I’ve been a Wheel fan for most of my life. My mom and I have watched it since I was a
kid and we still talk about the episodes nearly every night. Imagine my excitement when I found out the
Wheel Mobile was coming to Ohio! (Oct
14, 2012)
I went with my husband and our kids to the Wheelmobile event
for a chance to audition. The place was
packed. The event was fast paced and
filled with energy and comedy - we had a great time. Imagine my excitement when the email came
(Oct 29th) for the final auditions.
I went to the audition at the Hyatt in Cincinnatti (Nov 8th). I was super nervous and didn’t know what to
expect, so I arrived about 20 minutes early.
Waiting in line gave me a chance to chat and find out that everybody was
just as nervous as I was. I remembered
some people from the Wheelmobile event, and there were others that submitted
videos online and some just received random emails. A group of ladies drove 5 hours from
Michigan to audition!
They opened the doors right at 3:00, and the little bit of
calm I felt went right away.
The process ran so smoothly.
There were over 100 people there and they filed us into classroom style
seating. They divided the room into
sections and someone came around and asked for our first names. We played several rounds of WOF with a small
wheel and a projector screen. They’d
yell out your first name, you stand up, decide whether to spin and call your
letter. They got through everyone in the
room like a well oiled machine.
Then came the written test:
we had 5 minutes to solve as many puzzles as we could. It was quite difficult. There were about 20 partially filled in
puzzles and I solved about half of them. I was a bit bummed until we took a
break and I heard people in the halls saying they couldn’t solve any!
They called us all back in and said that 15 people made it
to the final round. They called out the
names and mine was one of them - I was elated! We then played a few more
intense rounds of WOF and they thanked us for coming and said we’d find out by
mail in 2 weeks if we were selected.
One week later, I walk into my home after a long workday and
my daughter said she answered a strange phone call. She didn’t get a name, but said it was a lady
who sounded really, really excited.
Yep, it was the WOF call! They
also sent an email asking if I could make it for a Nov 29, 2012 taping in
L.A. Well…yeah!!!! I was so excited that my kids and I were
literally jumping up and down all over the house.
I had 2 weeks to plan: travel arrangements, my hair, my
outfit, what guests would I bring (oh my!).
The time flew by and before I knew it I was on a plane to LA.
WOF had a shuttle that picked up contestants from the hotel
to take us to the studio. The WOF staff
was waiting outside the studio to welcome us and guide us in. It was surreal – hallways filled with Wheel memorabilia: Vanna’s dresses, pictures from over the years
of the show. We didn’t have time to
stop and explore - we had an action packed morning. From 8am until noon we filled out paperwork,
received all kinds of lectures on rules and helpful game strategies.
They taped 6 shows that day and all 20
people (3 per show and 2 standbys) had to have makeup done, record hometown howdies,
and practice on the actual set. I don’t wear makeup, so I was a little skeptical when they
said we had to have it since the HD cameras show no mercy. The make-up artist was awesome – she does make-up
for several celebrities and for award shows.
She made us all feel super comfortable and sitting in her chair getting
makeup airbrushed made me feel like a star!
Vanna stopped by the contestant room on her way into the
studio to wish us well. She was amazing. She explained how WOF was a game where
everyone could win and encouraged us all to play as a team.
They did a lottery system to determine what show we were on
and I got my lucky #3 and spot #3. Things
were looking up! As I sat in the
audience watching the first two shows being taped, I got more and more
nervous. I was trembling by the time
they called my group back to prepare.
Jim (the announcer) was so friendly and comforting as were the
contestant coordinators who reminded me so many times to breath and offered
water to sip at each break.
When the show got going, I knew the first toss-up but was
too slow to the buzzer so I had to regroup.
Pat introduced each of us, and I was so nervous that I almost forgot my kids’
names! Despite my nervousness, I
couldn’t let myself be here – on this show I watch every night – living a dream
– and not do my best. The second
toss-up came and I was the first to buzz in.
With a little money on the board you’d think my nerves would calm –
nope! I was still trembling as took the
first spin.
The Wheel was good to me!
I knew the puzzle fairly quickly,
but out of nervousness decided to spin again to just to be sure I didn’t
lose all of my winnings on a bad solve.
It was a risky choice, but a good one.
I racked up in that round and gained a little confidence to keep it
going. The time went by so fast! Before
I knew it Pat was standing next to me telling me I was going to the bonus
round!!
The crazy part is that I was back in the contestant lounge
talking to other contestants before my show and I told them that ‘H’ was a good
letter to call during the bonus round because it can change the sound of the
letters around it. Guess what letter I
didn’t call, that probably would have led to me solving the puzzle (Phrase: Highly Profitable) and winning
$45,000? I’ll try not to dwell on it
while I take an Islanding hopping adventure through the Greek Islands, a trip
to St Croix and enjoy the rest of my winnings J
The experience alone was priceless! I’ve been a couch player
for so many years imagining myself on that stage and it was every bit as
majestic as I thought it would be. I met
so many wonderful people from all over the country and was shown genuine
hospitality by everyone in the studio. It was truly a time to remember!
Check out the Article about my experience on page C1 of the Skywrighter Newspaper.
