Category: amazing race 21

Having bad luck with cab drivers, Caitlin & Brittany were eliminated in The Amazing Race 21 Episode 3, then they proceeded to whine that far worse teams like Gary & Will managed to beat them.

Despite the built-in half hour delay, this week’s episode is still delayed by half an hour.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Abbie & Ryan – 9:52PM
Second: Trey & Lexi – 9:54PM
Third: Jaymes & James
Fourth: James & Abba
Fifth: Josh & Brent
Sixth: Natalie & Nadiya
Seventh: Rob & Kelley
Eighth: Gary & Will

Teams will now fly north more than 2600 miles to Dhaka, Bangladesh. The earliest flight is 10:00 the next morning, equalizing all teams.

Gary & Will correctly suspect that Rob & Kelley are the ones who needlessly U-turned them last week.

The road block requires them to repair buses with putty, do some sanding, and remove the seats.

Road block (in order of arrival): Ryan, Natalie, James, Rob, Josh, Trey, Gary

The fast forward involves collecting a bag of rats. The first four teams decline, but James & Abba decide to do it. They start off by going to a restaurant for their first bundle of rats. Reassuring.

Having ruined his clue, Ryan makes an alliance with Jaymes & James so that he can see theirs.

Nadiya’s mouth is quickly getting on everybody’s nerves. She keeps shouting and won’t shut the hell up.

Their next task is to fight the crowds in a market and search through a bag of dried fish for one with race colors.

The detour is a choice between pound the metal or pound the cotton. In pound the metal, teams use sledge hammers to beat iron rods into tools. In pound the cotton, teams make a cotton mattress.

Pound the cotton: Abbie & Ryan, Josh & Brent, Jaymes & James, Gary & Will
Pound the metal: Natalie & Nadiya, Rob & Kelley, Trey & Lexi

It seems that the iron task is the quicker of the two, particularly for teams such as Jaymes & James that are not seamstresses.

As per usual, the editors are going out of their way to stuff this task with as many double entendres as possible. I presume somebody appreciates them going for the cheap laugh.

Meanwhile, back at the road block, there are a couple of stragglers bringing up the rear. Trey & Lexi are in seventh place, but their cab breaks down. Once again, the team that’s been in last place this entire race, Gary & Will, catch a lucky break and pull out of last for a little bit anyway.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is Shambazar Chan Mia Ghat.

Because they took the boat directly to the pit stop rather than to the location specified, Rob & Kelley are rejected when they arrive in fourth. Trey & Lexi make a similar mistake, taking a cab there instead of a boat. Gary & Will do the same.

First: James & Abba (win a trip to Antigua)
Second: Abbie & Ryan
Third: Natalie & Nadiya
Fourth: Josh & Brent
Fifth: Rob & Kelley
Sixth: Jaymes & James
Seventh: Trey & Lexi
Eliminated: Gary & Will

Gary & Will have finally been eliminated. Perhaps now they will stop snapping at each other.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 21 Episode 5, which airs Sunday at 8/7c on CBS.

Victims of a bad cab driver, Amy & Daniel were eliminated in The Amazing Race 21 Episode 2. Good thing they handed away first place the week before, or that $2 million twist would be over already.

I thought this show might possibly start on time from now on with the 30 minute delays every other week. Guess not.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Natalie & Nadiya – 6:07AM
Second: Trey & Lexi – 6:12AM
Third: Jaymes & James – 6:16AM
Fourth: Abbie & Ryan – 6:19AM
Fifth: Josh & Brent – 6:26AM
Sixth: James & Abba – 6:34AM
Seventh: Caitlin & Brittany – 7:08AM
Eighth: Rob & Kelley – 7:22AM
Ninth: Gary & Will – 7:32AM

The road block requires teams to serve 20 plates of food all at once. If they drop or break anything, they’ll have to start all over, though they are allowed to spill stuff. Haven’t they ever heard of trays?

Road block (in order of arrival): Lexi, Brent, Ryan, Jaymes, James, Nadiya, Brittany, Rob, Gary

Some teams get it on their first try, but those who don’t seem to get it fairly quickly after smashing some dishes.

The first 5 teams catch the first train to Bangil at 7:36AM. Natalie & Nadiya, whose cab driver got lost, are the only team that departed earliest who were unable to do so. The remaining teams are way behind, as the next train does not leave until 10:50.

Because they’re in front of the others and using the U-turn would be a complete waste, the front teams agree not to use it, except for James & Abba, who are running their own race and by themselves on the back of the train.

The detour is a choice between lion’s head or egg head. In egg head, they will cook eggs on a coconut on fire on their head. In lion’s head, they will join a traditional Japanese procession wearing giant lion’s masks.

Lion’s head: Jaymes & James, Abbie & Ryan, Trey & Lexi, James & Abba, Natalie & Nadiya, Rob & Kelley, Gary & Will, Caitlin & Brittany
Egg head: Josh & Brent

The market with the eggs is more difficult to find, but the masks for the other task weigh over 40 pounds. As uncomfortable as the lion’s head task is, the females are able to struggle through it in fairly short order, an indication it’s the better task.

