We left Texas in the early afternoon of the 12th and began the long haul through New Mexico and Arizona. After a side-trip to the Grand Canyon that involved a too-close encounter with a lightning bolt, we encountered an unearthly dust storm while trailing down historic Route 66. It was like something out of a martian invader movie and it set quite the surreal tone for our next stop. After a night's rest at the Mohave Inn in Kingman, we were more than ready for the three-ring circus of hedonism that is Las Vegas. What used to be a small, somewhat exclusive desert watering hole for well-heeled jet-setters has morphed into a one-of-a-kind tourist attraction that combines the carnality of sex and lust for riches with high tech theme park thrills and fanciful architecture. The Chairman Of The Board and the rest of the Rat-Packers would probably spin a trough to China if they could only see their "Jewel Of The Desert" filled with road-tripping families, shooting video in the casinos and visiting the M&M Candies Museum. Their loss--for amusement afficianados, Las Vegas has a by-God License To Thrill and you can pick your poison with increasing accuracy anymore. There are indoor theme parks and sky-diving rides, motion simulators and full-blown rollercoasters all within walking distance from each other on the strip. Like the cities' famous all-you-can-eat buffets, there's no shortage of choices in what used to be called Sin City. The good folks at Buffalo Bill's Resort and Casino, which is a mini-theme park in its own right, were co-sponsoring the tour once again and we had rooms waiting for us just 40 minutes outside of Las Vegas. This has been our headquarters in past tour editions as we've tackled thrillers like The Manhattan Express at New York New York Hotel and Casino, The High Roller and Big Shot atop the Stratosphere Tower and of course, the legendary Desperado at our host resort. But this year, we beat feet for the newest sensation on the Strip: Speed: The Ride at the Sahara Hotel and Casino. Incidentally not inspired by the Keanu Reeves film, this sleek new coaster from Premier Rides, Inc. ups the ante on their already now-infamous steel creations. Launching from inside the Nascar Cafe, this LIM-powered coaster encounters two sets of electromagnets that kick speeds up to a cumulative 70 m.p.h., all while hugging the side of the casino and diving in, out and through bits of landscaping that seem too close for comfort. We met up with Stephanie Wilson of Kirvin Communications Group inside the cafe and soon we were walking up to the loading platform. Having seen only the 224 foot high steel tower accentuating the porte-cochere, I had no concept of the layout. Then I saw the 45 degree banked left turn at the end of the relatively short launch track and thought, "gawd, how's that gonna feel?" Settled down in the front seat of that sharp black and red 24-passenger train, I was soon to find out. We shot forward, from 0-45 m.p.h. in 2 seconds, sunlight blasted us as we nudged into that overbanked left turn. Smooth! No time to ponder that, the train ducks into a 115 foot long tunnel that rumbles under the Vegas sidewalk and emerges into a 72 foot tall loop, creating forces of 3.5 G's. Then, instead of arcing up intensely or swooshing to the side--the cars angle up a modest incline lined with LIMs. That's when the afterburner kicks in and the train accelerates rapidly from 35-70 m.p.h. in deuce, skimming through the resort's famous sign and weaving around the porte-cochere, so close that it's truly frightening. Rocketing up the tower, the cars press the 200 foot mark and then begin to drop, increasing velocity and shuttling past the cars parked in the registration lanes. The track's proximity to landscaping and the Sahara itself make for color-blurring contrasts as the tunnel of sight and sound curls out before you. Back through the sign, a slight reduction of speed going through the LIM's and then a tasty creep through that loop, hanging like bats before ducking under the sidewalk and disappearing around the corner into casino darkness. Speed: The Ride is hands-down, the best coaster on The Strip in this enthusiast's humbly offered opinion. It's a sweet stinger of a ride, one that will linger with you for awhile. Admission is $6 with a discount for repeat rides and a minimum height requirement of 54" exists. The coaster is open seven days a week from 10 am till 10 pm except Saturdays and Sundays when you'll get a full two extra hours to have a taste of some nasty nitrous.

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