S25.E09: You're Taking My Tan Off

[Alapaki]

I think I've realized tonight that when Jim gives his wide-eyed, closed-mouth-smile face, he looks exactly like Buzz Lightyear.  For some reason that makes me like him a little more.

 

I enjoyed a fight for the Fast Forward.  It seems like we haven't seen that lately.

 

The Wrestlers are just stupid.  It was your idea to U-Turn the Cyclists.  It sounded like you and the other Team agreed during the massage that one Team would U-Turn the Surfers and the other Team would U-Turn the Cyclists.  Then, after screwing that up, you decide to lie about the location of the Lion-Mermaid, thus further increasing the Cyclists' chances of surviving.  That truly was Amazing.

[etagloh]

As Lingo noted, the reason the cyclists shared the earlier flight info with the scientists was to guarantee they had company if a plane got delayed. The best scenario for them then would have been a lead group of two teams. The wrestlers got lucky-smart in asking "so, they all got the same flight, yeah?" and learning about the different options.

[Jac]

I seem to be in the minority this week as I a) really enjoyed this episode and b) have no issue with the fact that the FF involved surfing. 

 

As has already been pointed out, surfing an artificial wave is quite a different skill set to surfing real waves, even a professional surfer was not assured of being able to complete the task. 

 

As for the detour I had no issue with the massage. It is what it is and the teams were not required to do it, it was a choice on their part.

 

I'm still on team surfer, have come around a lot to the dentists after initially hating them, don't mind the scientists and cannot stand the wrestlers.

 

Team surfer are racing smartly and largely racing their own race. Team dentist have shown that they quite good racers, not just villains, the girls are tenacious and the wrestlers are dumb and mean-spirited.

[Calamity Jane]

The cyclists were standing there watching the surfers try. Turnabout is fair play.

 

With all due respect, that was unnecessary.

Wow, different strokes, because I don't see any of this. And I don't see her asking anyone to give her slack, nor should she.

I haven't heard her say one thing, ask for one concession, or slack one task she could possibly do.  When I think of all the times having one arm was a disadvantage, it seems a bit of an overreaction to claim favoritism if a task late in the game gives her a little edge.  They had no way of even knowing if those two would still be in the race that long.  I don't find them especially engaging, but I just can't get bitter that there was a task in their wheelhouse.

[Netfoot]

Regarding SurfGate:

 

I don't believe the FF was deliberately designed with Adam & Bethany in mind.  Chances are the race was planned by a group that had no idea who would be selected to race, and team selection was done by a group who had no idea what challenges lay ahead for the racers.  The fact that we had a cycling challenge and a team of cyclists, a butter-churning challenge and a scientist who was an expert at butter, and a wave riding challenge and a team of surfers was entirely a coincidence.  TPTB don't change challenges to make it easy for Luke, or Big Easy.  They simply say "Luke can't do this challenge."

 

I do not think that TPTB should go tweaking the race to make it "fairer" by trying to eliminate any circumstance where one team has an advantage due to skills acquired at some time in their life.  It would be impossible to do so, but if it were it would only lead to multiple dead-heat wins at all the challenges.  You've just got to accept that sometimes, some people are going to get lucky, and run into a challenge they are good at.

 

I don't believe Production would ever risk the reputation of the race, jeopardize the franchise, and run the risk of a blizzard of lawsuits from every previous losing racer ever, just to help one team along.  They couldn't possibly hope to keep it secret.  Ever heard of Area 51?  Well, I doubt WRP's security is as tight as the USAF!  And it isn't necessary.  If their stunt-cast BB team goes out in leg#2, so what?  Somebody is going to win the million at the end of the race, and they will capture it on tape and make it into good television.

[green]

I loved this show when it was all about the racing - you came in first, you won, you came in last -eliminated.

To me, it was, at that time,the only true competitive reality show. But now, saves, U-turns,double u turns,fast forwards have diminished what I found so appealing.

still better than the rest of the so-called competitive reality shows, but in danger of shark jumping if they keep adding gimmicks.

 

The only thing I was fine with was the FF when it was in every leg but the last one.  The reason was it tended to help trailing teams a lot.  Now the early teams go for it with the Surfers an anomaly.  But with FFs on ever leg you had to use strategy as to "when it would be most advantageous to use it" to directly quote Phil's patter back in the day.  So if you were in the lead why go for it when you might need one deeper in the Race.

 

This sometimes helped even out a trailing team's bad luck factor from a past bad cabbie or delayed flight.  Which is what I think the original intent of the FF originated from.

 

Now leading teams could take it so there were no guarantees.  And teams with a racer feeling ill or teams just drained might burn theirs early to get a reprieve to re-charge their batteries.  But if possible leading teams tried to save theirs for later in the Race.   Which meant strong teams might have to compete for FFs later in the Race just as trailing teams did earlier in the Race.

