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Print I sat on the church pew with butterflies in my stomach and an almost-uncontrollable urge to visit the boys’ room I’d passed in the foyer. I smiled in a casual, friendly manner at old friends who sat around me, but my organs were tying themselves in knots. My palms dripped perspiration, so I constantly dried them on my trousers. I wasn’t responding to a fiery message; I was about to take a seat behind the quiz board. Spearheaded by Bro. Bobby Long, Apostolic Temple (Pastor Wayne McClain) in Pasadena, Texas, sponsored the 3rd Annual Over-the-Hill (OTH) Bible Quiz Tournament on October 21-22, 2005. A long-time quiz parent, coach, and district official, Bro. Long wanted to create an opportunity for those who were never able to quiz, as well as those who never wanted to quit, to be able to participate in the Bible Quiz program. I fit in the latter category, thus I was an eager, if less than totally prepared, participant. The tournament covered the first 150 verses of this year’s senior quiz material (Bible Doctrine II). The ten teams that gathered there included five teams from Texas, two from Louisiana, and one each from California, Colorado, and Indiana. Teams were supposed to consist of former quiz teammates or fellow church members, all of who were at least too old to quiz in 2005. We were allowed to choose our own team names (since we weren’t necessarily from the same place), so we ended up with a diverse assortment:
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Killer B’s (TX) The tournament certainly brought back fond memories for me. First of all, I quizzed in several Texas Open Invitational tournaments in the 1990s and had a great time there in Pasadena. The church was always a wonderful host, and this time was no exception. They brought in pizza on Friday night, and then opened their gym for a few hours of basketball and volleyball. Lunch on Saturday was Texas-style barbeque served by the Hernandez family. Had I not been quizzing immediately after lunch, I definitely would have had another chopped beef sandwich. Secondly, Rev. Marvin Walker will forever be Mister Quizmaster in my mind, so it seemed only natural that he would be our quizmaster for the OTH tournament. He hasn’t changed a bit—after a lengthy deliberation with the judges, he complimented the great points I made in my contest, and then denied it. Finally, there was duct tape. That’s right! There was none of this “new age” holding the buzzer in your hand. We taped those blocks down and hit them like real men (and women)! What more could you ask for? My sister (Joni Mitchell) and I teamed up to form ReCall (we went to church together in Call, Texas, as teenagers, although we didn’t quiz together much). We both learned all of our verses, but our first and only practice was Friday morning (without a buzzer). Rusty would be a mild term to describe our abilities. Quizzing got off to a slow start Friday night, so I didn’t get to quiz that night. I spent the evening wondering what I’d gotten myself into. It was obvious that several of the quizzers knew their material backwards and forwards. Additionally, some of the participants had quizzed in 2004, so they weren’t nearly as far over the hill as we were. Anyone expecting sloppy, dull quizzing was disappointed. Lufkin managed to score 300 points in one quiz. Julian Rider got question 20, and Lake Charles won a nail-biter over the Wandering Hooves in overtime. Any quiz involving Julian Rider (Lake Charles) or Jonathan Green (Killer B’s) was guaranteed to have at least 4 contests. There were several gold medal games, with multiple personal scores in the 140 range. Each quiz had a bonus question. The lucky quizzer who answered it correctly was awarded an over-the-hill prize. Some examples included denture cleaner and Preparation H ointment. I managed to win an enema two-pack. Thanks, Bro. Long! In the end, Lufkin went undefeated to secure first place. The Killer B’s took second place, and ReCall finished third. We all went home happy and determined to study harder next year. Sound familiar? P.S. Anyone interested in participating in next year’s tournament can contact Bobby Long at brlong@truevine.net.
ninetyandnine.com © 2005, Josh Lewis --------- Josh Lewis is an over-the-hill quizzer whose last “real” quiz ended unhappily in 1996 at the NABQT in San Antonio, Texas. He occasionally has flashbacks, but the therapy seems to be working. |
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