Race To Survive: Alaska

[meep.meep]

I'm evil but I loved the shots of Max and Christian and then Jeff and Hunter preparing for their frigid night's sleep, followed by one of the slumber party with crackling fire that the two sets of siblings were enjoying.  "We're going to curl up like puppies!"

Why is the prize for this so enormous?  $500K!

I hope for the finale they are taken to Vancouver island and have to do the overland trek from the pairs season of Alone.  They had to go 10 miles and the fastest person took just under two weeks.  Brutal terrain and vegetation.

[snarts]

I really want to see either the AK boys or the siblings win. They have good team vibes and appear to be really be enjoying themselves on the races.  Whereas Max & Christian are always talking negatively about every other team and the Dad annoys the ever-loving hell out of me. 

Hoping that the previews are purposely misleading, I'd hate to see someone emergency evacuated for an injury this late in the season....unless it's the Dad :)

[Leeds]

10 hours ago, snarts said:

I really want to see either the AK boys or the siblings win. They have good team vibes and appear to be really be enjoying themselves on the races.  Whereas Max & Christian are always talking negatively about every other team and the Dad annoys the ever-loving hell out of me. 

Hoping that the previews are purposely misleading, I'd hate to see someone emergency evacuated for an injury this late in the season....unless it's the Dad :)

What's to bet the Dad learns zero self-awareness from this experience, and watching it with him will be an exercise for his family in listening to him make excuse after excuse for his obnoxious, selfish, arrogant behaviour?

[Americanacat59]

Max is a total ahole. Lost the map after his partner says to zip the pocket up to be safe to which Max responds that he knows what he’s doing. Um, yes you’re going to lose the map. His response when (barely) called out was so unacceptable. He’s his own biggest fan. I feel sorry for his partner.

Farewell to Jeff the jerk. Hunter’s a better man than his dad will ever be. 
 

 

[Mediocre Gatsby]

I wasn't sure if I should feel happy or sad for Hunter - he claimed that he and his father won because they "enjoyed" the race the most. I guess I'm glad that Hunter could see it that way. But if that was Jeff "enjoying" something, he must be a pretty miserable person the rest of the time. 

Max acting like Christian was the jerk for mildly pointing out that he'd told Max to zip his pack was just outrageous. 

I can't figure out how Jeff and Hunter lost so much time. It seemed like at one point they were pretty close to Max and Christian, and then they ended up basically an hour and a half behind?

[seacliffsal]

I actually felt sorry for Jeff and Hunter.  Oh well, at least they had a great experience even though there were times of tension.  

Max has demonstrated some attitude throughout the race-he declared that because he invited Christian to participate that made him (Max) the leader.  This episode he came down on Christian even though he (Max) was the one who lost the map.  

I don't understand why the producers used inflatable kayaks for the ice lake when they could have used something with a harder side that wouldn't rip if it hit the edge of the icebergs, but as nobody ripped their kayak it didn't matter.  I just wondered why the producers even risked that.

I think I am rooting for the Alaska Brothers to win, but, really, am fine with any of them winning.

[Quilt Fairy]

I found this to be a pretty lackluster episode.  The main tension was me hoping that Max and Christian would time out before they reached the medallion box.  I could certainly do without the Survivor-like "letters from home" scene.

[snarts]

Happy none of the teams were injured heading into the final.  Hoping the previews of Bella & Cason struggling are a fake out as well (Googled how to spell Cason and found their cast bio.  Both Ivy league grads, pretty impressive. Plus they seem like genuinely nice people)

Also glad to Dad go home. His attitude being eliminated was better than it'd been all season. Hope he really did learn to trust his son and stop being so competitive.

Rooting for either of the sibling teams in finale.  I don't much care for Max & Christian, just their general vibe/energy. Max was on Naked & Afraid, anyone remember him?

 

[Leeds]

22 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

I actually felt sorry for Jeff and Hunter.  Oh well, at least they had a great experience even though there were times of tension.  

Max has demonstrated some attitude throughout the race-he declared that because he invited Christian to participate that made him (Max) the leader.  This episode he came down on Christian even though he (Max) was the one who lost the map.  

I don't understand why the producers used inflatable kayaks for the ice lake when they could have used something with a harder side that wouldn't rip if it hit the edge of the icebergs, but as nobody ripped their kayak it didn't matter.  I just wondered why the producers even risked that.

I think I am rooting for the Alaska Brothers to win, but, really, am fine with any of them winning.

