You're right Ken, it IS Miami. Insurance???? For what? A bike race? Ha! Do you know how many people down here drive around without liscenses let alone car insurance. Its is literally like living in a parallel universe down here. Its the wild west. No where esle in the US (at least not in a major metropolitan area) can you feel like you live in another country in the vast majority of the city. So people hate it, but others embrace it.
You're right though Snap, most responsible promoters would not touch something like this w/o insurance, but who said all the promoters where responsible or even cared about how thing are done according to the USA cycling rules. For example, there is a Thanksgiving Day ride that is actually a race with thousands of dollars up for grabs and there not even any registration. People put money up for the Saturday Pinecrest ride sometimes. Is that good or bad? Who knows... One thing I do know, is that down here, people love racing their bikes...