Vote for Kodos | Project PANDORA
I've a wee crush on an ultraconservative girl. Ultraconservative, you ask? The girl adores Senator Santorum. The only thing I can say in my defense is that my infatuation is mostly physical; she's a dancer!

Project OSPREY
(№ 6) Minnesota 78-72 Middle Tennessee (№ 4)

In N.I.T. action, the luckless Golden Gophers outlasted the epithetless Blue Raiders to advance to the semifinals (equivalent to the "Final Four" in the N.C.A.A. Tournament). Rarely have I seen so persistently & effectively interdict in-bounds passes as did Middle Tennessee, but it was too little, too late, & Minnesota demonstrated that a team that makes the most of its free throw opportunities has a distinct advantage both down the stretch & in the clutch. My congratulations to Coach "Tubby" Smith & his luckless Golden Gophers. Let's go, Big Ten!

This Week in Motorsport
Beyond Thunderdome
The first pair of V8 Supercars races reminded me of what attracted my attention throughout 2011: V8 Supercars is an exuberant form of motorsport. Mayhap I'm reading too much into the Aussie bravado, but there is about the enterprise a palpable joy & a devil-may-care dedication to fun. The commentators neglect to identify themselves; so, I can't tell you one from another, but I enjoy the caliber & tenor of their commentary, delivered in those preposterous, delightful Australian accents. I've watched enough of the races now to be familiar with some of the competitors, & to have a general sense of their rising or falling fortunes. My "in" to the competitive side of the sport is that I was raised in a General Motors (G.M.) family in a General Motors town, making it only natural to root for the Holden Commodores (Holden being G.M. of Australasia) as they oppose the Ford Falcons. I hate that blue oval, hate it no matter the continent or the context.

Yes, the races are edited, & broadcast on Speed days or weeks after the races are run Down Under, but the quality & deftness of the editing & packaging serves not to siphon the fun & sport out of the races, but to underscore the feebleness of the Entertainment Sports & Programming Network's butchering of the American Le Mans Series's (A.L.M.S.) races. Say "G'day" to the V8 Supercars!

By Endurance We Conquer
The 12 Hours of Sebring was run on Saturday last, beginning both the inaugural F.I.A. World Endurance Championship (W.E.C.) & this year's A.L.M.S. Audi finished first & second overall & in the L.M.P. 1 category (Le Mans Prototype 1), with the third Audi entrant much further down the order but still having classified as having covered the race distance, meaning it must have spent some time in the pits with mechanical troubles. Corvette finished second & fourth in the G.T.E.-Pro. class (Grand Tourer Endurance-Professional), behind a B.M.W. & above & behind a Ferrari. Here's hope to gain a greater sense of how it all went down through this weekend's Mobil 1 The Grid, an invaluable source of motorsport news & highlights. Motorsport that you don't see just isn't the same; curse the A.L.M.S. for selling its soul to the E.S.P.N.!

Audi are again campaigning with the turbo-Diesel-powered R18, which first competed last year. With the surprise exit of the turbo-Diesel-powered Peugeot 908 from the W.E.C., the R18's most serious competition is expected to be the brand-new petrol/electric-hybrid Toyota TS030, which won't be unveiled 'til the six-hour/1,000-kilometer race at mighty Spa-Francorchamps in May. Here's hoping that the Toyota will be able to give Audi a run for their money, to keep the sport competitive 'til Porsche arrives in L.M.P. 1 in 2014.

The Rebel Black Dot Song of the Day
Sam Cooke, "Sad Mood" from Portrait of a Legend, 1951-1964 (T.L.A.M.)