Scaparri

I have to go with Superman: Tower of Power or the Big Shot on top of the Stratosphere. I love the combo program and the sheer size of Superman but then again, the view and airtime is righteous on the Big Shot. Tough call.

I'm kind of known for my dance abilities. I've performed with groups all over the eastern half the of U.S. and have even been awarded scholarships to elite camps.

"Dreams" by the Cranberries Seriously, their music needs to be removed from the face of the Earth.

Favorite: Intamin T-bars. Very small and simple, but you feel very safe along with the seatbelt. Least Favorite: Gerstlauer wooden coaster trains. Absolutely brutal on your legs any time the ride turns.

Hands down, Fire. Ice is good, especially the zero-g roll, but the end just kind of dies out, and it overall doesn't pack the punch that Fire does. Plus, Fire's Immelman/helix is quite possibly one of the greatest coaster elements ever.

Yep! Exactly. I was a ride op last summer at CP and every week I put in 70 hours. Not to mention, the humidity there on the lake can be killer. Plus, CP really stresses numbers. They put a lot of pressure on the crews to up capacity, no matter how good you are doing, so you are always moving at a fast rate. Though my main ride was MF, I also had stints at Turnpikes/Calypso, Raptor, Wildcat, and Mantis. Of those, Wildcat was definately the most exhausting. The coaster is fairly old fashioned and requires a lot of pushing and pulling to slow or speed up the cars, and let me tell you, those cars are not light. And though I never worked it, I've heard that the skyride is one of toughest jobs and that you really get a workout. Pretty much, the crew IS the brakes. You'll notice pretty much all the guys wear gloves for the job and a lot of them have some arm mass. -Scott "I have no problem standing up for hours at a time or holding my arm parallel for lengthy periods anymore" P.

^Exactly. They don't keep a surplus of every single part and piece they'll ever need around. I remember last year, Dragster broke and we had to wait over a week for a part to come in from Europe. I'm sure CP is doing everything they can. That maintenance crew never rests. Once again, last year, when MF broke down a week into May, they were up all night and morning trying to figure out what was wrong with it and how to fix it. I'm sure they are doing everything in their power to get it fixed now.

I don't know why, but I really got a kick out of it in the Europe dvd when R&E are at Walibi World I believe and Non-German Tom is with them and as they are going up the lift hill of the SLC, Tom says "I'm not looking forward to this". Maybe it was the British accent that made it more entertaining, but I died laughing.

I'm not much of a bike person, but I really like what Ducati makes. They have some pretty sweet bikes.

I'd immediately press the button. No thought even goes into it for me. Just press it before the person I love does.

I really appreciate everybody's responses. It's nice to get some feedback, especially from some people who have lengthy and very respectable opinions about it. First off, to answer your question BeemerBoy, I don't think Indiana holds the only people that are passionate about it, but I have no doubt that it holds the majority. To me, it's in my blood. I hold the event very close to my heart and will always love it. However, I know exactly where you all are coming from. I lost a lot of respect for Indycar when the split occurred in '96. I became a big CART fan and strongly trashed the IRL. My thoughts shifted as the management and direction of CART became very questionable and the racing quality of Indycar increased. Unfortunately, as a lot of you have pointed out, I find pretty much anything prior to the 2003 season to be a bit of a joke. I think in the last several years though, that the competition has greatly improved and the racing quality is the best that can be found. However, the split allowed NASCAR to flourish and the only way I think Indycar will ever regain the glory it once had is if an open wheel merger occurs. I hope and pray it does. And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I think it can overtake Nascar, but just get some of it's glory back. The Indy 500 is in my roots and it truly saddens me to see the race struggle to get a full field each year. I miss the glory days back when 50-70 cars were trying to make the field... back when Bump Day meant something. Maybe one day, the glory will be restored, but who knows.

May is finally here, which in Indiana, signifies that it's Indy 500 time. Personally, there is nothing more important than the Indy 500. Not even coasters trump it. How do the rest of you feel? If you care, what are your thoughts about this year's race? This year promises to be quite an exciting year. Michael Andretti has come out of retirement to race with his 19 year old son in one more attempt to capture the win that has eluded him his entire career. Al Unser Jr. has come out of retirement as well for one more try at getting a third win. Dan Wheldon is looking strong to make it two in a row and Helio Castroneves is looking very strong to capture his third win. Of course, there is also the always-run-into-the-ground story of Danica Patrick. Also, the entire field will be running the exact same engines and tires. I'm not going to pick a favorite for the race quite yet. I'm going to wait and see how practice and qualifications go. I'm fortunate enough to live an hour away from the track so I will be there frequently this month watching all the stories and events unfold and rooting on my buddy Vitor Meira. I can't wait for May 28th!

Cool Blue Gatorade

Thunderhead at Dollywood on April 24th. What a righteous ride.

