Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, December 13, 1994                   TAG: 9412130090
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: DAN CASEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

THERE IS SOMETHING TO DO

Eureka! He had it.

And now, so does a local bookstore.

Fulghum's self-published, 110-page book, "There's Nothing To Do in Roanoke," attempts to destroy that old notion, page by page, from A to Z. It is chock full of 55 things to do, places to go and just plain fun.

From American Castle Tours to Zoos, he's covered the alphabet when it comes to local adventure and sightseeing - all within 100 miles of his native city.

"Many people have the notion that Roanoke can never be a destination place, that people will never come here," Fulghum told City Council on Monday. "I think I must have told my mother that so many times that we both came to believe it."

Boys and girls today still say the same thing. Fulghum believes it's not true, but the idea has taken hold.

"There seems to be so much negativism. I hope the title proves to be a misnomer," he said.

A quick spin through his book might leave a reader brimming with positive ideas.

Want to take a balloon ride? Head up to Blue Ridge Hot Air Balloons at Smith Mountain Lake. There, you can float to your heart's content over Virginia's largest lake. Or head down to the New River Valley, where New River Balloons will take you in a ride for a $125 per head.

A yawn, you say? Head over to the U.S. Route 19 Bridge over New River Gorge and take an 800-foot plunge at the end of a bungee cord.

Too exciting? Not educational? Try a comparatively sedate, but informative, visit to the Harrison Museum of African Culture on Harrison Street in Northwest Roanoke.

From architectural tours to stock car racing, breathtaking waterfalls to leisurely bike rides, Fulghum has it listed.

And he suspects he may be just scratching the surface.

He started work on the book, which sells for $6.50 at Rams Head Book Store in Towers Shopping Center, 90 days ago. The first 500 volumes were delivered over the weekend.

And for the parents whose children voice the complaint in the volume's title, Fulghum has this advice: First, buy the book.

Then, "just look up skydiving and give them the telephone number and tell them, 'Children, go jump out of an airplane,'" he said.