 

It also let the editors make a more realistic "fight to avoid last" edit what with one trailing team doing the FF and a team that had been slightly ahead of them doing the regular tasks.  They then had separate paths to the mat so there wasn't an easy way to figure out if it was fake editing or if they were indeed neck-and-neck near the end.

 

It just worked so so well.  I never know why they stopped it.  Oh yeah, they wanted to turn a quality show into just another reality scream-fest filled with artificial devices.  Still makes me sad.  But I agree that despite that it is still better than the other reality shows.  But to stay that way they have to cut back on this artificial crap and they can start with their latest disaster, the "Save."  Giving a strong team a safety net on top of everything else is just dumb.

 

Yes a team could need a Save the very next leg but with a strong team like the Dentists winning it early on and not likely needing it as much as a weaker team might it just made the Race way too predictable.  People like surprises in the Race when an underdog team can beat out a stronger team especially if the underdogs seem likeable.  The Save almost guaranteed it wasn't gonna happen this season when a strong team won it right off the bat.  Makes for bad TV.

Edited December 1, 2014 by green

[Camera One]

Most of the task were directly lifted from an edition of TAR Asia: the rope walking, the chili crabs and the wave surfing.

 

This is another clue that the leg design likely had nothing to do with the casting.

[jjj]

Maybe Misti should have done it.  Perhaps he was a little too big and bulky, and that's why he was the only person who "fell"?  Not to mention it was the last leg with the Save, so it would allow Jim to do the next few.

 

As someone noted earlier, and as I saw when I rewatched Jim on the tightrope, it appears they did not adjust it enough for his weight the first time he went out -- the other Racers could use their arms raised above to take some of the weight off their feet, but the line Jim was holding was far too low for him to take any weight off his feet.  He could use his arms the second time.  And as a RB, they need to decide who is doing it before they know what the task it, then cannot switch, so there was no way for them to know that the lighter Mitzi probably would have found it easier in terms of the weight issue.  But we don't know if she would have freaked out at the height.  I absolutely would have frozen. 

[Skittl1321]

Maybe Misti should have done it.  Perhaps he was a little too big and bulky, and that's why he was the only person who "fell"?  Not to mention it was the last leg with the Save, so it would allow Jim to do the next few.

 

Well, when deciding the roadblock there was no way to know being lighter would help; but you bring up a great point about the save. If Misti is perceived by the team as  the weaker team member it would have made sense for her to do it, saving harder tasks for Jim.  Because they can't go home this leg.

Edited December 1, 2014 by Skittl1321

[etagloh]

 

It just worked so so well.  I never know why they stopped it.

 

Budget, primarily: arranging an extra task that may or may not be taken, the need to have people on-site at the location. You could also make a case that the FF-per-leg eliminates direct competition between teams at the front end, which matters more when the leg prizes are sponsored Fords or sponsored Travelocity holidays or not-sponsored wads of cash instead of sponsored digital cameras, but there have been enough stories about TAR having its budget trimmed to make that an after-the-fact explanation.

 

I called the FF vestigial upthread: it sticks around because it has always been there in one way or another, even if it feels out of place among the U-Turns and Express Passes and Saves. The most memorable FFs since the one-per-leg went away are the ones that challenge any team that attempts it: the hair-shaving task that first appeared in TAR 5 was brought back in TAR 7 and TAR 20 for exactly that reason. Those tasks are not gifts.

 

 

This is another clue that the leg design likely had nothing to do with the casting.

 

It's possible to accept that the leg design happened independently of the casting and still think it was pretty shitty leg design. Learning that the tasks were recycled from TAR Asia doesn't change that, and in fact, looking at the Wikipedia entry, it looks like TAR Asia had the better leg design in terms of allowing teams to benefit from good racing.

Edited December 1, 2014 by etagloh

[millennium]

I call total bullshit on the FF surfing challenge, for all the reasons already stated.

 

I can stomach a lot, but I can't bear to watch unfairness in action, and that's what the surfing challenge was.

 

The only way to register my protest is to refuse to watch anymore.   I know the gesture is meaningless in terms of impact but at least I preserve my self-respect.   The non-surfing contestants are being played and so are the viewers.

 

Fuck you, Amazing Race.

[auntlada]

Speaking of the wrestlers . . . they're probably happy playing the heavies for this season. Minimum, they got fourth place, one better than Lori & Bolo in TAR6. I'd be more annoyed if they weren't inept half of the time. No way they're winning it.

 

I'd agree, except that I thought the same thing about the goat farmers' ineptness. And then they won.

 

I disagree that Robbie and Brooke a poor racers.  They can do a lot of physically demanding stuff with ease, and when it comes to the final few legs of the race, getting rid of a team like that would be nice.  They are not brilliant and they do not have great taxi luck, but they can power through a physical challenge if need be.  

