Ballantyne, NC – Last week, the Charlotte Observer and The Ballantyne Scoop sponsored a spelling bee contest at Dilworth Coffee in Ballantyne Village. Adults were asked to spell words from last years spelling bee under the added pressure of being in front of the The Scoop Network video camera.

Eric Frazier from the [...]]]>

Ballantyne, NC – Last week, the Charlotte Observer and The Ballantyne Scoop sponsored a spelling bee contest at Dilworth Coffee in Ballantyne Village. Adults were asked to spell words from last years spelling bee under the added pressure of being in front of the The Scoop Network video camera.

Eric Frazier from the Charlotte Observer was the genial host and wordmaster. Eric’s general tactic was to be gentle and put the contestants at ease with an easy start. Just when the spellers felt comfortable, the Wordmaster would spring a word like “omnivorous” on the unsuspecting spelling victim. Eric’s devilish grin as he used the words in a sentence simply spelled “doom” for the spellers who began with confidence and ended with an “Oh, I am so sorry.”

It was great fun, a great venue and a lot of delicious coffee and pastries kept us all going at a rapid fire pace. Owner Betsy Mapes of Dilworth Coffee did not miss a single coffee related spelling word, which came as no surprise. Charlotte City Councilmen Warren Cooksey & Andy Dulin dropped by and competed head to head in Eric’s lightning round to end the contest. I think I heard a protest coming from Councilman Warren Cooksey as if we possibly rigged the contest against him in favor of Andy Dulin. There’s only one person who can answer that question. Eric, what say you? Watch the video and test your own abilities and decide if Mr. Cooksey has a valid case.

2010 BallantyneScoop.com The Scoop network