There's nothing fred about a few spacers. people need to get over it, they exist for a reason (as do brake hoods, 3x cross wheels, and a lot of other supposedly "fred" stuff)
... as for Lance vs. Contador, i don't think there is any way Lance is going to race for second. At this point i think he has a pretty good idea about how he might do, and all this talk of playing a support role is just so typical Lance. i'm not the hugest fan by any stretch, but if he lines up my moneys on him to take his 8th yellow jersey, his ego/drive/competetiveness runs too deep.
Gotta wonder though how Shimano feels seeing him on Sram stuff...not too swell i'd imagine