Prauge, Czech Republic is the starting point for this, the last leg of the Amazing Race. The teams must fly to Las Vegas and go to the Graceland Wedding Chapel to get their clue from “the King.” Meghan & Cheyne go to a travel agent and find out there is one flight leaving at 6:40 p.m. and landing in Vegas the next day around 2 p.m. Sam & Dan decide that all they have to do is “beat Meghan & Cheyne (really, guys?) and not yell at each other” and they’ll win the Race. Brian & Ericka are ticked at the brothers for stealing their cab “and we’re comin’ for ‘em.” Ericka says she hopes the show will show her Mom, who doesn’t like Brian, that they are a couple “no matter what the color.” They figure everyone will be surprised when they walk in the airport. Sam & Dan are freaked out, and start apologizing to Brian & Ericka, saying “you should blame your taxi driver.” Brian said “I’ll forgive, but I’m not gonna forget.”
It’s a mad dash out of the Vegas airport and a scramble for taxis. Brian & Ericka get out first and the brothers are last, but everyone pretty much makes it to the Chapel at the same time. They’re forced to stand and sing with Elvis until he finishes “Amazing Grace” (which, if you change the syntax a little, is "Amazing Race." Cute, huh?)next to an alleged-getting-married-couple. Reading their clues outside, the teams find out they have to go to the Mandalay Bay Casino. Brian & Ericka’s driver takes them a different way than the other teams “and we’ll just have to trust him” (which can be the best thing on earth or the kiss of death). Sam (or Dan - terrible that I don’t know which is which at this point of the Race!) are complaining that Ericka tried to grab the clue right out of his hand. (They owe you one, bro!) Brian & Ericka get to the hotel first and their clue is a Roadblock. “Who’s ready to climb down the mountain?” One team member must rappel 600 feet, face first, down the side of the building to get their next clue. Ericka will do it because Brian is severely afraid of heights. Ericka says “today I’m fearless.”
Meghan & Cheyne show up and Cheyne will attempt the task, as we see Sam & Dan stuck in traffic. Brian looks like he’s about to puke just watching Ericka go over the side of the building and start her way down. Cheyne is a little afraid of heights but wants to conquer that fear, and Meghan goes back downstairs to stand by Brian, saying “Cheyne is freaking out.” He’s going down with his eyes closed! Ericka tells Brian “I feel like Spider Woman!” She gets down and their clue says “This desert has only one Mirage. Go to it.” Sam does the task and begins as we see Cheyne about halfway, saying he can hear Meghan so “I must be getting close” because he’s still not looking. Sam is kicking butt climbing down the building, saying “Tom Cruise, step aside.” Once at the bottom and in last place, they tell the cabbie he’ll get a big tip if he hurries.
Brian & Ericka get to the Mirage and find out they have to join the cast of Circque du Soleil’s “Love.” They’ll use bungee cords and one team member will launch the other to jump in the air and grab a bouquet of flowers to get their next clue. Ericka gets strapped in and gets peeved seeing Meghan & Cheyne there already. It takes a few tries to even get close and Sam & Dan show up and get strapped in. Ericka wants to trade spots with Brian because he’s taller and starts barking and pointing her finger, saying “get me down, I want to switch! Don’t get me pissed off!” Brian wants her keep trying but she’s insistent. In the meantime, Meghan & Cheyne have all three flowers and get their next clue, “What’s the most famous casino in the country of Monaco?” They have to find the Monte Carlo Casino to get their next clue. Meghan asks another cab driver, who tells her “the Venetian.” Their cab driver says he’s not sure.
Ericka snarls at Brian that the brothers “cannot get out ahead.” She just doesn’t have the strength to bounce Brian high enough to get the flowers, and he tells her she needs to get back on the bungee cords. She freaks out “I can’t take this” but they decide to switch again as Sam & Dan finish and take off. Ericka keeps missing the flowers and screams in frustration and cries. “I can’t stand losing the lead, Brian!”
Sam & Dan are trying to figure out what casino they need to find, and tell their driver to follow Meghan & Cheyne’s cab. Meghan & Cheyne tell their driver to lose Sam & Dan. Sam borrows a phone and calls the Mandalay Bay and finds out that they’re looking for the Monte Carlo Casino. Meghan & Cheyne are telling to people in the street, asking what the casino is. As Brian & Ericka get their clue, they know right away that they need to look for the Monte Carlo. Sam & Dan get there and tell their cabbie to wait, and run inside for their clue. They have to count out $1 million in poker chips. There are 8400 chips on a table in varying amounts, and they must get enough chips to add to $1 million. Once the dealer counts the chips and they are correct, they will get a special poker chip and their next clue. Sam & Dan both start digging for the red $1000 chips.
Meghan & Cheyne get to the Venetian and ask some guy standing outside, who tell them they need the Monte Carlo, but he doesn’t sound sure. Cheyne goes in to ask the concierge, and they go to the desk and ask a group of people, who agree it’s the Monte Carlo and they take off again.
Sam & Dan are bickering again as they grab chips. Brian & Ericka show up and say “it’s an awesome feeling” that they got there before Meghan & Cheyne - who show up shortly after. Each team is muttering under their breath to each other (although Sam & Dan are doing their usual bickering), mostly “as fast as you can.” Meghan & Cheyne are more supportive as Cheyne tells Meghan “don’t worry about them.” Brian & Ericka are quietly grabbing chips and Ericka tells Brian “I love you.” All the teams get done at pretty much the same time and have to wait for their dealers to count the chips. Meghan & Cheyne are correct, but the other two teams have incorrect amounts of chips.
The clue tells Meghan & Cheyne to find their way to the MGM Grand and find the High Roller Suite, where “Mr. Las Vegas” (who is Wayne Newton) will tell them the location of the finish line. Meghan & Cheyne ctually stop and ask some folks in the casino who Mr. Las Vegas is - and Cheyne asks “is it Frank Sinatra?” (Hoo boy, I’m rolling my eyes big time at that one. If it were, how would Frank tell them where the finish line was? He’s probably pretty decomposed and smelly by now too!)
Sam & Dan get the correct amount of chips on the next try but Brian & Ericka find out they are incorrect yet again. Meghan & Cheyne get to the proper room and get hugs from Wayne Newton, telling him they’d “love to stay and chat but we’re in a hurry, what do you got?” He tells them “my house.” And that’s it. (Time to get one of those Maps to the Stars’ Homes!) Sam & Dan show up and walk in, saying that they don’t know who Wayne Newton is (and Newton thankfully tells them, or they could be there half the night).
Meghan & Cheyne’s driver knows where the house is, but when they get there they can’t find the entrance. Sam & Dan get there and it’s a good edit by the producers, making it look close and not knowing who will get there first. Meghan & Cheyne come running around the corner and high-five the other teams as they get to Phil and find out they are the winners of the Amazing Race. Meghan is stuttering that “I don’t know what to say, I can’t even feel my body right now.” Cheyne says she’s a “strong and intelligent woman and I’m glad she’s mine.”
Sam & Dan come running around the corner and Phil tells them they are in second place. They admit that they bicker, but in the end they love and respect each other. Brian & Ericka finally come running down the path (I wonder if they finished the challenge). As Phil tells them they’re in third place they laugh and say “what?!” as if they’re surprised. Phil asks Ericka about her family’s impression of Brian now, and she looks at Brian, who is tearing up and tells him “oh, not now!” She says people should evaluate the character of a person instead of face value, and she’s glad he’s in her life. Cheyne thoughtfully says “the money isn’t even as important as what we got to do together.” Awwwww!
So if you ask me, I think Meghan & Cheyne really deserved the win. They were 99% together, supportive, and it was a total team effort. The annoying, arguing brothers Sam & Dan proved that you can fight and still be friends and Brian & Ericka did too, kind of - her family will see the abuse she gave out and realize that if Brian puts up with that, he really does love her!
So until the spring and the next Amazing Race, have a great holiday season!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Running Around in Prague - Answering Phones and Freezing Their Buns!
It’s getting down to the nitty gritty! Three teams are left (you have to read to the bottom to figure out who they are) and the finale is next week!!!!
Still in Prague, Meghan & Cheyne leave the Pit Stop first and the clue tells them to look for the Spanish Synagogue, which is the city’s oldest Jewish house of prayer. Sam & Dan know that they are now “looked at as the villians” because they stole Ericka & Brian’s taxi during the last leg of the Race. They don’t care, they want to make the final three.
At the Ekotechnicke Museum, the clue is a Roadblock. (Ericka & Brian’s Speed Bump is there as well). One team member must go into a huge room of ringing old-style telephones which the locals call “kafka-esque.” Only five phones will have someone on the other end, and each of the five will give the teams a letter. They then have to go to the supervisors and fill out a form and put the five letters at the bottom of the form in the proper order to get their next clue - it spells “Franz.” Meghan goes in and gets the letters and associates them with animals to remember them: R for rabbit, F for ferret, Z for zebra, and then gets to N and can’t come up with an animal. Meghan has to fill in such things as name, height, weight, partner’s name, and then misses it on the first try, but gets it on the second. Their clue tells them to go to Kryocentrum for their next clue. As Meghan & Cheyne come out of the Museum, Sam & Dan are just pulling up in their cab, and Meghan & Cheyne try to grab it but Sam & Dan tell the driver to wait for them. Meghan gets the driver to call for another taxi. (They should have offered the driver more money like Sam & Dan did - wouldn’t that be cosmic justice?) Dan runs in to do the Roadblock while Sam hopes he doesn’t get overly frustrated with the task.
Brian & Ericka leave the Pit Stop saying they can overcome more than “a little Speed Bump” because they’re the only team that has been in last place. The Globetrotters get to the Museum and Big Easy goes in to the phones as Dan finishes getting his letters and gets his first try rejected. (I love how the supervisor stamps big red X’s over the form, with great vehemence, like he’s trying to tell the teams they’re idiots.) He “doesn’t know if it’s a Czech word or English word.”
By this time, Meghan & Cheyne are at the Kryocentrum and get their next clue, which tells them to “check out the coolest holistic treatment in town.” They will have to strip down to their skivvies and spend two minutes in a -180̊ room. They get to wear socks and gloves, at least, and cover their ears and wear masks.
Brian & Ericka get to the Museum and find their Speed Bump. They have to “pay a visit to the green fairy.” They will have to find the M1 Pub and prepare a traditional shot of Absinthe by lighting a sugar cube on fire and dropping it into the shot glass with the Absinthe, and then drinking it. They will then get their next clue.
Dan is still having trouble spelling the correct word and calls the supervisors “douches.” The Globetrotters get to the Museum and Big Easy goes in to the phones as Dan gets to the supervisor’s room and gets rejected. The two decide to work together to try and figure it out. A lot of good it does, because neither of them can get the right combination.
Meghan & Cheyne come out of the freezer saying that “I feel bad for polar bears.” They get the next clue, telling them to go to the Charles Bridge, which connects the old and new sections of the city, and look for their next clue.
Brian & Ericka get to the bar and see the party going on, and try to pay attention to the bartender while he makes the drink. Brian doesn’t drink alcohol at all and says “it’s gonna be a challenge for me.” Brian sees all the women dancing on the bar and says “you’re gonna get me in trouble!” Ericka wisely tells him “you’re gonna get yourself in trouble!” They make their drinks and the looks on their faces after the shot are priceless! They say it was like drinking rubbing alcohol. (I’ve never tried Absinthe, myself.)
In the meantime, Dan finally gets the right combination and spells Franz. He tells Big Easy “it starts with an F, that’s all I’m saying.” Big Easy protests “that’s all you’re gonna give me?” Dan interviews that they’re trying to make the final three and he wouldn’t want to help him too much. (They were right, the brothers really seem to be nice guys but when it comes to a million bucks, they can be as nasty as the rest. Can you blame them, or are they being obnoxious?) Dan comes out and tells Sam that he and Big Easy were working together and he helped, but not much. Sam seemed upset that Dan helped even that much, and we see Big Easy griping in the supervisor’s room about how he felt Dan screwed him (I don’t blame him at this point, but I’m not sure I have a problem with it. It’s a million bucks!) Brian & Ericka get to the Museum and Brian tries the Roadblock. As he begins answering phones, Meghan & Cheyne get to the Charles Bridge and their clue is a Roadblock: Legend or Lager. In Legend, “teams will delve into Prague lore and Jewish mythology and build a Golem Man, which is made of straw and clay and was constructed to protect the Jewish quarters in the 15th century. Teams will cover a wooden Golem Man with clay and transport the figure through the town to the Old-New Synagogue and if it is deemed okay by the Rabbis, will get their next clue.” (I really hope everyone appreciates the research to find out what the hell Phil was describing there - it took me all of three minutes to Google it and find out what it was!) In Lager, teams must “drink in the local culture and deliver beer to a group of rowdy soccer hooligans.” Beer drinking is also considered a sport in Prague, and the Czech people drink more beer per capita than any other country. They have to carry 30 beers from a brewery through the town square to a bar to get their next clue.
Sam & Dan get to the Kryocentrum and complain that the Speedos are too small (although I have no complaints, they’re some cute butts there!) As they enter the cold room, Brian gets to the supervisor’s room and sees Big Easy still struggling with the letters for the name - he tells Brian he’s been there for about 2½ hours. Brian gets rejected and says the supervisor “is mean with the stamp.”
Meghan & Cheyne get to the Legend task and start to cover the wooden figure with mud as Sam & Dan come out of the freezer. Flight Time says he’s never coming back to the Czech Republic if they don’t get the word right. Brian gets the word and comes out of the Museum yelling, saying “I did it drunk, too!” Big Easy gets rejected once again and decides to go out to Flight Time saying that he’s willing to take the penalty. Teams who cannot finish a task must take a four-hour penalty before they can resume the Race. They insist it’s taking a strategic move, but I see it as dumb. With process of elimination, and anagramming the letters, it would have to be shorter to figure it out than four hours!
Meghan & Cheyne are struggling to move their clay-covered Golem, as the clay makes the statue much heavier. Brian & Ericka get to the Kryocentrum, with Ericka telling us that she’s from Florida and didn’t see snow until she was 21. Welcome to the cold, boopsie! Cheyne is complaining that Golem is heavy, and Meghan tells him that he’s taking the whole handle and not letting her help. Sam & Dan drop their Golem and Dan is asking if they should keep doing the challenge. Meghan & Cheyne are in the middle if the road trying to move their Golem and getting beeped at in traffic. They stop at the curb and she reminds him to be positive, as Cheyne tells Meghan he’s not yelling at her. The brothers bicker at each other covering the wooden statue (hey, we haven’t had a bickering couple the whole Race, it might as well be them!) Brian & Ericka decide to try the Lager challenge. Meghan & Cheyne get to the Synagogue and the Rabbis okay their statue, giving them the clue telling them to go to the next Pit Stop at Strelecky Ostrov, which is a small island next to the Charles Bridge.
Sam & Dan are rolling their Golem down the road and the arm is cracking and ready to fall off. They stand it up and bicker - Dan wants to go find the synagogue first and come back for the statue rather than drag the statue to the location. They stop a taxi driver and get directions from him.
Brian “used to be a server” so he’s instructing Ericka on how to carry the tray of beer. He takes 8 glasses and gives Ericka 7 and they walk through the street with locals bouncing around them and leering at the beer (or maybe at Ericka. Or maybe Brian!) He asks “don’t you people have jobs?”
Meghan & Cheyne run up to Phil at the Mat and find out they are team #1 once again. They each win 52" TVs.
Sam & Dan are seen pulling their statue and yapping at each other. Dan is complaining about how heavy it is, and Sam is telling him “Meghan did it!” Back at the Museum, Big Easy tells Flight Time that he killed about four trees filling out the forms. We then see Ericka & Brian carrying their beer, and as Brian tips one of his glasses over, Ericka turns around and loses her whole tray of beer. She tries to convince Brian to go do the other task., saying “it’s insane” and they won’t be able to do it. After seeing the other teams go through the Legend task, I’m with Brian - just stick with this one! Ericka just wouldn’t have the strength to pull that statue around. Brian gives her two glasses and tells her to just keep with it, and Ericka uses her hands to carry the two glasses. They have to dodge drunks walking down the street trying to grab the beers. Sam & Dan are still yapping and carrying the statue. Brian & Ericka are walking down the street with full trays of beer, and a girl walks by and says “For me?” and tries to grab a beer. Ericka gets an attitude saying “she’s about to get her ass beat” and saying she has “an American attitude.” Back at the Museum Big Easy is saying “it’s all on me.” Brian & Ericka meet up with some more drunks and manage to deliver their beer anyway. Sam & Dan get to the Synagogue and call it the “Detour from Hell” and still bitch at each other in the cab to the Pit Stop.
Brian & Ericka grab their last 11 beers and end up with a couple of guys following them down the street. Sam & Dan make it to the Mat and they two guys say “ooh, ow!” as they see the pretty lady standing with Phil. Phil tells them they’re Team #2, and still in it for a million bucks. They think they can overcome Meghan & Cheyne because the other teams see them as “second or third place.”
Back at the phone bank, the Globetrotters’ penalty is over and they head to the Kroycentrum. It’s daylight when Brian & Ericka finish delivering the beer and the guy waiting for them is half asleep. As they head to the Kryocentrum, Big Easy & Flight Time are hoping that someone had a real problem with a Detour - but it’s not to be, as Brian & Ericka get to Phil at the Mat and are told they are Team #3 and they celebrate.
We don’t see the Globetrotters go into the freezer, or which Detour they chose, but we get to see a recap of their exploits on the Race, with them riding the bikes, and dancing at the Opera House. As they get to the Mat, they know they’re in last place and Phil tells them they are eliminated. Big Easy says that this Race can tear up relationships, and it didn’t do that to them - and I give them credit. They really were the quintessential team, helping each other and staying positive the whole way. Too bad they were eliminated, but someone had to go!
Here is the order of finish:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Sam & Dan
3 - Brian & Ericka
4 - Big Easy & Flight Time - eliminated
So next week is the finale - who will be victorious and get the million bucks? Will Meghan & Cheyne keep their winning streak alive or will the brothers manage to get ahead? Will the perpetual last-place team of Brian & Ericka pull it off? We’ll find out next week!
Still in Prague, Meghan & Cheyne leave the Pit Stop first and the clue tells them to look for the Spanish Synagogue, which is the city’s oldest Jewish house of prayer. Sam & Dan know that they are now “looked at as the villians” because they stole Ericka & Brian’s taxi during the last leg of the Race. They don’t care, they want to make the final three.
At the Ekotechnicke Museum, the clue is a Roadblock. (Ericka & Brian’s Speed Bump is there as well). One team member must go into a huge room of ringing old-style telephones which the locals call “kafka-esque.” Only five phones will have someone on the other end, and each of the five will give the teams a letter. They then have to go to the supervisors and fill out a form and put the five letters at the bottom of the form in the proper order to get their next clue - it spells “Franz.” Meghan goes in and gets the letters and associates them with animals to remember them: R for rabbit, F for ferret, Z for zebra, and then gets to N and can’t come up with an animal. Meghan has to fill in such things as name, height, weight, partner’s name, and then misses it on the first try, but gets it on the second. Their clue tells them to go to Kryocentrum for their next clue. As Meghan & Cheyne come out of the Museum, Sam & Dan are just pulling up in their cab, and Meghan & Cheyne try to grab it but Sam & Dan tell the driver to wait for them. Meghan gets the driver to call for another taxi. (They should have offered the driver more money like Sam & Dan did - wouldn’t that be cosmic justice?) Dan runs in to do the Roadblock while Sam hopes he doesn’t get overly frustrated with the task.
Brian & Ericka leave the Pit Stop saying they can overcome more than “a little Speed Bump” because they’re the only team that has been in last place. The Globetrotters get to the Museum and Big Easy goes in to the phones as Dan finishes getting his letters and gets his first try rejected. (I love how the supervisor stamps big red X’s over the form, with great vehemence, like he’s trying to tell the teams they’re idiots.) He “doesn’t know if it’s a Czech word or English word.”
By this time, Meghan & Cheyne are at the Kryocentrum and get their next clue, which tells them to “check out the coolest holistic treatment in town.” They will have to strip down to their skivvies and spend two minutes in a -180̊ room. They get to wear socks and gloves, at least, and cover their ears and wear masks.
Brian & Ericka get to the Museum and find their Speed Bump. They have to “pay a visit to the green fairy.” They will have to find the M1 Pub and prepare a traditional shot of Absinthe by lighting a sugar cube on fire and dropping it into the shot glass with the Absinthe, and then drinking it. They will then get their next clue.
Dan is still having trouble spelling the correct word and calls the supervisors “douches.” The Globetrotters get to the Museum and Big Easy goes in to the phones as Dan gets to the supervisor’s room and gets rejected. The two decide to work together to try and figure it out. A lot of good it does, because neither of them can get the right combination.
Meghan & Cheyne come out of the freezer saying that “I feel bad for polar bears.” They get the next clue, telling them to go to the Charles Bridge, which connects the old and new sections of the city, and look for their next clue.