 

Except when one of the scientists beat Robbie in swimming. (Also, it's not bad taxi luck when you're just standing on a street corner yelling, "Taxi! Why can't we find a taxi?" If you can't see one where you are, move. And when you finally get a taxi, learn to ask the driver to wait. Not doing so after getting left behind several times isn't "not brilliant"; it's stupid.

 

Thing is, the cyclists nearly had the fast forward completed with about 30 seconds left when Adam and Bethany showed up -- the cyclists both lost their focus on the task and down they went.  If Adam and Bethany had not been allowed within eyeshot of the task, the cyclists would have most likely finished it.  IMHO.

Or the cyclists might have finished it if they had a better focus. If they were able to shut out distractions, they might have been able to do it no matter who was there.

[shortsummers]

As good as the cyclists were at logistics and tasks, they were incredibly bad at picking detours.  By my figures, they only picked the fastest detour once, and that was the cycling task in Denmark and that was a no brainer for them.

 

I flashed back to TAR 5 long the previews.  The Wrestlers lying to the Scientists about the clue reminded me of Chip lying to Brandon and Nicole in the Philippines at the end of race.  The teams had to find the clue at the beach with the Philippine flag on it, but since no one knew what the flag looked like, they had to try every beach.  As Chip and Kim were leaving one beach Brandon asked them if the clue was there and, in spite of the fact they had formed an anti-Colin and Christie alliance, Chip lied and told them no.  But Brandon and Nicole saw through their lie and checked anyway.  Maybe the scientists are just more trusting and naïve.

 

Here's my take on why the Wrestlers did not U-turn the cyclists.

First, it had to with the tremendous amount of respect the teams for cyclists' ability in tasks.  It probably never occurred to them that the cyclists wouldn't succeed at the task.

 

Second, the Fast Forwards in in most TARS tend to be somewhat lame.  There have times when the weather kept a team from doing a FF and there have been times when teams have chosen not to do a FF (Brandon and Nicole in the hair cutting FF of TAR5), but never (as far as I can remember) has a team with decent lead not won a FF they chose to do.

 

So the Wrestlers and all the other teams figured the Surfers were toast and the Cyclists had won the leg.  U-turning them would just unnecessarily piss off a very strong team.  And the fact that the Scientists chose to U-turn the Surfers and not the Cyclists made them think that the Scientists were setting the Wrestlers up to take the fall.  That, combined with the Scientists not pointing out the sign guy, justified in their minds the lie they later told them about the clue.

[Jac]

The only thing I was fine with was the FF when it was in every leg but the last one.  The reason was it tended to help trailing teams a lot.  Now the early teams go for it with the Surfers an anomaly.  But with FFs on ever leg you had to use strategy as to "when it would be most advantageous to use it" to directly quote Phil's patter back in the day.  So if you were in the lead why go for it when you might need one deeper in the Race.

 

This sometimes helped even out a trailing team's bad luck factor from a past bad cabbie or delayed flight.  Which is what I think the original intent of the FF originated from.

 

Now leading teams could take it so there were no guarantees.  And teams with a racer feeling ill or teams just drained might burn theirs early to get a reprieve to re-charge their batteries.  But if possible leading teams tried to save theirs for later in the Race.   Which meant strong teams might have to compete for FFs later in the Race just as trailing teams did earlier in the Race.

 

It also let the editors make a more realistic "fight to avoid last" edit what with one trailing team doing the FF and a team that had been slightly ahead of them doing the regular tasks.  They then had separate paths to the mat so there wasn't an easy way to figure out if it was fake editing or if they were indeed neck-and-neck near the end.

 

It just worked so so well.  I never know why they stopped it.  Oh yeah, they wanted to turn a quality show into just another reality scream-fest filled with artificial devices.  Still makes me sad.  But I agree that despite that it is still better than the other reality shows.  But to stay that way they have to cut back on this artificial crap and they can start with their latest disaster, the "Save."  Giving a strong team a safety net on top of everything else is just dumb.

 

Yes a team could need a Save the very next leg but with a strong team like the Dentists winning it early on and not likely needing it as much as a weaker team might it just made the Race way too predictable.  People like surprises in the Race when an underdog team can beat out a stronger team especially if the underdogs seem likeable.  The Save almost guaranteed it wasn't gonna happen this season when a strong team won it right off the bat.  Makes for bad TV.

 

I hate the save and think it is a complete fail but I understand why the producers continue to experiment with different elements. There are only finite places they can film and in fact the number of places they can safely film has reduced significantly since the series began. There are also finite types of challenges that make for compelling TV. That essentially leaves casting and producer inventions as the two variables. I do wish that they would change up the variables more often, cycling variables they know work in and out of different seasons and ditching elements that don't work but I don't have a fundamental problem with introducing new elements and removing stale ones. I think an element is past its use by date when teams are consciously strategising from the very beginning of the race as to how to employ it and that is what I think happened with the original FF. 

