Category: amazing race 15

The Globetrotters made a deal with the brothers, which would be the last deal they made before being eliminated from the race in The Amazing Race 15 Episode 11. That brings us down to the final three: Meghan Rickey and her boyfriend Cheyne Whitney, Dan McMillen and his brother Sam McMillen, and Ericka Dunlap and her husband Brian Kleinschmidt. One of these teams will be The Amazing Race 15 winner.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Meghan & Chenye – 11:10AM
Second: Sam & Dan – 12:08PM
Third: Brian & Ericka – 3:15PM

The final destination city is Las Vegas, Nevada, nearly 6000 miles away. The whole race is going to come down to some tasks in one city. The huge gap Brian & Ericka have allowed is moot (exactly as the producers planned no doubt), as the flight leaves after 6. The gap is so big that the other two teams don’t even know who they’re competing against.

Sam & Dan have a goal: don’t yell at each other. I suspect that’s too much to ask for.

When they land, they will travel to the Graceland Wedding Chapel to get their next clue from the king. To do so, they’ll have to interrupt some couple getting married.

The next stop is Mandalay Bay. Brian & Ericka break away from the pack, as their cab driver believes he’s got a faster way. He is right, and they arrive at the road block first. The road block is a face first rappel off the hotel, 600 feet down.

Road block (in order of arrival): Ericka, Cheyne, Sam

Another hotel is next, The Mirage, where they will join the cast of Cirque du Soleil’s Love. One team member must launch another member in the air using bungee cords to retrieve a bouquet of flowers. All the teams bunch up here, so it comes down to who can finish the task quicker. Meghan & Cheyne complete the task first. Immediately after, Ericka proceeds to yell at Brian. She wants him to do it instead. Let her switch. Or else. Dan grabs it next. This pushes Ericka pretty close to a breakdown, so she agrees to switch back. Whether she’s on the ground or in the air, Ericka continues to slowly lose it. And lose it some more. After much drama, she completes the task.

After that, they must figure out the most famous casino in the country of Monaco, Monte Carlo. Yeah, it’s off to another hotel. Meghan & Cheyne ask a cab driver, who tells them it’s The Venetian. They’re not sure about this answer, so they just drive off hoping to figure it out. Sam & Dan just decide to follow them. On the way there, Sam & Dan call a hotel and get the correct answer. As for Meghan & Cheyne, they continue to get incorrect answers. Luckily for Brian & Ericka, they know the answer to the clue without hesitation, which may get them back into this. Meghan & Cheyne end up driving to The Venetian, where they’re told to go to Monte Carlo.

Upon arrival at the Monte Carlo, their task is to count $1 million in poker chips. This has the potential to be frustrating and time consuming. Brian & Ericka arrive to see only the brothers there. All teams are there just worrying about counting now. If anyone can do it right the first time, it should bode well for them. Sam wants his brother to stop rushing and calm down. Doesn’t look like that’s going to happen. Seeing Brian & Ericka have finished, Dan insists that they just hand over the chips and let the person there start counting. Meghan & Cheyne are also done. So who’s right? Meghan & Cheyne are correct. Sam & Dan, however, are incorrect. Brian & Ericka also are incorrect. On their second attempt, Sam & Dan are correct. Brian & Ericka are incorrect again, though.

Next up is the MGM Grand hotel (are there no other landmarks in Vegas?), where they will be told where the finish line is by Mr. Las Vegas. The finish line is at Wayne Newton’s house.

As much as they try to make it a mystery, it’s pretty obvious that the team that finished the counting task has it in the bag. The Amazing Race 15 winners are Meghan & Cheyne. This was the right team to win, particularly among the three remaining choices, as they ran the best race. The other two teams had more compelling stories but were weighed down by bickering. Sam & Dan finish in second place, with Brian & Ericka coming in third.

The Amazing Race 16, which is filming now, is expected to be making its return in midseason.

The Amazing Race 15 Episode 10 ended in the non-elimination of Brian & Ericka after Sam & Dan stole their cab.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Meghan & Cheyne – 9:46PM
Second: Sam & Dan – 10:13PM
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel – 10:17PM
Fourth: Brian & Ericka – 11:40PM

Teams will make their way across town (really?) to the Spanish Synagogue, and from there they head to the Ekotechnicke Museum. The road block will go forward despite the fact that it’s the middle of the night. The road block is to enter a room filled with telephones and search for the five phones that actually have someone else on the other end. A voice will give them a letter in the first name of Franz Kafka, and when they have all five letters, they must unscramble them to advance.