Brian & Ericka get to the bar and see the party going on, and try to pay attention to the bartender while he makes the drink. Brian doesn’t drink alcohol at all and says “it’s gonna be a challenge for me.” Brian sees all the women dancing on the bar and says “you’re gonna get me in trouble!” Ericka wisely tells him “you’re gonna get yourself in trouble!” They make their drinks and the looks on their faces after the shot are priceless! They say it was like drinking rubbing alcohol. (I’ve never tried Absinthe, myself.)
In the meantime, Dan finally gets the right combination and spells Franz. He tells Big Easy “it starts with an F, that’s all I’m saying.” Big Easy protests “that’s all you’re gonna give me?” Dan interviews that they’re trying to make the final three and he wouldn’t want to help him too much. (They were right, the brothers really seem to be nice guys but when it comes to a million bucks, they can be as nasty as the rest. Can you blame them, or are they being obnoxious?) Dan comes out and tells Sam that he and Big Easy were working together and he helped, but not much. Sam seemed upset that Dan helped even that much, and we see Big Easy griping in the supervisor’s room about how he felt Dan screwed him (I don’t blame him at this point, but I’m not sure I have a problem with it. It’s a million bucks!) Brian & Ericka get to the Museum and Brian tries the Roadblock. As he begins answering phones, Meghan & Cheyne get to the Charles Bridge and their clue is a Roadblock: Legend or Lager. In Legend, “teams will delve into Prague lore and Jewish mythology and build a Golem Man, which is made of straw and clay and was constructed to protect the Jewish quarters in the 15th century. Teams will cover a wooden Golem Man with clay and transport the figure through the town to the Old-New Synagogue and if it is deemed okay by the Rabbis, will get their next clue.” (I really hope everyone appreciates the research to find out what the hell Phil was describing there - it took me all of three minutes to Google it and find out what it was!) In Lager, teams must “drink in the local culture and deliver beer to a group of rowdy soccer hooligans.” Beer drinking is also considered a sport in Prague, and the Czech people drink more beer per capita than any other country. They have to carry 30 beers from a brewery through the town square to a bar to get their next clue.
Sam & Dan get to the Kryocentrum and complain that the Speedos are too small (although I have no complaints, they’re some cute butts there!) As they enter the cold room, Brian gets to the supervisor’s room and sees Big Easy still struggling with the letters for the name - he tells Brian he’s been there for about 2½ hours. Brian gets rejected and says the supervisor “is mean with the stamp.”
Meghan & Cheyne get to the Legend task and start to cover the wooden figure with mud as Sam & Dan come out of the freezer. Flight Time says he’s never coming back to the Czech Republic if they don’t get the word right. Brian gets the word and comes out of the Museum yelling, saying “I did it drunk, too!” Big Easy gets rejected once again and decides to go out to Flight Time saying that he’s willing to take the penalty. Teams who cannot finish a task must take a four-hour penalty before they can resume the Race. They insist it’s taking a strategic move, but I see it as dumb. With process of elimination, and anagramming the letters, it would have to be shorter to figure it out than four hours!
Meghan & Cheyne are struggling to move their clay-covered Golem, as the clay makes the statue much heavier. Brian & Ericka get to the Kryocentrum, with Ericka telling us that she’s from Florida and didn’t see snow until she was 21. Welcome to the cold, boopsie! Cheyne is complaining that Golem is heavy, and Meghan tells him that he’s taking the whole handle and not letting her help. Sam & Dan drop their Golem and Dan is asking if they should keep doing the challenge. Meghan & Cheyne are in the middle if the road trying to move their Golem and getting beeped at in traffic. They stop at the curb and she reminds him to be positive, as Cheyne tells Meghan he’s not yelling at her. The brothers bicker at each other covering the wooden statue (hey, we haven’t had a bickering couple the whole Race, it might as well be them!) Brian & Ericka decide to try the Lager challenge. Meghan & Cheyne get to the Synagogue and the Rabbis okay their statue, giving them the clue telling them to go to the next Pit Stop at Strelecky Ostrov, which is a small island next to the Charles Bridge.
Sam & Dan are rolling their Golem down the road and the arm is cracking and ready to fall off. They stand it up and bicker - Dan wants to go find the synagogue first and come back for the statue rather than drag the statue to the location. They stop a taxi driver and get directions from him.
Brian “used to be a server” so he’s instructing Ericka on how to carry the tray of beer. He takes 8 glasses and gives Ericka 7 and they walk through the street with locals bouncing around them and leering at the beer (or maybe at Ericka. Or maybe Brian!) He asks “don’t you people have jobs?”
Meghan & Cheyne run up to Phil at the Mat and find out they are team #1 once again. They each win 52" TVs.
Sam & Dan are seen pulling their statue and yapping at each other. Dan is complaining about how heavy it is, and Sam is telling him “Meghan did it!” Back at the Museum, Big Easy tells Flight Time that he killed about four trees filling out the forms. We then see Ericka & Brian carrying their beer, and as Brian tips one of his glasses over, Ericka turns around and loses her whole tray of beer. She tries to convince Brian to go do the other task., saying “it’s insane” and they won’t be able to do it. After seeing the other teams go through the Legend task, I’m with Brian - just stick with this one! Ericka just wouldn’t have the strength to pull that statue around. Brian gives her two glasses and tells her to just keep with it, and Ericka uses her hands to carry the two glasses. They have to dodge drunks walking down the street trying to grab the beers. Sam & Dan are still yapping and carrying the statue. Brian & Ericka are walking down the street with full trays of beer, and a girl walks by and says “For me?” and tries to grab a beer. Ericka gets an attitude saying “she’s about to get her ass beat” and saying she has “an American attitude.” Back at the Museum Big Easy is saying “it’s all on me.” Brian & Ericka meet up with some more drunks and manage to deliver their beer anyway. Sam & Dan get to the Synagogue and call it the “Detour from Hell” and still bitch at each other in the cab to the Pit Stop.
Brian & Ericka grab their last 11 beers and end up with a couple of guys following them down the street. Sam & Dan make it to the Mat and they two guys say “ooh, ow!” as they see the pretty lady standing with Phil. Phil tells them they’re Team #2, and still in it for a million bucks. They think they can overcome Meghan & Cheyne because the other teams see them as “second or third place.”
Back at the phone bank, the Globetrotters’ penalty is over and they head to the Kroycentrum. It’s daylight when Brian & Ericka finish delivering the beer and the guy waiting for them is half asleep. As they head to the Kryocentrum, Big Easy & Flight Time are hoping that someone had a real problem with a Detour - but it’s not to be, as Brian & Ericka get to Phil at the Mat and are told they are Team #3 and they celebrate.
We don’t see the Globetrotters go into the freezer, or which Detour they chose, but we get to see a recap of their exploits on the Race, with them riding the bikes, and dancing at the Opera House. As they get to the Mat, they know they’re in last place and Phil tells them they are eliminated. Big Easy says that this Race can tear up relationships, and it didn’t do that to them - and I give them credit. They really were the quintessential team, helping each other and staying positive the whole way. Too bad they were eliminated, but someone had to go!
Here is the order of finish:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Sam & Dan
3 - Brian & Ericka
4 - Big Easy & Flight Time - eliminated
So next week is the finale - who will be victorious and get the million bucks? Will Meghan & Cheyne keep their winning streak alive or will the brothers manage to get ahead? Will the perpetual last-place team of Brian & Ericka pull it off? We’ll find out next week!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Cooperation is Out the Window! Sam & Dan are Thieves!
The teams begin this leg of the Race in Estonia. Meghan & Cheyne leave first, finding out they have to fly to Prague, Czech Republic. They will have to find a man in a Praga, which is a vintage convertible. Sam & Dan leave next, saying that the Globetrotters are their biggest competition, especially “since they accused us of elbowing them” running to the last Pit Stop. For their credit, Big Easy & Flight Time say they’re not harboring any ill will. “They’re in the final four and you have to respect them for that.” Brian & Ericka bring up the rear but catch up at the airport because the first flight doesn’t leave until 5:20 a.m. Meghan & Cheyne spot a Praga on the internet and find out that it’s a vintage car and plan to tell everyone that they need to look for a certain kind of hat - but they see the Globetrotters see the car on the internet too so they don’t bother.
Once the teams land, they all take off in taxis - except for Brian & Ericka, who talked to someone on the plane who said it would be quicker to take the subway. Flight Time & Big Easy say “we gotta go to an old town and look for an old car, and we’ve got an old man driving, and he’s driving like one.” In the cab, Sam & Dan discuss what a Praga might be, asking their cabbie if it’s a robe.
The clue tells the teams to go to an outdoor adventure center, Kayaky Troja, and search for the clue box. Sam & Dan saw Meghan & Cheyne running to the car and realized that is where they needed to go, and in the cab afterward mentioned that they would have looked forever because they didn’t know what they were looking for. Ericka & Brian are stuck in traffic on a shuttle bus to the subway and finally decide it’s taking too long and grab a taxi. Brian says “we did what we did, and we’re only looking forward.” Eternal optimist, that one!
At the Kayaky Troja, the clue is a Detour: Fast and Furious or Slow and Steady. In Fast and Furious they have to ride down a white water course that is used to train professional kayakers. They will have to grab a ribbon with their next clue written on it. If they tip over before they get to the ribbon, they have to start all over again. For Slow and Steady, they have to pull themselves along an aerial rope course to the end to get their next clue. Sam & Dan think they can do the white water, while Meghan & Cheyne decide to do Slow.
Brian & Ericka get to the square but have no idea what they’re looking for. (Now, they got the tip from somebody to take the subway to the square - but they didn’t ask the person what a Praga was?)
Sam & Dan paddle underneath Meghan & Cheyne and the Globetrotters as they hit the rope course, yelling “we’re gonna beat you!” They end up bickering the entire time about paddling. They get into the part of the course with faster water and end up tipping over. The rope teams find out it’s harder than it looks, as they first go downhill, but then end up having to pull themselves uphill. Big Easy is so heavy his feet are hitting the water. Meghan figures out to lay back and put her feet up on the rope to make it easier, but Flight Time was already there and making good headway. Sam & Dan paddle under them for their second attempt, yelling at each other again and tipping over once again. Flight Time is the first one to the end, and Meghan mentions that it’s the first time she’s seen the big strong Big Easy struggle on anything. The locals at the end platform tell Flight Time to go down and Cheyne wants to go first because Flight Time is going too slow - Flight Time says “I’m going slow because I’m tired.” Cheyne keeps yelling that he’s going slow on purpose, and Flight Time realized that he could hold them up by doing just that. Flight Time talks to Meghan on the ground saying “I don’t play like that” but “once you gave me the idea, it sounded good.” Meghan tells him it’s okay. The brothers seem to have the paddling down and tip over yet again. After that spill they decide to try the Slow and Steady. They say “as long as Brian & Ericka don’t show up we’re okay.” And of course, here come Brian & Ericka.
The teams need to figure out the next clue on the ribbons, which are Stavotske Divadlo and mean the Estates Theater. Meghan & Cheyne ask a local about getting a taxi and he points them to the train station. Meghan yells to the Globetrotters “we know where we’re going” and Cheyne isn’t too thrilled, but the Globetrotters say they would have followed them anyway so it was no big deal. Brian says he’s afraid of heights but they decide to do the rope challenge, and Ericka thanks him for challenging his fear for her (she’s afraid of water).
Meghan & Cheyne ask a local about the fastest way to get to the building, and as she’s writing it down for them, Cheyne spots a taxi and just snatches the note pad out of her hands to run to the taxi. The Globetrotters get the woman to write it for them, and Meghan chastises Cheyne for being rude to everyone, and leaving the Globetrotters after saying they’d help each other. Cheyne has a point, that this “isn’t a frickin’ hold your hand game.”
Sam is having mega problems with the ropes, and Brian shouts to Ericka to “use two hands” (which she is) and she’s getting upset with him. In the cab, Cheyne apologizes to Meghan “if you thought I was rude” but Meghan tells him that if the Globetrotters get ticked off at them it will motivate them and “give them a reason to mess with you.”
The clue at the Theater is a Roadblock - “who can remain composed under pressure?” The Estates Theater is where Motzart premiered his opera Giovanni. One team member must look throughout the theater for a tiny mandolin, which is the instrument Giovanni plays in the opera, and give it to a singing Giovanni for their next clue. Cheyne takes off to look for the mandolin in the massive opera theater. Cheyne finds a lute-looking thing and hands it to the Giovanni on stage, who laughs at him and says “no.”
On the train, the Globetrotters say how they hope they can catch Meghan & Cheyne and “stick it to Cheyne” for not wanting to work with them. Big Easy is going to do the Roadblock and takes off looking for the little instrument. Back at the Detour, the brothers finish and find out the taxi waiting is Brian & Ericka’s, and tell the driver they will pay him more to take them. Brian yells to Ericka “here’s some motivation...the brothers are trying to steal our taxi.” Brian & Ericka yell to the taxi to wait for them, but the taxi driver decides to take the brothers. Ericka gets her motivation and says “I’m going for the jugular now.” Meghan is telling Cheyne’s name and encouraging him, while driving Big Easy crazy. Brian & Ericka get finished and moan about Sam & Dan stealing their cab, and Brian says “I don’t think we’ll be working with them any more.” Ericka is firm, “We’re not working with anybody ... ever.”
Sam & Dan get to the theater and Dan will do the Roadblock. Sam sits with Flight Time and Meghan, and when Meghan asks about Brian & Ericka Sam says “we kind of took their cab.” Big Easy grabs a guitar and Meghan laughs that “It’s miniature to him.” Flight Time starts ballet prancing around the stage as Giovanni sings, and when Dan brings up a small violin, Giovanni laughs at him, too, and says “no.” Flight Time says “I haven’t seen Big Easy in five minutes - somebody send the paramedics up there.” Cheyne is crawling around the upper stage walks, and Big Easy finds a small bag and gives it to Giovanni, who laughs at him. Big Easy says “you can’t laugh at me no more, I’m gonna find it.” He does find a small case and brings it back - but it’s empty, and he gets laughed at again. Cheyne finds a small case and hands it to Giovanni, singing with him (badly) and getting his clue. It tells them to go to the next Pit Stop, Prague Castle. It is the largest ancient castle in the world.
Brian & Ericka get to the Theater as Dan finds the small case and gets his clue. Brian & Ericka walk in as the brothers walk out, and Brian complains that they didn’t even look him in the eye or apologize. Big Easy says “I don’t want to hear him sing no more” as he finds his case. “No offense, but I want to get to the Pit Stop.” To her credit Ericka isn’t freaking out looking for the little case. The Globetrotters get done and Sam & Dan are still looking for a taxi, and they end up leaving at almost the same time, but Sam & Dan beat them to the Mat. Flight Time & Big Easy say “we’re gonna crash this party” as they show up and when Phil asks if there’s tension on the Race, they say “All we know is someone stole someone else’s taxi, so we’ll just let them beat each other up and step on ahead.” Sam & Dan are standing there looking like they’re ready to kill someone. I think they don’t have room to complain, they were pretty nasty doing that - but again, this is a race for a million bucks!
Back at the Theater, Giovanni grabs a sandwich and sits with Brian as he waits for Ericka. When they finally make it to the Mat, Phil asks if they’ve enjoyed the Race, and Brian says they’ve had an angel every leg, and it’s been fun. Phil tells them they have another angel because it’s a non-elimination leg. (I’m wondering if the producers did that because Sam & Dan stole their cab).
So here’s the order of finish:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Sam & Dan
3 - Big Easy & Flight Time
4 - Brian & Ericka
So, should Sam & Dan’s karma bite them in the ass because they were rotten and stole Brian & Ericka’s taxi? Are things getting nasty between the teams and is it really the end of cooperation? Should it be the end of cooperation? Can Meghan & Cheyne be beat? Stay tuned!
Once the teams land, they all take off in taxis - except for Brian & Ericka, who talked to someone on the plane who said it would be quicker to take the subway. Flight Time & Big Easy say “we gotta go to an old town and look for an old car, and we’ve got an old man driving, and he’s driving like one.” In the cab, Sam & Dan discuss what a Praga might be, asking their cabbie if it’s a robe.
The clue tells the teams to go to an outdoor adventure center, Kayaky Troja, and search for the clue box. Sam & Dan saw Meghan & Cheyne running to the car and realized that is where they needed to go, and in the cab afterward mentioned that they would have looked forever because they didn’t know what they were looking for. Ericka & Brian are stuck in traffic on a shuttle bus to the subway and finally decide it’s taking too long and grab a taxi. Brian says “we did what we did, and we’re only looking forward.” Eternal optimist, that one!
At the Kayaky Troja, the clue is a Detour: Fast and Furious or Slow and Steady. In Fast and Furious they have to ride down a white water course that is used to train professional kayakers. They will have to grab a ribbon with their next clue written on it. If they tip over before they get to the ribbon, they have to start all over again. For Slow and Steady, they have to pull themselves along an aerial rope course to the end to get their next clue. Sam & Dan think they can do the white water, while Meghan & Cheyne decide to do Slow.
Brian & Ericka get to the square but have no idea what they’re looking for. (Now, they got the tip from somebody to take the subway to the square - but they didn’t ask the person what a Praga was?)
Sam & Dan paddle underneath Meghan & Cheyne and the Globetrotters as they hit the rope course, yelling “we’re gonna beat you!” They end up bickering the entire time about paddling. They get into the part of the course with faster water and end up tipping over. The rope teams find out it’s harder than it looks, as they first go downhill, but then end up having to pull themselves uphill. Big Easy is so heavy his feet are hitting the water. Meghan figures out to lay back and put her feet up on the rope to make it easier, but Flight Time was already there and making good headway. Sam & Dan paddle under them for their second attempt, yelling at each other again and tipping over once again. Flight Time is the first one to the end, and Meghan mentions that it’s the first time she’s seen the big strong Big Easy struggle on anything. The locals at the end platform tell Flight Time to go down and Cheyne wants to go first because Flight Time is going too slow - Flight Time says “I’m going slow because I’m tired.” Cheyne keeps yelling that he’s going slow on purpose, and Flight Time realized that he could hold them up by doing just that. Flight Time talks to Meghan on the ground saying “I don’t play like that” but “once you gave me the idea, it sounded good.” Meghan tells him it’s okay. The brothers seem to have the paddling down and tip over yet again. After that spill they decide to try the Slow and Steady. They say “as long as Brian & Ericka don’t show up we’re okay.” And of course, here come Brian & Ericka.
The teams need to figure out the next clue on the ribbons, which are Stavotske Divadlo and mean the Estates Theater. Meghan & Cheyne ask a local about getting a taxi and he points them to the train station. Meghan yells to the Globetrotters “we know where we’re going” and Cheyne isn’t too thrilled, but the Globetrotters say they would have followed them anyway so it was no big deal. Brian says he’s afraid of heights but they decide to do the rope challenge, and Ericka thanks him for challenging his fear for her (she’s afraid of water).
Meghan & Cheyne ask a local about the fastest way to get to the building, and as she’s writing it down for them, Cheyne spots a taxi and just snatches the note pad out of her hands to run to the taxi. The Globetrotters get the woman to write it for them, and Meghan chastises Cheyne for being rude to everyone, and leaving the Globetrotters after saying they’d help each other. Cheyne has a point, that this “isn’t a frickin’ hold your hand game.”
Sam is having mega problems with the ropes, and Brian shouts to Ericka to “use two hands” (which she is) and she’s getting upset with him. In the cab, Cheyne apologizes to Meghan “if you thought I was rude” but Meghan tells him that if the Globetrotters get ticked off at them it will motivate them and “give them a reason to mess with you.”
The clue at the Theater is a Roadblock - “who can remain composed under pressure?” The Estates Theater is where Motzart premiered his opera Giovanni. One team member must look throughout the theater for a tiny mandolin, which is the instrument Giovanni plays in the opera, and give it to a singing Giovanni for their next clue. Cheyne takes off to look for the mandolin in the massive opera theater. Cheyne finds a lute-looking thing and hands it to the Giovanni on stage, who laughs at him and says “no.”
On the train, the Globetrotters say how they hope they can catch Meghan & Cheyne and “stick it to Cheyne” for not wanting to work with them. Big Easy is going to do the Roadblock and takes off looking for the little instrument. Back at the Detour, the brothers finish and find out the taxi waiting is Brian & Ericka’s, and tell the driver they will pay him more to take them. Brian yells to Ericka “here’s some motivation...the brothers are trying to steal our taxi.” Brian & Ericka yell to the taxi to wait for them, but the taxi driver decides to take the brothers. Ericka gets her motivation and says “I’m going for the jugular now.” Meghan is telling Cheyne’s name and encouraging him, while driving Big Easy crazy. Brian & Ericka get finished and moan about Sam & Dan stealing their cab, and Brian says “I don’t think we’ll be working with them any more.” Ericka is firm, “We’re not working with anybody ... ever.”
