All, thanks for the feedback - much appreciated. Seth, I've traded the XLE a bit and while I haven't done any analysis on the correlation to the CL, I can't say for certain (based on the daily) if a substantial correlation exists. http://tfc-charts.w2d.com/chart/CO/C5 http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=XLE&t=6m Fred, Swing/Position trading futures is how I intend to start. I am very aware of how difficult it is to day trade these and would rather base my trading decisions on macro principles in the 1-2 week time frame. I would also like to use certain futures as a hedge as well.