My Top 5 will probably all be racing related: TIE 1. Mario Andretti ; The Greatest Racer in History- The man has done it all. He's won the Indy 500, the F1 World Championship, the Daytona 500, and that list goes on forever. He has entered in numerous forms of racing and has won a championship or major event in nearly every one of them. He is to racing what Michael Jordan is to basketball. 1. Tony George ; The owner of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I'd love to sit down and talk about how much he screwed up open wheel racing, talk about the good he has done, and talk about what needs to happen in the future. 3. Emerson Fittipaldi ; the 1979 F1 World Champ and '89 & '93 Indy 500 winner- He was always one of my heroes growing up. I'd really like to sit down and talk about the good ole days. 4. Kenny Brack ; 1998 Indy 500 winner. He's just an all 'round great guy. He accomplished what would be my ultimate dream and then nearly died in a horrific accident. He just is a person I'd really like to have a conversation with. 5. Vitor Meira ; Runner-up in the '05 Indy 500 and my favorite racer- The only reason why he doesn't rank higher is because I've had conversations with him before. He's just a class act with a ton of talent in the profession that I've always dreamed about.

"Almost Honest" by Josh Kelley

I saw O.A.R. at Clowes Memorial Hall in Indy on April 4th. It was amazing as always (it was my 6th time seeing them). Those guys really know who to rock. It was also the smallest venue I've seen them play which made the show that much greater. Next up: Goo Goo Dolls and Counting Crows at the Tweeter Center in Chicago on August 18th and Ben Harper at Verizon Wireless Music Center in Indy on August 31st.

1. I'm a huge Indycar Racing fan. The Indianapolis 500 is my #1 passion in life. I go to about 1/3 to half of the Indycar races each season. 2. I lost 55 lbs in 9 months in 2002. 3. I only buy Tropicana brand orange juice. When I'm home, it's basically the only thing I drink. 4. I have a scar through my right nipple from when I got hit by a swinging car door. 5. I walked away from a 75mph, four roll, single-car accident.

Huss I have always pronounced it H(uh)ss, but I was informed last year when CP installed MaXair that it is actually pronounced like moose with an h. I don't know how much truth there is to that though.

I think it is a great park, but I wouldn't call it the best. As far as overall ride collection, yeah, it's hard to beat. Sure, not many of the rides are the best in their category, but the huge variety is what makes the collection great. As was mentioned before, the park is also run very smoothly. Last summer, I read a lot of complaints about CP stacking trains. I think that right there says a lot. It's not expected. You always know that the employees at CP are busting their ass to keep the ride efficient with as high of capacity as possible. They pride themselves on their hourly numbers. How many parks have you been to where you see the employee slowly checking trains and taking their sweet time? Most. And for $40 a day, the place is a steal compared to most parks this day in age. The only thing the park really lacks is theming. It's all about what a person is looking for. If a person is looking for a park with a lot of really fun rides where they can just have a good time riding, then CP is the place to go. If a person wants good rides, but uniqueness, charm, and history, then a place like Knoebel's or Kennywood is probably more fitting. If it's a few good rides with extensive theming that really sucks the person into a different world, then a place like IOA, Dollywood, or Disney probably does the trick. I like it all. It just depends what mood I'm in.

I'm going to have to say Dueling Dragons and Italian Job. Those are definately my favorites. Dragons queue is nothing short of incredible. It beats the heck out of every queue I've ever waited in. Italian Job has great theming throughout the ride. Not many people seem to really care for the ride, but it's actually one of my favorites. The theming really makes the ride.

I'm going to say Six Flags St. Louis and Michigan's Adventure. For such a huge market and taking into consideration how long St. Louis has been in the chain, they really haven't shown it much love. Batman in '95, Freeze in '98, and Boss in '00. I think it's time. They could really use a hyper about now. Michigan's Adventure could also use something. That park lacks variety and high-capacity. Plus, they have a massive amount of land. I'd love to see them put a B&M invert in there. They need something more modern and high-capacity that will really draw the crowds in. It's amazing how many of my friends from Michigan have never been to MIA. They all just go to CP. I mean, most people here just go to Kings Island, but most of us have still be to Holiday World (the local GP doesn't fancy HW nearly as much as enthusiasts do, so MIA and HW are comparable).

Six Flags St. Louis in '02. I went on a Saturday in May. I mistakenly thought St. Louis was an hour behind so we (my friend and I) ended up getting to the park an hour after it opened, so everything was already packed. Every ride had a righteous line. The Scooby dark ride was new that year and even it had a line well over an hour. We did Mr. Freeze (I think we waited an hour or an hour and a half), then headed over to Boss. After waiting about 45 minutes, the ride broke down. We waited for quite a while before we finally realized that the Ferris Wheel was broken, Mr. Freeze hadn't run for a while, neither had Screamin' Eagle, and Batman was stuck on the lift. The entire park had lost power. It didn't regain power for another hour and a half. At the end of the day (by the time we had to leave and head home), we had ridden Freeze, Eagle, Batman, Boss, and Ninja each once. That's it. It was quite a frustrating day, but experiencing Freeze with only a lap bar for the first time was worth it alone.

I would say Indianapolis, but we have SFKK two hours south, Kings Island two hours east, and IB an hour and a half north, so there really wouldn't be much point. I'm going to agree with Julie and say that Nashvegas could use another one.

Little Titans at Mt. Olympus. The little hops at the end are crazy!