Being 'just good friends' is not a euphemism

In this post-"Brokeback Mountain" era, Matthew McConaughey and Lance Armstrong find it necessary to state that they're just friends no matter how much time they spend together. So, just to set the record straight: They're not gay.

"We tried it. Wasn't for us," jokes McConaughey in Details magazine, also dispelling rumors about the sexuality of pal Jake Gyllenhaal, who actually starred as one of the gay cowboys in "Brokeback."

Photographers have been having a field day snapping pics of the two close friends wearing very little clothing while working out, catching rays on the beach, sweating and looking manly. Instead of celebrating this obvious display of testosterone-fueled brotherhood, the tabloids began speculating that more tender emotions were involved.

Armstrong, who's a seven-time Tour De France winner, attributes their closeness to both men being suddently single at the same time. Armstrong had broken off his engagement to singer Sheryl Crow in February, and McConaughey called it quits with Penelope Cruz a few months later.

"Our friendship just kind of developed," says Armstrong. "He got out of a relationship; I'd just gotten out of a relationship.

"I think people see pictures and they think we're these overgrown frat guys," he continues, "but we all have those kinds of relationships -– and relationship isn't a bad word. I mean, we all have buds, we all take guy trips, but you take something very normal and you put it in a magazine, and people start talking. It's like, either you sleep with anything that moves or you're gay. They can't figure it out."

Armstrong, 35, is also learning from his pal McConaughey, 36, how to deal with gossip. "His idea is like, 'Look, it is what it is, so go out there and have fun.' He's truly carefree -– which is to say, he truly doesn't care."

McConaughey last starred opposite Sarah Jessica Parker in the romantic comedy "Failure to Launch." He next stars as a football coach in "We Are Marshall," set for release in December.