S37.E12: We’re in Miami Baby!

[gibasi]

Carson and Jack were on a podcast where they said that the minute they heard they were on Amazing Race they went to couples therapy even though they are not a romantic couple so they could communicate better and have fun on the race. So smart of them! 

 

[snarts]

14 hours ago, Netfoot said:

The Amazing Race Around The World From One Borrowed Cellphone To The Next.

It would be interesting to have a season where they're allowed to have their phones. It would require the show to increase the difficulty level which I would appreciate.

Maybe it's the false effect of nostalgia but the earlier seasons seemed much more challenging navigationally & intellectually. Miss that.

[iMonrey]

1 hour ago, snarts said:

It would be interesting to have a season where they're allowed to have their phones. It would require the show to increase the difficulty level which I would appreciate.

Maybe it's the false effect of nostalgia but the earlier seasons seemed much more challenging navigationally & intellectually. Miss that.

Maybe there wouldn't be so much griping about cell phones if the clues were actual clues rather than instructions to "go here." Like in the olden days. A clue with just a picture or a place, or a clue that's some sort of puzzle. Something like that where a cell phone wouldn't be all the much help.

[SG429]

13 hours ago, chaifan said:

Between the business class flight and a 2 day delay, these were the most rested TAR finalists ever!

Even moreso - the show implied they were boarding Turkish Airlines from Porto. That route would take them to Istanbul before connecting to a 10+ hour flight to Miami.

[Netfoot]

12 hours ago, snarts said:

It would be interesting to have a season where they're allowed to have their phones. It would require the show to increase the difficulty level which I would appreciate.

They spend entirely too much time on the phone as it is, even though they have to borrow the phone. I fear if they just carried a phone with them, their noses would be pressed to the screen of the phone from the start of episode #1, right up to the winner stepping onto the final mat.  Not good television.

12 hours ago, snarts said:

Maybe it's the false effect of nostalgia but the earlier seasons seemed much more challenging navigationally & intellectually. Miss that.

I don't think it is false. The "classic" seasons involved quite difficult challenges and the level of difficulty has gradually fallen ever since.  

And I miss the earlier level of difficulty too.

Edited May 18 by Netfoot

[aghst]

Navigation played a big role in the Final and one of the other later legs, determined the order or the ones who got eliminated.

I think the racers specially decided to ask to borrow phones every time in the later legs, because they'd gotten lost or other teams had.

Even then they got lost because they didn't transcribe the directions accurately enough.

Or they asked to borrow phones more than once while navigating to a place, because they missed a turn or got lost and had to find directions again.

Who knows, if they had phones all the time if the legs would be better.  Even with GPS, some of the roads can be confusing, especially the big highway interchanges, which aren't laid out like those in the US.

I would imagine that with phones, there would be less exchanges between racers in the cars.  They'd just be listening for the next turn direction on the GPS, maybe would make for boring sequences in cars instead of racers sometimes arguing.

Maybe also with phones, racers would Google how best to perform certain tasks, look for Youtube videos.

Can you imagine if the racers looked for videos on how best to navigate those little sail boats?

[PurpleTentacle]

21 hours ago, chaifan said:

Has TAR ever delayed a leg, let alone a final leg, due to weather?  I always assumed they had contingency plans for that type of thing.  Like if a hurricane was bearing down on Miami, then they had a B site already chosen and ready to go.  

The final leg of 34 was delayed to the evening because it was too hot during the day in Nashville. So not even that long ago.

[PurpleTentacle]

Carson & Jack: "We are channeling some D&D characters today. We are going to be accurate like the ranger, bold like the babarian, wise like the wizard..."

Really, Carson and Jack? Wise like the wizard? Wizards are intelligence based and their wisdom is generally shit. That's in keeping with them being book worms and having little actual experience or street smarts. Clerics, Druids, Monks, and Rangers are wisdom based. The quintessential one of those would be the Cleric.

I might have to revoke these guy's nerd cards...

But a very deserved win. They were a very strong team throughout the race and were fun to watch, after they calmed down a bit.