Sam & Dan get to the theater and Dan will do the Roadblock. Sam sits with Flight Time and Meghan, and when Meghan asks about Brian & Ericka Sam says “we kind of took their cab.” Big Easy grabs a guitar and Meghan laughs that “It’s miniature to him.” Flight Time starts ballet prancing around the stage as Giovanni sings, and when Dan brings up a small violin, Giovanni laughs at him, too, and says “no.” Flight Time says “I haven’t seen Big Easy in five minutes - somebody send the paramedics up there.” Cheyne is crawling around the upper stage walks, and Big Easy finds a small bag and gives it to Giovanni, who laughs at him. Big Easy says “you can’t laugh at me no more, I’m gonna find it.” He does find a small case and brings it back - but it’s empty, and he gets laughed at again. Cheyne finds a small case and hands it to Giovanni, singing with him (badly) and getting his clue. It tells them to go to the next Pit Stop, Prague Castle. It is the largest ancient castle in the world.
Brian & Ericka get to the Theater as Dan finds the small case and gets his clue. Brian & Ericka walk in as the brothers walk out, and Brian complains that they didn’t even look him in the eye or apologize. Big Easy says “I don’t want to hear him sing no more” as he finds his case. “No offense, but I want to get to the Pit Stop.” To her credit Ericka isn’t freaking out looking for the little case. The Globetrotters get done and Sam & Dan are still looking for a taxi, and they end up leaving at almost the same time, but Sam & Dan beat them to the Mat. Flight Time & Big Easy say “we’re gonna crash this party” as they show up and when Phil asks if there’s tension on the Race, they say “All we know is someone stole someone else’s taxi, so we’ll just let them beat each other up and step on ahead.” Sam & Dan are standing there looking like they’re ready to kill someone. I think they don’t have room to complain, they were pretty nasty doing that - but again, this is a race for a million bucks!
Back at the Theater, Giovanni grabs a sandwich and sits with Brian as he waits for Ericka. When they finally make it to the Mat, Phil asks if they’ve enjoyed the Race, and Brian says they’ve had an angel every leg, and it’s been fun. Phil tells them they have another angel because it’s a non-elimination leg. (I’m wondering if the producers did that because Sam & Dan stole their cab).
So here’s the order of finish:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Sam & Dan
3 - Big Easy & Flight Time
4 - Brian & Ericka
So, should Sam & Dan’s karma bite them in the ass because they were rotten and stole Brian & Ericka’s taxi? Are things getting nasty between the teams and is it really the end of cooperation? Should it be the end of cooperation? Can Meghan & Cheyne be beat? Stay tuned!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Mud Volleyball & Estonian Hotties
It’s the 8th Pit Stop of the Amazing Race in Stockholm, Sweden. Flight Time & Big Easy leave first, and find out they have to go to Tallinn, Estonia and then open the door to Mustpeade. They talk a local cabbie into letting them follow him to the ferry. Once at the ferry, they find out it doesn’t leave until 5:45 p.m. the next afternoon. Meghan & Cheyne get a cabbie to write the directions for them. Brian & Ericka mention that Ericka didn’t win any preliminaries during the Miss America pageant, but won the crown so they’re not worried about not winning a leg. They get a cabbie to follow to the ferry, and end up beating Meghan & Cheyne there. They see Flight Time & Big Easy sleeping in their car and are bummed that they have to wait till 5:00 for the ferry. Flight Time & Big Easy mention that Sam & Dan acted badly by yelling at each other "flipping the bird and stuff" during the hay challenge and they shouldn’t win. Once on the ferry, the teams have rooms with beds for the 16-hour ride. They’re all hanging out watching the scenery, I’d be zonked the whole time!
The teams ran down a long hallway to get off the ferry complaining the whole time, but the Globetrotters laugh “ya’ll getting tired, huh?” However, they end up leaving last from the ferry stop. At the door of Mustpeade, Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan find a little lock on the building that’s the one they need to open (as opposed to the actual door) and get it unlocked and into the building before Brian & Ericka get there and see them. The clue inside is a Roadblock. It involves the brotherhood of the blackets, which is a secret society of merchants. One person will join the ranks of the brotherhood. They go down to the cellar and find a candelabra with a room number on it, go to the room and be given a “blank” scroll. They have to figure out that they need to hold the scroll over a lighted candle and will get their next clue.
As Gary & Matt show up they find their Speed Bump. They have to find a bus and take a five-minute sauna with a group of locals. As they dash off to find the sauna bus, we see Cheyne and Sam looking for their rooms. Brian & Ericka get into the building and Flight Time & Big Easy don’t have to use their key but follow them in.
Flight Time got to his room first and got his scroll. He sees a red crayon and scribbles across his scroll, thinking that it was the way to get his clue. At this time, my hunny is screaming about how Flight Time slams his candelabra on the top and is scribbling on a beautiful grand piano and possibly wrecking the patina. Cheyne immediately uses his candle to try and read the scroll.
At the sauna, Gary & Matt are enjoying sitting with the locals, especially Matt, who is next to a beautiful blonde woman who is looking like she’s thinking “these guys are dorks.”
Cheyne manages to see his clue, which is Pikk Herman Tower Garden. Ericka is right behind him. While Sam and Flight Time are still looking for their clues, Gary & Matt get to the Mustpeade and Matt does the task, pronouncing it “candle - a - BRA” and getting a laugh out of the locals. Sam figured it out, and Flight Time finally used the candle and got his clue. Matt can’t figure out what a candle-a-bra is, asking if some guy can lead him to a room. I think the pink hair dye has finally gotten to him! He gets lucky and associates the candelabra with the number on it as what he needs.
Meghan & Cheyne get to the Tower with Ericka & Brian, and their clue is a Detour. Teams have to choose between Serve or Sling. In Serve, they have to play a round of volleyball in the bog with a local team and score 5 points to get their clue. In Sling, they have to stand in the mud and use a sling to hit a moose target, dumping a table full of cabbage and get their clue.
Meghan & Cheyne decide to do Serve since Meghan has played beach volleyball. As they race off to find a taxi with Ericka & Brian, they grab a taxi that Ericka thinks is theirs (although Meghan & Cheyne were running in front). They jump in the cab and the driver asks about “the other guys” and Meghan & Cheyne say “no, we don’t care about them” as their driver grabs his cell to call another cab ofr Brian & Ericka. Matt, back at the building, tries the "rub" method on the scroll and gets nowhere. Brian & Ericka find a cab and she decides she has to “keep an eye on Brian” because he has a big heart. Brian refused to say that Meghan & Cheyne "stole the cab."
All the teams are going to the volleyball challenge. Sam & Dan are begging for a guy to get out of a taxi but the man riding inside says he can’t walk. They see another taxi as the Globetrotters do, and both teams end up in the same taxi complaining that Big Easy & Flight Time are just “hanging on our coattails.” Gary & Matt end up walking/running to the Tower. In the cab, the teams read the clue saying that they have to play volleyball in their underwear, and Ericka says “you’re gonna have to get out another pair of underwear, because all I’m wearing is a stringy thong and that ain’t happening.”
Gary & Matt are at the Tower, and decide to go into it and totally miss the clue box in front. After running around inside, they decide to look outside and find the clue box. They decide to do the Sling challenge. Gary & Matt get a cabbie with a cab-driving buddy with Meghan & Cheyne in his cab, and tell the driver to tell the other driver to go slowly. Meghan & Cheyne’s driver lets them know what was up and doesn’t go along with it.
Meghan & Cheyne get to the volleyball and score three points pretty quickly. They look like they’re having fun, even knee-deep in mud and moving very slowly. As the Globetrotters, Brian & Ericka and Sam & Dan show up, they can’t find the marked path through the forest and wander around. Meghan & Cheyne finally get their 5 points and get their next clue, telling them to go run through the bogs and look for the next Pitstop, the Keava Raba Overlook Tower. Meghan & Cheyne get to the Mat first, full of mud. Their prize is a sauna, which doesn’t seem to impress them all that much.
We see the other three teams wandering and they finally manage to find the arrows to their destination. Sam & Dan say that there were some “hottie Estonian guys.” The Globetrotters and Sam & Dan take the volleyball nets, and since only two teams could play at a time, Brian & Ericka end up trying Sling. They had to put "snowshoes" on to walk over the mud.
The volleyball is not going well for either team, and I guess the “Estonian hotties” got Dan all excited, because his crotch was all blurred out. They all interview that they enjoyed playing volleyball but they couldn’t move so it wasn’t easy. The Estonian players started feeling sorry for the teams and ended up giving points away. Flight Time & Big Easy got their 5 points first and Sam & Dan were right behind and after getting their clue, realized that the Globetrotters were going the wrong way. Big Easy & Flight Time realize their mistake and quickly catch up to Sam & Dan. As they run one of the Globetrotters tangles with either Sam or Dan and falls, but the brothers manage to get to the tower ahead of the Globetrotters. Phil mentions that “Big Easy looks like he wants to kick some butt right now.” (Nothing like fanning the fire, Phil!) After the replay we see that the Globetrotters were the instigators and tried to knock over the brothers. However, Big Easy did the most complaining about being knocked over.
Brian & Ericka, after many slingshots, get their cabbages to fall and get their clue and race to the Mat. Phil asks them if they know if they’re last, and when they say no, he says “I’m gonna put you out of your misery and tell you you’re team number 4.” Gary & Matt interview that they enjoyed the experience and “shooting radishes” was part of it. They get to the Mat and Phil tells them they are eliminated. Gary gets overwhelmed and sniffly as he says how much fun it’s been doing the Race with his son.
So here’s the order of finish:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Sam & Dan
3 - Flight Time & Big Easy
4 - Brian & Ericka
5 - Gary & Matt - eliminated
It looks like any one of the remaining teams could take it. Who are you rooting for?
The teams ran down a long hallway to get off the ferry complaining the whole time, but the Globetrotters laugh “ya’ll getting tired, huh?” However, they end up leaving last from the ferry stop. At the door of Mustpeade, Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan find a little lock on the building that’s the one they need to open (as opposed to the actual door) and get it unlocked and into the building before Brian & Ericka get there and see them. The clue inside is a Roadblock. It involves the brotherhood of the blackets, which is a secret society of merchants. One person will join the ranks of the brotherhood. They go down to the cellar and find a candelabra with a room number on it, go to the room and be given a “blank” scroll. They have to figure out that they need to hold the scroll over a lighted candle and will get their next clue.
As Gary & Matt show up they find their Speed Bump. They have to find a bus and take a five-minute sauna with a group of locals. As they dash off to find the sauna bus, we see Cheyne and Sam looking for their rooms. Brian & Ericka get into the building and Flight Time & Big Easy don’t have to use their key but follow them in.
Flight Time got to his room first and got his scroll. He sees a red crayon and scribbles across his scroll, thinking that it was the way to get his clue. At this time, my hunny is screaming about how Flight Time slams his candelabra on the top and is scribbling on a beautiful grand piano and possibly wrecking the patina. Cheyne immediately uses his candle to try and read the scroll.
At the sauna, Gary & Matt are enjoying sitting with the locals, especially Matt, who is next to a beautiful blonde woman who is looking like she’s thinking “these guys are dorks.”
Cheyne manages to see his clue, which is Pikk Herman Tower Garden. Ericka is right behind him. While Sam and Flight Time are still looking for their clues, Gary & Matt get to the Mustpeade and Matt does the task, pronouncing it “candle - a - BRA” and getting a laugh out of the locals. Sam figured it out, and Flight Time finally used the candle and got his clue. Matt can’t figure out what a candle-a-bra is, asking if some guy can lead him to a room. I think the pink hair dye has finally gotten to him! He gets lucky and associates the candelabra with the number on it as what he needs.
Meghan & Cheyne get to the Tower with Ericka & Brian, and their clue is a Detour. Teams have to choose between Serve or Sling. In Serve, they have to play a round of volleyball in the bog with a local team and score 5 points to get their clue. In Sling, they have to stand in the mud and use a sling to hit a moose target, dumping a table full of cabbage and get their clue.
Meghan & Cheyne decide to do Serve since Meghan has played beach volleyball. As they race off to find a taxi with Ericka & Brian, they grab a taxi that Ericka thinks is theirs (although Meghan & Cheyne were running in front). They jump in the cab and the driver asks about “the other guys” and Meghan & Cheyne say “no, we don’t care about them” as their driver grabs his cell to call another cab ofr Brian & Ericka. Matt, back at the building, tries the "rub" method on the scroll and gets nowhere. Brian & Ericka find a cab and she decides she has to “keep an eye on Brian” because he has a big heart. Brian refused to say that Meghan & Cheyne "stole the cab."
All the teams are going to the volleyball challenge. Sam & Dan are begging for a guy to get out of a taxi but the man riding inside says he can’t walk. They see another taxi as the Globetrotters do, and both teams end up in the same taxi complaining that Big Easy & Flight Time are just “hanging on our coattails.” Gary & Matt end up walking/running to the Tower. In the cab, the teams read the clue saying that they have to play volleyball in their underwear, and Ericka says “you’re gonna have to get out another pair of underwear, because all I’m wearing is a stringy thong and that ain’t happening.”
Gary & Matt are at the Tower, and decide to go into it and totally miss the clue box in front. After running around inside, they decide to look outside and find the clue box. They decide to do the Sling challenge. Gary & Matt get a cabbie with a cab-driving buddy with Meghan & Cheyne in his cab, and tell the driver to tell the other driver to go slowly. Meghan & Cheyne’s driver lets them know what was up and doesn’t go along with it.
Meghan & Cheyne get to the volleyball and score three points pretty quickly. They look like they’re having fun, even knee-deep in mud and moving very slowly. As the Globetrotters, Brian & Ericka and Sam & Dan show up, they can’t find the marked path through the forest and wander around. Meghan & Cheyne finally get their 5 points and get their next clue, telling them to go run through the bogs and look for the next Pitstop, the Keava Raba Overlook Tower. Meghan & Cheyne get to the Mat first, full of mud. Their prize is a sauna, which doesn’t seem to impress them all that much.
We see the other three teams wandering and they finally manage to find the arrows to their destination. Sam & Dan say that there were some “hottie Estonian guys.” The Globetrotters and Sam & Dan take the volleyball nets, and since only two teams could play at a time, Brian & Ericka end up trying Sling. They had to put "snowshoes" on to walk over the mud.
The volleyball is not going well for either team, and I guess the “Estonian hotties” got Dan all excited, because his crotch was all blurred out. They all interview that they enjoyed playing volleyball but they couldn’t move so it wasn’t easy. The Estonian players started feeling sorry for the teams and ended up giving points away. Flight Time & Big Easy got their 5 points first and Sam & Dan were right behind and after getting their clue, realized that the Globetrotters were going the wrong way. Big Easy & Flight Time realize their mistake and quickly catch up to Sam & Dan. As they run one of the Globetrotters tangles with either Sam or Dan and falls, but the brothers manage to get to the tower ahead of the Globetrotters. Phil mentions that “Big Easy looks like he wants to kick some butt right now.” (Nothing like fanning the fire, Phil!) After the replay we see that the Globetrotters were the instigators and tried to knock over the brothers. However, Big Easy did the most complaining about being knocked over.
Brian & Ericka, after many slingshots, get their cabbages to fall and get their clue and race to the Mat. Phil asks them if they know if they’re last, and when they say no, he says “I’m gonna put you out of your misery and tell you you’re team number 4.” Gary & Matt interview that they enjoyed the experience and “shooting radishes” was part of it. They get to the Mat and Phil tells them they are eliminated. Gary gets overwhelmed and sniffly as he says how much fun it’s been doing the Race with his son.
So here’s the order of finish:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Sam & Dan
3 - Flight Time & Big Easy
4 - Brian & Ericka
5 - Gary & Matt - eliminated
It looks like any one of the remaining teams could take it. Who are you rooting for?
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Running Through Sweden and the Dreaded Hay Challenge
The teams leave the Pit Stop at a harbor in Holland. Sam & Dan leave first and find out they have to fly to Stockholm, Sweden. Once there, they will travel by train and a ferry to Tivoli Grona Lund Amusement Park and find the tallest ride (that looks like a Demon Drop). Flight Time & Big Easy say that it’s Flight Time’s birthday and they’d love to come in first this leg - an omen, you think?
At the airport, Meghan & Cheyne note there are two flights leaving for Stockholm - one at 6:55 a.m. and one at 9:25 a.m. They run into Sam & Dan and find the ticket counter, which doesn’t open until 5:30 a.m. The Globetrotters and Gary & Matt join them to spend the night in the airport, and Brian & Ericka arrive to wait also. Sam & Dan, Meghan & Cheyne and Flight Time & Big Easy make the first flight, but Gary & Matt and Brian & Ericka can’t get tickets and have to fly at 9:25.
Once in Stockholm, Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne get train tickets upstairs at the tickets kiosks, while Flight Time & Big Easy run down to the train entrance to get theirs - but end up missing the train. The two teams get on the ferry and see the tall ride and race to the clue box. The clue says one member of the team must ride the Fritt Fall, and while going up look for an arrow which will point them in the direction of the next clue box. The arrow is visible for only 15 seconds before the ride plunges 24 stories in less than 3 seconds. Sam and Cheyne decide to work together and they spot the arrow. The clue tells them to play a game of Roaming Gnome Ring Toss. They have to throw rings onto gnome hats and hope the one they ring has a Roaming Gnome under it. They will have to keep the gnome with them throughout this leg of the Race. Their next clue will be on the bottom of the gnome.
The clue is a Detour. Since Sweden is known for Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite and the Vikings, the teams will choose either Nobel Dynamite or Viking Alphabet. In Dynamite, teams must fill sandbags and build a protective bunker in a rock quarry, then set off an explosion which will uncover a box containing their next clue. In Viking Alphabet, teams must decode a message using the Viking alphabet and find a Viking to get their next clue. Both lead teams decide to do the dynamite.
Flight Time rides the Fritt Fall and then tosses rings. He can’t seem to get one hooked, and Big Easy throws one (maybe through the magic of editing) and gets it. However, no gnome under the hat. Their second try gets a gnome and they also decide to Detour to the dynamite.
Brian & Ericka and Gary & Matt land in Stockholm and get to the train station, but it takes Gary & Matt longer to get their tickets and they miss the train.
Driving to the Detour, Meghan & Cheyne get a local to go ahead so the teams can follow him. Flight Time & Big Easy are driving, trying to decide what to name the gnome. They come up with Sweet Pea (nixed by Big Easy - “that’s dumb”) and Louisiana Shorty (nixed by Flight Time as being too ghetto). Gary & Matt are stressing because they lost 15 minutes waiting for the next train. At the amusement park, Brian is afraid of heights so Ericka gets to ride the Fritt Fall by default, and spots the arrow right away. Ericka gets their gnome at the ring toss pretty quickly and Brian says “the guy is supposed to win his girl something at the fair, not the other way around.” Matt rides up and sees the arrow and they run off to the ring toss, getting the gnome.
As Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan get their safety gear on, the Globetrotters drive up. They do a little trash talking “Did your fans help you get here?” Big Easy answers “now you hurt our feelings, we’re gonna blow ya’ll up.” Sam & Dan use their hands rather than the little shovels to fill their sandbags, thinking they’d be quicker, and it seemed to work pretty well.
Brian & Ericka pay a cabbie to lead them to the Detour, while we see Gary & Matt driving around naming Swedish streets and getting lost.
Sam & Dan get to blast the dynamite first and seems really pumped about it. (I guess you had to be there, I don’t see the big deal). They find their box and the clue tells them to drive to Bogs Gard Farm, which is the place of a task from another season - where they have to find a clue in the gazillion bales of hay in the field. That was the task that Lena & Kristy spent over 10 hours on and Phil came out to the field to tell them to just give up and go home. (Admired their tenacity, but glad Phil stopped them!)
Meghan & Cheyne are slow at bagging the sand and the Globetrotters get ahead. Meghan complains as they drive away that they didn’t have good teamwork. She begged Cheyne to work with her more and he didn’t listen, as he tries to tell her it’s over and not to worry about it. (I can see his point, they’re still in it with two teams behind - but then, they may have gotten out quicker had he paid a little more attention. I guess I’m just gonna be wishy-washy tonight).
Gary & Matt finally stop and ask for directions as Brian & Ericka begin sandbagging. Ericka complains that the gravel is getting into her nails, then interviews that she “can’t even think about beauty - if I’m dirty and stinky, I don’t care because I just want to win.” Great for her, but what about the people she’s crammed on a train with? More bad pub for Americans! (Heehee)
Sam & Dan get to the farm first, followed closely by Meghan & Cheyne. The clue is a Roadblock, and it's the exact same one that Lena & Kristy spent almost 10 hours doing in seasons past. (I know they're at home watching and shuddering). One team member must search through 186 hay bales to find one of seven Race flags to go forward - and the Pit Stop is at the farm where they are searching. Sam bravely offers to do the task as Dan yells encouragement and instruction from the side and Sam tells him to “shut up” on numerous occasions. Meghan & Cheyne read the clue and feel overwhelmed by the task, so much that Cheyne refuses to answer Meghan when she asks “who’s gonna do this?” she tells him she’s going to do it. Dan keeps yelling and Sam is ready to clobber him. Big Easy & Flight Time show up and Big Easy is easily pushing the hay bales around.