Before they can do their road block, Brian & Ericka are greeted by a speed bump. Since they’ve got an hour and a half to make up and it appears they’re staying put in town, their only hope seems to be an hours of operation. Their speed bump task is to pay a visit to M1 Lounge, a pub with chicks dancing on the bar, where they must prepare and drink absinthe, known for its high alcohol content.

Road block (in order of arrival): Meghan, Dan, Big Easy, Brian

Meghan seems to figure it out pretty quickly, but Dan and Big Easy end up working together, in a case of the blind leading the blonde. At least they’re supposedly working together. Once Dan gets it, they’re no longer working together. It starts with an “F”. That’s all he’s saying. If you’re gonna play aggressively, at least be smart about it. Don’t just randomly sabotage every team and have them all out to get you. By the time Brian gets there, Big Easy’s still around trying to figure out the puzzle. He’s killed an awful lot of time. As it turns out, Brian gets the word right before he does. Since he’s been there for a few hours and already in last place anyway, Big Easy decides to take the 4 hour penalty. 4 hours and already in last should spell elimination unless there is some sort of travel to create bunching, which would mean Sam & Dan get their wish to eliminate what they perceive to be the biggest competition.

The next stop is Kryocentrum, where they will skip down to skimpy outfits and enter a room kept at 180 degrees below 0 for two minutes.

From there, they will head to the Charles Bridge, which links the old and new sections of the city. The detour is a choice between legend or lager. In legend, teams will build a golem out of clay and transport it across town. In lager, teams must deliver beer to a group of rowdy soccer hooligans. They will carry the beer from the brewery through the busy town square to a bar.

Legend: Meghan & Cheyne, Sam & Dan
Lager: Brian & Ericka

Meghan & Cheyne fight their way to the rabbi since the golem is so heavy, but there’s never any doubt what position they will finish. Sam & Dan break their golem right after they start covering it. Rather than just grabbing a new one, they hope the broken arm will go unnoticed. It’s not long before we hear much screaming to shut up. Can someone slap these guys already? Ericka drops her whole tray and begs Brian to switch to the other task. He asks her to just carry two at a time. She doesn’t want to do that either. She should just be glad she didn’t have to lug that golem around. At least then, they wouldn’t have to deal with the random drunks trying to steal their drinks, though. As for Sam & Dan, for some reason, the rabbi doesn’t care that their golem is broken. When it’s over, Dan admits to being a complete baby during the whole race that task. Early the next morning, Brian & Ericka complete their task after the pub has closed, waking up the guy working there to give him the final glasses. However long it took them, it’s a foregone conclusion what the outcome of this leg will be.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is Strelecky Ostrov. The Trotters are told to go straight there so that Phil can eliminate them.

First: Meghan & Chenye (win 52″ TVs)
Second: Sam & Dan
Third: Brian & Ericka
Eliminated: Herbert & Nathaniel

Coming into this leg, I didn’t see how the heck Brian & Ericka could catch up, but one lengthy detour was enough to save them and eliminate the Globetrotters.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 15 Episode 12 How Sweet the Sound! (Las Vegas), where we will find out who The Amazing Race 15 winner is, which airs Sunday at 8/7cish CBS.

Gary & Matt were unable to recover from their previous non-elimination and ended up being eliminated in The Amazing Race 15 Episode 9.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Meghan & Cheyne – 12:00AM
Second: Sam & Dan – 12:19AM
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel – 12:20AM
Fourth: Brian & Ericka – 12:22AM

Teams will now fly over 700 miles to Prague, Czech Republic, where they will need to go to the old square and locate a man in a Praga, which they must figure out is a vintage Czech convertible. They have $0 for this leg of the race. The first flight is at 5:20AM via Riga, Latvia. Everybody ends up on the same flight.

While they’re waiting at the airport, Meghan & Cheyne look up what a Praga is. Meghan wants to tell people that it’s a hat.

Upon arrival in Prague, most of the teams take cabs, while Brian & Ericka take the bus at the advice of someone on the plane. If this doesn’t work out, they could well be out of the race. Hell of a risk to take. It’s definitely not the fastest way. So the question is how much slower it is. Eventually, after getting stuck in traffic, they just say screw it and grab a cab. By this point, they’re clearly in last.

Sam & Dan are just lucky Meghan & Cheyne knew what a Praga was because they still had no clue. Ironic considering they were just complaining about the Globetrotters being unable to think for themselves.