Edited May 18 by PurpleTentacle

[Dobian]

I'm glad Carson and Jack won.  Of course, I'm a video game and D&D dork myself.  But they were one of the always happy and positive teams, so they were easy to root for.  Han and Holden can be proud to have finished second.  They had a little luck along the way, like with the non-elimination leg, but they made the most of their opportunity to beat out all but one team.  I'm glad Jonathan and Ana didn't win it.  I didn't want them in the top three even.  I don't hate them or anything, but Jonathan was too much of a dbag for me to want to see them win the million.

@PurpleTentacle Yes, though even more accurately they should have said they won on charisma like a sorcerer.

The soaring challenge looked brutal since it's so easy to lose your balance slightly and then overcompensate.  Sailing was hilarious with Carson and Jack rowing their way through it.  Hey whatever works.  Another Amazing Race fender-bender with Han.  I'd like to know how the crew resolves these things with the other driver so quickly to get the team on their way again.  This isn't the first time there's been a car collision in the race.  Not much tension at the finish.  We pretty much knew what the order would be when the teams got to the final challenge.

Edited May 18 by Dobian

[PurpleTentacle]

8 hours ago, SG429 said:

Even moreso - the show implied they were boarding Turkish Airlines from Porto. That route would take them to Istanbul before connecting to a 10+ hour flight to Miami.

That can't be correct. Why would you ever fly from Porto to Istanbul, when you want to get to Miami? I mean there are non-stop flights from Madrid or Lisbon to Miami. Why would you ever fly so far in the wrong direction as Istanbul?

[Fake Jan Brady]

15 hours ago, Netfoot said:

I seem to recall in S5 a weather warning forced the race to delay 24 hours in Madagascar? Zanzibar? Charla & Snarla who had accumulated a very large lead at that point claimed that the delay was unnecessary because no bad weather ever materialized. They theorized that the delay was really to facilitate production issues and to close up the huge gap between them and the remaining teams.

Or maybe I am remembering it all wrong.....

I recall Mirna and Charla saying that as the camera panned to the calmest, flattest sea imaginable. I think they had a valid point.

[iMonrey]

I just looked up the cast of next season and all I can say is Ugh. Angela makes Rachel look sane.

The problem with casting Big Brother players is that Big Brother deliberately casts people they know to be mentally unstable because they think they make "good TV." Whereas Amazing Race (usually) just goes for diversity in terms of relationships and age. I don't think they purposely seek out people they know will be volatile. Big Brother sort of needs that, I guess, since they're just all locked in a house for three months. Amazing Race does not.

I guess, bright side, the fate of Amazing Racers is determined by their racing ability rather than arbitrary and often stupid voting cliques. Fingers crossed, this show backs off these gimmicks like Intersection that takes the teams' fates out of their own hands. It's verging too close to Survivor where the game is playing the players rather than the other way around.

Edited May 18 by iMonrey

[North of Eden]

So hard when you invest in an entire season only to have the team you can't stand cross the finish line first. Carson is easily hands down the most annoying racer since that infamous man child Luke of Margie and Luke fame.

I was actively chanting FALL, FALL,FALL when the clock was ticking down for Jack on the Iron Man water jet things. Anything that would derail them. I was also hoping them saying they like people getting lost would be foreshadowing for them losing by taking a wrong turn and winding up at the end of the Florida Keys. Alas to no avail.

An entire season of the whooping and hollering, fist pumps, skipping along and camera mugging in general was just too much. The only good thing is we never have to see them again.

I really wish Double H had pulled out the win.

Johnathan is a true Jeckel and Hyde. One episode he's a raging monster and like tonight he's calm as if he swallowed a bottle of the finest quaaludes in Miami. Oh and I am assuming there was no choice but for Ana to do that task because there would be no logical reason in the world otherwise for her to do it.

 

[Netfoot]

37 minutes ago, Fake Jan Brady said:

I recall Mirna and Charla saying that as the camera panned to the calmest, flattest sea imaginable. I think they had a valid point.

But this ignores an important factor. There was a weather warning announced by the regional meteorologists. I know, because I remember looking it up at the time.  If the race had been allowed to proceed into the danger area and a weather event had caused harm to the racers, the condemnation would have been heavy and universal.

I know it might have been hard on Mirna and Charla, but I think production did the smart thing.

And if you don't know: a calm, flat sea is highly indicative of bad weather in the vicinity. "The calm before the storm!"

19 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

And while each team has a BB cast member.....

