Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif. -- Hopeful thoughts ran through his mind as he reached his hand into a bucket, which seemed to go on forever, to pull out another piece to his puzzle. He would either be successful in pulling out another number to complete the price tag of a brand new Cadillac DTS, or he would pull out an “X” marked piece that would bring him to defeat.
Cpl. Chad Van Rys, an aircraft rescue fire-fighter, with Marine Wing Support Squadron 374, and native of Modesto, Calif., was recently chosen to appear as a contestant on the game show “The Price is Right” during a Single Marine Program trip to a taping of the show.
“I remember watching ‘The Price is Right’ with my grandma when I was around 15, and I remember thinking how cool it would be to be able to go on the show,” Van Rys said.
Van Rys and several of his friends went to the production lot where the show is taped to find out if they could be on the show, he said.
“There were a lot of people there trying to become contestants on the show, and I guess I just stood out because they picked me as a contestant,” he said enthusiastically.
He was called up to one of the podiums where they first have to bid on a prize. The contestant with the closest guess to the actual price without going over earns a chance at winning a bigger prize.
“We were bidding on a three-in-one multipurpose game table,” he explained. “Everyone overbid on the table the first time so we had to bid on it again. I guessed $580 and the table was $600, so I won the first game.”
After Van Rys won that contest, he moved on to the stage next to the show host Bob Barker.
The curtain was then raised to show that Van Rys would be competing to win a brand new Cadillac DTS valued at more than $42,000.
“The game I had to play consisted of me pulling a number out of a jar and then putting all the numbers in the correct order that would display the price of the car,” he said.
Every time he put his hand in the jar, he pulled out a number, except once when he pulled out a strike, he said.
“I felt so much adrenaline pumping through my body as I pulled out each number. It took just a few tries, but I finally guessed the correct price and I blew up with excitement,” he exclaimed.
After the show, Van Rys tried to explain to his wife, Rachel Van Rys that he had just won a new car.
“I told my wife but she wouldn’t believe me so she called my mom and dad,” said Van Rys. “My mom knew right away that I was telling the truth and my dad kept saying ‘I bet a country boy like you never thought he’d be driving a Cadillac.’”
Van Rys picked up his new Cadillac Jan. 12 at a Los Angeles dealership and is currently looking for a buyer. If you are interested in buying this vehicle call Van Rys at 209-985-5430.