We at PoopReport can sometimes wonder if we are making headway on our objective of world poo-peace, especially given the internal squabbles that occasionally threaten our own unity. Of course, progress on the fecal freedom front is difficult to monitor, and hard to attribute to a particular cause. There is evidence, however, that more and more reporters in the traditional media are taking the occasional shit dive, although probably without knowing that they are riding the coattails of the mighty PoopReport.com.

For example, in a story this week for Eurosport about the Tour de France, Andrew Taber declared that "Elimination ...is one of the biggest mysteries of the pro peloton." Drawing on the experience of Danny Nelissen, Eurosport's Dutch cycling commentator and veteran of the pro peloton, Taber describes in nice detail how riders deal with biological business.

"Watch for the helicopter shots; the wide-angle full-peloton views that can't help but show it all. At the edge of your TV screen and at the back of the pack, you might spot a rider -- sometimes solo, sometimes braced by a hand-on-the-back from a teammate -- coasting close to the roadside, his torso turned slightly askew.

"Contrary to general societal etiquette (where bathroom breaks are conducted in privacy), in cycling, if you've got to go, you want everyone to know.

"'There's a universal signal,' says Nelissen. 'You ride to the front of the bunch, veer to the roadside and unclip a pedal. Everyone will know what's up.'"

For weightier problems, "'You drop back to your team car and ask for one of those casquettes,' says Nelissen. 'You know, one of those hats. The cloth ones. What else are you going to use?'"

Might we suggest, for starters, that team cars equip themselves with one of these?