CNBC Did a good job building up the anticipation of the start of the Million Dollar Portfolio Challenge.It really did seem like forever waiting for it to begin !.

But it has.

At 9:30 AM EST the contest began.

CNBC had Sully on the floor of the NY Stock Exchange with crates full of cash [1$ bills in $1000 shrink wrapped bundles]for maximum effect.

Armed Security Guards stood by ….although who would rob the NY stock exchange with the already extreme national security presence that is always there is not clear ?

Watching this display of a cash orgy on the floor of the NYSE [oxymoron?]one would assume that the contest winner is paid in cash ,however in a non commented disclaimer shown on the screen the actual grand prize winner recieves only $100,000 in cash ,and the rest of the prize money in the form of a annuity of $36,000 a year

I would note that many large prizes are paid in the form of a annuity; and one can monetize annuities by selling them to various companies that buy them at a discounted cash flow model

Still, I would Take it !wouldn’t you ?

In a surreal scene, Sully drooled over the Maserati Gran Turismo ,safely parked down the street;and showing off its sexy Italian curves,…from the large anti-capitalist protest occuring today in front of the NY Stock exchange.

Any car guy would love this toy… Amanda Drury in the passenger seat would make it perfect, no?.

It is the second prize..and you get the whole car..not an annuity ..LOL.

So… enough fantasy..back to the meat and potatoes

Remember, you can run 5 portfolios of $900,000 each,as well as a separate $100,000 currency [ FOREX ] account in each of the 5 accounts

You can trade ETFs and you can trade in real time

I will have some strategy ideas in future posts ..but for now… think about cash deployment and keeping cash reserves to pounce on market trends in light of the market volatility

Don’t lock your self in on the first day to a single idea and blow your trading cash on a losing trade ..you will be out of the game before you start !

It looks like you can get a real $50 currency trading gift at a FOREX broker that is a CNBC sponsor just for signing up and opening up a free account at this broker

It also looks like the contest signup is not terminated due to today’s start of the contest; so you can still get in.

There are also weekly prizes of vacation packages

Stop back for more news and contest winning ideas coming in the days ahead !