Amazing Race 10 Tidbits -- Thoughts and Outlook

Amazing Race Tidbits

CBS' The Amazing Race 10th Edition

Thoughts on Episode 11 and Outlook for Episode 12

Thoughts on Episode Eleven -- Ouarzazate, Morocco

In Ukraine, teams had a hard time finding the fastest flights with connections to Casablanca. Dustin and Kandice picked a flight with a tight connection warning through Milan. But, missing that connection to Casablanca was far from fatal, as several combinations of flights are offered from Milan, some connecting in Spain, others making stops in Spain, to Casablanca. As a result, the beauty queens were waiting as other teams boarded the final flight from Casablana to Ouarzazate

Dustin and Kandice had a much harder time finding the shop in Ouarzazate, as they were mislead by a young man they asked to show the way. They were saved when the Yield station was inside the gate to the studio. This was a tough twist, as all recent Yield situations happened in the heat of the Race, on the run. With Lyn and Karlyn gaining an advantage over all the teams for the first time in the Race, finding a closed gate with hours of operation posted in the way had to seem unfair.

When the gate to the studio opened at 8AM the next morning, there was a mad dash to the Yield station. Of course, the slower Lyn and Karlyn quickly fell behind. In a cruel reversal, Dustin and Kandice got their revenge and yielded Lyn and Karlyn. There is much more to this story.

Roadblock

One Team member had to ride a chariot on the back lot of Atlas Corporation Studios, and snag two flags matching the plume attached to the horse.

Episode Eleven Roadblock
Team	Team Member	Result
Tyler and James	James	Took three tries to get both flags.
Karlyn and Lyn	Karlyn	Worked quickly without distractions, motivated to gain time, started right after James finished
Rob and Kimberly	Rob	Snagged the two flags for a close second.
Dustin and Kandice	Dustin	Victorious in battle, finishing first

Road Trouble for Rob and Kimberly, Again!

Rob and Kimberly had a flat for a while before hearing the bad tire. He was about to pull over as Dustin and Kandice finally told him. Then, to add to his misery, he could not get the jack in his vehicle out of its cubbyhole once he found it. Another driver came to his rescue.

Detour

In both Detour options, only three work stations were available, first come first served.

Throw It: Teams would have traveled four miles to the town of Guedara and throw clay onto a wheel to make two pots at a local pottery shop. Once the potter judged the pots to be correctly made, he would hand them the next clue.

Grind It: Teams traveled four miles back towards the town of Ouarzazate to the North Africa Horse Ranch and Olive Farm where they had to grind 77 pounds of olives and fill pressing sleeves with the paste. The miller had to check their work before filling the pressing sleeves. Once the sleeves were properly filled, the miller handed the team the next clue.

Karlyn recognized from an art class just how hard it could be, leading them to take the Grind It Detour. Likewise, Tyler figured out that "Throw it' actually meant make the pots. Some teams had trouble spotting the sign for the Africa Horse Ranch and Olive Farm. Dustin and Kandice made a major blunder by missing the farm for the Detour, and then going so far beyond it. They temporarily forgot that the clue specifies the mileage to the location, as one of them said they had gone too far. Far enough that by the time they got turned around, they were the fourth team, having to wait for a workstation to open up.

Episode Eleven Detour
Members	Detour Selected	Result
Tyler and James	Grind It	First in, first out
Karlyn and Lyn	Grind It	Second in, second out
Dustin and Kandice	Grind It	Started after James and Tyler finished, but not far behind Rob and Kimberly
Rob and Kimberly	Grind It	Third in, third out, just ahead of Dustin and Kandice

New Twist

The clue directed teams to the next Pit Stop, where one team might be eliminated. The Pit Stop was located at a nomadic Berber camp along the famous road to Marrakech. Because Dustin and Kandice fell to last in the Detour, they could only hope another team would have problems finding the Pit Stop. All teams spotted the pyramidal roadside marker with the Race flag. All teams arrived in the order they finished the Detour. But the beauty queens were saved by another unexpected twist in the Race. This leg became the third non-elimination leg before the final round. As a result, Dustin and Kandice are "marked for elimination", facing a 30-minute penalty if they do not finish first. Unlike David and Mary, their fourth place finish was not that far behind the frontrunning models, separated essentially by the time to complete the Grind It Detour.

Outlook for Episode Twelve

The Amazing Race 10 remains less predictable than the previous couple of editions, with teams that are very competitive. The four remaining teams are skillful and resourceful. Each of the four teams has a unique combination of strengths and weaknesses that have emerged as they travel the globe.

Comparison of Teams in AMAZING RACE 10
Place	Members	Strengths	Weaknesses
1	Tyler and James	Most athletic team, good swimmers	Not paying attention to details of clues, some bad luck, poor navigation, poor decision making, communication with locals. James is passive, and has short reach.
4	Dustin and Kandice	Competitive, college educated, athletic, good navigation, good swimmers	Not paying attention to details of clues, try to push ahead of others, abrasive, not fastest in foot races, emotional. Dustin is bossy and domineering.
3	Rob and Kimberly	Athletic, fast enough in footraces, good swimmers, good at tasks. Rob is awesome biking.	Arguing, fighting, hot tempered, even hitting each other. Rob loses patience easily, Kimberly fights for control all the time, and is overly sensitive.
2	Karlyn and Lyn	Communication, determination, good navigation and driving	Limited traveling experience, not physical, short in stature, slow at tasks, poor in swimming, rely on others for decisions, Lyn may be slower in footraces. Karlyn can be nasty.

Dustin and Kandice thought they would breeze through the leg, having yielded Alabama, and done so well with the Roadblock. They made a major blunder by missing the farm for the Grind It Detour, dropping them from first to last. In order to avoid the penalty, they must get back to focusing on details. Still, any equalizer, plus a strong finish could easily put them in first. James and Tyler were able to recover from James' poor showing at the Roadblock. Perhaps one chink in their armor is that James must do all remaining Roadblocks. Kimberly and Rob did well enough at tasks to overcome having a flat tire. Rob and Kimberly need to have better luck to jump ahead of the improving single moms, as they still have the better overall task skills, outside of driving. But the preview shows Rob struggling with directions and Kimberly having a meltdown in a tomato throwing event. The small town of Bu�ol in eastern Spain has a tomato-throwing festival on the last Wednesday of August, La Tomatina. It is described as "the world's largest food fight" for good reason. Might the Race come to that town 30 miles outside of Valencia, as the late preview does say Spain?

Google has such wonderful search suggestions! The string "Spain tomato" resulted in one search suggestion: "Spain tomato festival", leading to the site describing La Tomatina in Bu�ol.

Lyn and Karlyn have become more effective, having discovered that they can find their way independently again. Their navigation skills may be the best of the final four teams, helping offset the 30-minute Yield time. If they can continue to keep up the pace on tasks, they can compete in every way except footraces.

The theme of Amazing Race 10 is the promise of twists, turns, and surprises never seen before in the Race, clearly seen in Episodes 1, 3, 5, 8, and 11. What will Episode 12 reveal about the teams and who will be eliminated next? Watch Sunday, December 3 at 8PM Eastern/Pacific or after 60 Minutes, if delayed by NFL football. Also, be sure to catch the FINISH LINE at 1 PM Monday December 4 on the THE AMAZING RACE 10th Edition Web site.