S29.E12: We're Going To Victory Lane

[etagloh]

39 minutes ago, Netfoot said:

I think the big lead they had is probably - at least in part - because they came running off that international flight with nothing but a fanny-pack of documents for customs to look at.  That would probably have got them into a taxi and away while the other racers were being inspected for contraband.

Remember though that the crew for each team has to go through customs with the camera and sound gear, which is never going to be entirely straightforward, even if they have the appropriate credentials. (We've had a few hints of the customs experience in foreign countries, but never back in the US.)

Looking again at the finale, there's definitely a standalone crew and possibly a helicopter shooting footage from outside the taxi rank and onto the freeway, but we quickly get shots from the regular crews of all the teams. I don't think there was much of a gap leaving the airport, and S&B / T&J were together at the subway. The advantage of dumping the backpacks played out on the streets of Chicago.

[Haleth]

3 hours ago, hatchetgirl said:

Seriously though... Wrigley Field has stands on an apartment building across the street? 

Yup.  We went to a game last spring at one of the rooftops. It's pricey but you get unlimited food and beer. Pretty nice!  And they won.  ?

[backformore]

6 hours ago, HawaiiTVGuy said:

I agree, I almost wish they would ban the contestants from asking strangers or using phones.  Can you believe that when TAR first started, using phones to help was not actually possible?  Wonder if the producers need to update the rules with the increasing technology advances (along with unlimited data plans, I doubt anyone is going to let people use their phones if they still had to pay $2/MB or whatever).  It would be more fun trying to find and use actual maps (like Logan and London did) and then have to find another resource area if they needed it, like a library or something.  But I guess things would just get too complicated.  Oh well, I will just have to admit there is no way for a perfectly designed show, and I am sure the producers look at all the angles to try to create the most entertaining product possible.

Yes, I recall when racers would decide whether to spend some of their cash on a map at the airport, or ask multiple people for directions or assistance.  Smartphones take away some of the fun, as far as I'm concerned. 

[blackwing]

28 minutes ago, Haleth said:

Holy moley, the cab fare from downtown to Wrigley, to back downtown, not to mention the time... the racers must have been pulling their hair out. Very stressful when you are not racing for a $million.  Was the finish line on the back side of Navy Pier?  I couldn't place it. 

Based on the one shot that zoomed out a little, It looked to me that it was possibly the area near the Shedd Aquarium / Field Museum.  It was near the lake.

41 minutes ago, Nalan said:

Aaaaaaaand it was barely touched on at all during the finale except that one moment.  So clearly, it had no bearing on the results.

Still.  Not.  Budging.

You can refuse to budge all you want, but if you were given the chance to run around downtown Chicago for an hour... would you rather do it either 1) with a 30 pound backpack on your back, or 2) with a 2 pound drawstring bag?  In Scott's case, he probably would have ended up with 60 pounds of bags.  Just because it "was barely touched on" or mentioned on the show doesn't mean that it didn't have any effect.  I don't know of anyone that would choose to run with a big bag vs. no bag.

[Nalan]

Just now, blackwing said:

You can refuse to budge all you want, but if you were given the chance to run around downtown Chicago for an hour... would you rather do it either 1) with a 30 pound backpack on your back, or 2) with a 2 pound drawstring bag?  In Scott's case, he probably would have ended up with 60 pounds of bags.  Just because it "was barely touched on" or mentioned on the show doesn't mean that it didn't have any effect.  I don't know of anyone that would choose to run with a big bag vs. no bag.

With a bag.  That's my answer to that.  I'd keep mine in case there was something I needed from it.

In any case, Tara & Joey and London & Logan seemed not to have been hindered at all by keeping theirs, so again, I remain unimpressed by Brooke & Scott not keeping theirs.

I've spoken, I've opined, and now I rest.

[chitowngirl]

37 minutes ago, Haleth said:

Man, if I had a nickel for every time I've walked past the Water Tower I wouldn't need TAR.  

Holy moley, the cab fare from downtown to Wrigley, to back downtown, not to mention the time... the racers must have been pulling their hair out. Very stressful when you are not racing for a $million.  Was the finish line on the back side of Navy Pier?  I couldn't place it. 

It's just to the north of the Pier as you are entering Navy Pier. You actually go through part of it when you are getting to the Pier. If they would have swung the cameras just a bit, you would see Navy Pier is right there.

20 minutes ago, Haleth said:

Yup.  We went to a game last spring at one of the rooftops. It's pricey but you get unlimited food and beer. Pretty nice!  And they won.  ?

Go Cubs Go! 

Edited June 3, 2017 by chitowngirl

[PaigeMarieSara]

20 hours ago, Silver Raven said:

 

Did London really have the lens caps on the binoculars?

 

For literally one second. She grabbed them and put them up to her eyes and immediately realized they had the caps on. Simple mistake and I would think especially in a stressful situation.

[blackwing]

5 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

It's just to the north of the Pier as you are entering Navy Pier. You actually go through part of it when you are getting to the Pier. If they would have swung the cameras just a bit, you would see Navy Pier is right there.

