The 2005 Scripps Howard Spelling Bee Thread...and should we do a fantasy draft?

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The prelims are today, the finals are tomorrow. Oh yeah, baby. Whom amongst us does not love maladjusted kids with mad speling skillz getting their geek on in front of a national TV audience?

I think we could do a fantasy draft for this; indicate your willingness for this here on the thread, and I'll run it. Maybe once the finalists are announced, I will determine a drafting order in a completely nonsensical way, and then we'll go through that order to pick our favorites. (Number of favorites to be determined by how many people want in on this hottt action.)

Here are all the prelim bios:
http://www.spellingbee.com/spellerindex2005.shtml

― Haikunym (Haikunym), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 14:02 (twenty years ago)

I didn't know that Canadians competed in this! I'm rooting for them.
Mohamed El Mais looks young but dangerous. He likes math, basketball, and hip-hop. I can relate to that.

There are also a lot of swimmers amongst the Canadian kids. That's nice to see.

― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 14:36 (twenty years ago)

i'm bummed that it wasn't the same day as the derby this year.

― hstencil (hstencil), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 14:38 (twenty years ago)

los canadiens
HAVE to swim to get away
from all cool bullies

― Haikunym (Haikunym), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 14:42 (twenty years ago)

I'll do it! I don't have ESPN, though, so I can't watch it live. How many finalists are there, Matt?

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 14:48 (twenty years ago)

not sure, will find out tonight

although if it's just you and me it'll be kinda weak!

― Haikunym (Haikunym), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 14:51 (twenty years ago)

The contestant from my town in IN (Sameer)went to my mom's nursery school. His sister was a finalist too. And my neighbor was the girl whose mom went nuts a few years back and pushed some camera and press people in DC and it was on national TV.
(I would deliberately lose the challenge so I wouldn't have to go to state and be one of those weird spelling kids.)

― jocelyn (Jocelyn), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 15:43 (twenty years ago)

i got #10 in my regionals in 6th grade. #1 got to go to the nationals, i got a fancy plaque and $25. And seen on TV. It was fun. It was the most positive "competition" I was ever in since I never "studied". I just got a big vocabulary from reading lots of cheesy sci-fi. It felt like getting prizes for watching lots of TV or something. Yay for geeks!

― -rainbow bum- (-rainbow bum-), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 15:50 (twenty years ago)

http://www.spellingbee.com/05bios/015.jpg

"Kyle has compiled several comic books that feature cartoon characters of his own creation. He is a voracious reader of classic novels. Kyle plays piano and enjoys the music of Scott Joplin. His favorite sports are football, basketball, and bowling. In his spare time he may be found playing video games. Kyle would like to become a chemist. "

This is definitely my pick.

― polyphonic (polyphonic), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 15:52 (twenty years ago)

i made it to regionals, and got out on "linguistic."

i work tomorrow so unfortunately i cannot watch the finals :(

― joseph (joseph), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 15:55 (twenty years ago)

OMG this kid from my state:

Bio:
Tristan is an avid reader whose favorite books are those in the Left Behind series and the Harry Potter series. His favorite subjects in school are math and science. His interests include judo and Civil Air Patrol activities, and he is a fan of auto racing. Tristan likes to build model rockets and hopes to become an aeronautical engineer.

― joseph (joseph), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 15:58 (twenty years ago)

Hell yeah I'll do a fantasy draft. If you ask nicely I'll even spill some HOT INSIDE SCOOPS from 1996 - dig!

(The juiciest of which, admittedly, involves being stuck in an elevator with a highly claustrophobic, pre-gastric-bypass Al Roker, but still.)

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 16:00 (twenty years ago)

WTF, you couldn't spell "tachygrapher"? FOR SHAME.

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 16:02 (twenty years ago)

i kid, as "nasturtium" still haunts me to this day.

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 16:08 (twenty years ago)

haha, likewise "mathematician" (4th) and "bursitis" (6th) for me

― joseph (joseph), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 16:17 (twenty years ago)

Fuck you guys.

― Charlie Brown (Haikunym), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 16:19 (twenty years ago)

Howard Scripps Spelling Bee

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 1 June 2005 16:22 (twenty years ago)

Canadians are making their debut this year!
I hope there are allowances for OR/OUR, etc.

― Huk-L, Wednesday, 1 June 2005 16:34 (twenty years ago)

okay so I guess we're not doing the "fantasy" deal, but it should be fun to watch tonight via my new kick-ass DVR machine

― Haikunym (Haikunym), Thursday, 2 June 2005 12:32 (twenty years ago)

http://images.picturequest.com/common/detail/95/04/22750495.jpg

"Terrence has a keen interest in torture especially the chinese hell of swords and knives. His favorite subjects are home economics and R.E. Terrence plays mandolin and enjoys the the music of Captain Corelli. He hopes to become a stuntman.

― Jarlr'mai (jarlrmai), Thursday, 2 June 2005 12:57 (twenty years ago)

My boy Harvest Zhang gets bounced!

