FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:  Jeff Shuler or Roger Fraser, Lee County Transit (LeeTran)
               (239) 277-5012

LEE TRAN DRIVERS TO PUT BUSES THROUGH PACES AT ROADEO SUNDAY

FORT MYERS, Fla. (April 15, 2004) - Come see the deft skills of LeeTran drivers Sunday (April 18) as they maneuver 35-foot buses through a variety of obstacles while competing for the 2004 LeeTran Roadeo Crown.

It's the Super Bowl of bus driving, and the competition is fierce. The winner goes on to compete at the state level and winners there go on to nationals.

This 16th annual Bus Roadeo will be at Edison Community College, from 8 a.m. until noon, in the parking lot off the Summerlin Road entrance.

This fun event pits bus operators against a tough obstacle course as they try to maneuver a 35-foot bus in tight turns, around tall cones, over tennis balls and through a tunnel of barrels - all while being timed. The winner is the driver who completes the course with a combination of the fewest number of errors and fastest time.

Last year's winner, Norm Micknyocki, went on to place third at the Florida State Roadeo, and competed at the International Bus Roadeo in Salt Lake City, Utah. With 25 of LeeTran's best scheduled to compete, the skills of LeeTran drivers will be thoroughly tested and on display for all to see.