The next stop is outdoor adventure center Kayaky Troja. The detour is a choice between fast & furious or slow & steady. In fast & furious, teams take a rough ride down the whitewater rafting course used to train professional kayakers. They’ll have to grab a ribbon with their next clue on the way there, without tipping over. In slow & steady, teams have to pull themselves along an aerial ropes course. One task is more physically demanding, while the other task may require multiple attempts. Typically, the physical task proves best for those who can handle it.

Slow: Meghan & Cheyne, Herbert & Nathaniel, Sam & Dan (switched from fast), Brian & Ericka

Sam & Dan, arguing as usual, flip over on their first try. Then their second try. Big Easy’s surprisingly struggling with their detour, but Flight Time completes it first. Because Meghan & Cheyne are complaining that Flight’s slowing them down on purpose, he does just that, realizing that he can just wait for his partner and take his time, preventing them from getting as big a lead as they otherwise would have had. As both the first teams finish the detour, Sam & Dan flip over again. They finally decide to switch. “We’re safe as long as Brian & Ericka aren’t here… damnit, Brian & Ericka are here.” The gap has been decreased to a couple of minutes, but as Ericka struggles with the task, that gap will grow.

With only one cab around, it’s time to get sneaky. Sam & Dan want to steal Brian & Ericka’s taxi. They’ll pay extra if he takes off on Brian & Ericka. Works for him.

Teams must figure out that the words on their clue Stavovske Divadlo refer to the Estates Theater, where they will search for their next clue. Meghan & Cheyne offer to work with the Globetrotters. That lasts until a taxi shows up and Cheyne wants to bail, which leads to an argument between Meghan and Cheyne. The Globetrotters will be taking the train anyway, but they aren’t going to trust Cheyne any time soon. Meghan warns him they’ll hold a grudge and use that fire to motivate them.

The road block is to remain composed under pressure. That should rule out both brothers and the women. The task is to search among the theater’s 600 seats and numerous rooms to find a miniature mandolin. By miniature, they mean the tiny ones taped underneath the seats, not the normal sized ones that everybody keeps grabbing. Once Cheyne’s got it, the two trailing teams should now know what they’re looking for. As Ericka searches, the singer takes a rest and grabs a sandwich.

Road block (in order of arrival): Cheyne, Big Easy, Dan, Ericka

The pit stop for this leg of the race is Prague Castle, the largest ancient castle in the world, built more than 1200 years ago.

First: Meghan & Cheyne (win a trip to Hawaii)
Second: Sam & Dan
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel
Non-eliminated: Brian & Ericka

Brian & Ericka are the last team to arrive, but they have been non-eliminated. As a penalty, they will have to complete a speed bump on the next leg.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 15 Episode 11 “F,” That’s All I’m Saying (Czech Republic), which airs Sunday at 8/7cish CBS.

Following the dumb luck clue in a haystack task in The Amazing Race 15 Episode 8, Gary & Matt came in last but were non-eliminated.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Herbert & Nathaniel – 2:23AM
Second: Meghan & Cheyne – 4:12AM
Third: Brian & Ericka – 4:37AM
Fourth: Sam & Dan – 5:04AM
Fifth: Gary & Matt – 6:29AM

Sam & Dan and Flight Time & Big Easy are looking to get rid of the other team, realizing that the they are each good competition.

Teams will cross the Baltic Sea by ferry to Tallinn, Estonia, where they must figure out how to open a door to a secret lair. The next boat is at 5:45PM. Well, that’s a hell of a lot of time to kill. So much for the Globetrotters’ lead and for Gary & Matt’s 4 hour disadvantage. Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan get into the door first, quickly slamming it shut before Brian & Ericka can arrive. Those two are greeted by the two trailing teams, but Gary & Matt are going to be the ones bringing up the rear after Brian & Ericka and the Globetrotters get through. Before they can proceed with this task, Gary & Matt must first complete their speed bump. They must find a saunabus, strip down, and take a 5 minute sauna with a group of locals.

The lair door leads them to the Brotherhood of the Blackheads. The road block is to join their ranks to uncover a mystery. They will descend into the cellar and find a candelabra with a room number attached. They must locate that room, where they will be given what appears to be a blank scroll (until they hold it over the lighted candle).

Road block (in order of arrival): Sam, Cheyne, Ericka, Flight Time, Matt

Flight Time is the first person to find his scroll, but he starts scribbling on it as if it’s going to uncover something. Cheyne, however, realizes that all they have is the candle, so he uses that. The other two also figure it out right away. It takes a while, but Flight Time eventually figures out what needs to be done. As for Matt, the first trick is to figure out what the heck a candelabra is. “Are you a candelabra?” Once he cracks the code and gets into the room, he also believes that you have to use the crayon to see the message.