[Nearly Dead Ed]

A couple of weeks ago, there was a guy at our local pool who had those circles on his back. And now I know what his deal was.

[Lingo]

I think I've realized tonight that when Jim gives his wide-eyed, closed-mouth-smile face, he looks exactly like Buzz Lightyear.  For some reason that makes me like him a little more.

 

ha-HA!  I'm gonna try to remember that the next time I watch.  :)

[lianau]

The Save turned out to have had no really observable effect on the race, IMHO. I keep hearing that the Save altered the inter-team dynamics and the strategy of the Save holders; in particular, it made the dentists more confident and relaxed (presumably compared to the scenario where they do not have the Save), and also made other teams not even consider U-turning the dentists. This all may very well be true. But I still think TPTB could have easily edited out all mentions of the Save and we the viewers would have been none the wiser. What would we have seen? A team that was never U-turned, and was always composed and not freaking out during tasks? Occam's razor says you don't need to think there was something new and "unconventional" to explain these observations. Most teams are never U-turned, and some teams just may be naturally calm and relaxed. Hell, in this very season we have Adam and Bethany who were never U-turned and did not freak out during their tasks. We know the Save had nothing to do with that. We would have never needed to know about the Save to make sense of the dentists' accomplishments. So why did they leave the Save in the final edit? I think only because they want to bring it back.

 

 

I like the idea of the save , in theory . However they need to fix a couple of things for it to work . A team using the save needs to hand it in before they know their position and there is no giving back the save when they were not the last team to arrive , the same with NELs (like what happened this season) . You use it and it's gone . I also think there needs to be an explanation how the whole thing would work . Will the team coming in second to last get the boot over the save using team ? 

Edited December 1, 2014 by lianau

[wineaux]

I like the idea of the save , in theory . However they need to fix a couple of things for it to work . A team using the save needs to hand it in before they know their position and there is no giving back the save when they were not the last team to arrive , the same with NELs (like what happened this season) . You use it and it's gone . I also think there needs to be an explanation how the whole thing would work . Will the team coming in second to last get the boot over the save using team ? 

 

This has been brought up a lot on the forum, and has been compared to using it as Survivor's immunity idol is used.  My feeling is that as weird as it may have appeared (and especially since Jim and Misti were not that well-liked when they came in last that time), I hope that TPTB do NOT change it to become similar in use as the immunity idol.  This is not Survivor.  They've done quite well over 25 seasons without mimicking Survivor.

 

But I do think they should take another look at the Save as they've done for other aspects of the race. I'd be surprised if the creators/producers have not already had a pow-wow about the pros and cons of this new addition, and if it worked as they originally intended.

 

"Will the team coming in second to last get the boot over the save using team ?"

 

No.  After the Save has been handed over on a legit elimination leg, it then turns into a NEL for the next to last team.  They will NOT get the boot.

[ProfCrash]

The Wrestlers bug for a number of reasons. Their whining, their treatment of other teams, their treatment of locals, and Brooks constant negativity. They are not fun to watch because of all of the whining and because they are just not smart. The crap that comes out of their mouth sure makes me wonder if they ever attended high school never mind graduate from high school or college. They scream ugly Americans.

 

I have cut them some slack because they are professional wrestlers and I have no clue if they are trying to tell a pre determined story that they think would be interesting but my god is it awful. I can't really think of them as villains because I don't buy for a second that they are smart enough to be villains. Even this week they accidently lied to the Scientists. The chat after they Scientists followed them sure made it seem like they didn't realize what they had done and then decided to run with it.

 

They come off as intimidated by the Scientists. I get that they are not concerned with what the Scientists can do in physical tasks but the way they talk about them and disparage their work makes me think that they are either too uneducated to understand what they do and how complex it is or they understand it and they don't like people who know how to use their heads for something other then being pile drived.

 

I really think that they are intentional cartoon characters who unintentionally suck at many elements of the race and are trying to play a role so they get invited back and I strongly dislike them. I can't say I hate them because they are not worth that energy. I just want the whining, disparaging, nasty asses to go away and I want them to be knocked out by the Scientists.

 

I have no problem with the fast forward. These things are set up well in advance. Bethany knew how to ride it but Adam did not. He happens to surf and snowboard and figured it out pretty fast. I would guess that anyone who participated in board sports (surf, snow, ski) and is a good athlete would figure it out pretty fast. The Cyclists are good one bikes but that is a totally different feel and skill set. They are good athletes and seem to figure it out but not in enough time. I think their big mistake was going for it when they knew they did not have a huge lead over a team with a professional surfer. I respect the guts it takes to do that and their confidence in their own skills but it was not a good decision on their part.

