Colts 'make it personal' in Bloomington

The Indianapolis Colts invaded Bloomington Wednesday to get "personal" with their beloved fans. \nThe "Make It Personal Tour" made its seventh stop of the summer at the Marsh Supermarket on 123 S. Kingston Drive. \nChris Owens, the spokesperson for the campaign and the radio production voice of the Colts, said that more emphasis is being placed on the tour this summer. More cities are on the itinerary this year than last year's brief program -- which lasted only four days. \n"After such a magical season, we really wanted to get out and express our thanks for the support of the fans," he said. "We decided to make it a little bigger and better this summer."\nOwens claims that his goal for the tour is to facilitate a "contact with the team that wasn't available in the past." He believes that even the tour staff benefits from the experience by having the ability to hear Colts stories from the fans. "Stories like that just make you feel really good," he said, referring to one fan's account of witnessing Peyton Manning's record-breaking touchdown pass to Brandon Stokley last season.\nThe area in front of Marsh Supermarket appeared much less like a parking lot and more like a mini blue and white colored circus, with popular rock and rap music as a backdrop. \nThe setup included a trailer displaying Colts merchandise, a quarterback challenge encouraging fans to try and spiral one to "Marvin Harrison" on an inflatable target, a row of Colts cheerleaders, a stand where fans could register and gain a chance to win two free tickets to a Colts game and another heavily-decorated trailer. \nFans could walk through the trailer and find Colts football gear, pictures of Colts stars, a Microsoft Xbox equipped with Madden 2005 and even handprints of coach Tony Dungy, Manning, and a Colts cheerleader. Manning's seemed to easily overpower the rest.\nPerhaps the biggest attraction was a table behind which two Colts players were signing autographs for the eager line of fans. In attendance for the Colts were tight ends Ben Utecht and Bryan Fletcher.\nUtecht, a former University of Minnesota standout, couldn't stop raving about the tremendous support of the fans. \n"Indiana puts out great fans," he said. "There's no contest. Just going around and doing this tour proves that. It really gives us the encouragement and motivation to go out and be successful."\nUCLA alumnus Fletcher said that the fans have played a vital role in the team's success and that it will keep the team strong in the years to come. \n"There's no doubt these fans have been an important part of the Colts organization," he said. "I think we're poised and ready to have another great season. We can turn the corner next year and get over the hump." \nAmong the crowd was junior Kat Taylor. She is currently serving as an intern in the events department with the Indianapolis Colts for the duration of the tour. Taylor said she felt the turnout for the tour has been excellent. \n"I'd say the best turnout so far was probably in Marion," she said. "We counted almost 1,000 people that day."\nAfter completing an impressive pass to "Marvin Harrison," diehard Colts fan Merrick McBride of Linton, Ind., spoke of his favorite part about the Colts franchise -- seeing Manning break the single season record for touchdown passes.\n"(I've) been a fan forever," McBride said. "It was awesome"