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MY STORY
I Was Mowed Down by the Jeopardy Juggernaut

Miriam Bamberger, 38, was thrilled to be chosen as a contestant on Jeopardy. Then she learned she'd be competing against Ken Jennings.

When I went on the show, I wanted to have a really good time (I did). And I wanted not to make a fool of myself on national television (I didn't). I figured that if I had to lose, there was no shame in losing to Ken. [Jennings finished the season as undefeated champion with $1.3 million in winnings.]

My quest to appear on Jeopardy started a year earlier when I signed up online for a contestant search in Washington, D.C. Of the 80 people who took the written test, seven of us passed. Afterward, we went through a mock game and were told to wait for a call.

Last March, when my call came, I took my own fan club -- my boyfriend, my cousin and my business partner. We had to pay our own way, but I was able to use frequent-flier miles.

Jeopardy tapes a week's worth of shows in one day. Because I was on the fourth show, I got to watch Ken in action. By the time it was my turn, he had already won 16 games in a row. I wasn't nervous -- I figured I would either win or lose.

I didn't do any prep work because I was afraid I would study the wrong things. And I knew not to take stupid guesses. I was proud of myself because I got a couple of things right that Ken got wrong. For example, one answer was "what 4,000 people would have to sit on at once to set a world record." I knew the correct question was "What is a whoopee cushion?"

The hardest part was the buzzer. If you buzz in too soon, there's a quarter-second delay, and another contestant can lock you out. If you hesitate, someone else will often answer first. I racked up $6,400 in winnings but lost $3,000 on the Final Jeopardy answer. It was about movies made in the 1970s, and I didn't have a clue. Host Alex Trebek said that was obviously before my time. I love him!

I got to keep the standard $2,000 prize for second place, but going up against Ken is what made the experience so much fun. He's a very nice guy and an incredibly gracious winner. And there's a celebrity factor in having lost to a real champion.

--As told to Mary Beth Franklin