 

On the U Turn, I don't care that the Wrestlers didn't use it. I think they were silly not to because they came close to having the Scientists passed by the Cyclists. And that would have been awful for their game. I still don't understand their logic, not that I think there was any logic to it. U Turn the two strong teams that went for the FF. That way you knock out a strong team. Smart except that idiots with no brains are racing and would not U Turn the team that they had organized an entire group to U Turn.

[NutMeg]

 That one says they must stay up for "an ACCUMULATED time of two minutes".  In that race, were they able to say ride for 30 seconds 4 times and pass?  Or one person ride for 90 and one for 30?

 

The wording is weird but as I remember it, it worked the same way as it did here. Granted, my memory about these things can get fuzzy, but I remember a team making a gazillion attemps because one of the two couldn't cut it. (Maybe it means they BOTH had to do it for two minutes at the same time?) 

 

About the massage: I'd love it if once, just once, it was a lovely, soothing, relaxing massage, but nodody took it because they expected this kind or horror. 

[proserpina65]

The lesson I've taken away from AR, both from this episode and previous ones featuring traditional local massage techniques, whenever the choice is between 'get a massage' and anything else, always choose whatever the other option is.  No massage task on this show has ever been anything other than incredibly painful.

[proserpina65]

I wanted to eat the crab!  And drink the coconut water.  (Brooke is an ass.)

 

Brooke is indeed an ass, but I probably would've said the same thing as she did about the coconut water because I really don't like coconut.

[needschocolate]

I say stay away from any task that sounds like it might be pleasurable - don't do the massage, don't feast on local delicacies, don't get a manicure, don't soak in the hot springs...  

[kingshearte]

I can't stand Jim, but I thought he handled that mishap masterfully. I would have been a freaking mess for days.

Actually, if it were going to throw anyone off, I'd kind of expect it to be Misti. I mean, I guess it depends on the person, but I think I've generally been much better at handling my own near-death experiences (sounds so melodramatic, but the circumstances I'm talking about could definitely have resulted in death) than my husband's. One time, he choked at the Christmas dinner table to the point of needing a rescue (for which I will never stop being grateful to my brother-in-law), and I was so freaked out after that I could barely finish my own dinner, and I still want to cry if I think about it too much. Just the thought of watching him fall like that, nevermind the actual experience like Misti had, is horrifying.

[Bryce Lynch]

I call total bullshit on the FF surfing challenge, for all the reasons already stated.

 

I can stomach a lot, but I can't bear to watch unfairness in action, and that's what the surfing challenge was.

 

The only way to register my protest is to refuse to watch anymore.   I know the gesture is meaningless in terms of impact but at least I preserve my self-respect.   The non-surfing contestants are being played and so are the viewers.

 

Fuck you, Amazing Race.

So why didn't you give up on TAR earlier in the season when they "unfairly" had not one, but two cycling challenges that favored the cyclists?   As others have stated, it is likely that the surfers had not yet been cast when the surfing challenge was created, and in every race there are challenges that favor certain teams.  

[Taylorh2]

TiredMe:  You used to like the surfers but now you don"t and hope that they don't win because they are good at surfing ?  Seriously?

[Netfoot]

Brooke is indeed an ass, but I probably would've said the same thing as she did about the coconut water because I really don't like coconut.

 

Coconut water actually doesn't taste much like the grated coconut used in most western cooking.  Or even much like fresh coconut.  Or even coconut milk.  Just saying.

[blackwing]

All challenges are planned far, far in advance. There's no way they would know if the surfers would still be in the race at that point.

That is true, but it still leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.  Especially given the prevalence of the "Bethany is AMAZING!" promos that ran pre-race.  I saw the promo for her many many times, I don't think I saw a promo featuring a single spotlight on a single team, although I know others reported they did.  The presence of this surfing Fast Forward looks suspicious to me, given the marketing of Bethany as their Golden Girl in the promos.  It may not have been intended, but that's how it looks.

 

Even if the Race was designed independently of casting, after they realised that one of the couples cast were professional surfers, they could have redesigned that task prior to the start of the Race.  And before anyone starts about FCC and all that, it's not tampering if they make adjustments to their own contest prior to the actual start.  At the very least, they could have adjusted the time.  Fast Forwards in the past have been ridiculously easy and certainly not something that one would expect to fail on.  It used to be that if you took the chance, you'd be reasonably assured of being able to complete it.  Anyone remember Chris and Alex eating a meat pot pie?  Even after the FF became more rare and limited to about two per race, they haven't been this difficult.

 

I feel like the time should have been one minute instead of two.  It still takes some degree of skill to last for one minute.  Two minutes is an incredibly long time.  The cyclists with no experience and no training lasted 1:30.  That was impressive.  And yes, it's different than "real" surfing, but no doubt spending your life on a surfboard makes you a lot more attuned to how to adjust and balance.

