Could you do this?

In this picture of the 2009 contest, check out how small the target looks and how far away the pitching mound seems. Could any normal person really hit that catcher's mitt three times in a row? The guy throwing here went 0-for-3. Ron Ashmore of Denver, N.C., gets his shot tonight.



I wrote my column today on Ron Ashmore, a local guy who has a chance (albeit a small one) to win a million dollars tonight in Kansas City in a pitching contest.

Ron has three chances to throw the ball through a cut-out target that is 12 inches wide -- about the size of a dinner plate or a catcher's mitt. He would have to make all three to get a million, but he gets $50,000 for two makes, $25,000 for one or $10,000 for zero.

I just wonder how many people could actually do this. Ron gets no warmup, either -- he's got to come out and do this cold. I think the good people at Hostess -- who sponsored this contest -- will probably get to keep their million.

I will post how Ron does on this blog and in Thursday's newspaper.