RAMMING SPEED: Ever cringe when you spot...

RAMMING SPEED: Ever cringe when you spot a car hurtling toward you on the freeway? That happened twice to hundreds of rush-hour motorists on the Ventura Freeway on Tuesday (B1). . . . A felony suspect led the CHP on a 20-mile chase, then spun around and plunged into traffic going the wrong way. “It’s a scary feeling,” motorist Dan Young said, “when you see the cars parting in front of you . . . people slamming on their brakes, scrambling to get out of the way.”

PENNIES FROM . . .: Concerned about earthquake-shaken kids in Fillmore, elementary schoolchildren in West Virginia collected 61,382 pennies to send to a Fillmore elementary school. Fortunately, Augusta School cashed in the pennies and instead sent a $613.82 check to Sespe School. . . . Said Sespe teacher Norma Vasquez: “When we saw the check, we were just overwhelmed.”

MILLIONAIRESS: Sandra Trinka, a Ventura woman who holds down two jobs to support herself, didn’t bother to go to work Tuesday. . . . She was busy granting interviews, shopping for a new car and other things that accompany a $12.6-million Lotto jackpot (B1). For her, the day brought plenty of laughs and some insight into the minds of some men. She had two marriage proposals from unknown callers to a radio show. “It’s funny how attractive you get when you have money.”

TAX BREAK: Although three free-spirited condors were grounded Tuesday by wildlife biologists (B1), the captive breeding program has pulled the endangered vultures from the brink of extinction. The remaining 22 California condors have multiplied to 81, with more hatchlings on the way. . . . If you want to help save threatened species, there’s a line on your state tax return for tax-deductible donations to the “Rare and Endangered Species Program.” There’s no guarantee that your money would help condors. Fish and Game biologists can use it for any of the 287 species in trouble.