No Miracle Whip-ping
Lim slices through 'mayonaise' to take district spelling championship for second year straight

By Bill Donovan
Staff Writer

GALLUP — Even Gabriel Lim, Gallup's champion speller from last year, was surprised when the championship this year came down to the spelling of "mayonaise."

"I really thought it would come down to something like 'tintinnabulary'," he said after he had been declared Gallup-McKinley School District's top speller for the second year in a row. Tintinnabulary means "the ringing of bells."

This was Lim's third time in the top three. He came in third when he competed in the fifth grade three years ago.

He said this year's match in the auditorium at JFK Middle School seemed to be easier than in the past with easier words, for the most part.

But it ended a half hour earlier than last year with competitors "dropping like flies" in the third round.

The son of Dr. and Mrs. Nelson Lim, Gabriel Lim came in third in last year's regional competition.

Winning his school's competition just two days before, Lim said he didn't have a lot of time to study for the district-wide competition, but it made no difference, as he seemed confident throughout Thursday's spelling bee.

His victory Thursday now will bring him to the regional for the second time, and this time, he said, he hopes to do much better, in part because he's more familiar with the procedures and has time now to study up on the words that will be on this year's list.

This victory also means that others in the county next year will have an opportunity to win the championship since this is the last year he will be eligible to compete.

But, he said, this probably won't last long because his sister, Audrey, will be in the second grade next year and eligible to compete.

"Hopefully, she will continue on in my behalf," he said.