Actually it was 125 buses. The Romney campaign paid for their tickets. The Brownback campaign brought in 100 busloads and spent a fortune as well, though probably not quite as much as the Romney campaign. The Huckabee campaign bought tickets for their supporters but did not provide busing (or at least not much of it); they just got a lot of votes.
The “race for relevence” is precisely about heading toward a national primary. If all of the states are first, they are, necessarily, at exactly the same time.
Very true; Iowa didn't start the latest race to the front of the line, but is trying to protect the place it's had for decades.
I have a friend (Ron Paul supporter) who traveled to Iowa. He was floored by all the Romney busses. He took a video phone clip of it. Bus after Bus after Bus. It speaks of Romney;s organizational skills. In April an artilce on FR was posted that told how he chartered all the in-state commercial busses available so his opponents had to pay more for out of state busses.