Crap! I didn't realize it was going to be that bad....

[choclatechip45]

I was rooting for Han and Holden, but I am happy for Jack and Carson. I was in Porto a few months ago so nice to familiar sights. 

Edited May 18 by choclatechip45

[30 Helens]

2 hours ago, North of Eden said:

I am assuming there was no choice but for Ana to do that task because there would be no logical reason in the world otherwise for her to do it.

She said she chose to do it because she thought it had something to do with heights, which she is good at. Simple misinterpretation of the clue.

[North of Eden]

1 hour ago, 30 Helens said:

She said she chose to do it because she thought it had something to do with heights, which she is good at. Simple misinterpretation of the clue.

Fatal error it would seem.Thanks

[PurpleTentacle]

9 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

She said she chose to do it because she thought it had something to do with heights, which she is good at. Simple misinterpretation of the clue.

I would have said "yeah kf, she was stressed". But they had multiple days downtime. You are at the harbour, there are no tall buildings around, how can you think that has nothing to do with water?

The only other option I could think of would be parasailing, but even there you'd have to take off from and land in the water.

[iMonrey]

12 hours ago, North of Eden said:

An entire season of the whooping and hollering, fist pumps, skipping along and camera mugging in general was just too much.

I don't recall a single instance where Carson and Jack whooped, hollered, pumped fists, skipped or mugged. Perhaps I missed something. Or perhaps you were watching the cartoon version of the show.

[dgpolo]

25 minutes ago, PurpleTentacle said:

I would have said "yeah kf, she was stressed". But they had multiple days downtime. You are at the harbour, there are no tall buildings around, how can you think that has nothing to do with water?

My thoughts also, I just read an article where Carson and Jack said they thought it was a heights challenge too, otherwise Carson would've done it instead, but they weren't downtown, they were by the water, they had already done the Save task on the water and knew that one of the others was called Sail, why wouldn't you think Soar would also be water based?

[Netfoot]

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I don't recall a single instance where Carson and Jack whooped, hollered, pumped fists, skipped or mugged.

I can't say I found them particularly muggy.  But this:

is not him talking to the centerboard! This is him talking directly to the camera, and I wouldn't say this is the usual "Talking Head" sort of moment.

I didn't think much of it because these days it seems like the only reason any of the competitors go on the race is so they can preen for the cameras.

[seacliffsal]

Just watched the episode.  Not a great beginning in which Alyssa and Josiah lost out to Jonthan and Ana.  

And, I was relieved that all teams were in business class as I posted in the previous episode's thread that it would have been so unfair IMO to have Carson and Jack in business and the others in coach.  I guess Phil just didn't mention it to Han and Holden.

They did the scramble in Seattle and, really, there's no reason to do so once teams look up the info to find location/proximity (although in Seattle it did lead directly to a team's loss as they chose incorrectly).  

Now we know why they had all of those 'twists' in that they were directly a part of the final task.  Didn't like the twists (don't like all the gimmicks on Survivor either), hope they don't keep them.

Okay then, see you all next season!

[Browncoat]

The word "Soar" does not make me think "water-based."  I give them all a pass for thinking it had to do with heights.

[Kel Varnsen]

On 5/16/2025 at 8:45 PM, aghst said:

Josiah and Alyssa were likable.

Maybe they would be considered for an All Stars season.

Or an Unfinished Business season. I always liked those. And they could probably play up how getting into the little accident meant missing the train and being out of the final 3. Especially since Jonathan and Ana were only like 12 minutes behind Han and Holden. 

Also using your hands to paddle a sailboat looked exhausting. I am amazed all the teams completed it.

On the other hand the final puzzle looked super easy. Especially if you did it like Jack and Carson and figured out the picture pieces first. Because those, for the most part, really couldn't go in the wrong spot, like other seasons final puzzle or even the tile puzzle from the previous leg.

[Skooma]

Never mind.  A bit off topic.

Edited May 19 by Skooma

[Chardee MacDennis]

I scratched my head when Ana said she couldn’t wait for her kids to watch them on TAR to see how well they did. 
I was like, girl NEVER show your children how you allow your husband to treat you. 

[iMonrey]

23 hours ago, Netfoot said:

I didn't think much of it because these days it seems like the only reason any of the competitors go on the race is so they can preen for the cameras.