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 13:55 (twenty years ago)

http://www.spellingbee.com/05bios/169.jpg
Elizabeth loves all aspects of language. She developed her own language, Islorien, which has over 900 words and is spoken by her friends and family. Also fond of music, she plays clarinet and oboe and sings in a chorus. Elizabeth is active in her church’s youth group and is a Girl Scout.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:09 (twenty years ago)

I blew "queue" in a countywide one.

― Dr Morbius (Dr Morbius), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:11 (twenty years ago)

HOLY SHAZZBAT

xpost: HOLY SHAZZBAT

― Haikunym (Haikunym), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:12 (twenty years ago)

Last bee I was in, "rhythm" got me.

― Rock Hardy (Rock Hardy), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:15 (twenty years ago)

http://www.spellingbee.com/05bios/228.jpg
Tyler is an aspiring linguist. He enjoys reading, and his favorite book is Friedrich Nietzsche’s Beyond Good and Evil. He spends his time watching anime, playing video and online games, and surfing the Internet. He also is interested in writing and drawing. In his spare time Tyler likes to play with his dog, Rebel.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:16 (twenty years ago)

It really pisses me off that the only kid left in the competition from Michigan is this home schooled kid with a fanatical zeal in his eyes:

http://www.spellingbee.com/05bios/126.shtml

― Leon hearts Crazy Frog (Ex Leon), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:18 (twenty years ago)

Wait, wait, why is there a girl from New Zealand in the competition?

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:21 (twenty years ago)

http://www.spellingbee.com/05bios/150.jpg
Carolyn is an honor student whose favorite subject in school is social studies. She enjoys attending Broadway shows and traveling. Carolyn likes to try new things and recently started listening to music from the ’60s. Techno, however, is her favorite type of music. She also enjoys anime and movies. She would like to pursue a career in graphic design.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 14:24 (twenty years ago)

Nicole, your fellow Michigander just dropped out.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 16:02 (twenty years ago)

I really want to talk to Carolyn about techno.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 16:03 (twenty years ago)

My local Hoosier is out.

― jocelyn (Jocelyn), Thursday, 2 June 2005 17:00 (twenty years ago)

Prediction: Marshall Winchester. 12th in 2003, 4th in 2004? Gamer.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 17:08 (twenty years ago)

Nietzsche!!!

Y'all are totally lame for not doing a draft on this.

― Gravel Puzzleworth (Gregory Henry), Thursday, 2 June 2005 17:11 (twenty years ago)

C'est chic, le geek.

― Je4nne ƒur¥ (Je4nne Fury), Thursday, 2 June 2005 17:11 (twenty years ago)

There was some girl on my plane from Midland to Dallas that was on her way to compete in this thing! I don't remember her name though.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:10 (twenty years ago)

Nick, was this her?

http://www.spellingbee.com/05bios/243.jpg

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:13 (twenty years ago)

(Name: Taylor Young)

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:14 (twenty years ago)

Okay, so Samir Patel ("If this is the word I think it is, I know it!") is this year's token cute annoying kid.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:21 (twenty years ago)

Maybe! I wasn't paying attention; I was cracking up because they were asking people to volunteer to get off the plane and take a later flight because it was overweight, and, like, a third of the people on the plane were these ginormous two-seat-filling fat-ass Texans, none of whom were getting up. And it smelled like stale pee.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:29 (twenty years ago)

xpost - And there's no way he or anyone should be getting fucking "giusto" at this stage in the competition. FIX!

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:30 (twenty years ago)

It's down to four. They're all of South Asian descent.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:32 (twenty years ago)

I'm all the way on the Aliya Deri bandwagon. Samir was actually last year's token cute/annoying kid and 2003's token cute/annoying kid (at age NINE) as well. He's kinda cocky.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:39 (twenty years ago)

Nopalry! Come on!

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:40 (twenty years ago)

Rajiv out.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:42 (twenty years ago)

Daniel, this must be infinitely more exciting watching it live rather than refreshing the Round Results page on the website.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:43 (twenty years ago)

I left work early!

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:44 (twenty years ago)

Hahaha.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:44 (twenty years ago)

All three of these kids are just fucking destroyers.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:46 (twenty years ago)

They've got nineteen words left on the championship list. If this continues, there might be co-champions. Whoa.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:49 (twenty years ago)

Haha - the giant S fell off the backdrop, so it just says "CRIPPS" behind them.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:49 (twenty years ago)

The kid who was at the mic when that happened has my admiration for not getting rattled and missing his word.

― Rock Hardy (Rock Hardy), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:52 (twenty years ago)

Aliya misses "trouvaille." Down to two.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:54 (twenty years ago)

Down goes Samir! C'mon Anurag!

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:56 (twenty years ago)

Does he have to spell another word now?

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:57 (twenty years ago)

Oh, wow, appoggiatura? That's insanely easy. Little girls started shrieking.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:57 (twenty years ago)

Anurag wins. We are spared the wrath of Samir for another year.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:57 (twenty years ago)

Aww, dude, don't cry on national TV. You'll regret this shit in a year or two.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:59 (twenty years ago)

Why did he have to spell another word, though, if he was the only one standing at the end of his round?

