Unless you can splash big money you'l not get better pics that with the 50mm 1.8
I suspect Jimmy would break out the big Canon - 70-200 f2.8, it is the daddy (but so is the price tag).
Myself, it would be the 50mm 1.8 (I have to get closer to the action.
As for settings - depends what sort of pic you want to get. Most of the fun is trying different settings and learning what to do to get different styles of shot. The pic you have posted above is, I think, really cool - I like shots like that that give a good inpression of speed.
