Tune into the Tour de France and you will see dozens of bicyclists giving their all, smothered in advertisements. There are plenty of odd sponsors out there, but Lance Armstrong's primary one, Astana, takes the cake. Astana is essentially owned by the government of Kazakhstan, one of the most undemocratic, oppressive nations around. And aside from being associated with such a corrupt government, the team itself is also "the weirdest (and) skankiest" in cycling, according to one insider. The team was at the epicenter of recent doping scandals, and one of Armstrong's teammates, Andreas Kloeden, continues being caught up in performance-enhancing-drug rumors. The team, in its current form (which has been cleaned up substantially) is one of the best cycling has ever seen. But what of Armstrong's reputation, especially if he is really considering entering the political arena? If that is the case, riding for "Team Borat" might not look so good.
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