If they were interested in cycling races, they wouldn't likely be calling cyclists "****" would they? My point, for those that missed it, is that dismissing out of hand any group of potential cycling fans, but especially a potential group that is so large, is silly. Those are the people that have driven Nascar to be the huge enterprise it is today, and it's been going on a lot shorter period of time than bike racing. The fact that it's not nearly as international and yet the names of the racers are so widely recognized is a testament to it's popularity. They aren't just recognized in Alabama either, they are racing in Japan and Mexico, and spin off series that are based on the Nascar model are cropping up all over the world, where they enjoy a tremendous following.

Anybody know where I can get a Bobby Julich decal? How about a hat, or a T-shirt, so that I can wear it at the mall? Die cast miniature of Lance's bike for my collection? Maybe an action figure of Jan Ulrich? Surely there's a store at the mall where I can buy these things, right? All of these things have been done by Nascar, driven by fans that want to buy these things, and it's taken them all of what, 55 years? for it to rise to the level that it is? They are doing something right. I'd love to see cycling be as popular, but it never will be as long as cyclists refer to the vast majority of the US population as "cagers" and talk about the largest fan base in the country as "rednecks".