part two
Remember the blur that went by you on I-5? Well . . .
Page 2 of 2
"We are just a bunch of wealthy guys that have money to spend on gadgets; we are enthusiasts," one participant told a trooper in Lewis County, Wash.
Previous Playersruns were from Los Angeles to Miami in 2003 and New York to Los Angeles last year. The 2005 entry fee, as near as can be determined from an Internet blogger, was $12,800 for car, driver and one passenger. The official Web site, playersrun.com, notes that this includes luxury hotel accommodations, secure overnight parking, luggage transport, VIP parties, decals and "all goodies."
(Some of the proceeds go to charity.)
Repeat: It "is not a race"
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Playersrun 2005 participants are promised "the week of your life," with stopovers (and parties) in San Francisco on Sunday night, Los Angeles on Monday night, San Diego tonight and Las Vegas on Wednesday night, when a "Black Tie Finale" is scheduled.
The Web site displays photos of various celebrities, without captions -- but Hugh Hefner and Jay Leno need no introductions.
It also contains this "Caution: Playersrun is not a race, speed competition or contest, drag race or acceleration contest. . . . Participants must not compete with other drivers in any manner. . . . Please note that ANYONE caught racing on the public highway will be excluded from participation in the event. . . . "
(They forgot to tell the guy in the Acura.)
Try this trivia
Goodyear blimps have been involved in the telecasts of nearly every major sports event. When was the first one launched, and how many are there now?
A little Clarett here . . .
Back to Jay Leno, who had this to say the other night about Donald Trump starting an online university: "It's a school where you don't have to attend classes in person -- or, as Ohio State calls it, the football program."
And a little claret there
"Jeff Gordon is coming out with his own wine," Scott Ostler reports in The San Francisco Chronicle, "and that should win the hearts of the hardcore NASCAR fans, many of whom hate Jeff because he seems like a guy who would come out with his own wine."
Trivia answer
The first Goodyear blimp, 'Pilgrim,' was launched 80 years ago last Friday, on June 3, 1925, in Akron, Ohio. There are now four -- three in the United States and one in Brazil.
Trivia postscript
None of the blimps was available to follow the action in Playersrun 2005, but then, as we know, it's not a real race, anyway.
The Light Side is edited by Bob Lochner: 503-412-7013;
boblochner@news.oregonian.com
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