Texting for the Title

We have a new national champion! And we’re not talking about the Los Angeles Lakers. No, our new national champ is a 15-year-old from Des Moines, Iowa. Kate Moore is the winner of yesterday’s national texting championship. Surrounded by flashing bulbs and TV cameras, Kate beat her closest competitor by typing the chorus from "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah."

The showdown was the culmination of a two-day event - created by a cell phone company - that included texting blindfolded, texting while being heckled, and texting while maneuvering through an obstacle course. Kate trained by sending more than four hundred texts a day and using her phone to study for exams. Her devotion to virtual communication paid off in the form of a $50,000 grand prize. And, of course, a new phone.

(Photo by estherase via Flickr/Creative Commons)