I simply do not understand this pervasive belief that racers should never look at the camera or talk to the cameraman. It's absurd. This is someone running at their side the whole time, it would be impossible to ignore them. This isn't a scripted drama series, the racers aren't actors playing parts. They're running a race and a cameraman is chasing them around filming them 24/7. I'm sure they are much too focused on the race to pretend there isn't someone there with them. And ultimately it's the editors who decide what airs. Not the cameraman and not the racers. If the editors think a clip of someone looking into the camera and saying something funny is good content they're going to include it. Some of the racers just happen to be more entertaining than others, and giving the editors the content they like.

Bottom line - hate the editors if that bugs you. Not the racers.

[Netfoot]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

I simply do not understand this pervasive belief that racers should never look at the camera or talk to the cameraman. It's absurd.

For many years the racers were instructed to completely ignore the crew and pretend they did not exist. I think it was S10 when the mere shadow of a cameraman appeared on screen when the BQs were running on a beach (I think) somewhere. There was a bit of a hubbub in the forums!

I am not saying the rules prohibit talking to the crew. I am saying that initially, it simply was not done! But these days, the racers seem to live for it. 

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

Bottom line - hate the editors if that bugs you. Not the racers.

I don't hate either. But I do dislike the changes which promotes preening to the audience (via the camera/sound team) rather than getting on with the race.

[TVbitch]

A pretty good season as recent seasons go, with a worthy (if way too obvious) winner. Really bummed to be reading that next season will be a dreadful Big Brother cast. Of course I'll still watch, since I've been watching since season one, but  it's getting so I enjoy the BBC's "Race Across the World" more. 

[iMonrey]

7 hours ago, Netfoot said:

I don't hate either. But I do dislike the changes which promotes preening to the audience (via the camera/sound team) rather than getting on with the race.

"Preening" is an awfully loaded word which is widely open to interpretation. I can't think of anything Jack or Carson ever did that I would describe as "preening."

What I do know is that someone predisposed to disliking a racer or team is more likely to accuse them of "mugging for the camera" than another team they do like doing the exact same thing. And if it's mere coincidence that accusation is more often lobbed at the gay male teams than any others, it's an awfully big one.

If I were ever on the Amazing Race (as if), and I'm on camera 24/7 and I know I'm going to be on TV, and I'm right in the middle of something very frustrating or very funny, I'm sure I'd want to address the audience and express that frustration or amusement. I don't think I could help it, it's sort of a self defense that feels natural. And then, I suppose, people who didn't like me anyway would say I'm "mugging for the camera" simply by acknowledging that I'm on TV.

Oh well.

[iMonrey]

13 hours ago, Netfoot said:

I wasn't really happy with the word "preening" myself, but couldn't think of something better. If you have a better word to suggest, please say.

Yes, it's called "looking at the camera." And I don't understand why it bugs people so much. You said you preferred it when racers had to pretend there was no cameraman there. Why? That seems far more fake to me and asking a lot of the racers. I'd rather they be genuine in their reactions than play pretend.

I'm truly interested why this bugs people so much. Is it too confrontational? Does it make viewers feel like voyeurs? 

Or is it simply that the viewer doesn't like a team and doesn't want them to look at them? 

Because I don't recall ever seeing a comment about a team someone did like but wished they wouldn't look at the camera. Instead it's always "I hate them, they are always mugging for the camera." In other words, "I don't like them and I don't want them looking at me." 

Nobody complained Josiah was "mugging" every time he looked at the camera and told one of his lame dad jokes. 

[Cotypubby]

15 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Nobody complained Josiah was "mugging" every time he looked at the camera and told one of his lame dad jokes. 

Exactly. I liked that team and wished they were in the finale, but Josiah played to the camera all the time, way more than the green team. It really only seems to become an issue when it's a team of gay men. Like men being fun and not so stoic means they must be "preening."

Edited May 20 by Cotypubby

[peachmangosteen]

I do agree it feels like it's mostly an issue with gay men but I do remember people hated BJ and Tyler for 'mugging for the camera,' too.

Edited May 20 by peachmangosteen

[aghst]

Who cares if they mugged for the cameras.  It’s a TV show.

Presence of camera ALWAYS affects behavior.

If it bothers you don’t watch reality TV.