Go Cubs Go! 

... go Cubs go!  Hey Chicago whaddya say, the Cubs are gonna win today!

Thanks for the correction on the finish line location.  I could have sworn I thought a shot zoomed out to show Phil that was along the lake and south of Millenium park / Aon.

[RealReality]

5 minutes ago, Nalan said:

With a bag.  That's my answer to that.  I'd keep mine in case there was something I needed from it.

In any case, Tara & Joey and London & Logan seemed not to have been hindered at all by keeping theirs, so again, I remain unimpressed by Brooke & Scott not keeping theirs.

I've spoken, I've opined, and now I rest.

But its the final leg, its not going to be done over a week so you could sleep in the same clothes.  You really only need your passport and your money.  Maybe medication?

Even if T/J, L/L weren't hindered, it doesn't mean they were able to go as fast as they would with a fanny pack and no bag.  It doesn't really seem that hard, weight puts up a resistance that makes it harder to complete any physical activity.  Just go to the gym, can you do a squat faster with 50 pounds, or 200 pounds of weight?  Does anyone run faster with additional weight attached to them?  Ankle weights are meant to increase resistance, its why running shoes are built light.  Even if you can run fast with weight, you could run faster and expend less energy with less weight.

I understand not liking Brooke and Scott as a team, but credit where its due, they made some smart decisions.  It doesn't make Brooke or Scott great people, it just makes them two people who made a smart move......and not even a completely original move.

[PaigeMarieSara]

5 hours ago, iMonrey said:

 

Yelling "Go Red Sox" at a bunch of Cubs fans is a classic asshole move. I'm sure Joey thought it was funny but it's yet another example that he's basically a jerk.

Gotta disagree here.  I'm sure the fans could take it.

[Dobian]

I bet Redmond wishes he hadn't helped Brooke with her stupid ladle now, or whatever he helped her with.

Well the stupidest team won.  I was rooting for Tara and Joey all the way and would have been happy if London and Logan won.  It was oddly appropriate I guess, this was kind of a stupid season.  The final memory challenge was really dumbed down from what they have had teams do in the past.  There were many seasons where that challenge broke teams' backs and resulted in a lead change.

Well another one done.  Not the best season but any season of Amazing Race is better than none.

[backformore]

3 hours ago, hatchetgirl said:

Seriously though... Wrigley Field has stands on an apartment building across the street? 

Yeah, and not just one building, there are several.  As someone posted, it progressed over time.  Wrigley was one of the last of the hold-outs as far as night games.   This was due to disagreements with the city and with neighborhood organizations that didn't want rowdy crowds, bright lights, and traffic in the evening.   When all games were played in the daytime, it was just people who rented apartments could watch the games on the roof of their apartments.  It wasn't big business, because seats at the ballpark were CHEAP!  (I recall paying $1 to sit in the bleachers,  or $2 to sit in the grandstand. (bleacher seats meant you went home with a bad sunburn).   Yeah, imagine seeing a major league baseball game for a buck!

As time went on, and the Cubs finally had night games, prices went up, and  being able to have parties on the rooftops  was a huge draw for the apartment buildings overlooking the park.  then the rooftop spaces were rented/sold, they charged admission.   Legal battles ensued about whether the rooftop people had the right to essentially sell tickets to the Cubs games without getting the Cubs included in the profits.  The Cubs sued to get a cut of the money made on the rooftops.  Then when the Cubs were going to put up a jumbo Tron, lights, more seats,  the rooftop owners sued because they had a deal with the cubs that they could sell admission to the rooftop , so it wasn't fair that the Cubs were going to obscure the view.  huge battles, court cases, lawsuits on both sides. 

There were also concerns about the buildings, which weren't constructed to hold huge parties on the roofs.  Eventually the Cubs had to gain control by buying the buildings or leasing the rooftops, so the Cubs association had control of ticket sales, special events, and construction.  SO now the Cubs organization, in addition to selling seats at the ballpark, sells admission to rooftop parties where you can see the game.

and there's your little bit of north side Chicago history.

[PaigeMarieSara]

1 hour ago, Nalan said:

Aaaaaaaand it was barely touched on at all during the finale except that one moment.  So clearly, it had no bearing on the results.

Still.  Not.  Budging.

  If you were to take a "day hike" somewhere, would you bring a 30 lb pack? It makes no sense.

5 minutes ago, Dobian said:

 

Well another one done.  Not the best season but any season of Amazing Race is better than none.

Completely agree.  (except maybe for Season 8...nah, still better than none)

[RealReality]

2 minutes ago, backformore said:

 

and there's your little bit of north side Chicago history.

 

the only history I want to know about the north side is Mike's.

Just kidding.

[Lamb18]

Just watched the finale and it made me wish Brooke had been this way the entire race. She had her moments but she wasn't terrible like she was in every other episode. Then I could have been happy for their win. I was cheering for Joey and Tara, but when they went to the temple instead of Water Tower Place I knew they lost it. I did guess Water Tower Place but didn't know what the other two landmarks were.