The clue takes them to Pikk Hermann Tower Garden, where they find a detour. Well, they find it once they get the clue anyway. Gary & Matt run around and want to climb the tower, rather than just going to the clue box right out front.

The detour will take place in wetlands called bogs and is a choice between serve or sling. In serve, teams will play a game of volleyball submerged in the mud until they score 5 points against a local team. In sling, teams plant themselves in the mud and fire assorted vegetables at a moose target with slingshots. If they wish, they can strip down to their underwear on either detour.

The first two teams hail a cab. It looks as if Brian is closest to it, but he lets Meghan & Cheyne have it, telling the cab driver to call another taxi. Once they have that taxi, rather than being grateful for Brian letting them in, Meghan sabotages him, telling the cab driver to not call for assistance. There’s a fine line between smart gameplay and making enemies for no reason, and she’s flirting with that line. Ultimately, it proves to be a moot point because they find another taxi anyway, but Ericka wants to keep Brian in check so that he’s not giving stuff away.

The next two teams run into a cab problem as well. Sam & Dan try to sweet talk their way into a cab with a fare already in it, but the guy says he can’t walk, so they ask the driver to call for another one. After they tell the Globetrotters to go find their own way, they do. They see another cab approaching and run toward it. In Sam’s & Dan’s minds, this cab is the one the other driver just called for. They agree to get into the cab together, where Sam & Dan whine about how the Trotters are not doing anything for themselves. If they’re that unthreatening, why are Sam & Dan so obsessively threatened by them?

Ultimately, I’m wondering about this whole sharing a cab thing. Say one team finishes first and the detour’s an out of the way place. They may decide to leave the other team behind, which could completely screw them over.

Serve: Meghan & Cheyne, Herbert & Nathaniel, Sam & Dan
Sling: Brian & Ericka (switched from serve because only two teams can go at a time), Gary & Matt

Thanks to Brian letting them have the cab, Meghan & Cheyne arrive first and complete their detour after a tiresome romp through the mud. While they’re finishing, the three trailing teams go off on a wild goose hunt, looking for a marked path. That would be a path with markings, not just something that looks like it may be a path. After they find the path, Brian & Ericka lose the foot race, so they’re forced to do the slingshot detour.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is Keava Raba Overlook Tower, which they will run to as they trudge further through the bog.

In the showdown between the two remaining all male teams that can only heat up from here, Flight Time & Big Easy finish the detour first but go the wrong way. Sam & Dan go the right way, and as Flight Time slips in the bog, they win the foot race. At the mat, it’s looking like they may have to throw down. Dan says Flight Time tried to push him. Flight says he was elbowed, which appears to be what Phil saw as well.

First: Meghan & Cheyne (win red cedar saunas)
Second: Sam & Dan
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel
Fourth: Brian & Ericka
Eliminated: Gary & Matt

In the thoroughly anticlimactic conclusion, Gary & Matt have been eliminated from the race.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 15 Episode 10 We’re Not Working with Anybody, Ever, Anymore! (Czech Republic), which airs Sunday at 8/7cish CBS.

Unable to find the strength to complete either detour in The Amazing Race 15 Episode 7, the last remaining female team in the race, Maria & Tiffany, were eliminated.

The football overrun has as usual caused a delay, this time of about 20 minutes. A live blog will begin when 60 Minutes is over.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Sam & Dan – 9:33PM
Second: Meghan & Cheyne – 9:48PM
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel – 10:32PM
Fourth: Gary & Matt – 11:08PM
Fifth: Brian & Ericka – 1:38AM

Dan continues to be the angry younger brother. Cheyne believes that the race has some indication of how they would do in a marriage. The Globetrotters are there to have fun. Gary wants to prove he can still do it at his age. Brian & Ericka want to prove through the race that they are a good team… I’m not completely buying it.

Teams will fly 700 miles to Stockholm, Sweden, where they will travel by train and ferry to the Tivoli Grona Lund amusement park. Considering what time it is, there should be some bunching. The first flight is at 6:55AM. It would seem that everybody should get the same flight, but Gary & Matt are told the first flight is fully booked. It’s a two team race for last.