I didn't feel the slightest bit sorry for Jeff.  I hope Hunter finds a partner who is supportive and loving for any future adventures, whatever they are.

Max is an arrogant dick (and that posed proposal photo made me want to barf).

I'm sure the producers chose the inflatable kayaks rather than hard sided because of the added potential for drama.

I think I want the siblings to win, if only because of them representing the LGBTQ+ community so positively.

Edited May 31, 2023 by Leeds

[Grizzly]

What gets me is they kept saying they've been out there 6 weeks. It just doesn't seem that long. Each race leg is 2 days and then they spend 2(?) days at survival camp. Where is the rest of the time?

Felt sorry for Hunter. Jeff's embrace of co-navigating seemed ... sudden. I could see them doing The Amazing Race. And I liked Jeff's departing message of go do things with your kids.

[Msample]

Inflatable kayaks were likely chosen due to being easier to transport to remote locations.

[proserpina65]

On 5/30/2023 at 3:50 AM, Mediocre Gatsby said:

I can't figure out how Jeff and Hunter lost so much time. It seemed like at one point they were pretty close to Max and Christian, and then they ended up basically an hour and a half behind?

I don't think they were as close as the show made it look.  They'd lost a lot of time the previous day due to Jeff's terrible navigation mistake.

On 5/30/2023 at 7:15 PM, snarts said:

Rooting for either of the sibling teams in finale.  I don't much care for Max & Christian,

I like Christian.  Max, not so much.  So I'm rooting for either sibling team as well.  Too bad Christian couldn't team up with Hunter.  Or Robin from the previous eliminated team.

[Anela]

This is the only sort of reality show I've been interested in, in the past. I've just found out that it's on peacock, so I might watch it. But not tonight. 

[humbleopinion]

No spoilers...

Mistakes made so the lead changes during the last leg.

Treacherous swollen river adds to the drama.

Winners deserved the half million, anything less would have been a big disappointment for them.

Hope the other 2 teams got paid something...maybe depending on the number of legs they completed.

[Mediocre Gatsby]

Oh my gosh is Max a jerk. Wrong navigation, but he whines about Christian stopping to tie his shoes? And earlier, Christian was way faster climbing up that ice wall, but Max whined about how long it took him to get his shoes on? Screw him. 

I'm happy with the "AK Boys." Also glad that Bella was okay. 

I wondered if they had to carry their packs for that last run (could they maybe have carried just the ice picks?) but that might be from watching TAR. 

Edited June 6, 2023 by Mediocre Gatsby

[alexa]

I was happy with the ending, and glad that Max/Christian didn't win.  They really annoyed me when they made the comment about the Alaska boys following them, right after they spent much time following them--they were kind of stupid with their negative comments along the way.

Edited June 6, 2023 by alexa

[kathyk24]

3 hours ago, Mediocre Gatsby said:

Oh my gosh is Max a jerk. Wrong navigation, but he whines about Christian stopping to tie his shoes? And earlier, Christian was way faster climbing up that ice wall, but Max whined about how long it took him to get his shoes on? Screw him. 

I'm happy with the "AK Boys." Also glad that Bella was okay. 

I wondered if they had to carry their packs for that last run (could they maybe have carried just the ice picks?) but that might be from watching TAR. 

Max was such a jerk I'm glad he didn't win. The brothers were so calm even after they made a mistake I'm glad they won.

[Leeds]

I don't know if anyone here watched Ciao House, a cooking competition that also only had a few contestants.  One of them, Corey, was an egotistical dick like Max and pretty much universally loathed at least on Primetimer.  You could hear the cheers around the world when he came 3rd out of 3 in the final!  Two great results within a week!  Yay!

Edited June 7, 2023 by Leeds

[seacliffsal]

12 hours ago, Leeds said:

I don't know if anyone here watched Ciao House, a cooking competition that also only had a few contestants.  One of them, Corey, was an egotistical dick like Max and pretty much universally loathed at least on Primetimer.  You could hear the cheers around the world when he came 3rd out of 3 in the final!  Two great results within a week!  Yay!

I am one of the few who did not despise Corey on Ciao House.  However, I did grow to despise Max after initially liking him and his back story.  I am so glad his navigational error and refusal to listen to Christian was shown as otherwise he may have tried to blame Christian and his shoe lace for coming in second.

So glad Bella was okay-can only imagine how scared she may have been.  

