READY TO ROCK?

Four words: wide open, never ending. The 2008 presidential campaign has lived up to both of those descriptions. Never before have candidates started stumping, strategizing and fundraising so far in advance of the election. The field of candidates, Republican and Democratic alike, quickly became so large as to be ungainly -- a tribute to the fact that the contest was as much of a free-for-all as any in living memory. To match it, political experts say, you'd have to go back at least to 1952, the last election in which no incumbent president or vice president was part of the race. Up until now, the campaign trail has resembled Bob Dylan's never-ending tour, popping up in one faraway venue after another. But now, starting in just four days in Iowa, the tour moves to the nation's center stage and the volume gets cranked up. Some will grab earplugs, while many others will dive headfirst into the cheering crowd. Election year is here.
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