First flight (6:55AM): Sam & Dan, Meghan & Cheyne, Herbert & Nathaniel
Second flight (9:25AM): Gary & Matt, Brian & Ericka

Meghan & Cheyne and Sam & Dan start off in the lead, leaving the Trotters behind trying to figure out how to get tickets for the train. They retain this lead as they get to the ferry as well.

When they arrive at the amusement park, one person from each team must ride a ride that plunges 24 stories in less than 3 seconds. Imagine if Mika had to do this. Being that he’s over 6’4″, Big Easy will have to skip this task. While on it, they must spot an arrow with the direction of their next clue. The first two teams work together to keep their lead intact.

As the other teams are at the amusement park, we see the teams bringing up the rear land. As with before, one team does not make the train, which puts Gary & Matt in dead last.

The next task is a game of Travelocity roaming gnome ring toss. Then, the detour is a choice between Nobel dynamite or Viking alphabet. In Nobel dynamite, teams will fill sandbags to create a protective bunker, then set off an explosion to find a box. In Viking alphabet, teams must decode a message using the ancient Viking alphabet.

The other two teams get lost on the way to the detour, allowing the Globetrotters to erase their lead.

All five teams choose the dynamite detour, which seems to be the most logical choice. What it does is give the all male teams an advantage, though, while Cheyne gets stuck listening to Meghan complain. And after the detour is over, he still has to listen to her dwelling on it.

From there, teams will drive themselves to Bogs Gard Farm, home to one of the most infamous challenges in Amazing Race history. Time to find a clue in a haystack. Lena & Kristy were eliminated after Lena spent nearly ten hours on this task back in season 6. In a switchback, that task is coming back. Dan knows his history and warns his brother this task sucks. Regardless of what the standings may be, this task makes it still anybody’s game. Considering some of the whining we’ve heard from these teams thus far, it could very well push some of them to break.

Road block (in order of arrival): Sam, Meghan, Big Easy, Brian, Gary

Sam decides to do it without really thinking, and Dan is immediately regretting it. Dan keeps yelling and trying to help his brother, but Sam wants no part of Dan. Meghan forces her way into this task because her and her partner are not working very well together, which could well be a decision that leads to a nervous breakdown. This is the worst thing she’s ever done in her entire life. Speaking of breakdowns, Sam calls his brother a moron and flips him off, refusing to listen to any advice he’s trying to give. Big Easy, meanwhile, just searches and keeps a calm head. And he finishes first, giving his partner a happy birthday present.

It comes as no surprise that eventually the trailing two teams catch up. Last person to find the clue loses. By this point, Meghan’s crying, and Sam is ready to kill his brother. All things considered, it may be worth employing strategy. Quit the road block and take the penalty. It’s a risk, but it beats digging through hay all day. After finding the clue, Sam & Dan decide they’re not going to be quite as mean to each other any more. Ironically, Dan’s advice turns out to be true: the clue Sam finds comes when he’s just rolling out the hay and not digging through it.

The farm is also the pit stop for this leg of the race.

First: Herbert & Nathaniel (win a trip to Turks and Caicos)
Second: Meghan & Cheyne
Third: Brian & Ericka
Fourth: Sam & Dan
Non-eliminated: Gary & Matt

They finished last on this dumb luck task, but Gary & Matt are still in the race. In the next leg, they will face a speed bump.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 15 Episode 9 You’re Not Meant for the Swamp (Estonia), which airs Sunday at 8/7cish CBS.

Well, The Amazing Race 15 Episode 6 sure didn’t lack for drama. Mika refused to go down a waterslide of all things, throwing away the shot at $1 million in the process. Some people blame her for her inability to even try to overcome her fears, while some say that Canaan should have been more understanding with her. Whatever the case, the end result is the same: Mika & Canaan were eliminated from the race. Good riddance. There’s no room in the race for people who absolutely refuse to participate.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Meghan & Cheyne – 1:13PM
Second: Maria & Tiffany – 3:09PM
Third: Sam & Dan – 3:10PM
Fourth: Brian & Ericka – 3:25PM
Fifth: Gary & Matt – 3:34PM
Sixth: Herbert & Nathaniel – 4:20PM

Ericka realizes she yells a lot.

Having pretended they’re straight the whole time, Sam & Dan have an announcement to make to the rest of the teams: they’re gay. A lot of people don’t know this about them already. There’s about 10 million people watching this episode, though, so they know now. Maria & Tiffany plan to stick with them regardless of not having any dating prospects with them.

The next destination is Amsterdam, The Netherlands, more than 3000 miles away. The earliest flight leaves at midnight, which should result in some bunching. Good. Meghan & Cheyne were given too much of an advantage by that fast forward, and it shouldn’t have held for any longer.

