Sounds ridiculous on it's face. Who stopped you from running? Mephistopheles himself couldn't have dreamt up Peppy.
What sounds ridiculous ??
I don't know for sure if I get your drift about "what stopped me from running." But this would have been the first thing that kept me from running in 1999:
From the Kentucky State Board of Elections homepage:
U.S. Senate
***Must be at least 30 years of age***, a U.S. citizen for 9 years, and, when elected, an inhabitant of the State for which he is chosen.
U.S. Const. Art. I, § 3