[me5671]

On 6/1/2017 at 11:02 PM, mtlchick said:

The 2010s' version of Flo has been found. 

It was a decent season with another bizarre final  leg.  The final task was pretty subpar.

Ironic, because IIRC that season of TAR ended in Chicago too, no?  It must be the city... produces horrible winners and subpar tasks.  I remember Kendra having to eat a deep dish pizza and acting like it was such a difficult task back in the day.  Lamest final task in Amazing Race history, that was.

Ah well, at least Scott deserved the money.  He even offered to carry Brooke on his back if that's what it took!

Edited June 3, 2017 by me5671

[bunnyface]

3 hours ago, Netfoot said:

It certainly used to be a rule that they didn't mention The Amazing Race.  I am surprised that they let them say "We're on a Race for a Million Dollars!" which, surely, is pretty much a declaration they're on TAR.   Maybe things are more relaxed now?

 

We've come a long way from Myrna and Charla screeching about needing to get to "el doctoro".  I think that was generally considered worse than "I'm in a race, please hurry up."

2 hours ago, PaigeMarieSara said:

For literally one second. She grabbed them and put them up to her eyes and immediately realized they had the caps on. Simple mistake and I would think especially in a stressful situation.

One of my all time favorite shots was when a team (can't remember their names, season 5, not My Ox is Broken) picked up a set of binoculars and only pulled off one lens cap.  So the graphics set up to the shot of what they were seeing to also only be seen through one lens for us too.  It was hilarious

[greyhorse]

2 hours ago, blackwing said:

Based on the one shot that zoomed out a little, It looked to me that it was possibly the area near the Shedd Aquarium / Field Museum.  It was near the lake.

You can refuse to budge all you want, but if you were given the chance to run around downtown Chicago for an hour... would you rather do it either 1) with a 30 pound backpack on your back, or 2) with a 2 pound drawstring bag?  In Scott's case, he probably would have ended up with 60 pounds of bags.  Just because it "was barely touched on" or mentioned on the show doesn't mean that it didn't have any effect.  I don't know of anyone that would choose to run with a big bag vs. no bag.

 

2 hours ago, Nalan said:

With a bag.  That's my answer to that.  I'd keep mine in case there was something I needed from it.

In any case, Tara & Joey and London & Logan seemed not to have been hindered at all by keeping theirs, so again, I remain unimpressed by Brooke & Scott not keeping theirs.

I've spoken, I've opined, and now I rest.

I would bet that 99% of this forum would say that it was the smarter move to run the last leg of the race without the heavy backpacks, given the increased mobility and the fact that you don't need anything except your money and your passport. Maybe you don't like Brooke and Scott - Brooke is certainly polarizing - but I think they should be given credit for a game-changing move.  Everybody of course is entitled to their opinion and if you want to stay in the 1%, that's fine by me.

2 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

It's just to the north of the Pier as you are entering Navy Pier. You actually go through part of it when you are getting to the Pier. If they would have swung the cameras just a bit, you would see Navy Pier is right there.

Go Cubs Go! 

Milton Lee Olive Park is what the caption said, and yes, it's right north of Navy Pier.

While I liked seeing Wrigley Field, I thought the delivery of the hot dogs to the rooftop seats was a bit silly.  Just didn't see the point.  Navigation to the rooftop wasn't that difficult.  So was it to give Ernie and Cindy a chance to be in the show?  Was it free advertising for the Cubs?  

Just realizing this was filmed last summer.  Seems like a long time that we had to wait until the season aired.

[Ducky]

3 hours ago, raven said:

   As for the Brooke/Flo comparison, at least Brooke did her share of tasks and though Scott offered, Brooke did not have to be physically carried, so there's that

The difference being that during Flo and Zach's season it didn't matter who did what or how many each had to do so most of the tasks fell to Zach by default somehow.  With Brooke and Scott- they were forced to split the roadblocks.  I can almost absolutely see Scott having to do nearly if not all of the roadblocks if that rule was not added.

The whole thing was meh as I wasn't a fan of Brooke at all.  I'm not going to go so far as to call T/J and L/L  "dumb" for not ditching their backpacks or anything else they did.  I'm sure they either had their reasons (meds maybe? Depending on how much or what kind it may not fit in the fanny pack) OR by that point they are TIRED and just want to get ON the plane to SLEEP and get to the USA.   And I believe S/B aren't the first to think of checking/ditching their bags either.

As for using phones-   yes Tara/Joey did enlist help- in fact if I recall they had TWO people there on their phones (now whether or not they were actually doing google searches is debatable...).

I didn't mind Joey yelling Go Red Sox! - that isn't a jerk move to me- I was amused; I would think some die hard fans would do that lol.  I didn't get a good look at Ernie & Cindy- per somebody's post way back on page 1 I think, they said something about his hair looking dumb for a 30 year old...so no idea  (as I just canceled the CBS all access).

Becca and Floyd will always be #1 in my heart from this season

[Ducky]

2 hours ago, Dobian said:

I bet Redmond wishes he hadn't helped Brooke with her stupid ladle now, or whatever he helped her with.