Upon arrival, the first trick for Brian is to figure out how to put the car in drive. They eventually figure it out with the help of someone in the parking lot, but not before both he and Ericka are screaming at each other. Ericka warns him that he knows she has a short fuse.

Road block (in order of arrival): Meghan, Sam, Flight Time, Matt, Tiffany, Ericka

They will drive to Matrinitoren, the highest building in Gronigen. The road block is to climb the structure and count the bells. Counting tasks can try people’s patience. Meghan and Sam agree to work together. Ericka’s realizing she’s out of her comfort zone pretty quickly. To add to the difficulty level of the task, the bells start playing while they’re in there. Matt is right on his first try. Sam and Meghan are also correct. When he’s running down the stairs, Sam gives the number to Tiffany, saving her from actually having to count. Flight Time is also correct. Ericka, however, is way off, coming up with 43 instead of the correct 62. Then she guesses 56. Closer. 57. Well, she’ll get there eventually at this pace. After crying and taking a break for a while, she gets the correct answer.

From there, teams will drive to Vierhuizen de Marne, where they will find their next clue at a windmill. The detour is a choice between farmer’s game or farmer’s dance. In both detours, teams will dress up in traditional Dutch costumes and ride bicycles. In Farmer’s game, teams must find a creek, strip down to their underwear, and swim across. Then, they will play three holes of farmer’s golf. In farmer’s dance, teams will first have to hit the high striker, then they will perform a Dutch folk dance, and eat the salted herring and onions. For the all male teams, this means one of the guys has to be the girl. Maria, meanwhile, has to be the guy.

Farmer’s Game: Meghan & Cheyne, Sam & Dan, Gary & Matt (switched from dance after Matt read they have to eat herring), Maria & Tiffany (switched from dance to game back to dance back to game)
Farmer’s Dance: Flight Time & Big Easy, Brian & Ericka

Sam & Dan have no trouble. Meghan hates golf and will keep repeating it as long as the task progresses. Maria & Tiffany fail to realize that the high striker is probably not intended for women, while Matt doesn’t read the entire clue to realize he doesn’t like fish. Brian & Ericka also have some clue reading trouble: they’re supposed to be riding bikes. The Globetrotters, who have dance routines in their games, have no trouble with their task, and then they down the fish in about two seconds. Eventually, Maria & Tiffany realize they can’t do the golf either, so they switch back. After about 50 tries on the striker, they both start crying. Tiffany’s coming pretty close, but Maria is only bothering because they have to rotate. After walking and killing their feet, Brian & Ericka have finally read their clue. They’re supposed to be riding bikes. Somehow, this is all Brian’s fault. Back to Maria & Tiffany. After about 70 tries, they decide to switch back again. Then we see Brian & Ericka finally have figured out what they’re supposed to be doing, and they get through the dancing pretty easily. Maria & Tiffany are now at their 16th attempt in golf. I give them credit for not giving up. Because Brian & Ericka failed to ride a bicycle to the detour (and then borrowed someone’s bikes to get to the pit stop), they have incurred a 30 minute penalty. Brian wants to just stay calm, while Ericka has another breakdown. It does not end up mattering because the girls are still back at the golf challenge.

As the girls are discussing how hopeless things seem, Phil marches his way out on to the course. That’s bad news.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is Zoutkamp Harbor, which teams will have to ride their bicycles to get to.

First: Sam & Dan (win sand buggies)
Second: Meghan & Cheyne
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel
Fourth: Gary & Matt
Fifth: Brian & Ericka
Eliminated: Maria & Tiffany

Having reached a challenge they are unable to complete, Maria & Tiffany have been eliminated from the race. Unlike Mika last week, where she just quit without even trying, at least they made a strong effort at getting this done, but were just physically incapable of doing so.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 15 Episode 8 I’ve Ever Done in my Life (Sweden), which airs Sunday at 8/7cish CBS.

With their elimination in The Amazing Race 15 Episode 5, Lance & Keri became another unsurprising team to be sent home. Tonight’s episode will be starting on time. That’s new.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Meghan & Cheyne – 8:17AM
Second: Brian & Ericka – 9:59AM
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel – 10:42AM
Fourth: Gary & Matt – 10:45AM
Fifth: Sam & Dan – 11:34AM
Sixth: Maria & Tiffany – 11:47AM
Seventh: Mika & Canaan – 11:54AM

Meghan has never been this stressed out before. Ericka puts on fresh makeup and does her hair. It’ll all be messed up by the end of the day, but you’ve gotta try. Big Easy just keeps saying the word hot over and over. Gary & Matt are getting along fine, although this is the longest they’ve ever spent together. Matt made sure to bring some hair dye because he wouldn’t want to look normal for any length of time. Maria & Tiffany mostly just want to get the hell out of Dubai. Mika’s never done much of anything, so she depends on Canaan to push her along.

