• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, December 2, 2009

Give Gap credit for maximizing its peppy moment in the sun. First, its new holiday TV campaign -- the first time it's been on air in three years -- made news when it was targeted for a boycott by a controversial Christian group. Then it made news when the boycott was called off. And now, the San Francisco-based retailer is celebrating all that by wrapping a bus in cheerful red plaid, packing it full of drummers and cheerleaders, and taking it on the road.

The Gap's Traveling "Cheer" squad -- a dozen professional dancers and drummers -- started handing out swag and coupons in New York, and is now bound for Chicago, L.A., and San Francisco. The company says the bus tour is part of its holiday campaign, celebrating this year's "classic cozy cabin" collection, which it has described as "an urban unconventional modern take on the coziness and comfort of the American log cabin."

The Cheer campaign, created by Crispin Porter + Bogusky, first put the retailer in the headlines when the American Family Association (AFA), a Mississippi-based Christian watchdog group, called for a boycott because its ads, it said, did not specifically mention Christmas. Gap responded by pointing out that its ads did: Gap cheerleaders chant "Go Christmas, go Hanukkah, go Kwanzaa, go solstice" in one version; Old Navy's skating supermodelquins wish one another "Merry Christmas."

So, earlier this week, the AFA congratulated itself for its "win," and called off the boycott. (Instead, it's now asking members to apply pressure to the retailers that are still on its "Naughty" list, which include Dick's, Best Buy and Victoria's Secret.)

Gap certainly isn't the first retailer to take a bus trip. Right after the Thanksgiving Day parade, for example, Macy's shooed Santa onboard for a 25-city bus whirlwind tour. But it is indicative of how eager retailers are to reach shoppers in what is shaping up to be a challenging holiday sales period. Racked.com, a New York shopping site, even embedded a blogger on the Cheer bus to gauge reaction to the Gap promotion, which includes freebies, as well as coupons for a free pair of 1969 Premium Jeans and "Buy One, Get One 50% Off" deals.

So far, it looks like holiday shoppers are a tough crowd. "I'm wearing the sweater I got on Friday in Washington Square Park now," one posted on racked.com. "It is too big but super cozy! No one was really into the performance so no fighting/dancing was necessary. Also I think the coupons only apply to full-price items. They gave out ~4 sweaters and some people boo-ed when they left without giving more."

No word yet if life on the Cheer bus will produce a reality TV show.