Gary & Matt show up to the dynamite challenge as Brian & Ericka are getting finished, and do a great job of catching up. From what it looked like, they’re only a few minutes behind.
Dan yells at Sam that he’s taking too long looking though the hay, and Sam remarks that “he doesn’t realize that I stopped listening to him about ten years ago.” Big Easy laughs that “we didn’t have no hay in the projects.” Flight Time cheers as Big Easy finds the flag, and Sam complains that “they’re the luckiest team in the Race.” Flight Time yells as they race to the Mat “it’s my birthday!” Happy Birthday, Flight Time, you guys get first!
Brian & Ericka arrive at the farm and Matt & Gary are right behind. Sam and Meghan are bumming big time that the other teams have caught up, and Meghan cries that she “can’t do this any more.” Matt should be doing this task (with his big body) but Gary decides to do it. Ericka doesn’t give Brian a choice (not that I blame her!) and tells him he’s doing it. The team members that are not doing the challenge all talk about how this is a challenge from another season and it took one team "like 8 hours" to do it. Dan yells encouragement to Sam and once again gets told to “Shut up.” Brian yells to Dan that “it’s harder than it looks.” Meghan finds a flag and decides to pull a fast one on Cheyne, as she runs toward him crying that she can’t do it any more and then pulls out the flag. Cheyne is impressed and tells Phil at the Mat that he’s so proud that Meghan is his partner on this Race and “my partner for life.” (Brownie points to Cheyne!)
Brian finds a flag as Ericka cheers and they make it to the Mat in third. Sam sits for a quick rest...they’ve been there the longest and he’s exhausted. Dan screams more encouragement as Sam finally finds a flag. He tells Dan he’s just exhausted but offers to race him to the Mat. Dan is crying at the Mat, saying he was being a jerk for yelling at Sam and he’s really proud of his brother.
Gary is over an hour into the task and he interviews that to give up would be to give up on the Race, and he wasn’t going to do that. “I’ve got a pretty strong work ethic” to which Matt says “pretty strong?” Matt hates sitting on the side feeling helpless. After over 2½ hours, Gary finally gets a flag and they head to the Mat. Phil tells them that it’s a non-elimination leg and they’ll have to complete a Speed Bump on the next leg. Matt remarks that “my dad is superman.”
I think it’s a great thing that after this task, it’s a non-elimination leg. After all that work pushing the hay around, the teams deserve the little perk.
Here’s the order of finish:
1 - Flight Time & Big Easy
2 - Meghan & Cheyne
3 - Brian & Ericka
4 - Sam & Dan
5 - Gary & Matt - non-elimination leg (but they get a Speed Bump on the next leg)
So do you think Gary & Matt can overcome the Speed Bump? Are the Globetrotters hitting their stride, and maybe becoming too tough to beat? Tell me what you think!
At the airport, Meghan & Cheyne note there are two flights leaving for Stockholm - one at 6:55 a.m. and one at 9:25 a.m. They run into Sam & Dan and find the ticket counter, which doesn’t open until 5:30 a.m. The Globetrotters and Gary & Matt join them to spend the night in the airport, and Brian & Ericka arrive to wait also. Sam & Dan, Meghan & Cheyne and Flight Time & Big Easy make the first flight, but Gary & Matt and Brian & Ericka can’t get tickets and have to fly at 9:25.
Once in Stockholm, Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne get train tickets upstairs at the tickets kiosks, while Flight Time & Big Easy run down to the train entrance to get theirs - but end up missing the train. The two teams get on the ferry and see the tall ride and race to the clue box. The clue says one member of the team must ride the Fritt Fall, and while going up look for an arrow which will point them in the direction of the next clue box. The arrow is visible for only 15 seconds before the ride plunges 24 stories in less than 3 seconds. Sam and Cheyne decide to work together and they spot the arrow. The clue tells them to play a game of Roaming Gnome Ring Toss. They have to throw rings onto gnome hats and hope the one they ring has a Roaming Gnome under it. They will have to keep the gnome with them throughout this leg of the Race. Their next clue will be on the bottom of the gnome.
The clue is a Detour. Since Sweden is known for Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite and the Vikings, the teams will choose either Nobel Dynamite or Viking Alphabet. In Dynamite, teams must fill sandbags and build a protective bunker in a rock quarry, then set off an explosion which will uncover a box containing their next clue. In Viking Alphabet, teams must decode a message using the Viking alphabet and find a Viking to get their next clue. Both lead teams decide to do the dynamite.
Flight Time rides the Fritt Fall and then tosses rings. He can’t seem to get one hooked, and Big Easy throws one (maybe through the magic of editing) and gets it. However, no gnome under the hat. Their second try gets a gnome and they also decide to Detour to the dynamite.
Brian & Ericka and Gary & Matt land in Stockholm and get to the train station, but it takes Gary & Matt longer to get their tickets and they miss the train.
Driving to the Detour, Meghan & Cheyne get a local to go ahead so the teams can follow him. Flight Time & Big Easy are driving, trying to decide what to name the gnome. They come up with Sweet Pea (nixed by Big Easy - “that’s dumb”) and Louisiana Shorty (nixed by Flight Time as being too ghetto). Gary & Matt are stressing because they lost 15 minutes waiting for the next train. At the amusement park, Brian is afraid of heights so Ericka gets to ride the Fritt Fall by default, and spots the arrow right away. Ericka gets their gnome at the ring toss pretty quickly and Brian says “the guy is supposed to win his girl something at the fair, not the other way around.” Matt rides up and sees the arrow and they run off to the ring toss, getting the gnome.
As Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan get their safety gear on, the Globetrotters drive up. They do a little trash talking “Did your fans help you get here?” Big Easy answers “now you hurt our feelings, we’re gonna blow ya’ll up.” Sam & Dan use their hands rather than the little shovels to fill their sandbags, thinking they’d be quicker, and it seemed to work pretty well.
Brian & Ericka pay a cabbie to lead them to the Detour, while we see Gary & Matt driving around naming Swedish streets and getting lost.
Sam & Dan get to blast the dynamite first and seems really pumped about it. (I guess you had to be there, I don’t see the big deal). They find their box and the clue tells them to drive to Bogs Gard Farm, which is the place of a task from another season - where they have to find a clue in the gazillion bales of hay in the field. That was the task that Lena & Kristy spent over 10 hours on and Phil came out to the field to tell them to just give up and go home. (Admired their tenacity, but glad Phil stopped them!)
Meghan & Cheyne are slow at bagging the sand and the Globetrotters get ahead. Meghan complains as they drive away that they didn’t have good teamwork. She begged Cheyne to work with her more and he didn’t listen, as he tries to tell her it’s over and not to worry about it. (I can see his point, they’re still in it with two teams behind - but then, they may have gotten out quicker had he paid a little more attention. I guess I’m just gonna be wishy-washy tonight).
Gary & Matt finally stop and ask for directions as Brian & Ericka begin sandbagging. Ericka complains that the gravel is getting into her nails, then interviews that she “can’t even think about beauty - if I’m dirty and stinky, I don’t care because I just want to win.” Great for her, but what about the people she’s crammed on a train with? More bad pub for Americans! (Heehee)
Sam & Dan get to the farm first, followed closely by Meghan & Cheyne. The clue is a Roadblock, and it's the exact same one that Lena & Kristy spent almost 10 hours doing in seasons past. (I know they're at home watching and shuddering). One team member must search through 186 hay bales to find one of seven Race flags to go forward - and the Pit Stop is at the farm where they are searching. Sam bravely offers to do the task as Dan yells encouragement and instruction from the side and Sam tells him to “shut up” on numerous occasions. Meghan & Cheyne read the clue and feel overwhelmed by the task, so much that Cheyne refuses to answer Meghan when she asks “who’s gonna do this?” she tells him she’s going to do it. Dan keeps yelling and Sam is ready to clobber him. Big Easy & Flight Time show up and Big Easy is easily pushing the hay bales around.
Gary & Matt show up to the dynamite challenge as Brian & Ericka are getting finished, and do a great job of catching up. From what it looked like, they’re only a few minutes behind.
Dan yells at Sam that he’s taking too long looking though the hay, and Sam remarks that “he doesn’t realize that I stopped listening to him about ten years ago.” Big Easy laughs that “we didn’t have no hay in the projects.” Flight Time cheers as Big Easy finds the flag, and Sam complains that “they’re the luckiest team in the Race.” Flight Time yells as they race to the Mat “it’s my birthday!” Happy Birthday, Flight Time, you guys get first!
Brian & Ericka arrive at the farm and Matt & Gary are right behind. Sam and Meghan are bumming big time that the other teams have caught up, and Meghan cries that she “can’t do this any more.” Matt should be doing this task (with his big body) but Gary decides to do it. Ericka doesn’t give Brian a choice (not that I blame her!) and tells him he’s doing it. The team members that are not doing the challenge all talk about how this is a challenge from another season and it took one team "like 8 hours" to do it. Dan yells encouragement to Sam and once again gets told to “Shut up.” Brian yells to Dan that “it’s harder than it looks.” Meghan finds a flag and decides to pull a fast one on Cheyne, as she runs toward him crying that she can’t do it any more and then pulls out the flag. Cheyne is impressed and tells Phil at the Mat that he’s so proud that Meghan is his partner on this Race and “my partner for life.” (Brownie points to Cheyne!)
Brian finds a flag as Ericka cheers and they make it to the Mat in third. Sam sits for a quick rest...they’ve been there the longest and he’s exhausted. Dan screams more encouragement as Sam finally finds a flag. He tells Dan he’s just exhausted but offers to race him to the Mat. Dan is crying at the Mat, saying he was being a jerk for yelling at Sam and he’s really proud of his brother.
Gary is over an hour into the task and he interviews that to give up would be to give up on the Race, and he wasn’t going to do that. “I’ve got a pretty strong work ethic” to which Matt says “pretty strong?” Matt hates sitting on the side feeling helpless. After over 2½ hours, Gary finally gets a flag and they head to the Mat. Phil tells them that it’s a non-elimination leg and they’ll have to complete a Speed Bump on the next leg. Matt remarks that “my dad is superman.”
I think it’s a great thing that after this task, it’s a non-elimination leg. After all that work pushing the hay around, the teams deserve the little perk.
Here’s the order of finish:
1 - Flight Time & Big Easy
2 - Meghan & Cheyne
3 - Brian & Ericka
4 - Sam & Dan
5 - Gary & Matt - non-elimination leg (but they get a Speed Bump on the next leg)
So do you think Gary & Matt can overcome the Speed Bump? Are the Globetrotters hitting their stride, and maybe becoming too tough to beat? Tell me what you think!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Amsterdam Proves to be a Trying Challenge for the Poker Players
After watching Ericka & Brian fumble their way through this leg of the Race, and then incur a 30-minute penalty and still not get eliminated, I guess the gods were smiling on them - and not on Maria & Tiffany, whose lack of arm strength pretty much killed their shot at winning the Race.
The last Pit Stop was the palm tree-shaped island that I remember seeing being built (on some Discovery Channel show) in Dubai. Pretty impressive, that’s one thing I’d like to see in person - of course, that’s after I hit the lottery!
The teams are told to fly to Amsterdam and find a monument on a thruway between Holland and Netherlands. Leaving first, Meghan & Cheyne found out the earliest flight leaves at midnight. Sam says that he has a degree in anthropology and studying other cultures has helped him in the Race. Dan says he’s the “street smart” brother. All the teams meet up at the airport, and they ask the Globetrotters what happened with Mika & Canaan. Big Easy tells them that they were egging her on, telling her “if you don’t feel comfortable, don’t do it.” He said that he felt bad that she was crying, but “we didn’t want to go home either.” Sam & Dan then feel it’s the right time to “come out” to the other teams - they tell them “we are the token gay team.” Brian laughs and says “now the matching bathing suits make sense!” Maria & Tiffany interview that they don’t care who Sam & Dan choose to date, even though they might shed a little tear that it’s not them. Gary pipes up “should I tell Matt he’s adopted now?” and everyone cracks up. It’s nice to see all the teams actually look like they like each other, even for a little while!
In Amsterdam, Brian can’t get the car to shift into drive (or anything else). Ericka is losing it because according to her, Brian’s attitude gives her attitude, and “you know I have a short fuse.” They find a guy in the parking garage that shows them how to do it and finally get going. The teams get to the monument and grab the clue, telling them to go to Martinitoren, the highest building in the city, and search for the next clue. The first five teams are pretty much even, mentioning that they didn’t see Ericka & Brian. Flight Time says that they know when Ericka & Brian are around, because they hear Ericka screeching “BRIAN!” and of course, the next thing we see is Ericka yelling “Brian!” as they run to the monument.
The next clue is a Roadblock, asking “who’s got strong legs and keen eyes?” making me think they’re gonna have to run up a lot of steps. Yep! The team member to perform this task has to run up the “narrow, winding steps” and correctly count the number of bells (62) to get their next clue. Meghan decides to do it, and Sam (I think, I’m still not sure which brother is which) is right behind her, and they’re going to help each other and count together. Flight Time and Matt choose to do the task for their teams, and Tiffany follows them. Ericka & Brian finally pull up and Ericka takes off up the steps. As Meghan, Sam and Matt get up to the top the bells start ringing, and they can’t hear themselves think, much less what the other is saying. Matt counts quickly and heads down the steps, getting the count correctly.
The clue tells them to drive to Vierhuizen De Marne and find a windmill for their next clue. Sam whispered the number of bells to Tiffany as she ran up and he ran down. He thought it was a good idea because “they’re a team we can beat.” Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan pay a cab driver to follow to the town, and end up passing Gary & Matt, who had stopped for directions. Flight Time gets the correct number and Brian watches them leave, muttering “come on, baby, don’t give up” under his breath. Unfortunately, Ericka shows 43 to the bell player and something tells me they’re going home tonight!
The clue at the Windmill is a Detour, Farmer’s Game or Farmer’s Dance. They are both examples of how the hardworking farmers unwind after a hard day’s work. The teams must change into traditional Dutch costumes for either task and ride bicycles to the challenge. For Farmer’s Game, the teams must “strip down to their farmer’s underwear” and swim across a creek. They grab a set of clubs and taking turns, play three holes of Farmer’s Golf, finishing each hole in 8 strokes or less to get their next clue. They’ll have to keep playing until they manage to get the holes done under the 8 strokes. For Farmer’s Dance, they have to find a country festival where one team member has to ring the bell on a carnival midway-type game - the one where you use a sledgehammer and try to hit the bell on the top. Then they have to go into the barn and perform a traditional dance. Once they are okayed on the dance, they will be served salted herring and onions (which looks huge and semi-raw and not all that appetizing, and I like fish!) They’ll get their clue when they finish the fish. Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne decide to do the Game, even with Meghan protesting that she can’t golf. Matt & Gary decide to try the Dance. Each set of costumes has one male and one female outfit, and Gary gets stuck with the female outfit - and looks cute in the little hat!
Ericka’s next guess back at the bell tower is 56 and off she goes again to count. Sam & Dan are cracking up riding their bikes, one with a dress and a falsetto voice. Maria & Tiffany decide to try the Dance also. Sam & Dan get to the creek, strip down and take their shoes as they jump into the creek, complaining of the cold water. Meghan & Cheyne are right behind. Sam & Dan make the required 8 shots on the first hole.
Ericka’s next guess at the bell tower is 57. (Some team really has to screw up for Ericka & Brian to stay in the Race - or it’s a non-elimination leg).
Matt & Gary get to the dancing barn, and Matt rings the bell and they go inside to watch the dancing. We see Gary in his cute little dress and hat practicing the moves as he watches, then they cut to an interview clip where all Matt & Gary are doing is cracking up. (Me too!) As we see Maria (the boy) and Tiffany ride off on their bikes, Ericka comes back down in tears to Brian, saying she’s not giving up but “it’s so hard.”
Sam & Dan get hole #2 in 8 shots, and Meghan & Cheyne go back to hole #1 for the third time. Sam & Dan breeze through hole #3 and get their clue which tells them to bike through town to Zoutkamp Harbor, which is the Pit Stop. Meghan is complaining about golfing, and doing really pathetic (so I can see her point). They finally get their act together and manage to get hole #1 in 6 shots.
Gary & Matt are at the barn and Gary is getting his lesson, and Matt happens to read the clue really well, seeing that they have to eat herring after. He hates fish so they take off to try the Golf challenge. In the meantime, Meghan & Cheyne have gotten the hang of golfing and finish their 3 holes. Maria & Tiffany get to the Dancing task and neither can hit the bell with numerous tries.
Ericka gives the counting another shot, and goes to the bell ringer one more time. She’s nervously giggling, and the bell guy says “you’re laughing.” Ericka tells him “might as well,” saying she already cried but he just didn’t see that. This time she gets the count right and they take off in the car praying they don’t get eliminated.
Sam & Dan, the cute Netherlands couple, get to the Mat first, where Phil asks them “you guys like dressing up like this?” and they answer “no, we’re not that kind of gay guys.”
Flight Time dresses as the woman, saying “we look like some kinda buffoons” as they ride the bikes along the road. Meanwhile, Maria & Tiffany are on their thirtieth try at ringing the bell and they decide to go hit some golf balls. Flight Time gets the bell on the first try and as they walk into the dance barn, the tiny, little old ladies give them a look that makes me laugh. As Meghan & Cheyne get to the Mat, Brian & Ericka finally make it to the windmill clue box and decide to Dance. As they walk off in their costumes and wooden shoes, they walk right past the bikes.
Flight Time & Big Easy were having a great time dancing, putting a little hip action into their routine. They chest bump at the end and all the ladies clap for them, then laugh as they’re eating the fish. Flight Time looks like he’s ready to upchuck but manages to finish the herring. Brian & Ericka end up walking down the road to the next challenge, and Maria & Tiffany have given up on the golfing as Gary & Matt finish their three holes. Maria & Tiffany are on attempt 50 to ring the bell and hug each other crying. At this rate, Brian & Ericka may catch up but get penalized for not riding the bikes - who knows what’s gonna happen? As they walk down the path, Brian reads the clue and finds out they were supposed to pick up bikes. They’re both complaining about walking in those shoes - at this point, though, I would have just taken them off (since they knew they weren’t supposed to be walking).
The Globetrotters get to the Mat in third place and Phil tells them “you look ridiculous.” I really like these guys, they have a great attitude and have fun. As we see Ericka & Brian bicker their way back to the bikes, Maria & Tiffany are on attempt #71 at ringing the bell and decide to go back to golfing. Brain & Ericka get to the barn and ring the bell on try one. They perked up quite a bit dancing and interview that “it brought us back down to earth” and “I fell in love with him all over again.” They leave the dance hall and borrow two bikes from some campers to get to the Pit Stop, where they find out they’re Team #5 to arrive, but they get a 30-minute penalty for not riding a bike to the Detour challenge.
Maria & Tiffany are trying their best to golf, and getting nowhere, while Ericka stresses on the bench. After the attempts at ringing the bell and golfing, Maria & Tiffany have nothing left in their arms to golf with and just can’t keep it up. They see Phil walking over to them on the golf “course” and tell him that they’re not giving up, but they have to quit because they don’t see how they would be able to finish the challenge. I guess they should have done a little more weight lifting instead of card lifting and their arms may not have given out!
So here’s the finish order:
1 - Sam & Dan
2 - Meghan & Cheyne
3 - Flight Time & Big Easy
4 - Gary & Matt
5 - Brian & Ericka
6 - Maria & Tiffany (eliminated)
So who is looking like they have a shot to win? Will Ericka & Brian turn it around? Are Meghan & Cheyne going to stay at the top? We’ll see next week!
The last Pit Stop was the palm tree-shaped island that I remember seeing being built (on some Discovery Channel show) in Dubai. Pretty impressive, that’s one thing I’d like to see in person - of course, that’s after I hit the lottery!
The teams are told to fly to Amsterdam and find a monument on a thruway between Holland and Netherlands. Leaving first, Meghan & Cheyne found out the earliest flight leaves at midnight. Sam says that he has a degree in anthropology and studying other cultures has helped him in the Race. Dan says he’s the “street smart” brother. All the teams meet up at the airport, and they ask the Globetrotters what happened with Mika & Canaan. Big Easy tells them that they were egging her on, telling her “if you don’t feel comfortable, don’t do it.” He said that he felt bad that she was crying, but “we didn’t want to go home either.” Sam & Dan then feel it’s the right time to “come out” to the other teams - they tell them “we are the token gay team.” Brian laughs and says “now the matching bathing suits make sense!” Maria & Tiffany interview that they don’t care who Sam & Dan choose to date, even though they might shed a little tear that it’s not them. Gary pipes up “should I tell Matt he’s adopted now?” and everyone cracks up. It’s nice to see all the teams actually look like they like each other, even for a little while!
