Welcome to the AARP National Spelling Bee website!
Sign up for the Bee! Register now for the 2009 AARP National Spelling Bee scheduled for Saturday, June 20, 2009 in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
The Bee will be held Saturday, June 20, 2009, at Little America Hotel and Resort in Cheyenne, Wyoming.
The AARP National Spelling Bee is open to anyone age 50 or older, except previous winners. It’s fun. It’s challenging. But perhaps best of all, you’ll meet like-minded people while you test your spelling skills against some of the best spellers in the nation – and you just might walk away the winner!
We hope you will find these pages chock-full of information. Our volunteers have assembled study tips and travel information, but if there’s something else you need, let us know. We’re always eager to help.
We hope to see you at the Bee. Register now!
2009 AARP National Spelling Bee Schedule of Events
Friday, June 19
All of Friday’s events are at the Laramie County Library, 2200 Pioneer Avenue, Cheyenne, 307-634-3561. Click here for directions.
1 - 3:30 pm Special trolley tour of historic Cheyenne for spellers and their guests ($10 per person; limited seating; call 1-877-733-3618 ext. 5 to reserve a seat)
The trolley will pick riders up at the library before stopping at the State Capitol for a guided tour of the building where our laws are made (keep an eye out for the fossils embedded in the floor). The trolley then heads to the Union Pacific Historic Train Depot and Roundhouse where we will take another guided tour of the renovations that have begun to restore this essential piece of Western history to its former glory. The trolley will return riders to the library.
3:30 – 4 pm Guided tours of the library
Tour the "2008 Best Library of the Year" Laramie County Library, which also received Gold LEED certification for its energy efficiency.
4 – 6 pm Opening reception for spellers and their guests, and take part in an all-ages just-for-fun bee at the library
After 6 pm, there are several free events happening in downtown Cheyenne (about 6 blocks from the library) including the Gunslingers Old West Shootout, a concert as part of the Free Fridays on the Plaza summer series, and the Wyoming Brewer’s Festival or head north to Lions Park and stroll through the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens and its solar-powered conservatory.
Saturday, June 20
All of Saturday’s events are at the Little America Hotel and Resort, 2800 West Lincolnway, Cheyenne, 1-800-445-6945*. Click here for directions.
8 – 9 am Registration desk open
9 – 11:30 am Written spelling portion of the Bee (four rounds of 25 words each with breaks in between)
11:30 to 1 pm Lunch; Names of finalists, who advance to the oral spelling portion of the Bee, are announced after the meal
1 to approximately 4 pm Spelling Bee Finals; ceremony for winner immediately upon conclusion of the Bee
*Little America Hotel and Resort offers discounted rates for spellers and their guests who reserve a room by phone and mention that they are attending the AARP National Spelling Bee. Discount is not offered for reservations made online. Additional lodging options are available by visiting or calling the Cheyenne Area Convention and Visitors Bureau at 1-800-426-5009.
The 2008 Bee
And another AARP National Spelling Bee has come and gone. This year’s Bee had some special highlights… during the Friday night reception, members of the cast of the Cheyenne Little Theatre’s Melodrama performed a special script they had written just for the spellers (“What’s a 10-letter word that starts with gas….. wrong, it’s automobile”). Spellers got into the spirit of the event, cheering for the hero, and booing the villain. Our special thanks go to the cast and crew – that was a lot of fun.
Little America did an outstanding job of hosting our spellers. The food was excellent and the newly remodeled facility is beautiful.
But the real work began Saturday morning, when we all hunkered down to spell. Word Wizard Brian Greene softened everyone up with the first word “welcome”, but quickly got into more challenging fare such as tramontane, olefin, and losel. By the time we finished the written rounds, we knew everyone there was serious about spelling. You had to get at least 78 correct out of the 100 words to make it to the oral rounds, and that meant clearing words like chough, crwth, recce, and quoits.
Due to a tie for the fifteenth spot, 16 spellers made it, and began the uphill climb to the championship. They breezed past orgeat and tmesis, and conquered pterylae and eriophyid. Suddenly, we were down to the final four spellers. We began a round, and two of them missed their words. That meant a spell-off for third and fourth place. Two spell-off rounds later, and Norman Zucker was declared the fourth place winner, with Scott Firebaugh coming in third. Now only two competitors were left. Each one was given a word, and in a flash, it was over. Larry Grossman was crowned champion, and the best adult speller in the nation. Michael Petrina, Jr. chased him all the way, and came in second.
We had a very unusual footnote to the results this year. The top five finishers in the written rounds finished in the top five in the oral rounds. That hasn’t happened before… we’ll have to see if this was a fluke or the start of a trend.
As for me, it’s off to practice pronounciation for next year’s Bee.
Dave Lerner
Official Pronouncer Guy
AARP National Spelling Bee
A letter from 2008 winner Larry Grossman
When I heard that there was an adult spelling bee, I saw it as an opportunity to do something I’ve wanted to do for more than 40 years. I never was told about the Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee when I was in junior high, and it had been a nagging regret ever since. I didn’t have much time to prepare for last year’s (June 2007) AARP Spelling Bee because I didn’t hear about it until the end of March; not to mention the fact that I had heart surgery at the end of May. I still was able to make the finals, however, and managed to place 13th. I came back from Cheyenne with the goal of preparing thoroughly for a year and coming away with first place in the 2008 Spelling Bee.
My first move was to buy the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, the source for the Bee. I went through the entire dictionary compiling lists of words that I either didn’t know or that I felt needed studying. I made CD recordings of these lists and spent many, many hours testing myself.
I arrived in Cheyenne this year feeling about as prepared as I could be. With the fortunes smiling on me, I was able to win the contest and the excitement it has created for me, my family, my friends, and North Dakota in general is unbelievable.
As much as I enjoy the excitement created by my win, for me, as a teacher, there’s another equally important aspect. It’s the motivation it’s going to give my students to participate in spelling competitions in the upcoming years. For 31 years I’ve stressed spelling and vocabulary as the building blocks forming the foundation of education. As long as I am able to do so, I will continue to encourage my students to pursue academic excellence through spelling and vocabulary.
Finally, to the 50+ population, I need to say this: Anyone who has an opportunity to participate in this wonderful, entertaining, and edifying AARP National Spelling Bee, jump at the chance. I wouldn’t give up one second of one minute of one hour of the time I’ve been involved in the Bee, and my preparation for the Bee. It’s broadened my world immensely, and it’s given me a chance to meet some brilliant, friendly, fun-loving people.
So ask yourself this question if you’re considering becoming a participant: Why should you let just the young kids have all the fun????
2008 Sponsors
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