[meep.meep]

I don't know about mugging for the cameras, but the Greens were one of my least favorite teams this season.  "Preening" is a good description of the snotty comments they made about the other teams in this episode.  They were also the beneficiaries of another team's U turn and subsequent inability to complete the task when they themselves should have been eliminated for getting lost for something like 3 hours.  But they won. Yay.

To the person who suggested that Jonathan was the worst villain in reality TV history - he's not even the worst person named Jonathan to have competed on TAR.  He doesn't come close to the woman who insisted that her POW fiancee had wanted to be captured.  The Guidos blocking everyone else from getting on the plane.  The team playing with the hippies who called and cancelled everyone else's taxis.  And there was this guy named Russell Hantz on Survivor who lied to his fellow contestants that he had been a fireman in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina so they'd think he was a good guy, and then did things like steal their belongings and burn them.  He made it to the end game twice and didn't figure out that you need people to vote for you at that point.  Jonathan needs to work pretty hard on his awareness of how he treats his wife and appreciate her more.  He's not #1.

One thing I wish TAR would get back into is money management.  Remember what happened with a particularly memorable finale in Miami?  Joyce and Uchenna not being able to go to the pitstop because they couldn't pay their taxi driver.  When this leg started and they announced they would have $200 for this leg, I was hoping for something like that.

[Dobian]

On 5/17/2025 at 5:50 PM, PurpleTentacle said:

That can't be correct. Why would you ever fly from Porto to Istanbul, when you want to get to Miami? I mean there are non-stop flights from Madrid or Lisbon to Miami. Why would you ever fly so far in the wrong direction as Istanbul?

They didn't; they flew from Istanbul to Porto, then from Porto to Miami.

[Roccos Brother]

Wow, really surprised by some of the comments/reactions here.

Caught the finale a bit late, and while Jack and Carson were nowhere near my favorites this season, I naively thought, “This might be the first time in ages where the winners are almost universally well-received.” I mean, they were arguably one of the least offensive teams in Amazing Race history—played a clean game, stayed positive, didn’t bicker, and kept their enthusiasm throughout.

Dare I say I even got a little teary-eyed when they hit the mat? Their authenticity and wholesomeness really came across in that moment.

Guess there will always be detractors, no matter what.

[Silver-hyren]

10 hours ago, Dobian said:

They didn't; they flew from Istanbul to Porto, then from Porto to Miami.

When did they go to Istanbul?  I thought they flew to Germany, took the train to France, then flew to Porto, Portugal.

[desertflower]

I thought Carson and Jack were sweet and I was fine with them winning, though I was rooting for Han and Holden. 

Interesting (and a relief) that Jonathan was so supportive of Ana after it took her so long to do that challenge. Is it possible production spoke with him at some point about his treatment of her? Or maybe he had time to calm himself and knew they would probably not win at that point. Anyway I’m glad to read he realized how he acted and I wish them well for the sake of Ana and the kids.

That jet pack task would be a nightmare for me so props to Ana for not giving up.

[Dobian]

1 hour ago, Silver-hyren said:

When did they go to Istanbul?  I thought they flew to Germany, took the train to France, then flew to Porto, Portugal.

They had a connecting flight through Istanbul to Porto.

[chaifan]

27 minutes ago, desertflower said:

Is it possible production spoke with him at some point about his treatment of her? Or maybe he had time to calm himself and knew they would probably not win at that point.

I highly doubt production would talk to Jonathan about his treatment of Ana.  That could be interfering with the race. 

There was a 2 day delay due to bad weather when they hit Miami.  I think we saw a calmer Jonathan because he had 2 days to eat, sleep and relax, and reset.  Maybe there was some self reflection in there.  Maybe Ana said something to him.  But I'm sure that down time helped all of the racers on that last day - we only saw the difference in Jonathan.

[iMonrey]

13 minutes ago, chaifan said:

I highly doubt production would talk to Jonathan about his treatment of Ana.  That could be interfering with the race. 

How so? Asking Jonathan to stop being an ass would in no way alter the course of the race or give anyone an advantage. Clearly the show knew the audience was going to hate him and be pissed off he was in the finale, which is why they opted not to reveal it until we tuned in for the last episode.

