'The Amazing Race': Headed for the finals
The final four teams had some interesting tasks to deal with on tonight's Amazing Race.
First, they had to fly to Beijing, though everyone was on the same flight, so it wasn't that dramatic.
After landing, for the Road Block, one teammate had to drink two cups of medicinal tea and endure a 10-minute -- and apparently very painful -- foot massage. Seriously, they were screaming and moaning in agony.
Then it was Detour time. The teams had to try their hands at Olympic-style events. In Sync, they had to try synchronized diving, jumping off a springboard and landing feet-first in the water at the same time. In Swim, they had to make like Michael Phelps and swim the 400M individual medley (though they'd each only have to do 200M, so it really wasn't individual) in a Speedo Laser Suit.
Sync was a total bust -- Tammy and Victor tried again and again and couldn't get it together (so to speak). Kisha and Jen tried it a couple of times, but Jen's total fear of the water hampered them.
Cara and Jaime got through the Swim task reasonably quickly and finished first. Margie and Luke did the same (though Margie remarked that she couldn't breathe in the super-tight suit, which made me wonder how much it really helps the Olympians. Bet theirs fit better, though).
Tammy and Victor shifted gears and switched to Swim. In the meantime, Jen totally melted down and cried about wanting to go home, but eventually her sister persuaded her to "finish strong" and get back in the water. They switched to Swim as well.
Cara and Jaime finished first for the first time, but doh! The leg wasn't over -- Phil gave them another clue and told them to keep on going.
Cue the "To be continued ..." sign.
I was actually surprised how much trouble everyone had with Sync. I think it was one of those tasks that sounded not too terrible, but in reality, it was tough tough tough. I did keep yelling at the screen for them to count together. That's what the divers do in the Olympics!
Oh, well. It's not over yet!
Comments
OK, what was so freakin' hard about the Sync road block? They weren't being asked to do a synchronized dive, where they had to spring up, do three or four somersaults and enter the water at the same time. THEY HAD TO JUMP INTO THE WATER TOGETHER.
To prove my point: when the show ened my wife and I (who are, uh, in the twilight of our athletic careers) went out on the porch, stood on the edge, counted to three and jumped off at the same instant.
Assuming Galileo's experiment at the Leaning Tower of Pisa wasn't just a fluke, we would have hit the water at the same time.
No, I don't know (or care) what the neighbors thought.
Anyway, the Twist of All Twists give me hope that at the next roadblock, Margie will say, "No, I'll do it..." and the task will be "Keep your mouth shut for the rest of tonight's episode."
Posted by: Bucky | April 27, 2009 2:36 AM
Do you think this was always planned to be a "To be continued" leg or did they decide to do that once they realized Jen was going to have such issues with the water?
I can't recall them doing one of these false finish legs since the season when Rob and Amber were participants, but I am sure I may have missed one in the years since.
SKK: They do these periodically, but I can't remember specifics. For some reason, the season-to-season details don't stick with me as much with TAR as with other shows. Big fakeout on Cara and Jaime, though. Yay, we're finishing first for the first time! We are crying we are so happy! Wait, say what?
Posted by: etucker | April 27, 2009 1:47 PM
Bucky - Would have been MUCH more interesting if you and the Misses did a triple flip half gainer off the porch. I think the neighbors would have been truly impressed!!
Posted by: Trixie | April 28, 2009 5:29 PM