In Amsterdam, Brian can’t get the car to shift into drive (or anything else). Ericka is losing it because according to her, Brian’s attitude gives her attitude, and “you know I have a short fuse.” They find a guy in the parking garage that shows them how to do it and finally get going. The teams get to the monument and grab the clue, telling them to go to Martinitoren, the highest building in the city, and search for the next clue. The first five teams are pretty much even, mentioning that they didn’t see Ericka & Brian. Flight Time says that they know when Ericka & Brian are around, because they hear Ericka screeching “BRIAN!” and of course, the next thing we see is Ericka yelling “Brian!” as they run to the monument.
The next clue is a Roadblock, asking “who’s got strong legs and keen eyes?” making me think they’re gonna have to run up a lot of steps. Yep! The team member to perform this task has to run up the “narrow, winding steps” and correctly count the number of bells (62) to get their next clue. Meghan decides to do it, and Sam (I think, I’m still not sure which brother is which) is right behind her, and they’re going to help each other and count together. Flight Time and Matt choose to do the task for their teams, and Tiffany follows them. Ericka & Brian finally pull up and Ericka takes off up the steps. As Meghan, Sam and Matt get up to the top the bells start ringing, and they can’t hear themselves think, much less what the other is saying. Matt counts quickly and heads down the steps, getting the count correctly.
The clue tells them to drive to Vierhuizen De Marne and find a windmill for their next clue. Sam whispered the number of bells to Tiffany as she ran up and he ran down. He thought it was a good idea because “they’re a team we can beat.” Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan pay a cab driver to follow to the town, and end up passing Gary & Matt, who had stopped for directions. Flight Time gets the correct number and Brian watches them leave, muttering “come on, baby, don’t give up” under his breath. Unfortunately, Ericka shows 43 to the bell player and something tells me they’re going home tonight!
The clue at the Windmill is a Detour, Farmer’s Game or Farmer’s Dance. They are both examples of how the hardworking farmers unwind after a hard day’s work. The teams must change into traditional Dutch costumes for either task and ride bicycles to the challenge. For Farmer’s Game, the teams must “strip down to their farmer’s underwear” and swim across a creek. They grab a set of clubs and taking turns, play three holes of Farmer’s Golf, finishing each hole in 8 strokes or less to get their next clue. They’ll have to keep playing until they manage to get the holes done under the 8 strokes. For Farmer’s Dance, they have to find a country festival where one team member has to ring the bell on a carnival midway-type game - the one where you use a sledgehammer and try to hit the bell on the top. Then they have to go into the barn and perform a traditional dance. Once they are okayed on the dance, they will be served salted herring and onions (which looks huge and semi-raw and not all that appetizing, and I like fish!) They’ll get their clue when they finish the fish. Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne decide to do the Game, even with Meghan protesting that she can’t golf. Matt & Gary decide to try the Dance. Each set of costumes has one male and one female outfit, and Gary gets stuck with the female outfit - and looks cute in the little hat!
Ericka’s next guess back at the bell tower is 56 and off she goes again to count. Sam & Dan are cracking up riding their bikes, one with a dress and a falsetto voice. Maria & Tiffany decide to try the Dance also. Sam & Dan get to the creek, strip down and take their shoes as they jump into the creek, complaining of the cold water. Meghan & Cheyne are right behind. Sam & Dan make the required 8 shots on the first hole.
Ericka’s next guess at the bell tower is 57. (Some team really has to screw up for Ericka & Brian to stay in the Race - or it’s a non-elimination leg).
Matt & Gary get to the dancing barn, and Matt rings the bell and they go inside to watch the dancing. We see Gary in his cute little dress and hat practicing the moves as he watches, then they cut to an interview clip where all Matt & Gary are doing is cracking up. (Me too!) As we see Maria (the boy) and Tiffany ride off on their bikes, Ericka comes back down in tears to Brian, saying she’s not giving up but “it’s so hard.”
Sam & Dan get hole #2 in 8 shots, and Meghan & Cheyne go back to hole #1 for the third time. Sam & Dan breeze through hole #3 and get their clue which tells them to bike through town to Zoutkamp Harbor, which is the Pit Stop. Meghan is complaining about golfing, and doing really pathetic (so I can see her point). They finally get their act together and manage to get hole #1 in 6 shots.
Gary & Matt are at the barn and Gary is getting his lesson, and Matt happens to read the clue really well, seeing that they have to eat herring after. He hates fish so they take off to try the Golf challenge. In the meantime, Meghan & Cheyne have gotten the hang of golfing and finish their 3 holes. Maria & Tiffany get to the Dancing task and neither can hit the bell with numerous tries.
Ericka gives the counting another shot, and goes to the bell ringer one more time. She’s nervously giggling, and the bell guy says “you’re laughing.” Ericka tells him “might as well,” saying she already cried but he just didn’t see that. This time she gets the count right and they take off in the car praying they don’t get eliminated.
Sam & Dan, the cute Netherlands couple, get to the Mat first, where Phil asks them “you guys like dressing up like this?” and they answer “no, we’re not that kind of gay guys.”
Flight Time dresses as the woman, saying “we look like some kinda buffoons” as they ride the bikes along the road. Meanwhile, Maria & Tiffany are on their thirtieth try at ringing the bell and they decide to go hit some golf balls. Flight Time gets the bell on the first try and as they walk into the dance barn, the tiny, little old ladies give them a look that makes me laugh. As Meghan & Cheyne get to the Mat, Brian & Ericka finally make it to the windmill clue box and decide to Dance. As they walk off in their costumes and wooden shoes, they walk right past the bikes.
Flight Time & Big Easy were having a great time dancing, putting a little hip action into their routine. They chest bump at the end and all the ladies clap for them, then laugh as they’re eating the fish. Flight Time looks like he’s ready to upchuck but manages to finish the herring. Brian & Ericka end up walking down the road to the next challenge, and Maria & Tiffany have given up on the golfing as Gary & Matt finish their three holes. Maria & Tiffany are on attempt 50 to ring the bell and hug each other crying. At this rate, Brian & Ericka may catch up but get penalized for not riding the bikes - who knows what’s gonna happen? As they walk down the path, Brian reads the clue and finds out they were supposed to pick up bikes. They’re both complaining about walking in those shoes - at this point, though, I would have just taken them off (since they knew they weren’t supposed to be walking).
The Globetrotters get to the Mat in third place and Phil tells them “you look ridiculous.” I really like these guys, they have a great attitude and have fun. As we see Ericka & Brian bicker their way back to the bikes, Maria & Tiffany are on attempt #71 at ringing the bell and decide to go back to golfing. Brain & Ericka get to the barn and ring the bell on try one. They perked up quite a bit dancing and interview that “it brought us back down to earth” and “I fell in love with him all over again.” They leave the dance hall and borrow two bikes from some campers to get to the Pit Stop, where they find out they’re Team #5 to arrive, but they get a 30-minute penalty for not riding a bike to the Detour challenge.
Maria & Tiffany are trying their best to golf, and getting nowhere, while Ericka stresses on the bench. After the attempts at ringing the bell and golfing, Maria & Tiffany have nothing left in their arms to golf with and just can’t keep it up. They see Phil walking over to them on the golf “course” and tell him that they’re not giving up, but they have to quit because they don’t see how they would be able to finish the challenge. I guess they should have done a little more weight lifting instead of card lifting and their arms may not have given out!
So here’s the finish order:
1 - Sam & Dan
2 - Meghan & Cheyne
3 - Flight Time & Big Easy
4 - Gary & Matt
5 - Brian & Ericka
6 - Maria & Tiffany (eliminated)
So who is looking like they have a shot to win? Will Ericka & Brian turn it around? Are Meghan & Cheyne going to stay at the top? We’ll see next week!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Little Rowboats, Extreme Heat, and a Helluva Water Slide!
The little clip we get of tonight’s happenings is interesting - Mika shows her extreme fear of heights having to go down a TALL water slide and it looks like Canaan is trying to push her down - that’s not very Christian, now, is it?
Leaving the Pit Stop, teams have to choose a locked briefcase and taxi to the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club for their next clue. Meghan interviews that she can’t remember when she was more stressed than on the Race, and Cheyne laughs that “that’s saying a lot because Meghan gets pretty stressed out.” The clue at the Golf & Yacht Club is a Road Block. One team member has to row a small inflatable dingy out to a yacht anchored in the water, where a sheik will present them with a watch which is the Arab custom of hospitality. Then they have to row back to the dock and unlock their briefcase. They have to figure out that the combination is the time on the watch, 8:35. Their next clue will be in the briefcase.
As Cheyne is rowing, he yells out to Meghan “Do you love me?” and all she does is grin. (I guess she’s not willing to commit unless he kicks butt in the challenge!) Brian & Ericka leave the Pit Stop saying that Ericka starts every day with good hair and makeup, but by the end of the day it’s all gone - “but you gotta try.” Flight Time & Big Easy talk in the taxi about how hot it is (very hot. Really hot. Did he say it was hot?) in Dubai. Gary & Matt re-dyed Matt’s hair, which got a laugh from Gary - “I never thought I’d be dying my son’s hair.”
Cheyne figured out right away that the lock code was the time on the watch, and their next clue told them to taxi to the Abra Station, a water taxi stand in “Old Dubai.”
Brian chooses to row the boat, saying Ericka “does not do water.” Sam & Dan talk about their alliance with Maria & Tiffany, saying that it’s advantageous, and they could outrun the girls if need be. The cab driver takes Flight Time & Big Easy to the wrong marina, making them think they are in last place. Gary can’t row the little boat to save his life, so he ends up laying in the boat on his stomach and using one paddle.
Meghan & Cheyne get to the next clue box to find a Detour - Gold or Glass. In Gold, teams must find a jewelry store and use a scale to weigh out exactly $500,000 worth of gold. They have to figure out how much to weigh out using the gold exchange rate - which changes constantly, meaning they have to work quickly. (This is where the cell phone calculator comes in handy!) In Glass, teams have to go to a spice market and open a crate of pieces of Middle Eastern smoking pipes called Hookahs. They will have to assemble 12 of three different styles of pipes. Meghan & Cheyne decide to try Glass.
Maria & Tiffany are leaving the Pit Stop, saying “Please, Jesus, let us leave Dubai.” (I guess the heat is getting to them.....) Tiffany says “it’s very James Bond, taking a briefcase to some location - although I’ve never seen James Bond sweat.” (Yep, they don’t like the heat). Matt & Gary leave the challenge after opening their briefcase saying “can you just see Big Easy in that little raft?” They called it, because Big Easy decides to do the challenge. Flight Time yells instructions and Big Easy just looks confused trying to row. (I didn’t realize that so many people had problems knowing how to row. Maybe doing it is tough, but knowing how to do it shouldn’t be all that hard!)
Meghan & Cheyne make it to the spice market and pick a crate in the shade. As they start assembling, Meghan starts getting stressed as Cheyne tells her to relax. (It really didn’t seem like anything to panic about - they knew they were ahead just for the fact that no other teams were showing up). In the taxi, Ericka tells us she’s dying to go shopping, seeing all the beautiful textiles hanging at the shops. Big Easy decides to forgo the paddles and uses his hands to row and is making pretty good time, with Flight Time yelling that “you’re going to go down in history as the biggest man in a rowboat made for a 5-year-old.” Dan does this challenge also, following Big Easy’s lead and using his hands to row. Flight yells at Big Easy to “do it for the ‘hood!” and Sam yells for Dan to “do it for the suburbs!” (Heehee)
As Maria & Tiffany show up at the yacht club, Big Easy is trying to open his briefcase. He correctly figures out that the watch has something to do with the lock code, but looks at it too literally - little hand on the 8, big hand on the 7, “and the third number would be the date.” On a close-up of the watch, I didn’t see the little square in the center where the date would be, so I had no idea what prompted that - but it messed them up big time. Dan got it right away, and the Globetrotters watched Sam & Dan leave. Big Easy is trying 8-7 and every other number in order, and not getting the case open. Flight Time, seeing Mika & Canaan at the docks, says “if we stay here long enough Lance & Keri might show up.” Mika then mentions that she’s pretty scared of water (and heights, and can this girl do anything without fear?)
Brian & Ericka find the jewelry store to attempt the Gold challenge. It’s taking him awhile to do the math for the gold weight - and Ericka says “my American education has dumbed me down, to use a calculator for everything.” (Pretty sad comment from a former Miss America!)
Mika & Canaan finish the task at the marina and get their case open, and leave the Globetrotters still trying to figure it out. (Now, don’t you think they could have at least yelled the code to them as they were leaving, considering the Globetrotters helped them out last time telling them to take their coats into the snow challenge? Bad karma, kids!)
Big Easy finally figures out that it’s the time on the watch, and remarks that he was “doing it for the ‘hood, the ‘hood is mad at me now.”
Meghan & Cheyne have some pieces left over and are told they don’t have the pipes put together correctly. In the meantime, Brian & Ericka are having problems figuring out the gold. Ericka says she just “spends the money, rather than counting and keeping it - I’m sure glad I married up.” Their first attempt at the weight is wrong. (Looks like both of these challenges are not easy ones!)
Gary & Matt, talking about what challenge to attempt, talk about the pipe assembly - and as Matt describes what a hookah is, Gary says “we used to call it something else.” (You old hippie, you!)
After being told once again that they are wrong weighing their gold, Brian & Ericka run off to try to assemble pipes, while Meghan & Cheyne finally realize they have extra parts left over that need to be used. They put the leftover washers on the pipes and get their next clue, telling them to go to the Atlantis, The Palm Dubai resort and search the water park for a slide called the "Leap of Faith.” They have to slide down the 6-story slide at nearly a 90º angle through a shark tank and they will get their next clue.
Sam & Dan choose to do Gold and take off for the jewelers, as do Maria & Tiffany. Brian & Ericka, meanwhile, are putting together the pipes with Ericka saying “I don’t think the colors matter” and then saying “it’s got to be something miniscule” when their pipes are rejected. (Ya think it might be something like the COLORS?)
Sam & Dan bought a calculator at Wal-Mart before they left on the Race, and pulled it out of their bag - but didn’t know what to do to figure out the amount of gold they needed. Maria & Tiffany borrowed the calculator and knew what to do, and told the guys, but just as the guys got their gold on the scale, the price changed and they were told it was wrong. They have the girls recalculate the amount and both teams get it right, finally.
Meghan & Cheyne see the slide and admit they are afraid of heights, but both enjoy the trip down the slide (which looked like wicked fun!) Meghan asked if they were “real sharks” down there (they were). The clue told them to search for Dolphin Bay Beach, which was the next Pit Stop. They dash off down the beach and make it to the Mat first, and go falling into the water - then run back to Phil saying “okay, what did we win?”
Back at the hookah challenge, Ericka is letting Brian do all the work, saying “I don’t think that matters that much” when Brian wants to assemble them a certain way. (C’mon, if you’re supposed to build something, and there are samples to look at, wouldn’t you think the samples are what they need to look like?) The heat starts getting to Matt, who has to sit down because he fells like he’s going to pass out. Mika wishes she were naked (and I bet a bunch of guys watching second that!) Brian finally figures out the combination of the pipes and gets their next clue. As the Globetrotters see Brian & Ericka leave, they figure that Brian & Ericka were two hours ahead of them, and it took them two hours to do the challenge, so they were going to switch tasks and go do Gold. (They may have been 2 hours ahead, but they took so long at the challenge because they were STUPID!!!)
Tiffany & Maria both get close to using their bikini tops going down the slide (oh, what this show could have been for the guys watching!)
Gary & Matt get their clue (after Gary does most of the work assembling the pipes). Brian & Ericka go down the slide, commenting that Brian is afraid of heights and Ericka hates water - but they do just fine and seem to have fun in the process. Gary & Matt love the water slide after the heat of Dubai. At the top of the slide, Mika is in a panic and has floaty things on her arms (to go down a water slide? Good grief!!!) Canaan is trying his best to get her down, telling her “it’s a million dollars, just go down the slide.” He gets her close to the slide and tries to push her at the opening, which of course doesn’t work and sends her into more of a panic. He implores her to just sit down in the water as she prays. She sits down and Canaan gets behind her as if to go down with her, or push her - no such luck. Big Easy & Flight Time show up, and we find out that Mika & Canaan have two minutes to either do the task or let the next team go ahead. Big Easy & Flight Time start yelling to Mika “don’t do it! It’s a big way up!” and Mika ends up wasting time and the Globetrotters go ahead. Canaan tells Big Easy that “it’s crap, dude.” Canaan goes down the slide and Mika finally decides not to go down the slide, and they walk up to the Mat in last place and get eliminated. Canaan interviews that he doesn’t hold it against Mika - give him credit for that, I suppose. My hunny is bitching that the Globetrotters did a cheap shot by goading Mika about her fear - but I don’t see a problem (during the eating challenge in Survivor, the other team was making gagging and vomit noises when Ashley was drinking the goo). It’s a million dollars!!! The Globetrotters didn’t sabotage their equipment, or Yield them, just talked some trash, and if Mika couldn’t handle it, shame on her.
So Mika & Canaan are gone - do you think the Globetrotters were low class or just trying to win the Race? Are Meghan & Cheyne becoming the team to beat? Who are you rooting for? We’ll talk more next week!
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Maria & Tiffany
3 - Sam & Dan
4 - Brian & Ericka
5 - Gary & Matt
6 - Big Easy & Flight Time
7 - Mika & Canaan - eliminated
Leaving the Pit Stop, teams have to choose a locked briefcase and taxi to the Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club for their next clue. Meghan interviews that she can’t remember when she was more stressed than on the Race, and Cheyne laughs that “that’s saying a lot because Meghan gets pretty stressed out.” The clue at the Golf & Yacht Club is a Road Block. One team member has to row a small inflatable dingy out to a yacht anchored in the water, where a sheik will present them with a watch which is the Arab custom of hospitality. Then they have to row back to the dock and unlock their briefcase. They have to figure out that the combination is the time on the watch, 8:35. Their next clue will be in the briefcase.
As Cheyne is rowing, he yells out to Meghan “Do you love me?” and all she does is grin. (I guess she’s not willing to commit unless he kicks butt in the challenge!) Brian & Ericka leave the Pit Stop saying that Ericka starts every day with good hair and makeup, but by the end of the day it’s all gone - “but you gotta try.” Flight Time & Big Easy talk in the taxi about how hot it is (very hot. Really hot. Did he say it was hot?) in Dubai. Gary & Matt re-dyed Matt’s hair, which got a laugh from Gary - “I never thought I’d be dying my son’s hair.”
Cheyne figured out right away that the lock code was the time on the watch, and their next clue told them to taxi to the Abra Station, a water taxi stand in “Old Dubai.”
Brian chooses to row the boat, saying Ericka “does not do water.” Sam & Dan talk about their alliance with Maria & Tiffany, saying that it’s advantageous, and they could outrun the girls if need be. The cab driver takes Flight Time & Big Easy to the wrong marina, making them think they are in last place. Gary can’t row the little boat to save his life, so he ends up laying in the boat on his stomach and using one paddle.
Meghan & Cheyne get to the next clue box to find a Detour - Gold or Glass. In Gold, teams must find a jewelry store and use a scale to weigh out exactly $500,000 worth of gold. They have to figure out how much to weigh out using the gold exchange rate - which changes constantly, meaning they have to work quickly. (This is where the cell phone calculator comes in handy!) In Glass, teams have to go to a spice market and open a crate of pieces of Middle Eastern smoking pipes called Hookahs. They will have to assemble 12 of three different styles of pipes. Meghan & Cheyne decide to try Glass.
Maria & Tiffany are leaving the Pit Stop, saying “Please, Jesus, let us leave Dubai.” (I guess the heat is getting to them.....) Tiffany says “it’s very James Bond, taking a briefcase to some location - although I’ve never seen James Bond sweat.” (Yep, they don’t like the heat). Matt & Gary leave the challenge after opening their briefcase saying “can you just see Big Easy in that little raft?” They called it, because Big Easy decides to do the challenge. Flight Time yells instructions and Big Easy just looks confused trying to row. (I didn’t realize that so many people had problems knowing how to row. Maybe doing it is tough, but knowing how to do it shouldn’t be all that hard!)
Meghan & Cheyne make it to the spice market and pick a crate in the shade. As they start assembling, Meghan starts getting stressed as Cheyne tells her to relax. (It really didn’t seem like anything to panic about - they knew they were ahead just for the fact that no other teams were showing up). In the taxi, Ericka tells us she’s dying to go shopping, seeing all the beautiful textiles hanging at the shops. Big Easy decides to forgo the paddles and uses his hands to row and is making pretty good time, with Flight Time yelling that “you’re going to go down in history as the biggest man in a rowboat made for a 5-year-old.” Dan does this challenge also, following Big Easy’s lead and using his hands to row. Flight yells at Big Easy to “do it for the ‘hood!” and Sam yells for Dan to “do it for the suburbs!” (Heehee)
As Maria & Tiffany show up at the yacht club, Big Easy is trying to open his briefcase. He correctly figures out that the watch has something to do with the lock code, but looks at it too literally - little hand on the 8, big hand on the 7, “and the third number would be the date.” On a close-up of the watch, I didn’t see the little square in the center where the date would be, so I had no idea what prompted that - but it messed them up big time. Dan got it right away, and the Globetrotters watched Sam & Dan leave. Big Easy is trying 8-7 and every other number in order, and not getting the case open. Flight Time, seeing Mika & Canaan at the docks, says “if we stay here long enough Lance & Keri might show up.” Mika then mentions that she’s pretty scared of water (and heights, and can this girl do anything without fear?)