 

He didn't exactly help her- as I recall he said in a TH or something that he only did it because he knew that telling Brooke to "calm down" etc would just rile her up some more. Mike and Becca both helped Brooke physically (Becca literally cut the ladle shape out as Brooke complained her hands were too weak and Mike I think did some hammering...).

[pivot]

Worst winnners ever. Truly terrible people.

[Richness]

If Brooke wasn't so annoying with all of her screechy whining, that would have been a much more enjoyable ending. However, I will admit she did rather well at the tasks themselves, especially the final memory task. But her drama queen moment when Scott offered to carry her was just pathetic.  So congratulations Scott for figuratively and nearly literally carrying Brooke to the finish line. You deserve the win!

 

Since I generally detest most sports, Joey rooting for another team seemed uncalled far. While it might not have been wrong, it continued to lower my opinion of him that peaked (er, valleyed?) last episode. I'm definitely glad they didn't win. While I liked them for the lack of drama, I'm not entirely sure London and Logan were actually on the Amazing Race. Logan continued to look good in a tank-top, and I still don't know why I never noticed this until the previous leg.

 

My biggest complaint about the episode was the speedway task. Yes, there could have been opportunities for teams to change position due to putting on the tire or driving around the track in the allotted time. However, other parts of the task had rather linear first in/first queue aspects to it. I seriously doubt they would have let two teams race around the track at the same time. And while there could have been multiple victory photo op areas, I doubt there was. Both of these aspects could funnel teams into a queue that prevent passing and could have made a team wait to get finished. I really hate these choke points in tasks, especially on the final leg. Granted, it wasn't as bad as the David Copperfield magic trick and skydive BS, and it was more challenge than eating a pizza, so there is that at least. Other than this, I thought it was a very good leg.

 

I really hope TAR 30 goes back to basics of season 1, with no annoying U-turns (single, double, or blind), silly gimmicks, or horrid themes. Though I will admit an All-Star or Unfinished Business theme would be acceptable and even appropriate, especially since it will probably be the last one. That's provided they don't bring back teams that have been back several times. As much as I loved the Cowboys, I don't want to see them or the Globetrotters on this show ever again.

Edited June 3, 2017 by Richness
fixed some grammar issues

[biakbiak]

7 minutes ago, Richness said:

. I seriously doubt they would have let two teams race around the track at the same time. A

They didn't but Tara got at least one lap and maybe two laps in between Scott's laps so there was definitely room for movement.

[hatchetgirl]

4 hours ago, backformore said:

Yeah, and not just one building, there are several.  As someone posted, it progressed over time.  Wrigley was one of the last of the hold-outs as far as night games.   This was due to disagreements with the city and with neighborhood organizations that didn't want rowdy crowds, bright lights, and traffic in the evening.   When all games were played in the daytime, it was just people who rented apartments could watch the games on the roof of their apartments.  It wasn't big business, because seats at the ballpark were CHEAP!  (I recall paying $1 to sit in the bleachers,  or $2 to sit in the grandstand. (bleacher seats meant you went home with a bad sunburn).   Yeah, imagine seeing a major league baseball game for a buck!

As time went on, and the Cubs finally had night games, prices went up, and  being able to have parties on the rooftops  was a huge draw for the apartment buildings overlooking the park.  then the rooftop spaces were rented/sold, they charged admission.   Legal battles ensued about whether the rooftop people had the right to essentially sell tickets to the Cubs games without getting the Cubs included in the profits.  The Cubs sued to get a cut of the money made on the rooftops.  Then when the Cubs were going to put up a jumbo Tron, lights, more seats,  the rooftop owners sued because they had a deal with the cubs that they could sell admission to the rooftop , so it wasn't fair that the Cubs were going to obscure the view.  huge battles, court cases, lawsuits on both sides. 

There were also concerns about the buildings, which weren't constructed to hold huge parties on the roofs.  Eventually the Cubs had to gain control by buying the buildings or leasing the rooftops, so the Cubs association had control of ticket sales, special events, and construction.  SO now the Cubs organization, in addition to selling seats at the ballpark, sells admission to rooftop parties where you can see the game.

and there's your little bit of north side Chicago history.

That is wild! I love that history lesson! All i can tell you of the beginning of this in LA is, i know the luggage corner they went to and it would have been awesome had they gone maybe 3 blocks one way, they would have ended in Skid Row...

But if you ever want fun film history and architecture history (like the story of the building from Blade Runner - I'm your gal). ;)

Thank you. 

As for the backpack, I'm 4'9", so I would leave it wherever. 

Edited June 3, 2017 by hatchetgirl
The backpack controversy

[amazingracefan]

I don't think this season was the worst editing of this show at all, in the modern era (21 on) there have been one or two real disasters.  I remember one episode that had such quick editing it was like a music video, I assume it was some kind of experiment.