The double U-turn is anonymous. As expected, the top five teams do not waste it. It will be a race for the trailing teams and a large determining factor in who gets eliminated. Since all of them have chosen the same detour, it comes down to who can get there first and then finish it faster.

As the first team among the stragglers, Natalie & Nadiya opt not to use it. Despite having a fairly good lead over the eighth and ninth place teams, Rob & Kelley U-turn Gary & Will because they are the only ones they know for sure are behind them, having taken so long to get to the detour. Caitlin & Brittany continue to struggle with their drivers. First they lost 15 minutes trying to pay one of them, then the next one took them in a circle. Luckily for them, Gary & Will made the wrong choice, U-turning Rob & Kelley.

And here I was thinking they were just trying to fake us out with less than clever editing, but despite the U-turn these two teams actually are neck and neck. On the ride to the pit stop, Caitlin & Brittany pass Gary & Will. Though their driver is faster, he’s not better. As the two teams go different routes in a fork in the road, Gary & Will sneak into eighth place.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is SMA Negeri 1 Bangil School.

First: Abbie & Ryan (win a trip to Fiji)
Second: Trey & Lexi
Third: Jaymes & James
Fourth: James & Abba
Fifth: Josh & Brent
Sixth: Natalie & Nadiya
Seventh: Rob & Kelley
Eighth: Gary & Will
Eliminated: Caitlin & Brittany

As the last team to arrive, Caitlin & Brittany have been eliminated.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 21 Episode 4, which airs Sunday at 8/7c on CBS.

After losing a footrace to the pit stop, Rob & Sheila were eliminated in The Amazing Race 21 Episode 1.

Teams depart in the order in which they arrived.

First: Abbie & Ryan – 5:35AM
Second: Amy & Daniel – 5:36AM
Third: Caitlin & Brittany – 5:41AM
Fourth: Natalie & Nadiya – 6:05AM
Fifth: Rob & Kelley – 6:08AM
And so on.

Because it was not awarded last week, the express pass is now up for grabs this week.

Teams will now fly across the South China Sea to Surabaya, Indonesia. Everybody is on the same flight, so they assume. They later find out that Rob & Kelley, who are running their own race and don’t want to talk to anyone, are the only team not on the same flight. According to the agent, the flight they have taken via Hong Kong has a 4 hour delay, so this seems to be a fatal mistake. Meanwhile, out in front because they caught a better connecting flight during their layover are James & Abba.

In the end, this doesn’t make a lot of difference except for the order of arrival. Everybody has to grab a number and wait for morning.

Lexi & Trey and Natalie & Nadiya have formed an alliance.

The next morning they are welcomed to a bull race. It’s bulls against motorcycles, but it doesn’t matter who wins because they get the clue regardless.

The road block requires them to operate a pedal-powered amusement ride while making eight pieces of balloon art. The order of arrival from the night before is determining the order of arrival at the road block, but all teams are essentially bunched together.

Road block (in order of arrival): James, Amy, Abbie, Jaymes, Lexi, Nadiya, Josh, Caitlin, Will, Rob

This challenge proves to be the most problematic for Will. By the time all others have finished, he’s still managed to make 0 balloons.

The detour requires them to go to work Indonesian style. It is a choice between ice by the pound or fish by the barrel. In ice by the pound, they will deliver ten 65 pound blocks of ice by truck and cart. In fish by the barrel, they have to sort fish and stock a stall.

Ice by the pound: Trey & Lexi, Abbie & Ryan, Jaymes & Joyce, Brent & Josh, James & Abba, Caitlin & Brittany, Rob & Kelley, Gary & Will, Amy & Daniel
Fish by the barrel: Natalie & Nadiya

Though everybody seems to believe otherwise, the fish detour turns out to be the easier of the two, allowing Natalie & Nadiya to leapfrog Trey & Lexi.

The level of difficulty of the tasks proves to be moot aside from that, though. Here the key is the cab drivers who can’t find the detour clue location, with Rob & Kelley and Amy & Daniel lost and wandering aimlessly. This allows Gary & Will to catch up, arriving shortly after Rob & Kelley. They couldn’t have been too lost then, but Amy & Daniel are nowhere in sight.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is the market they are in, Pasar Pabean Market.

First: Natalie & Nadiya (win the express pass)
Second: Trey & Lexi
Third: Jaymes & James
Fourth: Abbie & Ryan
Fifth: Josh & Brent
Sixth: James & Abba
Seventh: Caitlin & Brittany
Eighth: Rob & Kelley
Ninth: Gary & Will
Eliminated: Amy & Daniel

They tried to edit it to make it seem close, but nobody’s buying. As the last team to arrive, Amy & Daniel have been eliminated from the race.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 21 Episode 3, which airs Sunday at 8/7c on CBS.