After choosing a briefcase, teams will travel by taxi to Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club. When they arrive, Cheyne’s prayers of getting in the water are answered, as the road block is to row an inflatable dingy to a yacht. Then, they must return to the dock with the watch they’re given and open their briefcase, using the time on the watch as the combination. Ericka doesn’t do water, but it doesn’t look like Brian does either. He eventually figures it out but does end up with a rowing injury and bleeding hands. Gary rows lying on his stomach with one oar, while Big Easy just paddles with his arms. Seeing this effective strategy, Dan just uses his arms, too. As everybody figures out the watch clue on the first try, Big Easy is stumped, putting his team in last.

Road block (in order of arrival): Cheyne, Brian, Gary, Big Easy, Dan, Tiffany, Canaan

From there, teams will head to the Abra Station, a water taxi port. The detour is a choice between gold or glass. In gold, teams must weigh out exactly $500,000 worth of gold. To do this, they must divide $500,000 by the constantly changing gold exchange rate shown on the monitor. In glass, they will assemble 12 hookahs. Both of these detours are unappealing. Glass requires a lot of attention to detail, while gold requires the ability to do math without a calculator or Excel. For anyone who can do longhand division, gold is the easiest, but for the other 99% of the population, suffering through the hookahs is probably easier. As luck would have it, Sam & Dan were smart enough to bring a calculator with them, but they’re completely clueless on the calculations, so Maria & Tiffany come by, borrow their calculator, and tell them how to do it. This effectively bails both teams out and puts them in a good position. Realizing quickly that long division is futile, Big Easy goes next door and asks to borrow a calculator.

Glass: Meghan & Cheyne, Brian & Ericka (switched from gold), Gary & Matt, Mika & Canaan
Gold: Sam & Dan, Maria & Tiffany, Herbert & Nathaniel (switched from glass)

The next stop is Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai resort and the leap of faith, a 6 story waterslide at a nearly 90 degree angle through a shark tank. All the teams are somewhat afraid, but they’ve got nothing on Mika, who was crying earlier in the race because she thought she might have to do something involving heights. At least she’s got her floaties with her. Canaan’s trying to be patient with her, but she seems willing to throw away the race over this. This leads to praying to God, saying she hates her life, nonstop crying, and repeated saying of the words “I can’t.” When the Globetrotters show up, she’s got a choice. Get over herself, or come in last. She has two minutes to decide. Once they’re in last, it may well be moot. In the end, Mika decides to quit. It’s very rare that somebody quits something in this race. I didn’t think I would see it on something this simple.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is Dolphin Bay Beach. Meghan & Cheyne’s lead from the fast forward is still holding up (surely whoever planned the race should have seen this unfair advantage coming), but there are four teams at the detour at the same time bringing up the rear.

First: Meghan & Cheyne (win personal watercrafts)
Second: Maria & Tiffany
Third: Sam & Dan
Fourth: Brian & Ericka
Fifth: Gary & Matt
Sixth: Herbert & Nathaniel
Eliminated: Mika & Canaan

Mika & Canaan have been eliminated from the race. This is another team that needed to be eliminated. Mika was so crippled by her fear on more than one occasion that it makes me question why she decided to come on the show in the first place.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 15 Episode 7 This Is Not My Finest Hour (The Netherlands), which airs Sunday at 8/7cish CBS.

Having lost their passports in The Amazing Race 15 Episode 4, Zev & Justin ended up being eliminated after they lost a passport at the road block.

First the Patriots 59-0 embarrassment of Tennessee in the snow (yeah, it’s snowing already here in New England) went over by 20 minutes, then we jumped into a tied Bills/Jets game with 4 minutes still left in it (and that game then went into overtime). A live blog will begin 60 Minutes after the NFL runs out of steam, which has turned out to be a full hour and 15 minutes after the originally scheduled start time.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Sam & Dan – 12:25PM
Second: Herbert & Nathaniel – 12:27PM
Third: Brian & Ericka – 12:30PM
Fourth: Gary & Matt – 12:35PM
Fifth: Meghan & Cheyne – 12:37PM
Sixth: Lance & Keri – 12:47PM
Seventh: Mika & Canaan – 12:49PM
Eighth: Maria & Tiffany – 12:55PM

Teams will fly to the world’s tallest building in the Persian Gulf, which they must figure out is the Burj Dubai, a still under construction building that’s nearly twice the height of the Empire State Building. Their next clue awaits them on the 124th floor.

