The Amazing Race might as well be called The Amazing Mistakes because this show is all about how small, stupid mistakes can cost you the whole competition. And so far this season there have been plenty of those mistakes, possibly more than we’ve ever seen in seasons past. As easy as it is to sit back and judge the teams for missing what seems like things that are right in front of them, I can only imagine how difficult it must be to actually run the race. With your mind running a mile a minute and your legs hopefully moving even faster than that, it has to be difficult to slow down enough to catch every little detail. While quite a few teams struggled from these kinds of little mistakes, it came down to who could not let it get the best of them and reach Phil first.
This leg started by taking teams to catacombs, where they had to search for the next clue box. We’ve already seen this season that claustrophobia affects a few racers and that came out in full force for some of them during this challenge. However, all teams were able to work through it and easily get to the Detour, which had them either playing a game very similar to Bags or trying to collect money through bus fares on the busy streets of Columbia. In seasons past, there have been many a team that has struggled with the task of collecting money from locals and so it was surprising to see so many teams opt for this task during the Detour. What was not surprising is that it was those same teams that ended the leg toward the back of the pack.
For the smarter teams, like Kurt/Brodie and Tyler/Korey, taking the option to play a more intense version of bags that involved rocks and small explosives, was clearly the best move. They, along with other front runners Burnie/Ashely and Matt/Dana raced to see who could get to Phil first. For Matt/Dana it was once again the arguing that set them back, as she doesn’t hesitate to get frustrated and yell at him whenever something goes wrong. Their juxtaposition of approaches may work in real life but on the race, it’s becoming a detriment for them.
Again, it came down to Kurt/Brodie and Tyler/Korey to win the leg, something we’ll be seeing a lot of this season. Just like last year when it was almost always the bros and the Green Team at the front of the pack, a similar pattern is showing itself this season. Instead of the same team taking first every single time though, we saw first place switch to Kurt and Brodie this week, proving that the competition between the two teams really is fierce.
Those who went the route of collecting bus fares coincidentally did not fare as well. Even teams like Scott and Blair, who did as best as they could at this challenge, fell behind the teams that picked the other Detour. And for a team like Zach and Rachel, who erroneously counted their money wrong and had to double back and keep doing the Detour, it proved to almost be their downfall. The team didn’t let this slow them down and handled the set back well, making up for it in the Roadblock and managing to pull ahead of just one other team. But in the race, that’s all you need. It was Cameron and Darius, who we saw make a few mistakes last week, that once again let their errors get the best of them this week. Despite having finished the Roadblock before Zach, Darius could not find the vendor he needed to deliver the backpacks to, landing him and Cameron in last place and eliminating them from the race.
While a lot of teams have struggled with challenges so far this season, it’s been interesting to see quite a few of them come together and help each other out. We’ve haven’t seen as much of this in recent seasons but so far it’s been great to see this season. Two different pairs of teams worked together this leg to help each other find matching backpacks in the Roadblock and their kindness paid off, as all four teams advanced. The goodwill really can have an effect on how well you do in the race as I’m sure their kindness will be returned later in the season if at all possible. And even if it’s not, at the end of the day, life isn’t necessarily about winning a million dollars in a television show competition. Instead, it’s more about being the best person you can be. And I, for one, am glad to see some teams recognizing this.
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