Brian & Ericka find the jewelry store to attempt the Gold challenge. It’s taking him awhile to do the math for the gold weight - and Ericka says “my American education has dumbed me down, to use a calculator for everything.” (Pretty sad comment from a former Miss America!)
Mika & Canaan finish the task at the marina and get their case open, and leave the Globetrotters still trying to figure it out. (Now, don’t you think they could have at least yelled the code to them as they were leaving, considering the Globetrotters helped them out last time telling them to take their coats into the snow challenge? Bad karma, kids!)
Big Easy finally figures out that it’s the time on the watch, and remarks that he was “doing it for the ‘hood, the ‘hood is mad at me now.”
Meghan & Cheyne have some pieces left over and are told they don’t have the pipes put together correctly. In the meantime, Brian & Ericka are having problems figuring out the gold. Ericka says she just “spends the money, rather than counting and keeping it - I’m sure glad I married up.” Their first attempt at the weight is wrong. (Looks like both of these challenges are not easy ones!)
Gary & Matt, talking about what challenge to attempt, talk about the pipe assembly - and as Matt describes what a hookah is, Gary says “we used to call it something else.” (You old hippie, you!)
After being told once again that they are wrong weighing their gold, Brian & Ericka run off to try to assemble pipes, while Meghan & Cheyne finally realize they have extra parts left over that need to be used. They put the leftover washers on the pipes and get their next clue, telling them to go to the Atlantis, The Palm Dubai resort and search the water park for a slide called the "Leap of Faith.” They have to slide down the 6-story slide at nearly a 90º angle through a shark tank and they will get their next clue.
Sam & Dan choose to do Gold and take off for the jewelers, as do Maria & Tiffany. Brian & Ericka, meanwhile, are putting together the pipes with Ericka saying “I don’t think the colors matter” and then saying “it’s got to be something miniscule” when their pipes are rejected. (Ya think it might be something like the COLORS?)
Sam & Dan bought a calculator at Wal-Mart before they left on the Race, and pulled it out of their bag - but didn’t know what to do to figure out the amount of gold they needed. Maria & Tiffany borrowed the calculator and knew what to do, and told the guys, but just as the guys got their gold on the scale, the price changed and they were told it was wrong. They have the girls recalculate the amount and both teams get it right, finally.
Meghan & Cheyne see the slide and admit they are afraid of heights, but both enjoy the trip down the slide (which looked like wicked fun!) Meghan asked if they were “real sharks” down there (they were). The clue told them to search for Dolphin Bay Beach, which was the next Pit Stop. They dash off down the beach and make it to the Mat first, and go falling into the water - then run back to Phil saying “okay, what did we win?”
Back at the hookah challenge, Ericka is letting Brian do all the work, saying “I don’t think that matters that much” when Brian wants to assemble them a certain way. (C’mon, if you’re supposed to build something, and there are samples to look at, wouldn’t you think the samples are what they need to look like?) The heat starts getting to Matt, who has to sit down because he fells like he’s going to pass out. Mika wishes she were naked (and I bet a bunch of guys watching second that!) Brian finally figures out the combination of the pipes and gets their next clue. As the Globetrotters see Brian & Ericka leave, they figure that Brian & Ericka were two hours ahead of them, and it took them two hours to do the challenge, so they were going to switch tasks and go do Gold. (They may have been 2 hours ahead, but they took so long at the challenge because they were STUPID!!!)
Tiffany & Maria both get close to using their bikini tops going down the slide (oh, what this show could have been for the guys watching!)
Gary & Matt get their clue (after Gary does most of the work assembling the pipes). Brian & Ericka go down the slide, commenting that Brian is afraid of heights and Ericka hates water - but they do just fine and seem to have fun in the process. Gary & Matt love the water slide after the heat of Dubai. At the top of the slide, Mika is in a panic and has floaty things on her arms (to go down a water slide? Good grief!!!) Canaan is trying his best to get her down, telling her “it’s a million dollars, just go down the slide.” He gets her close to the slide and tries to push her at the opening, which of course doesn’t work and sends her into more of a panic. He implores her to just sit down in the water as she prays. She sits down and Canaan gets behind her as if to go down with her, or push her - no such luck. Big Easy & Flight Time show up, and we find out that Mika & Canaan have two minutes to either do the task or let the next team go ahead. Big Easy & Flight Time start yelling to Mika “don’t do it! It’s a big way up!” and Mika ends up wasting time and the Globetrotters go ahead. Canaan tells Big Easy that “it’s crap, dude.” Canaan goes down the slide and Mika finally decides not to go down the slide, and they walk up to the Mat in last place and get eliminated. Canaan interviews that he doesn’t hold it against Mika - give him credit for that, I suppose. My hunny is bitching that the Globetrotters did a cheap shot by goading Mika about her fear - but I don’t see a problem (during the eating challenge in Survivor, the other team was making gagging and vomit noises when Ashley was drinking the goo). It’s a million dollars!!! The Globetrotters didn’t sabotage their equipment, or Yield them, just talked some trash, and if Mika couldn’t handle it, shame on her.
So Mika & Canaan are gone - do you think the Globetrotters were low class or just trying to win the Race? Are Meghan & Cheyne becoming the team to beat? Who are you rooting for? We’ll talk more next week!
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Maria & Tiffany
3 - Sam & Dan
4 - Brian & Ericka
5 - Gary & Matt
6 - Big Easy & Flight Time
7 - Mika & Canaan - eliminated
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Directionally Challenged People Just Don't Do Well on The Amazing Race: Bye Bye Lance & Keri
Well, Lance & Keri (those of the major Boston accent - "nothing could tear us apaaaaaaat") are gone. Their lack of direction finally did them in.
Sorry this is late, but I watched the show in New York, there for my granddaughter's christening - didn't get home till Tuesday. Better late than never!
The teams are told to fly to the Persian Gulf and find the world's tallest building. They're not told where in the Persian Gulf, and they have to figure out that the building is "the Burj Dubai, a colossal structure still under construction that is nearly twice the height of the Empire State Building. They had to figure out they needed to fly to the city of Dubai. Sam & Dan give us a taste of Stupid Americans by asking the Cambodian cab driver where the Persian Gulf is. They're from Liberty, Missouri, which I guess doesn't have TV or newspapers - or Sam & Dan live under a rock. Brian & Ericka say that they're trying to be nice to the other teams because this Race is "all about Karma." (No, it's all about A MILLION DOLLARS!) I just really looked at Cheyne's hair, too, and it looks like he styles it in a wind tunnel! During Lance & Keri's interview Keri tells us that they have a strong bond - and then Lance, ever the romantic, says that "we have a lot of nonrefundable deposits on our wedding, I'm not gonna miss out on that." Mika & Canaan, our little Christian couple, show the first cracks in their sunny relationship...they see that they have to go to the world's tallest building, and Mika is petrified of heights. Canaan tells her that "you need to change that little tune" and she tells him "you need to quit telling me what to do." Love the look of "wha-a-a?" on his face!
We see Sam & Dan at a window asking for tickets to the Persian Gulf, and hear them say the first sensible thing - "The Persian Gulf isn't even a country." Brian tells them they need to go to Dubai, which bums me out, I would have liked to see how long it took them to figure it out. Brian tells everyone as they get to the airport where they need to go. Lance & Keri stop at an internet cafe and try to get tickets but the website is slow (although Lance decides that it's because all the tickets are being bought up). Lucky for them, they get to the airport in time and get on the same flight with all the other teams.
As they jump into cabs, the teams all remark on the heat (and we can see the cameras fogging up). They have to make their way to a fountain where they would sign up for one of two groups scheduled to ride the elevator to the 124th floor of the Burj Dubai the following morning. Maria & Tiffany get there first and sign up in the first group, followed by Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne.
Mika & Canaan get a cab driver that doesn't know where the fountain is, and we see Canaan throwing a hissy fit. They make it and get into the second group. As they waited for their turn, Mika stressed herself out even more worrying about having to jump off somewhere. To his credit, Canaan was a bit more supportive this time. It turned out to be anticlimactic, because once on the 124th floor, the clue simply told them to go back down and look for a parking structure, get in a marked car, and drive to the desert. There is also a Fast Forward (the only one of the Race). "In this Fast Forward, teams had to travel to the Dubai Autodrome, the only racetrack of its type in the Persian Gulf. Then, driving in an F3 open-wheel racecar and accelerating up to speeds of 100 mph, one team member must complete a lap in 45 seconds or less." Meghan & Cheyne decide to go for it, and the other teams didn't want to challenge them and possibly lose, losing precious time. The second group gets their clues and gets back down to ground level, and Mika is breathing probably the biggest sigh of relief she's ever done. Lance & Keri, our directionally challenged couple, take off in the other direction while looking for the parking garage (even though Keri tells him that everyone else was going the other way. And remember, according to Lance, Keri is the stupid one!)
Mika & Canaan don't follow the other teams to the desert and end up very behind everyone, except for Lance & Keri who continue to get themselves lost. Meghan & Cheyne, meanwhile, get to the Fast Forward and Cheyne is excited to find out he gets to drive a race car around a track, and if he finishes the lap in less than 45 seconds, they'll get their clue. Meghan is in tears watching him, being afraid for his safety. Cheyne decides "I'm the man!" and gets around the track in time on the first try. They're instructed to drive a Maserati to the Pit Stop, where they get to the Mat in first place.
The other teams made it to the desert and get to the clue box, which has a Roadblock. "In it, one team member had to choose a traditional bag and search the desert for water that was stored in urns buried in the sand. However, not all of the urns contained water. When they found enough water to fill their bag, they had to give it to a Bedouin and his thirsty camels in order to receive their next clue." Dan, Tiffany and Brian started off in the sand, and Tiffany was the first to find an urn - but no water. Brian found an urn with water and secretly filled his bag, then told Dan and Tiffany where to find it. "If you help people now, they're gonna help you down the road." (Not necessarily, Brian - not if helping you hurts their chance at a million bucks!) Dan's ladle broke as he was getting the water, but Tiffany let him use hers and waited for him as he filled his bag. Mika & Canaan managed to beat Lance & Keri to the task, but both of them wandered in the sand looking for water - Lance showing his wonderful attitude once again when he found an empty urn and chucked it into the sand, breaking it. Canaan found water and got done ahead of Lance.
The clue told the teams to "drive back into the city and find Ski Dubai, an indoor ski resort with more than 22,000 square meters of snow." As Maria drove off in their car, she ran over a spike and punctured a hole in the radiator. She commented that "I have an excuse because I'm an Asian female driver." Sam & Dan hung around with them until they got a new car, which can either be seen as stupid or chivalrous depending on your point of view.
Once to the "ski" resort, the clue was a Detour "with the choice of Build a Snowman or Find a Snowman. In Build a Snowman, teams had to carry snow from the frigid winter conditions inside, to the blistering heat outdoors. Once there, they had to build a traditional snowman complete with two coal eyes, a carrot nose, and top hat. In Find a Snowman, teams had to take a chairlift up the mountain and then sled down to a mound of snow. Once there, they had to search through the massive pile of snow for a tiny snowman buried within it." They had to take their snowman to a polar bear and they would get their next clue. (That polar bear was a little creepy too). Matt & Gary get there first and decide to Find a Snowman. Shortly Maria & Tiffany, Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan, and Flight Time & Big Easy join them and Ericka manages to find the snowman in the snow first. They take off for the Pit Stop and arrive in second place. Maria & Tiffany and Sam & Dan take off with Matt & Gary to switch tasks and build a snowman, but the Globetrotters stick with the snow pile and manage to find a snowman. As they rush off to the Pit Stop, they run into Mika & Canaan on their way in and told them to grab their coats, which Mika & Canaan appreciated, saying "The Globetrotters really helped us out."
The other teams manage to get their snowmen built, and they didn't melt as fast as one would have expected - although the snowmen weren't actually works of art either. They got the required parts together, though, and all got their clues.
Lance & Keri went right to making a snowman, and when they finished Lance confused the clue-giver by asking if he could kick the snowman apart before he got his clue. This guy is something! All their bad choices piled up on them, though, and they were eliminated.
So here's the order the teams finished:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Brian & Ericka
3 - Big Easy & Flight Time
4 - Sam & Dan
5 - Maria & Tiffany
6 - Mika & Canaan
7 - Lance & Keri - Eliminated
So, sorry that the bickering Bostonians are gone? They did add a little spice to what seems to be a bunch of teams that like each other. See any good fights coming or are we destined for a bunch of good-Karma-seeking, helpful teams? Stay tuned!
Sorry this is late, but I watched the show in New York, there for my granddaughter's christening - didn't get home till Tuesday. Better late than never!
The teams are told to fly to the Persian Gulf and find the world's tallest building. They're not told where in the Persian Gulf, and they have to figure out that the building is "the Burj Dubai, a colossal structure still under construction that is nearly twice the height of the Empire State Building. They had to figure out they needed to fly to the city of Dubai. Sam & Dan give us a taste of Stupid Americans by asking the Cambodian cab driver where the Persian Gulf is. They're from Liberty, Missouri, which I guess doesn't have TV or newspapers - or Sam & Dan live under a rock. Brian & Ericka say that they're trying to be nice to the other teams because this Race is "all about Karma." (No, it's all about A MILLION DOLLARS!) I just really looked at Cheyne's hair, too, and it looks like he styles it in a wind tunnel! During Lance & Keri's interview Keri tells us that they have a strong bond - and then Lance, ever the romantic, says that "we have a lot of nonrefundable deposits on our wedding, I'm not gonna miss out on that." Mika & Canaan, our little Christian couple, show the first cracks in their sunny relationship...they see that they have to go to the world's tallest building, and Mika is petrified of heights. Canaan tells her that "you need to change that little tune" and she tells him "you need to quit telling me what to do." Love the look of "wha-a-a?" on his face!
We see Sam & Dan at a window asking for tickets to the Persian Gulf, and hear them say the first sensible thing - "The Persian Gulf isn't even a country." Brian tells them they need to go to Dubai, which bums me out, I would have liked to see how long it took them to figure it out. Brian tells everyone as they get to the airport where they need to go. Lance & Keri stop at an internet cafe and try to get tickets but the website is slow (although Lance decides that it's because all the tickets are being bought up). Lucky for them, they get to the airport in time and get on the same flight with all the other teams.
As they jump into cabs, the teams all remark on the heat (and we can see the cameras fogging up). They have to make their way to a fountain where they would sign up for one of two groups scheduled to ride the elevator to the 124th floor of the Burj Dubai the following morning. Maria & Tiffany get there first and sign up in the first group, followed by Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne.
Mika & Canaan get a cab driver that doesn't know where the fountain is, and we see Canaan throwing a hissy fit. They make it and get into the second group. As they waited for their turn, Mika stressed herself out even more worrying about having to jump off somewhere. To his credit, Canaan was a bit more supportive this time. It turned out to be anticlimactic, because once on the 124th floor, the clue simply told them to go back down and look for a parking structure, get in a marked car, and drive to the desert. There is also a Fast Forward (the only one of the Race). "In this Fast Forward, teams had to travel to the Dubai Autodrome, the only racetrack of its type in the Persian Gulf. Then, driving in an F3 open-wheel racecar and accelerating up to speeds of 100 mph, one team member must complete a lap in 45 seconds or less." Meghan & Cheyne decide to go for it, and the other teams didn't want to challenge them and possibly lose, losing precious time. The second group gets their clues and gets back down to ground level, and Mika is breathing probably the biggest sigh of relief she's ever done. Lance & Keri, our directionally challenged couple, take off in the other direction while looking for the parking garage (even though Keri tells him that everyone else was going the other way. And remember, according to Lance, Keri is the stupid one!)
Mika & Canaan don't follow the other teams to the desert and end up very behind everyone, except for Lance & Keri who continue to get themselves lost. Meghan & Cheyne, meanwhile, get to the Fast Forward and Cheyne is excited to find out he gets to drive a race car around a track, and if he finishes the lap in less than 45 seconds, they'll get their clue. Meghan is in tears watching him, being afraid for his safety. Cheyne decides "I'm the man!" and gets around the track in time on the first try. They're instructed to drive a Maserati to the Pit Stop, where they get to the Mat in first place.
The other teams made it to the desert and get to the clue box, which has a Roadblock. "In it, one team member had to choose a traditional bag and search the desert for water that was stored in urns buried in the sand. However, not all of the urns contained water. When they found enough water to fill their bag, they had to give it to a Bedouin and his thirsty camels in order to receive their next clue." Dan, Tiffany and Brian started off in the sand, and Tiffany was the first to find an urn - but no water. Brian found an urn with water and secretly filled his bag, then told Dan and Tiffany where to find it. "If you help people now, they're gonna help you down the road." (Not necessarily, Brian - not if helping you hurts their chance at a million bucks!) Dan's ladle broke as he was getting the water, but Tiffany let him use hers and waited for him as he filled his bag. Mika & Canaan managed to beat Lance & Keri to the task, but both of them wandered in the sand looking for water - Lance showing his wonderful attitude once again when he found an empty urn and chucked it into the sand, breaking it. Canaan found water and got done ahead of Lance.
The clue told the teams to "drive back into the city and find Ski Dubai, an indoor ski resort with more than 22,000 square meters of snow." As Maria drove off in their car, she ran over a spike and punctured a hole in the radiator. She commented that "I have an excuse because I'm an Asian female driver." Sam & Dan hung around with them until they got a new car, which can either be seen as stupid or chivalrous depending on your point of view.
Once to the "ski" resort, the clue was a Detour "with the choice of Build a Snowman or Find a Snowman. In Build a Snowman, teams had to carry snow from the frigid winter conditions inside, to the blistering heat outdoors. Once there, they had to build a traditional snowman complete with two coal eyes, a carrot nose, and top hat. In Find a Snowman, teams had to take a chairlift up the mountain and then sled down to a mound of snow. Once there, they had to search through the massive pile of snow for a tiny snowman buried within it." They had to take their snowman to a polar bear and they would get their next clue. (That polar bear was a little creepy too). Matt & Gary get there first and decide to Find a Snowman. Shortly Maria & Tiffany, Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan, and Flight Time & Big Easy join them and Ericka manages to find the snowman in the snow first. They take off for the Pit Stop and arrive in second place. Maria & Tiffany and Sam & Dan take off with Matt & Gary to switch tasks and build a snowman, but the Globetrotters stick with the snow pile and manage to find a snowman. As they rush off to the Pit Stop, they run into Mika & Canaan on their way in and told them to grab their coats, which Mika & Canaan appreciated, saying "The Globetrotters really helped us out."
The other teams manage to get their snowmen built, and they didn't melt as fast as one would have expected - although the snowmen weren't actually works of art either. They got the required parts together, though, and all got their clues.
Lance & Keri went right to making a snowman, and when they finished Lance confused the clue-giver by asking if he could kick the snowman apart before he got his clue. This guy is something! All their bad choices piled up on them, though, and they were eliminated.
So here's the order the teams finished:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Brian & Ericka
3 - Big Easy & Flight Time
4 - Sam & Dan
5 - Maria & Tiffany
6 - Mika & Canaan
7 - Lance & Keri - Eliminated
So, sorry that the bickering Bostonians are gone? They did add a little spice to what seems to be a bunch of teams that like each other. See any good fights coming or are we destined for a bunch of good-Karma-seeking, helpful teams? Stay tuned!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Karma, Heat & Snow in Dubai
Well, Lance & Keri (those of the major Boston accent - “nothing could tear us apaaaaaaat”) are gone. Their lack of direction finally did them in. I'd really like to know if they actually stay married for more than six months (after Lance gets his money's worth from the wedding!)
The teams are told to fly to the Persian Gulf and find the world’s tallest building. They’re not told where in the Persian Gulf, and they have to figure out that the building is “the Burj Dubai, a colossal structure still under construction that is nearly twice the height of the Empire State Building" which was in the city of Dubai. Sam & Dan give us a taste of Stupid Americans by asking the Cambodian cab driver where the Persian Gulf is. (He didn't know.) They’re from Liberty, Missouri, which I guess doesn’t have TV or newspapers - or Sam & Dan live under a rock. Brian & Ericka say that they’re trying to be nice to the other teams because this Race is “all about Karma.” (No, it’s all about A MILLION DOLLARS!) I just really looked at Cheyne’s hair, too, and it looks like he styles it in a wind tunnel! During Lance & Keri’s interview Keri tells us that they have a strong bond - and then Lance, ever the romantic, says that “we have a lot of nonrefundable deposits on our wedding, I’m not gonna miss out on that.” Mika & Canaan, our little Christian couple, show the first cracks in their sunny relationship...they see that they have to go to the world’s tallest building, and Mika is petrified of heights. Canaan tells her that “you need to change that little tune” and she tells him “you need to quit telling me what to do.” Love the look of “wha-a-a?” on his face!
