I received the email below from Dewey Dickey last week. I almost cried after reading it. Anyway, I asked Dewey if he wanted to write something. He is obviously a bit overwhelmed. Second guessing his decisions, as all of us would. You guys can judge if you want. I’m just sad. I am going to miss having him at the races.
May 12th, 2010
Steve,
Just wanted to let you know I’m suspended again for 2 years. USADA showed up at my house late last night and I refused the test. My TUE’s have not been approved yet this year so I refused. I would have been positive anyway. I had them in place from ’06-’08. In ’09 I reapplied with nothing being different but they kept asking for more info. I finally gave up. This winter I started the process again. They asked for more info and my doc faxed it in. Hadn’t heard anything as of yet, so figured it was still in the process of being either approved or denied.
I’m going to miss not being able to race with you and Brian anymore. I’ve always respected the hard ass way you race. Don’t be to hard on me on your blog.
Take care. Dew
May 18th, 2010
On the 11th on May at 9:30pm USADA showed up at my house and asked for a drug test. I refused to give a sample. I think they wanted blood too, but not sure. The reason I refused the test was because at that time I would have returned a positive test. After my health issues from ’04-’05 I had to start taking 4 medications, 3 of which would be considered banned substances. When I returned to racing I applied for a TUE and was granted one straight away. The TUE’s were good for 3 years. They expired in May of ’09 and I reapplied sometime that late winter/early spring. They now were asking for all sorts of additional documents and information from my doctor. I can’t quite remember, but I think they asked for a 3rd set of documents and at that time I said forget it. So this year I applied and once again they kept asking for more. I didn’t understand this as nothing has changed with my health and it never will change, at least not for the better. Anyway, I talked to my doc’s assistant and she got together the documents they were asking for and faxed them in. I received an email confirmation that they had received them and I would hear from them in about 3 weeks. I think that was around the 9th of April. I knew it was taking sometime, but just figured they were still in the process of getting them approved. So, when they showed, I knew I didn’t have them and was really dumbfounded that they would do something like that, knowing I didn’t have them and knowing it would be a problem for me. So, I had to make a quick decision, I thought it would be best to refuse the test knowing I wouldn’t pass anyway. Maybe that was a bad choice, but it’s to late now and I’m looking at a 2 year suspension.
Oh yeah, I just got an email confirming my TUE’s have been approved for another 3 years. GO figure. SO that’s what happened. I have some decisions to make on regards to my next step. I’ve tried calling the ombudsman and also USADA but haven’t been able to get through to anyone yet. That’s all for now.
Take care, Dew
Dewey winning Snake Alley in 2008. Brian and I in the background.
Damn! That’s all I got
This seems so f***ed-up. The Feds have to have some resolution to this without him having to spend his life savings in the process. Lets help him with this through petition or whatever, if it is as he says.
I feel sympathy for the health problems that Dewey has faced and will face. But I don’t feel sorry for him here. He was a doper. Plain and simple. He knows the process well and knows that a refusal is a positive. If he had nothing in his system than what he has applied for in his previous TUE’s then he could have at least fought the result based on his ongoing TUE’s delay. But by refusing the test we will never know what he was taking and I for one will not afford him the benefit of the doubt.
P.S. Given their delay and the suspicious timing of their unannounced testing, they owe it to you to give you another chance. Now that they have the TUE processed, let them test away. From an equitable standpoint, the refusal shouldn’t stand. That’s why even the court system looks at things not only from a legal standpoint, but, also through an equitable lens. Equity is fairness. All things deserve to be also viewed from a “what’s right”; “what’s fair” standpoint. If they are a few weeks from issuing a decision because of their delay, they need to give you the benefit of the doubt. It’s half-way through the season. Ruling on your request 1/2 way through the season is not a timely resolution of your request. Showing up in the middle of the night with that pending (because of their delay) is not fair.
Good luck, Dewy. I’m so sorry to hear all this. It is easy to be the Monday morning quarter-back on your decision when USADA showed up (Jason W.’s comment). I cannot agree with the critique of your decision or the assumptions some make. You were forced to make a split decision in response to an unannounced visit from USADA. You had neither the benefit of knowledgeable, objective advice nor the benefit that time would have added to your choice. You knew the answer beause of your TUEs and so, no doubt thought, what’s the point. I’m irritated that USADA didn’t more timely deal with your request for a decision. I’m curious about what further information they said they needed before ruling on your request. I am quite suspicious of their motives. They knew you had an outstanding TUE request when they showed up. I feel for you like it was somewhat of an ambush. Obviously, they may have another perspective or additional information; but, so far, it doesn’t quite seem right. I wish for you we could turn back time, have you take the test, and then, as some have said, the issue could have been about whether they should have acted more quickly on your request.