I didn't think the family edition (season 8) of the race was the worst.  The first maybe couple of episodes started off that way for sure with some very simple tasks, but after that I thought it was ok.  The least interesting of the early ones for me was season 2 which had such a bland cast.  Season 3 rescued the show and set it on its long run.

[sigmaforce86]

10 hours ago, Nalan said:

With a bag.  That's my answer to that.  I'd keep mine in case there was something I needed from it.

In any case, Tara & Joey and London & Logan seemed not to have been hindered at all by keeping theirs, so again, I remain unimpressed by Brooke & Scott not keeping theirs.

I've spoken, I've opined, and now I rest.

Not arguing the strategy, mostly because I don't care either way if someone else would choose to keep or not keep the backpack but....................If Brooke had that much of a meltdown trying to run with just the little fanny pack can you imagine the whining and complaints if she had the full pack on her?

Well I got what I wanted; Scott won.  And what I didn't want, Brooke won.  She really is insufferable - back to the old "I can't" at the racetrack, the arguing on the street when she didn't want to run anymore (which Scott made the mistake of getting sucked into so they both stopped moving at one point) and what was with the constant "don't yell at me" in the subway unless the amazing editors left something out he was barely raising his voice.  And yes, I like to complain about Brooke.

I don't mind the use of smart phones or anything else they can find.  But I agree it would be fun to design a leg where the clue said you can use maps or ask for directions but may not use any technology - just to see how it plays out and if any teams mess up reading the clue.

It took me until the last episode to figure out why I don't like Joey - and it actually isn't him it's that he looks like Leo Rossi, the actor who was in The Accused (if you saw it he's the one who recognizes Jodi Foster in the store and taunts her in the parking lot)...so all season he annoyed me and I just realized it's only because he looks like a film character who was a jerk.

[Haleth]

10 hours ago, chitowngirl said:

It's just to the north of the Pier as you are entering Navy Pier. You actually go through part of it when you are getting to the Pier. If they would have swung the cameras just a bit, you would see Navy Pier is right there.

Go Cubs Go! 

Ok, that's exactly what I thought.  I was surprised to not see a shot of the ferris wheel.  It's so iconic.

I thought it was smart of Scott to suggest checking their bags so they didn't have to drag them everywhere.  Besides the added weight while running around they'd be bleeding precious seconds getting the bags in and out of cabs.  Who was it in season 5 (Colin maybe?) who just dumped their bags in the trash after arriving on their last flight?  Makes a whole lot of sense to ditch them so you don't have to deal with them.  They can pick their stuff up later.

I was spoiled about Scott and Brooke winning a couple weeks ago and said then that I cannot understand why Brooke was given such a terrible edit.  Yeah, I know, she provided a whole lot of material that the producers couldn't resist.  I suppose her edit in the finale was the best they could do, aside from a track meltdown and whining on the street that caused Scott to offer to literally carry her on his back.  The producers couldn't have been happy with her win or they would have made an effort to show her in a better light.

[fib]

There dont seem to be winners edits on this show.  Youre not winning peoples hearts.  Youre winning a race.  There have been a bunch of odious winners throughout race history. 

[kiddo82]

Brooke is alright.  I don't think she's the anti-Christ or anything.  She's clearly got a low frustration tolerance and seemingly not fun to be around when she's out of her comfort zone but I don't tag her as a malicious human being.  A lesser human than Scott (i.e. Me) may have ditched her by the side of the road with all her carrying on but in the post leg interviews she at least seemed to own it.  When she's in her element (tasks like radio-ing the directions to Scott) she presented as calm and capable.  She's probably a fun person to just have a beer with.  

Brooke and Scott deserved to win for the same reason every team who has won deserved to win. They came in first on the final leg.

Edited June 3, 2017 by kiddo82

[WatchesTooMuchTV]

After reading this thread I feel like there's a disconnect in opinions of the landmarks task based on how familiar one is with Chicago. The distances look small on a map but they're a decent walk and would be awful to run between in the summer. Add in backpacks and going in the wrong order and the task can get pretty difficult and has plenty of potential for teams to shuffle around. Was it last season or the one before (or both) where it seemed like every single final task was way too straightforward? I thought this was a nice change from that.

[RealReality]

2 hours ago, sigmaforce86 said:

Not arguing the strategy, mostly because I don't care either way if someone else would choose to keep or not keep the backpack but....................If Brooke had that much of a meltdown trying to run with just the little fanny pack can you imagine the whining and complaints if she had the full pack on her?

Well I got what I wanted; Scott won.  And what I didn't want, Brooke won.  She really is insufferable - back to the old "I can't" at the racetrack, the arguing on the street when she didn't want to run anymore (which Scott made the mistake of getting sucked into so they both stopped moving at one point) and what was with the constant "don't yell at me" in the subway unless the amazing editors left something out he was barely raising his voice.  And yes, I like to complain about Brooke.

I don't mind the use of smart phones or anything else they can find.  But I agree it would be fun to design a leg where the clue said you can use maps or ask for directions but may not use any technology - just to see how it plays out and if any teams mess up reading the clue.