[JerseyGirl]

I saw one of those waves machines at a Margaritaville an island stop at Grand Turk on a cruise.  I didn't sign up, just watched people attempt to stay up, was interesting to watch.  From what I heard, it is very hard to do and different from surfing in an ocean wave.

[proserpina65]

Coconut water actually doesn't taste much like the grated coconut used in most western cooking.  Or even much like fresh coconut.  Or even coconut milk.  Just saying.

Oh, okay, well maybe Brooke is a bigger ass than I thought.  :-)

[Nutjob]

Count me in as not having an issue with the surfing FF. Someone noted that there has been at least one challenge this season that favored the cyclists. Add to that the fact that there have been many tasks where Bethany would have a perceived disadvantage, and I have absolutely no problem with TBTP having the surfing challenge as a non-required, no one might even do it FF at this stage in the competition.

[blackwing]

Someone noted that there has been at least one challenge this season that favored the cyclists. Add to that the fact that there have been many tasks where Bethany would have a perceived disadvantage

Yes, but really, how much of an advantage did the cyclists have?  If it had been "zip in and out of traffic and deliver this messenger bag in 2 minutes" then yes, they would have had an advantage, because that's what they do for a living, and they would have less fear and hesitation than other racers.  But that task was simply riding a bike, albeit an unusual bike with a heavy load.  Riding a bike is a skill that it seems at least one member of each team had.

 

As far as compensating her for her perceived disadvantages, they've never done that in the past for anyone.  Not for Charla, not for Luke, not for overweight racers, not for people who can't drive stick shift, not for people who are afraid of heights.  So if TPTB are viewing this as compensation, that'd be a new look at this.

[millennium]

So why didn't you give up on TAR earlier in the season when they "unfairly" had not one, but two cycling challenges that favored the cyclists?   As others have stated, it is likely that the surfers had not yet been cast when the surfing challenge was created, and in every race there are challenges that favor certain teams.  

 

Everyone knows how to ride a bike.

 

Not everyone knows how to surf.  Or snowboard.   Or both.

 

I get that everybody has their favorite teams and they'll fanwank (i.e., "it is likely that") what we see on the screen if it generates some positive spin for their favorites.   But come on.

[ptuscadero]

Count me in as not having an issue with the surfing FF. Someone noted that there has been at least one challenge this season that favored the cyclists. Add to that the fact that there have been many tasks where Bethany would have a perceived disadvantage, and I have absolutely no problem with TBTP having the surfing challenge as a non-required, no one might even do it FF at this stage in the competition.

 

I wonder if these same people would have been whining that it was "unfair" if Bethany had ended up having to do the tightrope challenge. I can't even imagine how you would do that with only one arm. And, as others have pointed out, the cyclists certainly had the advantage with the cake challenge - ever steer a bike with one hand? I don't remember anyone, including Bethany, complaining about the "fairness" of that task - in fact, she even gave it a try, but wasn't able to control the bike with Adam's weight, so they just switched tasks without bitching about it. Bethany has managed quite deftly to handle tasks that all the other racers use two hands for, so this "unfair advantage" stuff is just bullshit.

As has been stated repeatedly, the challenges are planned far in advance, with no way of knowing who the contestants will be, or what their skill sets are. There are bound to be tasks in each season that at least one racer is more equipped for than others. That's part of what makes the game interesting. At the risk of violating the old "Boards on Boards" rule (if that's still a thing), I have to roll my eyes at the conspiracy theories being bandied about.

[ptuscadero]

Everyone knows how to ride a bike.

 

Not everyone knows how to surf.  Or snowboard.   Or both.

 

I get that everybody has their favorite teams and they'll fanwank (i.e., "it is likely that") what we see on the screen if it generates some positive spin for their favorites.   But come on.

I haven't ridden a bike since I was eleven years old, and I'm pretty sure I couldn't do it now.

I don't see it as "fanwanking" to point out the inconsistencies of these accusations, or to remind viewers that these tasks are chosen well in advance of the game being cast. TPTB would be complete idiots to risk the blowback they would receive if they didn't go to great lengths to make the game above board and fair. It would be like killing their own cash cow just to help one team make it further (on top of assuming that they would have made it even that far).

It reminds me of kids yelling, "Cheater!" when someone wins a board game.

[Bryce Lynch]

I haven't ridden a bike since I was eleven years old, and I'm pretty sure I couldn't do it now.

I don't see it as "fanwanking" to point out the inconsistencies of these accusations, or to remind viewers that these tasks are chosen well in advance of the game being cast. TPTB would be complete idiots to risk the blowback they would receive if they didn't go to great lengths to make the game above board and fair. It would be like killing their own cash cow just to help one team make it further (on top of assuming that they would have made it even that far).

It reminds me of kids yelling, "Cheater!" when someone wins a board game.

