Etc...

Don't pull that stuff here

In March, Robert Zukowski was stopped for speeding on I-94 in Clay County, N.D. A deputy sheriff clocked him at 70 m.p.h. in a 55-m.p.h. zone . Still, Zukowski entered a not-guilty plea, and his trial was slated for May 10. But he lives in faraway Seattle and failed to show up. The judge in the case ordered a conviction in absentia and a $120 fine, which didn't sit well with the defendant. So, earlier this week, he exacted his revenge . Or tried to ... by bringing the payment in pennies. An unamused Judge John Pearson, however, one-upped him. Zukowski was instructed to wait while the money was lugged to a local bank and counted.

When Salt Lake City staged the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, Utah had a tailor-made two-week opportunity to show off its natural and manmade attractions, both to ticket-holders and a worldwide TV audience. Three years later, state officials are determined to keep travelers coming, and they have a tourism-promotion budget that's 20 times its previous size with which to work. Utah's most-visited site is Temple Square, the home of the Mormon Church, which drew an estimated 5 million to 7 million visitors last year. But it's also a state of natural wonder, with five national parks. The state's most popular tourist attractions, based on 2004 visitations:

1. Temple Square, Salt Lake City (home of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints)
2. Zion National Park
3. Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Lake Powell
4. Lagoon Amusement Park, Farmington
5. Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area
6. Thanksgiving Point entertainment complex, Lehi
7. Bryce Canyon National Park
8. Wasatch Mountain State Park
9. Arches National Park
10. Hogle Zoo, Salt Lake City
- Utah Travel Council