Before Indy drivers launch themselves down a track at over 200 mph, strapped into a 675 horsepower open-wheeled monster, they've got to start somewhere. And that somewhere is kart racing.

I'm not talking about the 5-laps-for-5-dollars go-karts you see at the county fair. If you're lucky and get a really good one of those pieced-together heaps, you'll top out at about 30 mph. I'm talking about highly-tuned race karts that'll do close to 95 mph and pull nearly 3 Gs in a turn. Karts that'll rocket you from 0-Piss Your Pants in 4 seconds, with your ass a half-inch off the ground. Karts that are part of highly organized racing teams with mechanics and sponsors and professional Indy drivers as trainers.

I spent last weekend up in Indy to watch drivers aged 9 and up hit New Castle Motorsports Park's 1.1 mile track for the Snap-on Stars of Karting Mazda Race of the Americas. Stars of Karting is a breeding ground for future open-wheel drivers, and the Indy Racing League is one of the main sponsors.

I figured I'd see a bunch of kids bumping each other on and off the track for three days. Instead what I got was a weekend of serious racing, by drivers who may not have been old enough to drive a car, but they drove the hell out of those karts. They were passing on tight turns at close to 80 mph, engaging in a little bump drafting, and taking the straight-aways three wide at full throttle, just ...There's more

We all know the Super Bowl host stadium is packed every year with corporate suckups and well-connected cronies who wouldn't know a Quarterback option from a stock option. The real fans - who are unwilling or unable to pony up the four-figure price tag for a ticket - get left standing outside. Unless you hedge your bets.

Yoonew.com is a site that launched late last year, with a highly sophisticated back-end, that lets you play the sports ticket market like the stock market. Complete with real-time "stock ticker" showing ticket price movements. It's a Sports Fan/Wall Street Whiz Wet Dream.

Once you register and fund your account, you've got three ways to get in on the action: You can bid on specific event tickets, like the Super Bowl, World Series, or NBA Finals, no matter what team is playing; you can bid on Team Fantasy Seats, for instance if you think the Dolphins will make it to the Super Bowl (and if you do, you need to increase your medication), the current bid is $48.10 per ticket, while the bid for tickets if the Pats make it again is $1747.05; or you can bid on Matchup Fantasy Seats, where right now the big ticket is a Patriots-Cowboys matchup with bids going for ...There's more