It took me until the last episode to figure out why I don't like Joey - and it actually isn't him it's that he looks like Leo Rossi, the actor who was in The Accused (if you saw it he's the one who recognizes Jodi Foster in the store and taunts her in the parking lot)...so all season he annoyed me and I just realized it's only because he looks like a film character who was a jerk.

I still won't forgive Danny Glover for hitting Ciely in The Color Purple so I know all about holding an unreasonable grudge.

[rasalas]

On 6/2/2017 at 1:21 AM, GaT said:

So why could Logan yell “drop the gun, drop the gun!” to London, but Becca couldn’t tell Floyd when he dropped the traps? 

That was Joey from the Mom & Dad team coaching her and cheering her on, not her teammate, Logan. Joey was also doing that task, and -- as we know from this season -- he could help her all he wanted.

[ByaNose]

Just listened to RHAP on the finale coverage. Overall, they thought it was a great season considering the theme.  They pretty much agree that Scott won the race for them since Brooke was such a whiner but she rallied when  won the race handily but I don't want to see them again. LOL!!! If season 30 is an All Star season I'm guessing it would be Team Fun & The Boy's that would be asked back. If they are really reaching maybeeeeee Team Mom & Dad but that might be a stretch.   

[Dobian]

1 hour ago, kiddo82 said:

Brooke and Scott deserved to win for the same reason every team who has won deserved to win. They came in first on the final leg.

They won the last two legs so it was a clear victory, they didn't fluke into it, luck out because the other teams had bad taxi drivers or whatever.  She was an idiot for much of the race but had it together the last two weeks on things like the cup challenge and directing Scott with the scoreboard numbers.

[amazingracefan]

3 hours ago, Haleth said:

I thought it was smart of Scott to suggest checking their bags so they didn't have to drag them everywhere. 

He said he knew to do it because he'd found out others had on previous seasons.  So it was more knowledge of that than an original idea.

[Knuckles]

I was impressed by Scott thru this whole race. He was able to hold himself back and deal with Brooke, and that, given the other pressures of the race, was truly impressive. I know he has to share the money with Brooke, but he really deserves the majority of the cash. I am trying to imagine Brooke paired with Redmond or with Floyd, and seeing disaster written all over it. I do wish Seth and Olive had been in the finals...they were my favorites from the start.

I am glad the Race is back...I love watching and don't mind disliking the racers either, that's half the fun.

[iMonrey]

On re-watch, it appears that London and Logan got on a train after having collected their three postcards. That seems to be what put them so far behind, even though they finished that task before Joey and Tara.

If nothing else, the one good thing you can say about Brooke is that at least she was polite to the locals. She reserved all her screaming and yelling for Scott - there was never any rudeness to clue givers and no "why don't they speak English" or "this place smells bad" obnoxiousness.

 I also have to remark on the irony of her calmness during the score board task. She could have flipped out and started screeching like usual but it was almost uncanny how serene she was. 

Joey and Tara seemed pretty low-energy by the time they got to the hot dog stand - I think they realized at that point they lost. Not a fan of either one but to give credit where credit is due, Joey changed that tire after only one attempt, and he was cheering on London while she was doing that task.

And I’ll never get tired of Phil’s wonderful accent and the way he pronounces “Chi-cahr-go.”

[etagloh]

10 hours ago, Richness said:

My biggest complaint about the episode was the speedway task. Yes, there could have been opportunities for teams to change position due to putting on the tire or driving around the track in the allotted time. However, other parts of the task had rather linear first in/first queue aspects to it.

The speedway task fulfilled a few functions: occupy teams for a few hours after landing in the early morning from Seoul, have some self-driving in a final leg, and set up the main business in downtown Chicago. Even though the teams left in the order they arrived, it wasn't that processional -- certainly not as processional as most "spectacular" tasks like bungee-jumping or helicopter rides or parachuting -- and it seemed to cancel out some of the taxi luck from the airport. Basically, it was a bunch task.

You have to hand it to Scott for taking 20+ seasons' worth of final leg knowledge and a few weeks of managing Brooke's outbursts. That sequence in the El station where Scott pinned down all the locations and then worked out the plan of attack was decisive: Brooke wanted to jump on a train and work things out from there, but he slowed her down, got the information, and everything followed from that.

[greyhorse]

3 hours ago, WatchesTooMuchTV said:

After reading this thread I feel like there's a disconnect in opinions of the landmarks task based on how familiar one is with Chicago. The distances look small on a map but they're a decent walk and would be awful to run between in the summer. Add in backpacks and going in the wrong order and the task can get pretty difficult and has plenty of potential for teams to shuffle around. Was it last season or the one before (or both) where it seemed like every single final task was way too straightforward? I thought this was a nice change from that.

Completely agree.  I think at the minimum it would take 30 minutes to walk from the Water Tower to Buckingham Fountain.  So maybe 15-20 minutes if they ran.  Factor in the three stops, and getting back to City Hall.  Probably at least an hour and half for the whole task.

