A: Investor Warren Buffett and Quicken Loans made news recently when they offered $1 billion to anyone who could pull off the feat. Their money is probably safe: The odds of picking all 63 games correctly are 9 quintillion to 1. That’s 9 followed by 18 zeroes, aka 2 to the 63rd power.
One in 2 billion.
So don’t quit your day job. As Johnson points out, once you get past those first 32 games of the NCAA tourney, the picks actually get tougher. “The skill levels are less apparent as you move on,’’ he says, “so that as the teams deliberately seeded apart get close to each other, then a perfect bracket is even less likely, and it’s starting to look like 50-50.’’
In other words, at that point, flipping a coin might not be a bad idea.
Johnson says he’s never done particularly well at the bracket game. But he offers this advice: Go mostly with the favorites but have at least two long shots in the mix. “It really boils down to ‘Can I pick the oddball?’ ’’
Probably not. Answer Man prefers to stick with more easily attainable goals, like winning the Powerball jackpot. Those odds are only 175 million to 1.
A: They are a promotional campaign for Orangetheory Fitness, a Fort Lauderdale-based health club that just opened four locations locally, on East Colonial Drive in Orlando, and in Winter Park, Waterford Lakes and Lake Mary. The bikes have been spray-painted orange, then placed at various locations, including in front of businesses that have given their permission.
Orangetheory’s workout consist of an hour-long class that involves a combination of treadmill, rowing and strength-training. A bike is also an option, but don’t worry: The workout bikes are of the stationary variety and not the decorative orange clunkers parked around town.
Answer Man welcomes your questions about the Orlando area. Send queries to answerman@orlandomagazine.com