Ericka immediately knows where the building is located. The others will do some research before heading to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Sam & Dan go and ask to book tickets to the Persian Gulf… yeah, you might need to narrow that down a bit.

Everybody gets the same flight via Bangkok, including the stragglers Lance & Keri, who stay behind trying to book online at Lance’s insistence that they have to book there. When they land, they are given a first come, first served sign up in one of two groups. On the way, Canaan’s showing the first signs of ugly American as he calls his cab driver an idiot.

5:30AM – Maria & Tiffany, Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan, Meghan & Cheyne
5:45AM – Mika & Canaan, Lance & Keri, Flight Time & Big Easy, Gary & Matt

Before they even get anywhere, Mika’s already crying as she’s still standing on the ground just anticipating what’s to come. So what is to come? They must make their way from there to the parking structure. Really? No jumping? No climbing? From there, they will head to the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve.

The only fast forward in the race is located at the Dubai Autodrome, the only race track of its type in the Persian Gulf. One team member will have to complete a lap in 45 seconds or less. Meghan & Cheyne want to do it. Nobody else is even considering it, knowing that it’s a huge risk for more than one team to go. Anybody in the second group, being 15 minutes behind, really doesn’t have the option.

As simple as the task of finding cars in a parking lot sounds, Lance & Keri somehow get lost, which puts them in dead last, hoping somebody else screws up. Not helping their cause, Lance refuses to ask for directions, and he refuses to let Keri ask either. If he’s going to race like that, he should be eliminated and let somebody else who knows how to play the game do so.

The ride through the desert is done by professional drivers in 4X4’s, which means no having to get stuck in the sand and dig themselves out.

The road block is to find water that has been stored in urns and buried in the sand. Good luck with that. To make things more complicated in this 120 degree heat, most of the urns are empty.

Road block (in order of arrival): Brian, Tiffany, Dan, Matt, Big Easy, Canaan, Lance

Brian’s belief is that if he helps people, they will help him in return. With that said, he tells Tiffany and Dan where the water is. Tiffany in turn lets Dan use her ladle when his breaks. Matt & Gary have managed to catch up to the first group.

The fast forward turns out to be a simple task that Cheyne completes in the first try. Cheyne enjoys the ride, while Meghan cries on the sidelines. Meghan & Chenyne will skip directly to the pit stop for this leg of the race, the amphitheater at the Souk Madinat Jumeirah.

From the desert, teams will head to Ski Dubai, a huge indoor ski resort that should be a stark contrast to their current sweating. With Mika & Canaan unsure where to go, Brian decides to be the nice guy again, telling them where the road block is. Before Maria & Tiffany can be on their way, the loss of a professional driver seems to be showing its head already, as they back over something and break the radiator. Sam & Dan decide to wait and make sure they’re okay.

The detour is a choice between build a snowman or find a snowman. In build a snowman, teams must carry snow from the winter conditions indoors to the blistering heat outdoors, where they must build a snowman before it melts. In find a snowman, teams take a chairlift to the top and sled back down to the bottom, where they must dig through the snow to find a miniature snowman. As everybody starts choosing the same task, it’s becoming apparent that it’s down to a matter of dumb luck, although the good news for the other teams is that Lance & Keri are so far behind them (and getting further) that there should be no threat of anybody else coming in last.

Find a snowman: Brian & Ericka, Flight Time & Big Easy
Build a snowman: Tiffany & Maria (switched from find), Matt & Gary (switched from find), Sam & Dan (finally switched from find after Dan begged repeatedly), Mika & Canaan, Lance & Keri

First: Meghan & Cheyne (win a trip to Jamaica)
Second: Brian & Ericka
Third: Herbert & Nathaniel
Fourth: Gary & Matt
Fifth: Sam & Dan
Sixth: Maria & Tiffany
Seventh: Mika & Canaan
Eliminated: Lance & Keri

Lance & Keri have been eliminated from the race, which is as it should be. They drove around in circles rather than attempt to ask for help.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 15 Episode 6 Do It for the Hood! Do It for the Suburbs! (Dubai), which airs Sunday at 8/7cish CBS.