SARATOGA SPRINGS - Jill Perkins knows the odds are not exactly in her favor, but as long as there’s a chance she’s all-in for a potential win. Regardless, there was a fun time to be had.
“it was a blast,” said the local resident, who attended Wheel of Fortune’s Wheelmobile event, which was staged at Saratoga Casino Hotel Saturday and Sunday.
The popular TV show, which first broadcast in the 1970’s, is co-hosted by Pat Sajak and Vanna White, pits contestants against one another with a goal of winning cash and prizes - determined by spinning a carnival wheel – and by solving word puzzles.
“I’m a ‘Wheel’ watcher. I’ve liked ‘Wheel of Fortune’ since I was young, and for about 25 years now,” Perkins said. “It was my grandmother’s favorite show and I like mental skill games. My grandmother helped to make me a fan. I think she liked it because she had a crush on Pat Sajak.”
Several times a year, show representatives dispatch the Wheelmobile - the show’s 36-foot Winnebago promotional vehicle - to destinations across the country in search of future contestants who they say, are good game players as well as being energetic, enthusiastic and fun.
“The event was open to fans from 12 to 4. I had a feeling the line would be long, so we got there about 10:30,” Perkins said. “It was a full house. People were in Vapor (lounge) upstairs and downstairs, and it was a great production. They have traveling hosts who are very animated and there was a lot of audience engagement. There was a mock game that was a lot of fun, with people getting up there and doing very funny things. The host basically told the crowd: this is your time to shine, so we had people dancing and singing and playing air guitar.”
Since its inception in 1999, the Wheelmobile has logged over 375,000 miles and visited more than 300 cities. The majority of contestants who appear on “Wheel of Fortune” come out to Wheelmobile events in their hometowns. Last year, of the more than 1 million people applicants, 600 were selected.
“They’re doing this all over the country, so you go and hope you get called to eventually be on the show,” Perkins said.
Event attendees at Saratoga Casino filled out applications. Perkins said her understanding is that those applications are taken back to the show’s main headquarters, and potential contestants are chosen from among the applicants to go through a round of auditions. “It’s definitely a three-to-four step procedure,” she said.