14 minutes ago, chaifan said:

There was a 2 day delay due to bad weather when they hit Miami.  I think we saw a calmer Jonathan because he had 2 days to eat, sleep and relax, and reset.  Maybe there was some self reflection in there.  Maybe Ana said something to him.  But I'm sure that down time helped all of the racers on that last day - we only saw the difference in Jonathan.

Actually - if you read Jack and Carson's exit interview, they stopped mid-way through the final leg. Right after the jet ski challenge. And Jonathan was newly zen prior to that. 

I don't know what happened, but something clearly happened.

[chaifan]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

How so? Asking Jonathan to stop being an ass would in no way alter the course of the race or give anyone an advantage.

A bickering, belittling partner could cause the other team mate to be distracted, irritated, walking on eggshells, and may not perform as well, and therefore the team would not perform as well.  Production intervening to make/suggest one racer be nicer to their team mate could have an impact on how that team performs. 

I didn't realize they had started the race and then had to pause it due to weather.  The article I read made it seem like the whole leg was delayed.  So, I guess my theory as to a calmer Jonathan is wrong.  (It made sense, though.)

 

 

[Silver-hyren]

1 hour ago, Dobian said:

They had a connecting flight through Istanbul to Porto.

So they were in France, flew east to Istanbul and then back west to Porto?

Edited May 21 by Silver-hyren
Got my east and west mixed up

[kav]

5 hours ago, desertflower said:

I thought Carson and Jack were sweet and I was fine with them winning, though I was rooting for Han and Holden. 

Interesting (and a relief) that Jonathan was so supportive of Ana after it took her so long to do that challenge. Is it possible production spoke with him at some point about his treatment of her? Or maybe he had time to calm himself and knew they would probably not win at that point. Anyway I’m glad to read he realized how he acted and I wish them well for the sake of Ana and the kids.

That jet pack task would be a nightmare for me so props to Ana for not giving up.

Their internal goal was to get to the final 3, so as is got closer to that, there was internal stress from it, but once they reached that, they were able to relax a little because they have reached their internal goal. (Their Podcast, Week 10, 2025) 

[Netfoot]

4 hours ago, Silver-hyren said:

So they were in France, flew east to Istanbul and then back west to Porto?

I doubt it.

Why would they?  Here is the AYL indictuing their route to Porto.  Via Frankfurt, not Istanbul.

Istanbul, the "Gateway to the Orient", stradles the Bosforus and is located just off this map to the right. 

From Strasbourg to Porto is about 950 miles.  They flew about 110 miles to Frankfurt to connect with a flight to Porto. It is roughly 1,050 miles from Frankfurt to Porto. 

Istanbul is over 1,150 miles from Strasbourg or Frankfurt and more like 1,950 miles from Porto.

I can't think of any conceivable reason that the racers would need to go to Istanbul, to make a connection to Porto (1,150 miles and 3½ hours flight time there and 1,950 miles and 5 hours flight time back).  And I am 100% convinced that if, for what ever reason they did, the AYL (which showed the connection in Frankfurt) would have indicated this connection as well.

Edited May 21 by Netfoot

[Silver-hyren]

40 minutes ago, Netfoot said:

I can't think of any conceivable reason that the racers would need to go to Istanbul, to make a connection to Porto (1,150 miles and 3½ hours flight time there and 1,950 miles and 5 hours flight time back).  

No, I agree with you - this was the point I was making, but sarcasm doesn't always translate via text. 

[Netfoot]

42 minutes ago, Silver-hyren said:

No, I agree with you - this was the point I was making, but sarcasm doesn't always translate via text. 

Don't worry - I did realize that you were questioning a statement made by another poster. My comments were in support of your idea that Strasbourg -> Istanbul -> Porto was highly unlikely.

[zapper]

12 hours ago, Silver-hyren said:

When did they go to Istanbul?  I thought they flew to Germany, took the train to France, then flew to Porto, Portugal.

They meant Constantinople. 

[ApprenticeFan]

13 hours ago, Silver-hyren said:

When did they go to Istanbul?  I thought they flew to Germany, took the train to France, then flew to Porto, Portugal.

Around June 11-12 of last year with a short 2-hour layover in Istanbul and waiting their flight to Miami before the delay shortly after the teams' arrival in Miami.

Edited May 22 by ApprenticeFan