Amazing Race Tidbits -- Thoughts and Outlook

Amazing Race Tidbits

CBS' The Amazing Race 12th Edition

Thoughts on Episode 8 and Outlook for Episode 9

Thoughts on Episode Eight

Airport Shuffle, But No Gain for Goths

Kynt and Vyxsin snagged best flight out of Florence to Mumbai, set to arrive 10:30 PM, ahead of the later departing teams. Thanks in part to a ruse by the Goths, TK and Rachel are stuck with the last flight, set to arrive about 1AM. The plane carrying the lead group of Ronald and Christina, Nicolas and Donald, and Jen and Nathan is delayed at Paris, due to heavy ground traffic at Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Paris. Thus, the worried Goths landed in first place. Teams had to make their way by auto rickshaw from the airport in Mumbai to a newsstand. But Kynt and Vyxsin's "performance art" was for naught as the M.R. Naik newsstand in Mumbai opened at 6AM, allowing all other teams to catch up. They all had to find a black and white advertisement directing them to find Chauhan Tailors on Saint Joseph Church Road.

Speed Bump

Kynt and Vyxsin had to go from Chauhan Tailors to a beach near Mumbai where they had to learn and perform a series of difficult Yoga positions. They had to satisfy the Yoga master to receive their award, which the Goths did easily, and returned to the tailor shop.

Detour

Paste 'Em: Teams had to paste a 6-panel Bollywood poster in the marked underpass of the Dardar West Bridge, using the supplies provided. The rub was that the posters were large and hard to handle and to get in the proper alignment. If they were not straight enough, they might have to take down all the panels and start over. Start too high or paste onto concrete and the panels would not stick.

Thread 'Em: Teams had to find a marked flower stall at the Dardar Flower Market. There, they had to construct a 108-flower wedding garland in an alternating three-color pattern of orange, yellow, red from the flowers and materials provided. If they satisfied the judge, they had to follow the festive wedding music to find the waiting bride and groom and exchange the completed garland for their next clue.

Episode Eight Detour
Members	Detour	Result
Kynt and Vyxsin	Thread 'Em	Like Rachel, Vyxsin was natural at threading the flowers, allowing them to catch up to the foundering Jen and Nathan.
Jennifer and Nathan	Thread 'Em	They bickered the Goths back into contention. The sniping was incredible, leaving an opening for Kynt and Vyxsin to catch up. Very slow! Would the tall and long-armed Nate have done better with hanging the poster?
Ronald and Christina	Paste 'Em	Ron had horrible time with everything he did, partly because he tried to hang the poster too high. When Christina took charge, things began to run smoothly. They seemed to lose a lot of time with the do overs.
Nicolas and Donald	Paste 'Em	Donald worked in a printing business that did large posters, so he was familiar with the materials for the task. He suggested wisely to hang the poster just high enough, but not so high it would be hard to paste up. Nicolas was smooth with the glue. They finished about same time as Rachel and TK.
Rachel and TK	Thread 'Em	Calm and steady approach. Rachel works in a flower shop, and had 4 years experience in the flower business, so she was a natural to thread the flowers, with TK lining them up in alternating order for her. Rachel said, "I know how to do it that will make it fast." They finished about the same time as Nicolas and Donald.

Route Info

Teams had to go to Kubatar Khana traffic circle to get next clue. There, they find a U-Turn. Kynt strangely chose to U-Turn Nicolas and Donald, instead of Jen and Nathan, who were breathing down their necks in a desperate race to avoid last place. Vyxsin kept trying to get Kynt to go for Jen and Nate, but in the desperation of the moment, Kynt persisted in choosing Nicolas and Donald. It was a huge mistake for Kynt and Vyxsin, as Nicolas and Donald had long since passed by.

Roadblock

From the website: One team member had to load a bicycle cart with six tanks of propane gas, pedal to the two addresses listed on their order slips, deliver three tanks to each address and then take a receipt from the homeowner's door as proof of delivery, while keeping their order slips. Once their deliveries were complete, they had to hand the foreman their two order slips and two receipts to receive their next clue.

The trick was to hang onto the order slips, not exchanging them for the receipts as one might expect, and to be sure to get the receipts, of course.

Episode Eight Roadblock
Team	Team Member	Result
Kynt and Vyxsin	Kynt	Started just as Jen was starting. In the rush to beat Jen, they failed to read the clue carefully enough. As a result, Kynt had to go back and retrieve both his order slips, causing them to be eliminated. Kynt also had trouble with the bike, not finding the brake pedal until someone pointed it out to him.
Jennifer and Nathan	Jen	Made mistakes that could have allowed Kynt to pass her. Had mistake not getting the receipt at one address, but caught it at the second address. Jen was a bit lucky there. Finished ahead of Kynt. This task had Nathan written all over it as he could have matched TK in carrying three tanks at a time up stairs.
Ronald and Christina	Ron	OK. Ron had trouble riding the bike with all the tanks, calling it a hernia buster! OK with addresses and receipts.
Nicolas and Donald	Nicolas	Had trouble with addresses. Carried just one tank up stairs at a time. OK with receipts.
Rachel and TK	TK	Good all the way, even gaining ground on Nicolas and Donald. He carried 3 tanks at a time up stairs! OK with receipts.

Pit Stop

Teams were directed to drive fourteen miles outside Mumbai to the suburb of Bandra to the 16th-century Bandra Fort, built by the Portuguese to defend seaward approaches to the city.

Episode Eight Order of Finish
Members	Team
Kynt and Vyxsin	5
Jennifer and Nathan	4
Ronald and Christina	3
Nicolas and Donald	2
TK and Rachel	1

Nicolas got sick on the way and made the taxi stop for a minute, just long enough for Rachel and TK to pass Nick and Don to collect the prize for finishing first. Nate and Jen were seen going up and down a street looking for a taxi, but eventually get one in time to hold lead over Kynt and Vyxsin. In spite of the suspense-building editing showing Kynt and Vyxsin making great progress to the Pit Stop and the Bickersons getting stuck in traffic everywhere, Jen and Nathan may have made it minutes ahead of Kynt and Vyxsin to the Pit Stop.

Outlook for Episode Nine

This leg is likely a non-elimination, as Episode 7 was announced as the first of two non-elimination legs, with now just one team to be eliminated prior to the final. The other possibility is the dreaded To Be Continued with Phil telling the racers to keep racing. They are headed to Japan, where the language and the culture could be a barrier, as it was for the third place Ray and Yolanda in Race 9. With four teams left, it comes down to team strengths and weaknesses. Nick and Don had a bit of role reversal in Episode Eight, as Nick was sick, costing them first place. Donald is seen always with the right wisdom for the situation, and runs just well enough. Ron reverted to old habits, but did not complain much of his hernia. TK and Rachel had a lot better time in Episode Eight, resulting in a first place finish, as they got back to the form that has had them near the front at times. Will they be able to keep that concentration or drop into the brain maul that nearly derailed them in the Episode 7. Nate and Jen argued and fought their way to finishing on the bubble in fourth place, just ahead of Kynt and Vyxsin. It could be anybody's Race!

What will Episode 9 reveal about the racers as they travel to Japan? Watch Sunday, January 6 at 8PM Eastern/Pacific, or after 60 Minutes, if delayed by NFL football.