And flinging the game board and pieces in the air. :)

 

Also, obviously the cyclists didn't think that A&B had such a huge "unfair" advantage or they would have left as soon as they saw it was a surfing challenge, or at the least, as soon as A&B arrived.  The cyclists didn't need to finish ahead of A&B, they only needed to beat at least one of the other 3 teams.

 

That reminds me, the cyclists' timing for abandoning the FF seemed a bit odd.  IIRC, they started to leave while A&B had about 30 seconds to go.  The 30 seconds they saved by baling early would not mean a thing, but if by chance A or B (most likely A) had fallen in those last few seconds, it would have given them another shot to try the FF, which could have meant the difference between 1st place and elimination.

 

Also, there hasn't been much said about how nasty the cyclists were to each other when they saw the FF slipping away.  If Jim had talked to Misti that way, some people would be calling him a wife abuser.  To be clear, I understand the cyclists being frustrated and venting at one another a little, as most normal human beings will sometimes do.  I just don't like the double standard, where the slightest sigh or look from one racer is blown out of proportion, but far worse behavior from others is ignored. 

[blackwing]

Also, there hasn't been much said about how nasty the cyclists were to each other when they saw the FF slipping away.  If Jim had talked to Misti that way, some people would be calling him a wife abuser.  To be clear, I understand the cyclists being frustrated and venting at one another a little, as most normal human beings will sometimes do.  I just don't like the double standard, where the slightest sigh or look from one racer is blown out of proportion, but far worse behavior from others is ignored.

I mentioned it, it was the one that had her hair pulled back and has a fatter and rounder face that was screaming and crying at the other one.  I thought it was poor of her.

 

If Jim had talked the same way, I would have viewed it the same.  As far as why people would be more likely to comment on it if it had been Jim?  Perhaps it's because of his serial killer look, the overly steroided body, the ridiculous tan, the overly white teeth, and the menacing way he holds himself.  He invites these kinds of comments because of how he presents himself.

 

To me, he just comes across as someone who is very intimidating and is used to intimidating people to get them to do what he wants.  Kudos to him for not freaking out when that rope slacked.  But he just barks out a command in a very flat commanding monotone, "what do I do", instead of saying something like "please help me, I don't know what to do".

[fishcakes]

I wonder if these same people would have been whining that it was "unfair" if Bethany had ended up having to do the tightrope challenge. I can't even imagine how you would do that with only one arm.

 

Even some of the more mundane challenges would be difficult. As many times as it was said that no one had to do the massage torture and could have switched, if Adam and Bethany hadn't done the FF, I think they would have been stuck with massage because I don't see how Bethany cleans a crab with one hand. It's not like the puzzle, where she could use her feet to hold it down, considering it was in a restaurant (and while the restaurant likely didn't use any of the crabmeat shelled by people who are in too big a hurry to even wash their hands, they probably aren't going to let anyone put their feet on a crab in front of their customers either) so essentially Adam has to do the whole thing, which might be against the rules, and definitely would be slower.

[Bryce Lynch]

Even some of the more mundane challenges would be difficult. As many times as it was said that no one had to do the massage torture and could have switched, if Adam and Bethany hadn't done the FF, I think they would have been stuck with massage because I don't see how Bethany cleans a crab with one hand. It's not like the puzzle, where she could use her feet to hold it down, considering it was in a restaurant (and while the restaurant likely didn't use any of the crabmeat shelled by people who are in too big a hurry to even wash their hands, they probably aren't going to let anyone put their feet on a crab in front of their customers either) so essentially Adam has to do the whole thing, which might be against the rules, and definitely would be slower.

 

I don't think there is any rule against one teammate doing all the work on a joint task.  In the past, I believe some racers have done all of the beer drinking and eating tasks. It would just take longer for Adam to do most of the work himself.  That is assuming Bethany couldn't use her feet.  It sounds nasty, but, over the years, the racers have been forced to eat things even nastier than "foot crabs". :)

[meep.meep]

Everyone knows how to ride a bike.

 

Not everyone knows how to surf.  Or snowboard.   Or both.

 

I get that everybody has their favorite teams and they'll fanwank (i.e., "it is likely that") what we see on the screen if it generates some positive spin for their favorites.   But come on.

 

This spring my daughter had to pay someone to teach her to ride a bike because she had to do it on stage.  For that matter, Charla couldn't ride a bike - on her original season she and Mirna had to choose between bike riding and walking down a mountain and they had to walk.

 

I'm just glad that the FF was hard.  To many of them are so easy that it's just a matter of who is the first team to get there.  Actually completing the FF is a foregone conclusion.  This one wasn't like that.

 

And let's not forget Nick's grandfather who had apparently done everything!

[Nutjob]

I completely forgot to mention that I cannot wait for Broken Ox 2.0. There's no possible way it can live up to TAR 5, but it'll be fun reliving the memories.