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:59 (twenty years ago)

Who's crying? Samir?

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 18:59 (twenty years ago)

Those are the rules - you can't win based on another speller missing, only by spelling a word correctly. If he would have missed "appoggiatura," they would have started over:

http://www.spellingbee.com/rulesdc.shtml

17. If only one of the spellers remaining in the competition at the start of a round spells a word correctly during that round, a new round shall begin and the speller shall be given an opportunity to spell the next word on the list. If the speller succeeds in correctly spelling the new word, the speller shall be declared the champion. Otherwise (that is, if the speller does not succeed in correctly spelling the new word), all the spellers remaining in the competition at the start of the previous round shall remain in the competition. A new round shall begin, with these spellers spelling in the original order.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 19:01 (twenty years ago)

Well, Samir was crying (and, to be honest, almost everybody starts crying once they're backstage in the "comfort room"), but Anurag also started to cry after he won and was totally at a loss for words when being interviewed. He hid his face behind his placard and everything.

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 19:02 (twenty years ago)

That rule seems weird. He was still the only one to spell 17 straight words correctly. (18 rounds minus the written round.) Unless it's like volleyball, where you have to win by two.

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 19:03 (twenty years ago)

http://www.boloji.com/poetry/1001-1100/1006.htm

Spelling Starts!

Words are strange and totally weird,
It totally inspired me to go to a bee,
I struggled and read and studied a lot,
My spelling and my reading soon paid off.

I never really liked spelling, it was kinda' boring,
I looked at my word list and thought,
Spelling could be very interesting for me,
So I voraciously tried to be as inquisitive I could be.

I never knew words could be so interesting,
Words like "zealous" or "decrepit",
I challenged myself to learn these words,
And master the linguistics and etymology.

Soon I grew, and my words grew harder,
Words like "gerund" and "sterilant",
I didn't give up, not this easily,
Cause my journey still hasn't reached the end.

The fifth grade has come and words are so mysterious,
Words psyched me like "tetramerous" and "infundibular",
But this wasn't challenging enough,
I thought I need to something harder,

Thought I need to go to a bee.
So here I am, on this stage, in a bee.
More than three-quarters of the spellers are out,
They asked words like "cacophony" and one that's pronounced "gout",

It was almost my turn,
My opponent missed their word,
I'm going to be the champion next,
But I need to spell this word,

The pronouncer called out "emaciation"!
I gasped "Hmmm." in surprise,
"E.M.A.C.I.A.T.I.O.N." I called out,
I was the winner and I was really proud,

But I know my journey is still not over,
This win was merely a fragment of my achievements.

– Anurag Kashyap
June 2, 2002

― Daniel Cohen (dayan), Thursday, 2 June 2005 19:04 (twenty years ago)

Aww.

Has anyone else seen the trailer for Akeelah and the Bee?

― jaymc (jaymc), Thursday, 2 June 2005 19:13 (twenty years ago)

one year passes...

They need to invent a new word that describes the act of losing a national spelling bee on the word "weltschmerz".

She blew the easiest part of it too -- the first letter -- which is especially strange considering "wehrmacht" came up in an earlier round.

― NoTimeBeforeTime (Barry Bruner), Friday, 2 June 2006 02:27 (nineteen years ago)

it doesn't get much easier than that. except for maybe getting kundalini as your second-to-last word.

― scott seward (scott seward), Friday, 2 June 2006 02:33 (nineteen years ago)

i practically screamed at the tv after those kids got "weltschmerz" and "kundalini" (admittedly i didn't know the winning word)

― joseph (joseph), Friday, 2 June 2006 03:39 (nineteen years ago)

weltschmerz was pretty ridiculous. i can't believe she said 'v'!!!

that girl that won was pretty scary-robotic.

― tehresa (tehresa), Friday, 2 June 2006 03:44 (nineteen years ago)

I can't believe I forgot about this. My brother just texted me "URSPRACHE" and I didn't know what he was talking about. :( :(

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 2 June 2006 19:06 (nineteen years ago)

tehresa did you see the girl's video segment earlier in the show? she seemed actually pretty well-balanced and popular, a smart-but-normalish jersey shore 8th grader

― Haikunym (Haikunym), Friday, 2 June 2006 19:28 (nineteen years ago)

nah i only saw the last 15 min or so

― tehresa (tehresa), Saturday, 3 June 2006 22:15 (nineteen years ago)

eleven months pass...

I just did an experiment: I googled the winning words for the last 10 years to see how high references to the spelling bee itself came up on the search. As expected, all of them were fairly high, thus proving the obscurity of the words. The lone exception was "demarche," which I stopped looking for past the 400th hit. (Many were websites in French.)

2007 serrefine: 4
2006 ursprache: 7
2005 appoggiatura: 6
2004 autochthonous: 17
2003 pococurate: 16
2002 prospicience: 7
2001 succadaneum: 25
2000 demarche: ?
1999 logorrhea: 9
1998 chiaroscurist: 9
1997 euonym: 2

― jaymc, Friday, 1 June 2007 19:45 (eighteen years ago)

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