1 hour ago, etagloh said:

The speedway task fulfilled a few functions: occupy teams for a few hours after landing in the early morning from Seoul, have some self-driving in a final leg, and set up the main business in downtown Chicago. Even though the teams left in the order they arrived, it wasn't that processional -- certainly not as processional as most "spectacular" tasks like bungee-jumping or helicopter rides or parachuting -- and it seemed to cancel out some of the taxi luck from the airport. Basically, it was a bunch task.

You have to hand it to Scott for taking 20+ seasons' worth of final leg knowledge and a few weeks of managing Brooke's outbursts. That sequence in the El station where Scott pinned down all the locations and then worked out the plan of attack was decisive: Brooke wanted to jump on a train and work things out from there, but he slowed her down, got the information, and everything followed from that.

Yes, Brooke just wanted to get on any train but Scott wanted to have a plan.  I think looking back at it, it was smart of them to take the train to the Water Tower which was the furthest away and then work their way back, given that they were already in the station.  But it could just have gone the other way.  I think I would probably have gotten out and walked to Buckingham Fountain first given that it was the closest, then worked my way up to the Wabash Bridge and then the Water Tower like Tara and Joey did (or at least tried to do but ended up at the Temple instead first).  I think logically I would have guessed that the final stop after collecting all 3 postcards would have been close to the furthest landmark and somewhere far away (say the John Hancock Center) from where I started.  So it would have been an advantage then to start close.  Brooke and Scott got lucky that they went far away and worked their way back to the starting point, and then to have City Hall the closest.  There's no way they would have known that.  Who knows, if the destination was something else instead of City Hall, there might have been a different outcome, although hard to say given that Tara and Joey got lost.

I'm surprised that it took the racers so many times to get around the race track under the 48 seconds.  Easy for me to say while sitting on the couch, but given the opportunity to put the pedal to the metal, I would have just floored it and gone as fast as I could.  There obviously of course is a fear factor that I don't experience just watching, so maybe if I was going 150 mph I might not feel that comfortable and want to slow down.  I don't recall but I don't think any of the drivers was wearing the head restraint system that NASCAR drivers have to use now.  There was the official guy in the passenger seat coaching them but it's not as if this is driver's ed and he has brake pedals at his feet just in case the racers screwed up.

[Rinaldo]

1 hour ago, greyhorse said:

There was the official guy in the passenger seat coaching them but it's not as if this is driver's ed and he has brake pedals at his feet just in case the racers screwed up.

Are we sure about that? I was kind of figuring that there was some equivalent of the driver's ed setup -- I mean, does one really want to entrust total amateurs with two lives at 150mph, with no way to shut things down if they freak out or lose control?

[fib]

1 hour ago, greyhorse said:

 

I'm surprised that it took the racers so many times to get around the race track under the 48 seconds.  Easy for me to say while sitting on the couch, but given the opportunity to put the pedal to the metal, I would have just floored it and gone as fast as I could.  There obviously of course is a fear factor that I don't experience just watching, so maybe if I was going 150 mph I might not feel that comfortable and want to slow down.  I don't recall but I don't think any of the drivers was wearing the head restraint system that NASCAR drivers have to use now.  There was the official guy in the passenger seat coaching them but it's not as if this is driver's ed and he has brake pedals at his feet just in case the racers screwed up.

I think it was trickier than that, you only had 1 lap to get up to speed, and Tara said something about there being a lot of rules about which gear to be and how to handle the curves.  So I think, it was as much how quickly you were able to get to the top speed and whether you could then keep it up made a big difference.  

Only Logan got close on his first attempt, going in 49 seconds. 

Just now, Rinaldo said:

Are we sure about that? I was kind of figuring that there was some equivalent of the driver's ed setup -- I mean, does one really want to entrust total amateurs with two lives at 150mph, with no way to shut things down if they freak out or lose control?

Yes.   There was definitely a driver.  I assumed they maybe had pedals too the way the "passenger" driver did in my on road drivers ed program.  

[Netfoot]

49 minutes ago, fib said:

There was definitely a driver.  I assumed they maybe had pedals too the way the "passenger" driver did in my on road drivers ed program.

Don't know about pedals, but the co-driver was giving very specific instructions as they drove.  They had to travel between two white marks on the track (helping them set the line) and the choice of gear was not up to them.  

Chicagoland Speedway is a 1.5 mile long, essentially oval-shaped circuit with banked corners.  A lap time of 48 seconds would equate to 112½ miles per hour.  The vehicles can do more than 200 MPH, and on that circuit the average qualifying speed exceeds 175 MPH with a lap time of 30 seconds or less. (Actual race averages are lower because they have to make PitStops!)  Given the nature of the track and the types of car they were driving, I really don't see what was so difficult about making that lap-time.

It's pretty obvious to me that the racers were being held back.  Perhaps verbally by their co-drivers, or by some combination of driving conditions that had to be met to fulfill the requirements of the challenge.

[jhlipton]

On 6/1/2017 at 11:39 PM, KenyaJ said:

I can't believe she refused to hop on Scott's back when she was struggling, because she "didn't want to look like an invalid." Girl, please! A million dollar was on the line and you're bitching at your partner when he's trying to be supportive.

