While Lance Armstrong's presence at the Tour de France is certainly part of the past, 10 Americans will line up when the peloton rolls out for Stage 1 on July 2.
It's one of the biggest represetations of US cyclists I can remember, and it reflects not only the old timers but some fresh faces.
BMC
Leading that group of veterans is George Hincapie, 37, above, of Greenville, SC. Now cycling for BMC, this will be Hincapie's 16th Tour de France. That ties retired Dutch cyclist Joop Zoetemelk's record.
In eight of those Tours, he competed on the Tour-winning team — seven for Armstrong and once for Alberto Contador. This year, the super domestique will be looking to put teammate Cadel Evans into the yellow jersey.
Joining Hincapie on the US-based team will be Brent Bookwalter, 27, of Albuquerque, NM.
RadioShack
Another US-based cycling team to announce its roster is Team RadioShack. The two American cyclists attending the Tour on that team — Chris Horner, left, and Levi Leipheimer, right — are among the four that manager Johan Bruyneel says will contend for the overall championship.
Horner, 39, of Bend, Oregon, is fresh off his championship at the Amgen Tour of California in May. Leipheimer, 37, of Santa Rosa, California, just won the Tour de Suisse this month.
Horner's win comes on the strength of his climbing abilities, while Leipheimer won the Swiss tour with his time trial prowess.
Bruyneel named Jani Brajkovic of Slovokia and Andreas Kloden of Germany among the four who could contend for title. He said:
turn this into an advantage. Together we are strong to fight against
(Alberto) Contador and the Schlecks (Frank and Andy).”
HTC Highroad, another US-based team, is sending two Americans to the Tour de France. 
Colorado Springs native Danny Pate, 32, is making his third trip to the Tour, while this will be the first trip for Tejay van Garderen, left. The 22-year-old is a native of Tacoma, Washington, and drew attention to himself by finishing in fifth place overall at the Tour of California last month.
The main job of both cyclists, of course, will be to secure more stage wins for England's Mark Cavendish.
Garmin-Cervelo
The US-based Garmin-Cervelo pro cycling team hasn't announced its full
roster yet, but manager Tom Vaughters did tell the Denver Post that Tom Danielson, 33, will be part of the squad.
This
will be Danielson's first trip to the Tour de France, and it comes
after his third place finish at the Tour of California and a ninth at
Tour de Suisse.
Meanwhile, Tour de France organizer ASO released a preliminary roster of the Tour that included nine names for Garmin. Among them were Americans Danielson, Tyler Farrar, Christian Vande Velde and David Zabriskie.
The 27-year-old Farrar hails from Wenatchee, WA, and is a major challenger to Cavendish's sprint victories. He has three race or stage wins in 2011. (He abandoned the Giro d'Italia early to mourn the death of his friend and fellow cyclist Wouter Weylandt.
Vande Velde represents a chance for a Top 10 finisher. The best year for the 35-year-old cyclist from Lemont, Illinois, came in 2008 when he earned the pink jersey for two days at the Giro d'Italia, won the Tour of Missouri, and finished 4th overall at the Tour de France.
Zabriskie, 32, of Salt Lake City is the team's time-trial threat. The current US time trial champion has won stages at all three grand tours. He has three time trial wins so far this year.
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