Indiana University Athletics
Kapral Gets Her Chance To Spin The Wheel
4/30/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
April 30, 2008
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Almost everyone has a favorite television show that they watch religiously each week, whether it is a sitcom or drama or reality series. But growing up, many people also watched a variety of game shows with the hopes that one day they would be able to get on that show and win their share of thousands of dollars being given way for playing a game. For Kelsey Kapral, a junior on the Indiana women's rowing team, those hopes became a reality when she was selected to appear on the popular game show Wheel of Fortune as part of the show's "College Week." Kapral's episode will air this Friday, May 2, check local listing for time and channel in your area.
As a regular viewer of the show, Kapral is a member of the "Wheel Watchers Club" that allows viewers to win prizes while watching the show. Another perk of the club is that members receive emails about upcoming events and show tapings. So during Christmas Break, Kapral received an email from the show that said they were looking for college students for their "College Week" shows that were going to be taped at Navy Pier in Chicago.
"I figured I would just fill out the form for fun," Kapral said. "I never really expected anything to come of it, but a few weeks later when we were on our training trip in Tampa, Florida I received another email informing me that I had been selected to attend a closed audition for the show."
So she made the trip to Chicago for the closed audition, where potential contestants played sample games, were tested on their ability to solve puzzles and briefly interviewed. A short time after completing the audition, Kapral received a letter in the mail that said she had been selected to be a contestant on the show and then received a call informing her when the taping of her show would take place.
"It was just a sequence of events that kind of fell into place for me I guess," Kapral said. "I just got lucky."
The day of the taping began at 3:30 p.m. for Kapral with an abundance of paperwork and some practice for the show. She was in the final group to be taped that day, so her actual taping wasn't until approximately 10:00 p.m. that day. This gave her the opportunity to sit and watch all the other shows so she could get comfortable with what was going to happen when it was her turn to be up there in front of the lights and cameras.
"It really was just a once in a lifetime experience," Kapral said. "I knew the whole day I would just have to soak it all in because I wouldn't get to do something like it ever again. And the whole experience was definitely worth it, win or lose."
So that begs the question, what was it like when you actually got up there to spin the wheel?
"I wish I could tell you the best part was when I was taping the show," Kapral said, `but I really can't remember much of it. It went by so fast and there was so much going on during the show that it all seemed like a dream and it was over before I could realize it. It will be fun to watch it when it airs on May 2, because it will look like a whole new experience to me."
Kapral will be with the rest of the Indiana rowing team in Ann Arbor, Mich., for the Big Ten Championships when the show airs this Friday, providing the perfect opportunity for them to cheer her on as a team.
Players Mentioned