Loved seeing all of the glaciers, and have loved seeing Alaska itself in every episode.  Although I have had complaints about this show, I did overall enjoy it.  And, I was rooting for the brothers so am glad they won-even though it broke my almost perfect record of rooting for individuals/teams that usually end up losing...

[jah1986]

I really enjoyed this show and hope there are future seasons. I was so relieved that the AK boys won, because I really did not like Max. Which is sad, because I did like him in the early episodes. At least twice he made a big mistake by not listening to Christian and was so pissy about it when it was obvious it was his fault. And being competitive doesn't mean you have to be a jerk. At least he was gracious at the finish line.  I was glad that Cason and Bella finished the race after their scare.

[Quilt Fairy]

I watched the last episode with my hands over my face peaking through my fingers because I was so sure that Max and Christian were going to win.  When the editors were cutting back and forth between them and the AK bros I thought they were doing an Amazing Race on us tricking the viewers as to the distance between the 2 teams.  I am so glad that Oliver and Wilson won, they are undoubtedly the team where that prize will make the most difference in their lives. 

[Mediocre Gatsby]

This show was for me like a combination of The Amazing Race and Eco-Challenge, which I wish would come back. I never like to root or teams based on just whether they "need" the money or how they will spend the money, but I can't help but root for the teams that I think have run a race that I support. 

I would love to see an Eco-Challenge race start up again. 

[jabRI]

On 6/6/2023 at 7:57 PM, alexa said:

glad that Max/Christian didn't win.  They really annoyed me when they made the comment about the Alaska boys following them, right after they spent much time following them--they were kind of stupid with their negative comments along the way.

And calling the brother/sister team 'sandbaggers' repeatedly.   Even after seeing it was not amusing.  They weren't sandbaggers, they were just laying low and not making themselves targets. Perfectly good strategy.

[tabloidlover]

Race to Survive:New Zealand popped up tonight.  Premieres May 20th on USA

[meep.meep]

On 5/6/2024 at 6:41 PM, tabloidlover said:

Race to Survive:New Zealand popped up tonight.  Premieres May 20th on USA

I saw that!  Hope there's a Maori version of Oliver and Wilson among the competitors.

[Quilt Fairy]

I put it a request to either rename this forum Race to Survive or create a new forum for the new season.  I don't know how long that takes these days. 

[jah1986]

I hope we get a name change to just Race to Survive and then have sub-categories with each season.

That said, I really enjoyed the first episode. I don't know how the divorced couple are going to manage the race. I'm pretty sure team Brooklyn will be first team eliminated.  The front teams were smart to go for the food caches, they know they're not going home in the first leg.

My personal ignorance had me surprised of the cold weather in New Zealand, just didn't expect to see snow.

Looking forward to this season.

[proserpina65]

On 5/22/2024 at 10:27 AM, jah1986 said:

My personal ignorance had me surprised of the cold weather in New Zealand, just didn't expect to see snow.

The South Island is relatively close to Antarctica, and the mountains get snow due to their elevation.

[meep.meep]

The South Island goes to almost 45degrees South latitude - that's the equivalent of Portland, OR and the border between Montana and Wyoming in the U.S.

I felt a bit miffed at not having a winner at the end of the episode.  And doing something this stressful with your divorced spouse has got to be a bad idea.

[CoyoteBlue]

On 5/23/2024 at 6:15 PM, meep.meep said:

doing something this stressful with your divorced spouse has got to be a bad idea.

Yeah, she was done with him before they finished the introductory talking head.

"Woooo! Cutting up trees with m'axe!"

"Why are you killing that tree for no reason, jackass?"

[snarts]

Just me or do they seem to have upped the difficulty this season? 40 days? Heck, the first leg was a killer. And making them divert for tiny bag of food? Wow.

First day and it's once again apparent that the teams are not evenly experienced. The front group is already so far out ahead of the others. I predict a lot of teams will be eliminated because they don't finish the legs in time. 

From the previews, real curious who cheated. 

[proserpina65]

On 5/23/2024 at 7:15 PM, meep.meep said:

The South Island goes to almost 45degrees South latitude - that's the equivalent of Portland, OR and the border between Montana and Wyoming in the U.S.

I'm assuming you're comparing it to 45 degrees north latitude, which goes through parts of the US which has mountains with snow on them.  Although mountains farther south in the US also get snow, just usually in the winter.

 

[Quilt Fairy]

The forum has been renamed Race to Survive and New Zealand has its own thread.