IT CAN GO ON like this for hours, and it does. And yet it would be foolish, for all the stoner-Zen appeal of their banter, to miss the fact that there is a great deal more going on beneath the surface. Behind Landis, on the curtain rod, hangs a clean new jersey—the color of lemons, as fate would have it, and proof of the most recent story: "The Time Floyd Won the Paris–Nice Race." He earned the jersey two days ago, March 12, in the prestigious eight-day, 792-mile, Tour-contender-filled event, which was all the more impressive since it happened right on the heels of his dominating victory in February's inaugural Tour of California. Throw in his dramatic win in April's Tour de Georgia and it adds up to an early-season show of power and talent that can only be described as Armstrongesque. While Germany's Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile) and Italy's Ivan Basso (CSC) remain the officially sanctioned favorites, Landis now stands poised just behind them. The dark air outside this apartment is filled with voices murmuring the magical words: podium, July, Tour de France.

"Floyd's the only American with a real shot to win the Tour. What happened in California and Paris–Nice make it obvious. He's rock solid, he won't freak out when things get nervous, and this year's course exceedingly suits his abilities." —Jonathan Vaughters, 32, U.S. Postal rider, 1998–99, and current director of Team TIAA-CREF

"Floyd is a strong time-trialist, a decent climber, and he's not afraid. You can build your house on him." —Axel Merckx, 33, Phonak teammate and son of all-time great Eddy Merckx

"Basso and Ullrich can be beaten. That wasn't true with Lance, but it is true this year, and it is possible that Floyd, along with some others, could do it." —Johan Bruyneel, 41, director of U.S. Postal, 1999–2004, and current director of Discovery Channel

"Look into Floyd's eyes and you can see it—he's like Cassius Clay walking into the ring with the cape on his shoulders. He looks at the other guy and tells him, 'I'm the fucking greatest, and I'm going to kill you.' " —Former U.S. Postal soigneur/masseuse Freddy Viane, 48, who now works for Phonak

Whether Landis hears these voices or believes them is tougher to know. He is smart enough to say little in this regard, because he knows that this year's Tour, marking the beginning of the post-Armstrong era, is one in which the rules are still being formed. After seven years of airtight control, the stage is wide open, with Landis playing the role of dark horse, the outsider who seems disorganized on the surface but who secretly has a plan—a hard plan, calculated and ruthlessly logical—and who sticks to it with Old Testament tenacity. Which is convenient, all in all, since that's the role he's been practicing for quite a while now. And that's the other thing about Landis: When he practices something, he practices extremely hard.