The Amazing Race 21 cast of 11 new teams competing for the grand prize of $1 million includes:

Abbie & Ryan (dating divorcees)
Amy & Daniel (dating on and off)
Caitlin & Brittany (best friends)
Gary & Will (best friends/substitute teachers)
James & Abba (rock and roll friends)
Jaymes & James (Chippendales dancers/best friends)
Josh & Brent (goat farmers/life partners)
Nadiya & Natalie (twin sisters)
Rob & Kelley (married monster truckers)
Rob & Sheila (engaged lumberjacks)
Trey & Lexi (dating)

This should be fun. Three contestants named James, including one whose parents decided the name has a y in it and who also happens to be partnered with another person named James, two people named Rob, and Abba and Abbie. I’m sure we’ll be able to differentiate between them in no time. Once half a dozen teams have been eliminated.

The twist this season is that the prize will potentially double to $2 million in the event that the team that wins the first leg also wins the last leg. Not great odds, but it could happen. In each of the last two seasons, the team that won the first leg also won the last leg. In the last 8 seasons, the team that won the first leg has made it to the finals 7 times (4 of which concluded with them being winners) with the lone exception being Jordan & Jeff. I don’t know how much difference it may have made, but the last 4 seasons have involved the express pass as a prize for winning the first leg. Over all 20 seasons, the total number of teams making it to the finals after a first leg victory is 12 (including 6 winning teams). Historically, the odds are in the favor of the team that wins tonight’s leg to at least be competitive until the end, even if they don’t win it all. Perhaps now the Big Brother producers will stop being so cheap and increase their prize money.

This also marks the first season in which CBS will be rescheduling certain episodes to begin at 8:30 rather than 8:00 on the east coast. I’m not sure if that will make the scheduling easier to follow or just more confusing, but it should lead to fewer football overruns.

Trey & Lexi won’t be living together until they’re married. She hopes to win the race so he will put a ring on it. Twins Nadiya & Natalie did things like take each other’s exams and break up with the other one’s boyfriend. James was in White Lion and Megadeath, while Abba is his lawyer. After losing their jobs in the city, Josh & Brent bought a goat farm. As a result of bacterial menengitis, Amy had both her legs removed, but she is now a gold medal snowboarder. Caitlin & Brittany were college athletes who claim their blonde hair shouldn’t fool you. Sheila admits that Rob is the boss of her. Gary & Will have applied for the race 7 times. Abbie & Ryan think they are both physically strong, though they don’t mention their mental capabilities. Jaymes & James say their work with Chippendales is respectable. Rob says he’s an arrogant ass.

The starting line for the race is the Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena, CA. But they’re not just dashing to their bags. Their first task is a 10 story rapel off the bridge. Gary’s already telling Will to shut up.

Teams will travel by plane to Shanghai, China. There are two flights 1 hour and 15 minutes apart. The first 7 teams get on the first flight, which means Josh will be left behind after letting another team cut in front of him.

First flight: James & Jaymes, Caitlin & Brittany, James & Abba, Amy & Daniel, Abbie & Ryan, Natalie & Nadiya, Rob & Kelly
Second flight: Josh & Brent, Trey & Lexi, Rob & Sheila, Gary & Will

The road block is to play table tennis against a Chinese junior champion. Their task is to score a single point. If they mess up, they have to wait for the player to go through all the other teams before returning to give them another shot. In order to handicap the champion further, he’ll swap out for items such as a clipboard and frying pan rather than a paddle.

Road block (in order of arrival): James, Caitlin, Natalie, Abbie, James, Daniel, Kelley, Trey, Rob, Gary, Josh

As easy as this may seem, ping pong in China is no joke. The good news is they only have to get lucky one time.

It’s a double road block, and the person who just got off easy is now stuck eating hasma (frog fallopian tubes) with chopsticks.

Road block (in order of arrival): Abba, Ryan, Brittany, Amy, Jaymes, Nadiya, Rob, Lexi, Sheila, Will, Brent

Unlike most gross eating challenges, this one does not seem too bad. As gross as the food may sound, nobody’s throwing up.

Of course, you have to actually follow the rules, which Rob fails to do, opting to pick it up and eat it, so he’ll need to do it again. A relatively easy way to learn an important lesson that you need to pay attention to the clues.

The pit stop for this leg of the race is the Bund Observatory, a 100 year old signal tower.

Amy & Daniel have made what could potentially be a $1 million mistake. They just told the team behind them where to look for the clue leading to the pit stop, and this team can run faster than they can. Should have told them to get lost. Harsh lesson learned, but they still seem to indicate they’d make the same mistake again given the chance. Natalie & Nadiya are smarter, and they just pretend that they haven’t seen the woman with the abacus when Rob & Kelley ask them. Gary & Will do the same when they see Jaymes & James

First: Abbie & Ryan
Second: Amy & Daniel
Third: Caitlin & Brittany
Fourth: Natalie & Nadiya
Fifth: Rob & Kelley
Sixth: James & Abba
Seventh: Josh & Brent
Eighth: Gary & Will
Ninth: Trey & Lexi
Tenth: Jaymes & James
Eliminated: Rob & Sheila

Their physical condition bails them out, as the Chippendales squeak out a tenth place finish. As the last team to arrive, Rob & Sheila have been eliminated.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 21 Episode 2, which airs Sunday at 8/7c on CBS.