[Netfoot]

As far as compensating her for her perceived disadvantages, they've never done that in the past for anyone.  Not for Charla, not for Luke, not for overweight racers, not for people who can't drive stick shift, not for people who are afraid of heights.  So if TPTB are viewing this as compensation, that'd be a new look at this.

 

I see no compensating.  The FF task was chosen long before Bethany herself was chosen.  To then turn around and remove the surfing task would be to take action against Bethany.

 

We didn't get to see it because of the FF, but I have no doubt that had the soul-surfers reached the Marina Bay Sands, the Roadblock clue would have said "Note:  Adam must do this Roadblock."  So, one challenge presented the advantage, another presented the disadvantage.

[Haleth]

But he just barks out a command in a very flat commanding monotone, "what do I do", instead of saying something like "please help me, I don't know what to do".

 

I thought he showed considerable restraint and wasn't barking at all.  I would have been screaming my head off, "GET ME THE FUCK OUTTA HERE!  I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"  

 

"Please help me?"  Really?

Edited December 1, 2014 by Haleth

[millennium]

I haven't ridden a bike since I was eleven years old, and I'm pretty sure I couldn't do it now.

I don't see it as "fanwanking" to point out the inconsistencies of these accusations, or to remind viewers that these tasks are chosen well in advance of the game being cast. TPTB would be complete idiots to risk the blowback they would receive if they didn't go to great lengths to make the game above board and fair. It would be like killing their own cash cow just to help one team make it further (on top of assuming that they would have made it even that far).

It reminds me of kids yelling, "Cheater!" when someone wins a board game.

 

YMMV.

[millennium]

This spring my daughter had to pay someone to teach her to ride a bike because she had to do it on stage.  For that matter, Charla couldn't ride a bike - on her original season she and Mirna had to choose between bike riding and walking down a mountain and they had to walk.

 

I'm just glad that the FF was hard.  To many of them are so easy that it's just a matter of who is the first team to get there.  Actually completing the FF is a foregone conclusion.  This one wasn't like that.

 

And let's not forget Nick's grandfather who had apparently done everything!

 

I suppose that if we apply ourselves, we can find exceptions to perhaps every single instance where someone has cited the word "everybody" when speaking of people in general.    Nevertheless, I stand by my belief that everybody (translation: most people) knows how to ride a bike.

 

Listen, I don't hate the surfers.   Bethany is to be admired for her fortitude and her positive attitude.  But I think the cyclists would have won this race if the FF hadn't been handed to Bethany and Adam on a silver platter.

 

Someone above hit the nail on the head when they wrote, "what next, a teeth-cleaning challenge?" (or something to that effect)

Edited December 1, 2014 by millennium

[biakbiak]

Nevertheless, I stand by my belief that everybody (translation: most people) knows how to ride a bike.

 

It wasn't just a ride the bike challenge though, it was wide a cargo bike that everyone commented on how difficult and different from riding a typical bike except for Kym who specifically mentioned it was a piece of cake because she had ridden this exact same type of bike that she had ridden in a bicycle competition. Now there is no way that TPTB would have any reason to know that but all of us have different skills and there was absolutely no guarantee that the Adam and Bethany would make it this far, if they didn't have the express pass they could have easily been eliminated in Malta because the pole task seemed hard and Bethany might have had issues/been slower at the polishing task. 

[tds444]

the cyclists had about a two hour flight lead in Copenhagen though,that's why they won the leg,not due to the bike challenge

[biakbiak]

the cyclists had about a two hour flight lead in Copenhagen though,that's why they won the leg,not due to the bike challenge

I didn't say that is why the won that leg, my point was that the race has any number of variables that TPTB can't be responsible for making the tasks an even playing field. It would have just been as easy for the cyclists to have been behind in Copenhagen and their knowledge of the bike pushed them ahead of another team. Just like in this challenge A/B  and two other teams could have had the 40 minute lead on the group and so no one would have challenged A/B for the FF and the plan to U-Turn the cyclists would have been in place and they could have still been eliminated. 

 

They took a risk even though they knew the time difference they were ahead of A/B because they past each other on the boat ride and that it was most likely a surfing challenge but still decided to go ahead and do it and therefore were eliminated. 

Edited December 2, 2014 by biakbiak

[tds444]

I don't think it was rigged for the surfers,and I still think the cyclists made the right call to avoid the u-turn

 

Just saying biking is something you can catch on quickly to,surfing isn't.Biking was also 1 of two options.

[backformore]

I thought he showed considerable restraint and wasn't barking at all.  I would have been screaming my head off, "GET ME THE FUCK OUTTA HERE!  I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"  

 

"Please help me?"  Really?

Me too -   AND i would have not been able to try again.   

Assurances that it is safe mean nothing when it was so obvious that the ropes were not set up right in the first place.  I couldn't trust that I wouldn't fall to my death on the second try.