I don’t know all the particulars, just what was written but, sorry, I have to agree with Jason on this one. If you know you have followed all the steps, and things are tied up at the other end, you take the test and sort it out later. The timeline should be easy to follow IF you have done what you should.
Worst case, you are suspended. Don’t take the test and you will be suspended for sure. That seems fairly simple to decide, even in a rush.
“Monday morning quarterback”? You say the same thing in the last paragraph. Take the test and fight the fight.
I do agree that the USADA should act in a more responsible and adult manner BUT they know who they are dealing with before they show up. Past history tells us a lot.
I have no idea what the TUE would have been for but, I know that if I didn’t have the paperwork in place I would have a choice to make. Either I make a pest of myself making sure the TUE forms were pushed along OR I don’t race until everything is in order.
I have to think that, while the TUE timing is the central issue, maybe there was something else in the body that the TUE doesn’t cover. I have to wonder.
@Ponytell: You wrote “Given their delay and the suspicious timing of their unannounced testing, they owe it to you to give you another chance”
USADA doesn’t owe an athlete any notice. Especially when you have previously tested positive and admitted to taking the substance (see:2001). Dewey was a doper. He knows the game. You refuse a test you are positive. This is not a court of law, it is a sport. You sign up to play by the rules of the sport. There is no equity, you don’t get second chances to give a sample when it suits you or because you don’t agree with the system or because it isn’t ‘fair.’ Dewey knows these rules.
USADA asks for documents to validate your TUE’s and you comply. If you don’t comply with their standards you don’t play. Simple as that.
I know first hand how much of a pain in the arse USADA is with TUE’s but in order to compete you jump through their hoops because of guys like Dewey who have tarnished this sport.
You don’t get second chances. You give a sample when they show up or you don’t play. Again, Dewey knows this. If Dewey would have given a sample and the only thing in is system was the stuff that was in his previous and pending TUE’s then he would have a legal leg to stand on. There are bad apples that have made this a dirty sport and Dewey is one of them. Good riddance.
jason: all your assertions assume he’s “guilty as charged”, if you will. who protects the rider from bureaucratic delay? For many, it’s not just a sport, it’s a livelihood, a way of life, neither of which pays very well. I have no idea whether or not dewy doped or didn’t but the timing of the test relative to the TUE decision is suspect. Fairness is always appropriate, not just in the court system.
As I understand this, the previous TUE was set to expire in May of 2009. DD reapplied for the TUE in early 2009 but the process was cumbersome and the application process was abandoned. So, although the TUE application was again undertaken in early 2010, DD was in fact racing without the proper TUE from May of 2009 until the USADA test attempt on May 11 2010. One year.
DD stated “The reason I refused the test was because at that time I would have returned a positive test.”
Some questions:
– What was DD’s plan should he have tested positive in a post race test during the year he went with0ut a valid TUE?
– Did DD actually have any post race testing during this year without a valid TUE?
– Would DD have refused a post race test if one had been requested during this year without a valid TUE?
“Quick decision” when USADA showed up? I’m sure it is shocking to have these guys show up at a personal residence requesting urine and blood samples. But surely some thought had to be put into the possibility of testing without a valid TUE in place over the course of an entire year.
My contacts with DD have always been positive and I have found him a very pleasant person. I have no experience with elite level cycling myself so maybe there are some details here that I am missing or do not understand.
But I am having difficulty reconciling the shock of USADA requesting a sample when they may have known that a TUE application was in process and the fact that a valid TUE had not been in place for a year.
Hey Dewey, hang in there. Seems like the TUE process is very lacking and the USADA has some real internal communication issues.
You should consider writing an article for velonews or someother cycling rag stating your position. It could help the USADA change some internal issues.
I hope they rethink this one. I could use another push in a race like you gave me at Hillsboro.
Ethan Froese
GOOD RIDDANCE CHEATER. I WILL POINT YOU OUT TO MY JUNIOR RACERS AS AN EXAMPLE OF A TOTAL LACK OF INTEGRITY AND CHEATING.