We see Sam & Dan at a window asking for tickets to the Persian Gulf, and hear them say the first sensible thing - “The Persian Gulf isn’t even a country.” Brian tells them they need to go to Dubai, which bums me out, I would have liked to see how long it took them to figure it out. Brian tells everyone as they get to the airport where they need to go. Lance & Keri stop at an internet cafe and try to get tickets but the website is slow (although Lance decides that it’s because all the tickets are being bought up). Lucky for them, they get to the airport in time and get on the same flight with all the other teams.
As they jump into cabs, the teams all remark on the heat (and we can see the cameras fogging up). They have to make their way to a fountain where they would sign up for one of two groups scheduled to ride the elevator to the 124th floor of the Burj Dubai the following morning. Maria & Tiffany get there first and sign up in the first group, followed by Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne.
Mika & Canaan get a cab driver that doesn’t know where the fountain is, and we see Canaan throwing a hissy fit. They make it and get into the second group. As they waited for their turn, Mika stressed herself out even more worrying about having to jump off somewhere. To his credit, Canaan was a bit more supportive this time. It turned out to be anticlimactic, because once on the 124th floor, the clue box was sitting on a balcony and the clue simply told them to go back down and look for a parking structure, get in a marked car, and drive to the desert. There is also a Fast Forward (the only one of the Race). “In this Fast Forward, teams had to travel to the Dubai Autodrome, the only racetrack of its type in the Persian Gulf. Then, driving in an F3 open-wheel racecar and accelerating up to speeds of 100 mph, one team member must complete a lap in 45 seconds or less.” Meghan & Cheyne decide to go for it, and the other teams didn’t want to challenge them and possibly lose, losing precious time. The second group gets their clues and gets back down to ground level, and Mika is breathing probably the biggest sigh of relief she’s ever done. Lance & Keri, our directionally challenged couple, take off in the other direction while looking for the parking garage (even though Keri tells him that everyone else was going the other way. And remember, according to Lance, Keri is the stupid one!)
Mika & Canaan don’t follow the other teams to the desert and end up very behind everyone, except for Lance & Keri who continue to get themselves lost. Meghan & Cheyne, meanwhile, get to the Fast Forward and Cheyne is excited to find out he gets to drive a race car around a track, and if he finishes the lap in less than 45 seconds, they’ll get their clue. Meghan is in tears watching him, being afraid for his safety. Cheyne decides “I’m the man!” and gets around the track in time on the first try. They’re instructed to drive a Maserati to the Pit Stop, where they get to the Mat in first place.
The other teams made it to the desert and get to the clue box, which has a Roadblock. “In it, one team member had to choose a traditional bag and search the desert for water that was stored in urns buried in the sand. However, not all of the urns contained water. When they found enough water to fill their bag, they had to give it to a Bedouin and his thirsty camels in order to receive their next clue.” Dan, Tiffany and Brian started off in the sand, and Tiffany was the first to find an urn - but no water. Brian found an urn with water and secretly filled his bag, then told Dan and Tiffany where to find it. “If you help people now, they’re gonna help you down the road.” (Not necessarily, Brian - not if helping you hurts their chance at a million bucks!) Dan’s ladle broke as he was getting the water, but Tiffany let him use hers and waited for him as he filled his bag. (All this Karma going on!) Mika & Canaan managed to beat Lance & Keri to the task site, but both of them wandered in the sand looking for water - Lance showing his wonderful attitude once again when he found an empty urn and chucked it into the sand, breaking it. Canaan found water and got done ahead of Lance.
The clue told the teams to “drive back into the city and find Ski Dubai, an indoor ski resort with more than 22,000 square meters of snow.” As Maria drove off in their car, she ran over a spike and punctured a hole in the radiator. She commented that “I have an excuse because I’m an Asian female driver.” Sam & Dan hung around with them until they got a new car, which can either be seen as stupid or chivalrous depending on your point of view.
Once to the “ski” resort, the clue was a Detour “with the choice of Build a Snowman or Find a Snowman. In Build a Snowman, teams had to carry snow from the frigid winter conditions inside, to the blistering heat outdoors. Once there, they had to build a traditional snowman complete with two coal eyes, a carrot nose, and top hat. In Find a Snowman, teams had to take a chairlift up the mountain and then sled down to a mound of snow. Once there, they had to search through the massive pile of snow for a tiny snowman buried within it.” They had to take their snowman to a polar bear and they would get their next clue. (That polar bear was a little creepy too). Matt & Gary get there first and decide to Find a Snowman. Shortly Maria & Tiffany, Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan, and Flight Time & Big Easy join them and Ericka manages to find the snowman in the snow first. They take off for the Pit Stop and arrive in second place. Maria & Tiffany and Sam & Dan, along with Matt & Gary, decide to switch tasks and build a snowman, but the Globetrotters stick with the snow pile and find their snowman. As they rush off to the Pit Stop, they run into Mika & Canaan on their way in and told them to grab their coats, which Mika & Canaan appreciated, saying “The Globetrotters really helped us out.”
The other teams manage to get their snowmen built, and they didn’t melt as fast as one would have expected - although the snowmen weren’t actually works of art either. They got the required parts together, though, and all got their clues.
Lance & Keri went right to making a snowman, and when they finished Lance confused the clue-giver by asking if he could kick the snowman apart before he got his clue. This guy is something! All their bad choices piled up on them, though, and they were eliminated.
So here’s the order the teams finished:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Brian & Ericka
3 - Big Easy & Flight Time
4 - Sam & Dan
5 - Maria & Tiffany
6 - Mika & Canaan
7 - Lance & Keri (Eliminated)
So, sorry that the bickering Bostonians are gone? They did add a little spice to what seems to be a bunch of teams that like each other. See any good fights coming or are we destined for a bunch of good-Karma-seeking, helpful teams? Stay tuned!
The teams are told to fly to the Persian Gulf and find the world’s tallest building. They’re not told where in the Persian Gulf, and they have to figure out that the building is “the Burj Dubai, a colossal structure still under construction that is nearly twice the height of the Empire State Building" which was in the city of Dubai. Sam & Dan give us a taste of Stupid Americans by asking the Cambodian cab driver where the Persian Gulf is. (He didn't know.) They’re from Liberty, Missouri, which I guess doesn’t have TV or newspapers - or Sam & Dan live under a rock. Brian & Ericka say that they’re trying to be nice to the other teams because this Race is “all about Karma.” (No, it’s all about A MILLION DOLLARS!) I just really looked at Cheyne’s hair, too, and it looks like he styles it in a wind tunnel! During Lance & Keri’s interview Keri tells us that they have a strong bond - and then Lance, ever the romantic, says that “we have a lot of nonrefundable deposits on our wedding, I’m not gonna miss out on that.” Mika & Canaan, our little Christian couple, show the first cracks in their sunny relationship...they see that they have to go to the world’s tallest building, and Mika is petrified of heights. Canaan tells her that “you need to change that little tune” and she tells him “you need to quit telling me what to do.” Love the look of “wha-a-a?” on his face!
We see Sam & Dan at a window asking for tickets to the Persian Gulf, and hear them say the first sensible thing - “The Persian Gulf isn’t even a country.” Brian tells them they need to go to Dubai, which bums me out, I would have liked to see how long it took them to figure it out. Brian tells everyone as they get to the airport where they need to go. Lance & Keri stop at an internet cafe and try to get tickets but the website is slow (although Lance decides that it’s because all the tickets are being bought up). Lucky for them, they get to the airport in time and get on the same flight with all the other teams.
As they jump into cabs, the teams all remark on the heat (and we can see the cameras fogging up). They have to make their way to a fountain where they would sign up for one of two groups scheduled to ride the elevator to the 124th floor of the Burj Dubai the following morning. Maria & Tiffany get there first and sign up in the first group, followed by Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne.
Mika & Canaan get a cab driver that doesn’t know where the fountain is, and we see Canaan throwing a hissy fit. They make it and get into the second group. As they waited for their turn, Mika stressed herself out even more worrying about having to jump off somewhere. To his credit, Canaan was a bit more supportive this time. It turned out to be anticlimactic, because once on the 124th floor, the clue box was sitting on a balcony and the clue simply told them to go back down and look for a parking structure, get in a marked car, and drive to the desert. There is also a Fast Forward (the only one of the Race). “In this Fast Forward, teams had to travel to the Dubai Autodrome, the only racetrack of its type in the Persian Gulf. Then, driving in an F3 open-wheel racecar and accelerating up to speeds of 100 mph, one team member must complete a lap in 45 seconds or less.” Meghan & Cheyne decide to go for it, and the other teams didn’t want to challenge them and possibly lose, losing precious time. The second group gets their clues and gets back down to ground level, and Mika is breathing probably the biggest sigh of relief she’s ever done. Lance & Keri, our directionally challenged couple, take off in the other direction while looking for the parking garage (even though Keri tells him that everyone else was going the other way. And remember, according to Lance, Keri is the stupid one!)
Mika & Canaan don’t follow the other teams to the desert and end up very behind everyone, except for Lance & Keri who continue to get themselves lost. Meghan & Cheyne, meanwhile, get to the Fast Forward and Cheyne is excited to find out he gets to drive a race car around a track, and if he finishes the lap in less than 45 seconds, they’ll get their clue. Meghan is in tears watching him, being afraid for his safety. Cheyne decides “I’m the man!” and gets around the track in time on the first try. They’re instructed to drive a Maserati to the Pit Stop, where they get to the Mat in first place.
The other teams made it to the desert and get to the clue box, which has a Roadblock. “In it, one team member had to choose a traditional bag and search the desert for water that was stored in urns buried in the sand. However, not all of the urns contained water. When they found enough water to fill their bag, they had to give it to a Bedouin and his thirsty camels in order to receive their next clue.” Dan, Tiffany and Brian started off in the sand, and Tiffany was the first to find an urn - but no water. Brian found an urn with water and secretly filled his bag, then told Dan and Tiffany where to find it. “If you help people now, they’re gonna help you down the road.” (Not necessarily, Brian - not if helping you hurts their chance at a million bucks!) Dan’s ladle broke as he was getting the water, but Tiffany let him use hers and waited for him as he filled his bag. (All this Karma going on!) Mika & Canaan managed to beat Lance & Keri to the task site, but both of them wandered in the sand looking for water - Lance showing his wonderful attitude once again when he found an empty urn and chucked it into the sand, breaking it. Canaan found water and got done ahead of Lance.
The clue told the teams to “drive back into the city and find Ski Dubai, an indoor ski resort with more than 22,000 square meters of snow.” As Maria drove off in their car, she ran over a spike and punctured a hole in the radiator. She commented that “I have an excuse because I’m an Asian female driver.” Sam & Dan hung around with them until they got a new car, which can either be seen as stupid or chivalrous depending on your point of view.
Once to the “ski” resort, the clue was a Detour “with the choice of Build a Snowman or Find a Snowman. In Build a Snowman, teams had to carry snow from the frigid winter conditions inside, to the blistering heat outdoors. Once there, they had to build a traditional snowman complete with two coal eyes, a carrot nose, and top hat. In Find a Snowman, teams had to take a chairlift up the mountain and then sled down to a mound of snow. Once there, they had to search through the massive pile of snow for a tiny snowman buried within it.” They had to take their snowman to a polar bear and they would get their next clue. (That polar bear was a little creepy too). Matt & Gary get there first and decide to Find a Snowman. Shortly Maria & Tiffany, Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan, and Flight Time & Big Easy join them and Ericka manages to find the snowman in the snow first. They take off for the Pit Stop and arrive in second place. Maria & Tiffany and Sam & Dan, along with Matt & Gary, decide to switch tasks and build a snowman, but the Globetrotters stick with the snow pile and find their snowman. As they rush off to the Pit Stop, they run into Mika & Canaan on their way in and told them to grab their coats, which Mika & Canaan appreciated, saying “The Globetrotters really helped us out.”
The other teams manage to get their snowmen built, and they didn’t melt as fast as one would have expected - although the snowmen weren’t actually works of art either. They got the required parts together, though, and all got their clues.
Lance & Keri went right to making a snowman, and when they finished Lance confused the clue-giver by asking if he could kick the snowman apart before he got his clue. This guy is something! All their bad choices piled up on them, though, and they were eliminated.
So here’s the order the teams finished:
1 - Meghan & Cheyne
2 - Brian & Ericka
3 - Big Easy & Flight Time
4 - Sam & Dan
5 - Maria & Tiffany
6 - Mika & Canaan
7 - Lance & Keri (Eliminated)
So, sorry that the bickering Bostonians are gone? They did add a little spice to what seems to be a bunch of teams that like each other. See any good fights coming or are we destined for a bunch of good-Karma-seeking, helpful teams? Stay tuned!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Going to Sean Penn and Going Bananas - Until a Lost Passport
What a way to go! Totally a bummer that Zev & Justin get knocked out for losing Zev’s passport. And after coming in first for the leg! I was really liking this team a lot, and I like them even more now after seeing their reaction (not complaining, no blaming each other) and realizing what good friends they are - and what friendship is all about. Damn shame! Another shame is missing the alleged masturbating monkey - I haven’t deleted the TiVo version yet, gonna have to go back and look for that one. I have a feeling that some editor on the show may get canned for that one!
The teams leave the Pit Stop with the instruction to fly to Phnom Pen, Cambodia. I was amazed at how many of them couldn’t pronounce it (but then, they are a bunch of young’uns). Zev cracked me up calling it “Sean Penn Cambodia.” When they got there they had to find the Foreign Correspondent’s Club and find the “assignment editor” and ask him in a whisper “what their next assignment is.” All very intriguing, no? (No. Cute, but no intrigue).
As the teams get to the airport, they find out that only one airline, Vietnamese Air, flies to Cambodia, and the next flight is at 12:25 p.m., so they’re all looking at a night’s sleep in the airport. Lance & Keri (Lance says they’re getting married after the Race, and they’re good because “the Amazing Race is like 5 years of marriage stress”) and Zev & Justin are the last two teams to get to the airport and find out the flight is full, so they have to book tickets on the 2:15 flight. Both teams get on the waiting list for the first flight, and after a little sweating, they find out they will get on the first flight after all. Lance sees the teams boarding the plane and yells “no cheap wins, bitches!” I’m sure that really endeared him to the other teams.
Zev & Justin get lucky with a great cab driver, Terry, who tells them he’ll stick around with them for as long as they need him. Zev tells him “don’t leave us or I’ll tell your mother” which cracks Terry up. He seemed to be a really nice, good-natured guy and really helped Zev & Justin a lot. Getting to the Foreign Correspondent’s Club, the teams saw two guys looking very shady, reading newspapers and hiding their faces, and those were the “assignment editors.” They walked up and quietly asked for their next assignments, and got a folded-up newspaper with a manila folder in it. (Canaan had major trouble with this challenge because he kept asking for his “next task” instead of “next assignment.”) The folder had a photo of Jackie Kennedy Onassis in a motorcade with the President of Cambodia, and the teams had to find “the same picture in a hotel that has a suite named after the famous woman. Teams needed to figure out that their next destination was the Hotel Le Royal where they had to find the picture of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis on her only official visit to Cambodia in 1967.” I was absolutely flabbergasted that only two teams knew who Jackie Kennedy was (Gary & Matt and Zev & Justin - and isn’t Zev supposed to be mentally handicapped?) Obviously their history classes were lacking or they cut class a lot! Flight Time said she was a Cambodian queen, while Mika & Canaan decided that she was either a Queen or a Cambodian dignitary (“she looks to be of Cambodian descent.” Idiots!) Lucky for them, their cab drivers knew who she was and where they needed to go.
The clue at the hotel was a Detour - Cover or Wrap. “In Cover, teams had to find a helmet stand and choose four motorcycle helmets. Then, using only their powers of persuasion, the teams had to sell the four helmets, for ten dollars, to a family of four consisting of two adults and two children. Once the teams returned the money to the helmet shop owner, they would receive their next clue. In Wrap, teams had to find the Russian Market and locate stalls 980 and 981 where the shopkeeper would hand over an intricately patterned silk sca rf. Then, the teams had to search the confusing corridors of the market for a woman wearing an identical scarf. When they correctly matched the two scarves, the shopkeeper would hand them their next clue.”
All the teams except Lance & Keri decided to do Wrap (which I thought was a much better idea). Zev & Justin’s cab driver got them to the Russian Market quickly and Justin told him “you’re the smartest man in Cambodia! I’m going to name one of my children after you.” Obviously this impressed Terry so much that he helped them find the market stall and stayed with them to find the woman with the matching scarf. Brian & Ericka and Matt & Gary got behind after their taxi drivers took them to the wrong place. Lance & Keri managed to sell their helmets, which surprised me (hey, $10 in Cambodia must be a fortune!) but they still were at the back of the pack. Flight Time & Big Easy, wearing their Globetrotter jerseys, find two girls from Pennsylvania in the Russian Market who help them find the stalls and the woman with the matching scarf.
The next clue tells the teams to go on foot to Wat Tuol Tom Pong and look for the clue box. Zev & Justin run behind their cab driver who leads them straight to it. That clue was a Roadblock - “Who wants to monkey around?” “In Cambodia, monkeys are so revered that the royal family employs a royal monkey master who trains dancers to behave like monkeys. In this Roadblock, one team member had to put on a monkey mask and tail and complete three monkey maneuvers, as demonstrated by their monkey master. If they could keep up their simian act during the maneuvers, the monkey master would hand them their next clue.” I’m looking forward to this one (and hoping it doesn’t involve throwing poop)!
Zev decides to try it, and has to put on the monkey mask and tail. He’s doing great until he has to climb across a log (about 4 inches off the ground) on his feet and hands. He’s having problems with balance, and gets ticked at Justin who is shouting encouragement to him, telling Justin to shut up. Zev ended up rolling off the log onto the mat, panting that he just had no energy left, and felt like he was having a panic attack. That allowed Sam & Dan to breeze through and pass them. Somehow Zev mustered the energy to finish correctly and they took off after Sam & Dan to the Pit Stop.
Sam & Dan had a very slow ride to the Pit Stop and with Zev & Justin’s super cabbie, they got to the Mat in first place. Sam & Dan actually thought they made it first and were really bummed when Phil told them they were second. After Flight Time & Big Easy made the Mat in third, we see Zev & Justin looking through their things for their passports, saying they couldn’t find them. They go back to Phil and tell him, and Phil tells them to dump their backpacks. Phil spotted a passport and it was Justin’s but Zev’s was nowhere to be found. Phil tells them they cannot continue on the Race without their travel documents, and if they could find Zev’s passport and get back before the last team checked in, they would not be eliminated. They called Terry the cabbie to retrace their steps and hoped they’d be able to find it. As time wore on and they couldn’t find it, Justin mentioned that he’d “let Zev down” and Zev told him no way, it was a freak happening and it was no one’s fault. Zev then blamed himself: “We finished first and now it looks like we’re gonna be last because I lost a little piece of paper. We would’ve won the whole thing too.” Tell you the truth, they could have. They seemed to really have a good rhythm going and were very level headed compared to some other teams (Lance bigmouth egomaniac and Keri please-don’t-talk come to mind).
Lance showed us how utterly goofy he is yet again as he performed a roundhouse kick before he stepped on the Mat. Phil looked afraid - let’s see, Lance challenged Phil to a fight and now is showing off his karate mo ves - maybe next time instead of a cute little local lady, they should have a couple of goons with Phil at the Mat to protect him from Lance. Especially if they come in last and Phil has to eliminate them!
Maria & Tiffanyshowing up technically in last place, were told by Phil that they were in last, but they would not be eliminated because of one other team’s problem with travel documents. Getting lucky once with a non-elimination round and now this, they said “I wish we had this much luck with poker because we’d be zillionaires.”
So here are the standings after this leg of the Race:
1 - Sam & Dan
2 - Flight Time & Big Easy
3 - Brian & Ericka
4 - Gary & Matt
5 - Meghan & Cheyne
6 - Lance & Keri
7 - Mika & Canaan
8 - Maria & Tiffany
9 - Zev & Justin - from worst, to first, to worst and eliminated
So another team gets first place. They all seem to get lucky at different times - who will keep the luck and win the Race? Tune in next week!
The teams leave the Pit Stop with the instruction to fly to Phnom Pen, Cambodia. I was amazed at how many of them couldn’t pronounce it (but then, they are a bunch of young’uns). Zev cracked me up calling it “Sean Penn Cambodia.” When they got there they had to find the Foreign Correspondent’s Club and find the “assignment editor” and ask him in a whisper “what their next assignment is.” All very intriguing, no? (No. Cute, but no intrigue).
