandview Heights for a race this morning. He thinks Landis is innocent.
“With the injury he sustained, I hope he’s not (guilty) because it’s a good comeback story,” Magee says.
“You never like to hear about doping scandals, but they did it with Lance (Armstrong), too.”
Besides, Magee has faith in the guy from Farmersville.
“He comes from a good background with roots in Lancaster County, I don’t think he would do that,” Magee says.
It may not be surprising to hear Lancaster County is largely supporting its hometown hero, but we aren’t alone.
In an online poll done by The Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper, a whopping 77 percent said they did not believe that Landis used performance enhancing drugs to win the Tour.
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