On 6/1/2017 at 11:59 PM, Rinaldo said:

I let Brooke off the hook a bit this time -- it was legitimately hard to cover so much ground at a jog, the way Scott was.

I thought he was being a jerk.  Brooke wasn't stopping, she just wasn't going as fast as Scott could.  She asks for just a minute to catch her breath and he's "Well, then, I'll carry you". I thought he was being a bit of a jerk there.

 

On 6/2/2017 at 3:57 AM, greyhorse said:

Like the other Chicagoans that have posted, the order in which you did the landmarks was likely the make or break part of this leg. 

I think I would have gone from the station (1) to the fountain (2),  taken the train to the tower (3) and do the bridge (4) last so I wind up in the center of the city, closer to whichever direction I'd have to go.  As it turns out, I would have been a few blocks from City Hall (5). [See map,]

[seacliffsal]

I thought that Scott and Brooke had hats on that said "the Amazing Race" on them.  Am I correct?  And, if so, how were they allowed to wear those as wouldn't it be like telling people they were on the Amazing Race (which I believe they are not allowed to do which is why it's always "we're on a race...").  Did anyone else see this?

[etagloh]

1 hour ago, Netfoot said:

Given the nature of the track and the types of car they were driving, I really don't see what was so difficult about making that lap-time.

Oh, I do. It's the panic that kicks in when you glance at the speedo and see triple figures, combined with the focus needed to get the steering right, especially on a banked track.

I once watched a car show that featured a driver who was petrified of driving the speed limit on multi-lane roads, and part of how they got her over it was to drive around an oval, slowly ramping up the speed until she was comfortable doing circuits over 100mph. I'm certain the coaching here (though abbreviated) was along the same lines.

55 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

I thought that Scott and Brooke had hats on that said "the Amazing Race" on them.  Am I correct?  And, if so, how were they allowed to wear those as wouldn't it be like telling people they were on the Amazing Race

Oh, good spot. They were handed out as part of the "Victory Lane" ceremony after the speedway task, but only Scott & Brooke continued wearing them afterwards. That said, the Amazing Fanny Packs also have that logo on them, and all teams were carrying them throughout.

Edited June 3, 2017 by etagloh

[Netfoot]

3 hours ago, etagloh said:

It's the panic that kicks in when you glance at the speedo and see triple figures, combined with the focus needed to get the steering right, especially on a banked track.

I assumed that the natural tendency would be to put the peddle on the floor and see how fast it would go, and that they were coached by their co-drivers not to cut loose and try for the lap record.  

[Fukui San]

56 minutes ago, Netfoot said:

I assumed that the natural tendency would be to put the peddle on the floor and see how fast it would go, and that they were coached by their co-drivers not to cut loose and try for the lap record.  

I know my natural tendency would be to inwardly scream "Oh my God! I'm going to crash and die!" and decelerate.  I would not be a good choice for this task. 

[biakbiak]

11 hours ago, jhlipton said:

think I would have gone from the station (1) to the fountain (2),  taken the train to the tower (3) and do the bridge (4) last so I wind up in the center of the city, closer to whichever direction I'd have to go.  As it turns out, I would have been a few blocks from City Hall (5). [See map,]

I would have assumed like Brooke and Scott, mainly Scott, that there was a reason they got the clue inside the station and not outside of it and taken the train the furthest distance. 

[jhlipton]

19 minutes ago, biakbiak said:

I would have assumed like Brooke and Scott, mainly Scott, that there was a reason they got the clue inside the station and not outside of it and taken the train the furthest distance. 

That would have been best if the next clue was near the fountain or south of it.  If you take the Red Line due north from the station to the tower, you have walk a mile and a half to the fountain, hitting the bridge on the way down, then back-tracking back up to City Hall.  Instead, hit the optimum route, given where they had to wind up -- which the race designers knew -- would be to go to the fountain first, then take the Red Line, and come back to the bridge, which about 3 blocks from City Hall. 

If you have a better route that starts at the tower and ends at City Hall, please let me know -- I'd like to see it.

[millennium]

Boy, that really sucked.

I don't like Scott at all, in fact I strongly dislike him.   Him winning was punishment enough, but being able to see his victory as inevitable just ten minutes into the show made the rest of the episode pretty unbearable.

Once he and Brooke got to the number board at Wrigley Stadium, I fast forwarded through the rest.   There was no point in wasting even more minutes of my life on this.   When they arrived at the mat,  I shut off the TV, not caring what became of the other teams (despite that I liked them much more than Scott or Brooke).

I loved Joey shouting "Go Red Sox!" at Wrigley (native New Englander here).   That was the only shining moment in the show.

After this season, if I never saw TAR again I probably wouldn't miss it.   

P.S. And how come karma's never nearby when you need it?   Brooke and Scott promised not to U-turn the team with the big, bearded red-haired guy but they did it anyway.    Assholes.

Edited June 4, 2017 by millennium