As the teams get to the airport, they find out that only one airline, Vietnamese Air, flies to Cambodia, and the next flight is at 12:25 p.m., so they’re all looking at a night’s sleep in the airport. Lance & Keri (Lance says they’re getting married after the Race, and they’re good because “the Amazing Race is like 5 years of marriage stress”) and Zev & Justin are the last two teams to get to the airport and find out the flight is full, so they have to book tickets on the 2:15 flight. Both teams get on the waiting list for the first flight, and after a little sweating, they find out they will get on the first flight after all. Lance sees the teams boarding the plane and yells “no cheap wins, bitches!” I’m sure that really endeared him to the other teams.
Zev & Justin get lucky with a great cab driver, Terry, who tells them he’ll stick around with them for as long as they need him. Zev tells him “don’t leave us or I’ll tell your mother” which cracks Terry up. He seemed to be a really nice, good-natured guy and really helped Zev & Justin a lot. Getting to the Foreign Correspondent’s Club, the teams saw two guys looking very shady, reading newspapers and hiding their faces, and those were the “assignment editors.” They walked up and quietly asked for their next assignments, and got a folded-up newspaper with a manila folder in it. (Canaan had major trouble with this challenge because he kept asking for his “next task” instead of “next assignment.”) The folder had a photo of Jackie Kennedy Onassis in a motorcade with the President of Cambodia, and the teams had to find “the same picture in a hotel that has a suite named after the famous woman. Teams needed to figure out that their next destination was the Hotel Le Royal where they had to find the picture of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis on her only official visit to Cambodia in 1967.” I was absolutely flabbergasted that only two teams knew who Jackie Kennedy was (Gary & Matt and Zev & Justin - and isn’t Zev supposed to be mentally handicapped?) Obviously their history classes were lacking or they cut class a lot! Flight Time said she was a Cambodian queen, while Mika & Canaan decided that she was either a Queen or a Cambodian dignitary (“she looks to be of Cambodian descent.” Idiots!) Lucky for them, their cab drivers knew who she was and where they needed to go.
The clue at the hotel was a Detour - Cover or Wrap. “In Cover, teams had to find a helmet stand and choose four motorcycle helmets. Then, using only their powers of persuasion, the teams had to sell the four helmets, for ten dollars, to a family of four consisting of two adults and two children. Once the teams returned the money to the helmet shop owner, they would receive their next clue. In Wrap, teams had to find the Russian Market and locate stalls 980 and 981 where the shopkeeper would hand over an intricately patterned silk sca rf. Then, the teams had to search the confusing corridors of the market for a woman wearing an identical scarf. When they correctly matched the two scarves, the shopkeeper would hand them their next clue.”
All the teams except Lance & Keri decided to do Wrap (which I thought was a much better idea). Zev & Justin’s cab driver got them to the Russian Market quickly and Justin told him “you’re the smartest man in Cambodia! I’m going to name one of my children after you.” Obviously this impressed Terry so much that he helped them find the market stall and stayed with them to find the woman with the matching scarf. Brian & Ericka and Matt & Gary got behind after their taxi drivers took them to the wrong place. Lance & Keri managed to sell their helmets, which surprised me (hey, $10 in Cambodia must be a fortune!) but they still were at the back of the pack. Flight Time & Big Easy, wearing their Globetrotter jerseys, find two girls from Pennsylvania in the Russian Market who help them find the stalls and the woman with the matching scarf.
The next clue tells the teams to go on foot to Wat Tuol Tom Pong and look for the clue box. Zev & Justin run behind their cab driver who leads them straight to it. That clue was a Roadblock - “Who wants to monkey around?” “In Cambodia, monkeys are so revered that the royal family employs a royal monkey master who trains dancers to behave like monkeys. In this Roadblock, one team member had to put on a monkey mask and tail and complete three monkey maneuvers, as demonstrated by their monkey master. If they could keep up their simian act during the maneuvers, the monkey master would hand them their next clue.” I’m looking forward to this one (and hoping it doesn’t involve throwing poop)!
Zev decides to try it, and has to put on the monkey mask and tail. He’s doing great until he has to climb across a log (about 4 inches off the ground) on his feet and hands. He’s having problems with balance, and gets ticked at Justin who is shouting encouragement to him, telling Justin to shut up. Zev ended up rolling off the log onto the mat, panting that he just had no energy left, and felt like he was having a panic attack. That allowed Sam & Dan to breeze through and pass them. Somehow Zev mustered the energy to finish correctly and they took off after Sam & Dan to the Pit Stop.
Sam & Dan had a very slow ride to the Pit Stop and with Zev & Justin’s super cabbie, they got to the Mat in first place. Sam & Dan actually thought they made it first and were really bummed when Phil told them they were second. After Flight Time & Big Easy made the Mat in third, we see Zev & Justin looking through their things for their passports, saying they couldn’t find them. They go back to Phil and tell him, and Phil tells them to dump their backpacks. Phil spotted a passport and it was Justin’s but Zev’s was nowhere to be found. Phil tells them they cannot continue on the Race without their travel documents, and if they could find Zev’s passport and get back before the last team checked in, they would not be eliminated. They called Terry the cabbie to retrace their steps and hoped they’d be able to find it. As time wore on and they couldn’t find it, Justin mentioned that he’d “let Zev down” and Zev told him no way, it was a freak happening and it was no one’s fault. Zev then blamed himself: “We finished first and now it looks like we’re gonna be last because I lost a little piece of paper. We would’ve won the whole thing too.” Tell you the truth, they could have. They seemed to really have a good rhythm going and were very level headed compared to some other teams (Lance bigmouth egomaniac and Keri please-don’t-talk come to mind).
Lance showed us how utterly goofy he is yet again as he performed a roundhouse kick before he stepped on the Mat. Phil looked afraid - let’s see, Lance challenged Phil to a fight and now is showing off his karate mo ves - maybe next time instead of a cute little local lady, they should have a couple of goons with Phil at the Mat to protect him from Lance. Especially if they come in last and Phil has to eliminate them!
Maria & Tiffanyshowing up technically in last place, were told by Phil that they were in last, but they would not be eliminated because of one other team’s problem with travel documents. Getting lucky once with a non-elimination round and now this, they said “I wish we had this much luck with poker because we’d be zillionaires.”
So here are the standings after this leg of the Race:
1 - Sam & Dan
2 - Flight Time & Big Easy
3 - Brian & Ericka
4 - Gary & Matt
5 - Meghan & Cheyne
6 - Lance & Keri
7 - Mika & Canaan
8 - Maria & Tiffany
9 - Zev & Justin - from worst, to first, to worst and eliminated
So another team gets first place. They all seem to get lucky at different times - who will keep the luck and win the Race? Tune in next week!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Nice Couples Finish Last - Bye Bye Marcy & Ron!
While they were nice people, Marcy & Ron went at a challenge in a backasswards fashion and ended up in last place and got eliminated. It really is a shame because people like Lance & Keri (he of the monster ego and her with the annoying Fran-Drescher like voice) are still in it - but with the way they’re going, they’re not long for this Race either. They seemed to forget the most important mantra of the Race: Read your clue!
The last leg of the Race had a Pit Stop on a boat - and to begin this leg, the boat moved, but the teams were not told where they moved to (which was My Tho). I didn’t see any of the teams asking the locals where they were, which struck me as really odd ... but then, it could just be the editing. We hear from Big Easy who says his Dad passed away two days before the Race began - not sure if it was the airing of the Race or the actual Race - and if it was the actual Race, I guess BE didn’t stick around for the funeral (or he was Jewish and they got it done in one day). He wants to win it for his Dad. Marcy tells us that her Dad was an Air Force general who got shot down in Vietnam and ended up being rescued, but gets emotional talking about the Vietnam War and how nice the Vietnamese people are - “and thinking about all the people who died here.”
The first clue told the teams to “taxi to Ho Chi Minh City” and go to the Golden Dragon Water Puppet Theater, where their “next clue awaited in the mouth of a water dragon.” Gary & Matt left first but got stuck in traffic (which was mostly mopeds) and Big Easy & Flight Time beat them to the theater. It was fun watching the teams try to grab the clues - there were dragons swimming around in a 2-foot deep pool, and one team member had to try and grab the “tongue” of the dragon for their clue. The dragons spit water and seemed to dodge away just as the teams grabbed at them. Everyone was getting pretty wet and some teams had ideas on how to grab their clues - Meghan & Cheyne ducked down and “snuck up” on the dragons (I guess if the dragons couldn’t see them ....), and Mika & Canaan tried to join ‘em and danced alongside the pool to the music. How they figured that would help, I don't know!
One by one they grabbed their clues and inside found a bullet, which they unscrewed and rolled open a postage stamp with a building on it. It was the post office and the teams had to figure out that they had to find this building to get their next clue ... and they all did except for Lance & Keri, who left their brains in the boat, obviously. First, they decided they were in Ho Chi Minh City to begin (never mind the clue said “taxi to Ho Chi Minh City”) and started running around looking for the puppet theater. They finally meet a local who tells them it’s a two-hour trip to where they need to go. After getting their bullet from the dragon, they now think that they have to give the bullet to someone at the theater to get their yellow and black clue envelope. Everyone else is hopping into cabs, with no clue envelope in their hands, but Lance & Keri are going back into the theater looking for one anyway. Finally it dawns on them to open the bullet and they figure out where they need to go - but once getting there, they go inside the post office and totally miss the clue box sitting in front of the building. They were almost a Keystone Kops routine - but nowhere near as funny, because Lance decided it was always Keri’s fault. Lance needs to get busted in the chops.
Once at the post office, the clue was a Detour, “having to choose between Child’s Play and Word Play. In Child’s Play, teams traveled to a local park and chose a concrete animal from a kiosk. Then, they had to transport the heavy and unwieldy animal along the bumpy pathways of the park, picking up five different-colored balloons from vendors along the way. After delivering the animals and the balloons to the children’s playground, they would receive their next clue. In Word Play, teams traveled to a hotel and located the observation deck. Then, scanning the crowded intersection below, they had to identify six Vietnamese letters moving with the congested traffic. Once they checked with the security guard that they had the correct six letters, they had to leave the hotel and get assistance from the locals to unscramble them to spell DOCLAP, the well-known Vietnamese word for independence. “
All the teams except Marcy & Ron tried Child’s Play. Zev & Justin find a local to go with them to talk to the cab driver and help them find their way around. Flight Time & Big Easy grab a sheep, thinking it’s lower to the ground and will transport easier, and take off to get their balloons. Big Easy wants to go faster but Flight Time tells him to cool it because he’s afraid of breaking the sheep. Zev & Justin decided to take a (very tall) giraffe, and ended up in trouble when the giraffe tipped over and hit the street. They had to collect all the pieces before moving on. Maria & Tiffany’s cart broke as they went over a curb, and Sam & Dan, nice guys, stopped to help them try and fix it. After a couple of minutes, the girls told them to just go ahead and they’d go back for another cart. Niceness all around!
Mika & Canaan finished the task and after putting their animal in its stall, Canaan (the nice Christian boy, remember) simply snatched the clue from the lady standing there, no thank you, kiss my foot, or acknowledgment that she was even a human being. I guess they don’t preach niceness to strangers at his Christian church. After Brian & Ericka got done, they clasp hands and show the knuckles and say “Team Zebra,” which I thought was cute. (Okay, I’m easy).
Marcy & Ron, in the meantime, get their letters (after a little bump in the road thinking the “D” was an “O”) and instead of grabbing the first person they see to help them unscramble the word, they decide to look around at street signs to see if they can decipher it themselves. They wasted a lot of time before they finally decided to ask people, and ended up going through a few locals before they figured it out.
Lance, in the meantime, got all worked up while carting around the animal and ended up letting a balloon go, and of course, it was Keri’s fault. In the taxi, she finally got fed up, asking Lance “what, I’m the direction queen?” and demanded an apology, and got one .... er, sorta. Lance offered, “'All right, well, if that's the case, I'm sorry.'' You could see how verklempt he was for upsetting Keri...NOT.
The next clue had the teams “travel to Dien Co 008 at the busy intersection of Durong Vinh Vien and Durong Ly Thurong Kiet.” Once there, their clue was a Roadblock. “In it, one team member had to break down two VCRs using a set of provided tools and toss the parts into separate piles.” Big Easy started unscrewing the VCR and Cheyne and Matt soon joined him and it was a race to see who could get their parts apart faster. Big Easy managed to get done and hold the lead, getting the clue and finding out they had to head to the Reunification Palace, which was the Pit Stop for this leg of the Race. They had major problems finding a taxi that knew where it was, and that allowed Meghan & Cheyne to get going ahead of them, and Flight Time & Big Easy told their driver to follow Meghan & Cheyne’s cab. Meghan & Cheyne knew it would be a losing battle in a footrace with the Globetrotters but were determined to give it their all - but in the end, the long legs and athleticism won out and the basketball guys ended up in first.
Tiffany got a laugh at the Roadblock when she grabbed the electric screwdriver and said “now how do I make this thing go?” As Lance was ripping apart his VCRs (which he did with his bare hands, he didn’t take the time to unscrew anything) Keri was yelling encouragement and I decided that she has one of the most annoying voices on the planet. She needs to do all the challenges so I don’t have to listen to her yelling at Lance any more. And Lance needs to put a sock in it so I don’t have to hear his asinine comments any more. Lance proves his jerkishness once again at the Mat, where this little conversation takes place: Phil - “Lance, you’re the most competitive person on this Race.” Lance - “If you want, I’ll wrestle you right here.” Zev then pipes up - “We’ll do it for you, Phil.” I like this Duck Whisperer guy, and now he’s offering to take on Lance for Phil - endears him to me even more!
So here’s how the teams ended up:
1 - Flight Time & Big Easy
2 - Meghan & Cheyne
3 - Gary & Matt
4 - Brian & Ericka
5 - Sam & Dan
6 - Maria & Tiffany
7 - Mika & Canaan
8 - Zev & Justin
9 - Lance & Keri
10 - Marcy & Ron (eliminated)
So is it just me, or do you wish that Lance would fall off a cliff too? Are you rooting for Zev & Justin? With all the jockeying for position, who seems to have the best shot at actually winning the million? We’ll find out more next week!
The last leg of the Race had a Pit Stop on a boat - and to begin this leg, the boat moved, but the teams were not told where they moved to (which was My Tho). I didn’t see any of the teams asking the locals where they were, which struck me as really odd ... but then, it could just be the editing. We hear from Big Easy who says his Dad passed away two days before the Race began - not sure if it was the airing of the Race or the actual Race - and if it was the actual Race, I guess BE didn’t stick around for the funeral (or he was Jewish and they got it done in one day). He wants to win it for his Dad. Marcy tells us that her Dad was an Air Force general who got shot down in Vietnam and ended up being rescued, but gets emotional talking about the Vietnam War and how nice the Vietnamese people are - “and thinking about all the people who died here.”
The first clue told the teams to “taxi to Ho Chi Minh City” and go to the Golden Dragon Water Puppet Theater, where their “next clue awaited in the mouth of a water dragon.” Gary & Matt left first but got stuck in traffic (which was mostly mopeds) and Big Easy & Flight Time beat them to the theater. It was fun watching the teams try to grab the clues - there were dragons swimming around in a 2-foot deep pool, and one team member had to try and grab the “tongue” of the dragon for their clue. The dragons spit water and seemed to dodge away just as the teams grabbed at them. Everyone was getting pretty wet and some teams had ideas on how to grab their clues - Meghan & Cheyne ducked down and “snuck up” on the dragons (I guess if the dragons couldn’t see them ....), and Mika & Canaan tried to join ‘em and danced alongside the pool to the music. How they figured that would help, I don't know!
One by one they grabbed their clues and inside found a bullet, which they unscrewed and rolled open a postage stamp with a building on it. It was the post office and the teams had to figure out that they had to find this building to get their next clue ... and they all did except for Lance & Keri, who left their brains in the boat, obviously. First, they decided they were in Ho Chi Minh City to begin (never mind the clue said “taxi to Ho Chi Minh City”) and started running around looking for the puppet theater. They finally meet a local who tells them it’s a two-hour trip to where they need to go. After getting their bullet from the dragon, they now think that they have to give the bullet to someone at the theater to get their yellow and black clue envelope. Everyone else is hopping into cabs, with no clue envelope in their hands, but Lance & Keri are going back into the theater looking for one anyway. Finally it dawns on them to open the bullet and they figure out where they need to go - but once getting there, they go inside the post office and totally miss the clue box sitting in front of the building. They were almost a Keystone Kops routine - but nowhere near as funny, because Lance decided it was always Keri’s fault. Lance needs to get busted in the chops.
Once at the post office, the clue was a Detour, “having to choose between Child’s Play and Word Play. In Child’s Play, teams traveled to a local park and chose a concrete animal from a kiosk. Then, they had to transport the heavy and unwieldy animal along the bumpy pathways of the park, picking up five different-colored balloons from vendors along the way. After delivering the animals and the balloons to the children’s playground, they would receive their next clue. In Word Play, teams traveled to a hotel and located the observation deck. Then, scanning the crowded intersection below, they had to identify six Vietnamese letters moving with the congested traffic. Once they checked with the security guard that they had the correct six letters, they had to leave the hotel and get assistance from the locals to unscramble them to spell DOCLAP, the well-known Vietnamese word for independence. “
All the teams except Marcy & Ron tried Child’s Play. Zev & Justin find a local to go with them to talk to the cab driver and help them find their way around. Flight Time & Big Easy grab a sheep, thinking it’s lower to the ground and will transport easier, and take off to get their balloons. Big Easy wants to go faster but Flight Time tells him to cool it because he’s afraid of breaking the sheep. Zev & Justin decided to take a (very tall) giraffe, and ended up in trouble when the giraffe tipped over and hit the street. They had to collect all the pieces before moving on. Maria & Tiffany’s cart broke as they went over a curb, and Sam & Dan, nice guys, stopped to help them try and fix it. After a couple of minutes, the girls told them to just go ahead and they’d go back for another cart. Niceness all around!
Mika & Canaan finished the task and after putting their animal in its stall, Canaan (the nice Christian boy, remember) simply snatched the clue from the lady standing there, no thank you, kiss my foot, or acknowledgment that she was even a human being. I guess they don’t preach niceness to strangers at his Christian church. After Brian & Ericka got done, they clasp hands and show the knuckles and say “Team Zebra,” which I thought was cute. (Okay, I’m easy).
Marcy & Ron, in the meantime, get their letters (after a little bump in the road thinking the “D” was an “O”) and instead of grabbing the first person they see to help them unscramble the word, they decide to look around at street signs to see if they can decipher it themselves. They wasted a lot of time before they finally decided to ask people, and ended up going through a few locals before they figured it out.
Lance, in the meantime, got all worked up while carting around the animal and ended up letting a balloon go, and of course, it was Keri’s fault. In the taxi, she finally got fed up, asking Lance “what, I’m the direction queen?” and demanded an apology, and got one .... er, sorta. Lance offered, “'All right, well, if that's the case, I'm sorry.'' You could see how verklempt he was for upsetting Keri...NOT.
The next clue had the teams “travel to Dien Co 008 at the busy intersection of Durong Vinh Vien and Durong Ly Thurong Kiet.” Once there, their clue was a Roadblock. “In it, one team member had to break down two VCRs using a set of provided tools and toss the parts into separate piles.” Big Easy started unscrewing the VCR and Cheyne and Matt soon joined him and it was a race to see who could get their parts apart faster. Big Easy managed to get done and hold the lead, getting the clue and finding out they had to head to the Reunification Palace, which was the Pit Stop for this leg of the Race. They had major problems finding a taxi that knew where it was, and that allowed Meghan & Cheyne to get going ahead of them, and Flight Time & Big Easy told their driver to follow Meghan & Cheyne’s cab. Meghan & Cheyne knew it would be a losing battle in a footrace with the Globetrotters but were determined to give it their all - but in the end, the long legs and athleticism won out and the basketball guys ended up in first.
Tiffany got a laugh at the Roadblock when she grabbed the electric screwdriver and said “now how do I make this thing go?” As Lance was ripping apart his VCRs (which he did with his bare hands, he didn’t take the time to unscrew anything) Keri was yelling encouragement and I decided that she has one of the most annoying voices on the planet. She needs to do all the challenges so I don’t have to listen to her yelling at Lance any more. And Lance needs to put a sock in it so I don’t have to hear his asinine comments any more. Lance proves his jerkishness once again at the Mat, where this little conversation takes place: Phil - “Lance, you’re the most competitive person on this Race.” Lance - “If you want, I’ll wrestle you right here.” Zev then pipes up - “We’ll do it for you, Phil.” I like this Duck Whisperer guy, and now he’s offering to take on Lance for Phil - endears him to me even more!
So here’s how the teams ended up:
1 - Flight Time & Big Easy
2 - Meghan & Cheyne
3 - Gary & Matt
4 - Brian & Ericka
5 - Sam & Dan
6 - Maria & Tiffany
7 - Mika & Canaan
8 - Zev & Justin
9 - Lance & Keri
10 - Marcy & Ron (eliminated)
So is it just me, or do you wish that Lance would fall off a cliff too? Are you rooting for Zev & Justin? With all the jockeying for position, who seems to have the best shot at actually winning the million? We’ll find out more next week!
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