S30.E01: You're a Champion? Prove it!

[meep.meep]

I think that all that's waiting for the Yale debaters are college loan payments.  They are finishing their undergraduate degrees, and probably will go on to law school, but there are very few debate scholarships.

Is it the violinists who I keep mistaking for the gay male flight attendants from a few seasons back?  It was weird that some of the teams were introduced before the "Go!" and others afterward.

The goat yogists can just trip trop right away.  Maybe they will meet a troll!

I'm still waiting for a team of recently defrocked nuns......

[sinycalone]

The only team I feel reflects stuntcasting is the BB pair.  I was fine with all of the others in that respect.  (Everyone seems to forget the seasons where we had mostly models, would-be actors, beauty queens, etc. And during those seasons, there were lots of complaints about mactors.)

The only teams I normally resent are the ones who seem to have no knowledge of the race.  This year it seems at least one member of each team  was a long-time fan...often both.

Thus far -- I like Indy Car, Yale Debaters, skiers, and NBAers.

Neutral:  Lifeguards, Eaters, Firemen, Violinists, BB

Actively dislike:  Yoga Goat team.

 

Can't say much about the eliminated team...not enough screen time to make a decision.

[tvfanatic13]

Who is the episode title attributable to? Must have missed it. 

[Ducky]

12 minutes ago, tvfanatic13 said:

Who is the episode title attributable to? Must have missed it. 

from the amazingrace wikia...

"This episode's title was said by Cedric at the Roadblock, encouraging Shawn. "

[Geenee]

12 hours ago, AEMom said:

I think that the show believes that they have to do stunt casting to get the ratings up, but I believe that the real reason that ratings are down is because they have dumbed down the race so much.

The challenges used to be much harder. When I was headed down to watch the show last night, I asked my sons if they wanted to join me. One asked "American or Canadian one?" "American," I answered.  They both said no thanks.

TAR Canada still has the spirit of the original show, with brutally hard legs every week.

Great taste runs in the family.

4 hours ago, Hawkes said:

First time watching TAR as I have never been truly interested in it.  I have, though, watched all of the Canadian ones.  I found the Canadian one to be more exciting but this was the only episode of TAR that I've seen.

Indeed, TARCAN at its worst is still a cut above the original edition.

[lianau]

15 hours ago, green said:

Totally agree.  I miss the older teams and the parent-kid teams.  I miss normal people on the Race.  The twin brother firemen are about the only "normal" team on this Race so I have no hope they will survive for long.  I was hoping the goat yoga women would be at least semi-normal and fun but they are off to a bad start.  At least they beat out the freaking endless female model team representative for this season.

I often have problems with those teams . Older teams  because they feel like canon fodder  to be eliminated the moment you'll have a physically demanding task and the parent kid teams when they can't leave the parenting at home and the adult child turns into a  child again .  

I hope Goat Yoga isn't a repeat of Goat Farmers (and I liked the farmers , they were just bumbling racers with more luck then  race brain )

[Geenee]

53 minutes ago, lianau said:

I often have problems with those teams . Older teams  because they feel like canon fodder  to be eliminated the moment you'll have a physically demanding task and the parent kid teams when they can't leave the parenting at home and the adult child turns into a  child again .  

Regarding the former, S19 Bill "Pa" Alden says hi from heaven (with Cathi "Ma" A. also saying hi from this world), and as for the latter, the Ervins Gary and Mallory disprove such a notion.

[NeverLate]

Go Cody and Jess! BB was your past, this is your future! 

[blackwing]

Oh how I wish the Goat Yoga ladies had been philiminated.  Yes the blonde is bitchy, but I don't think the other one is much better.  She IS passive aggressive and I interpreted her comment about the information she found out "while you were sleeping" the same way as Blonde did.  She wanted a pat on the back while also getting a dig in at Blonde for sleeping.  

But really it was that Ring Girl's fault for losing, she was the only one who didn't take off her backpack.

Not sure what to make of Yale.  They are "championship debaters", which in a season full of athletes and models and firefighters, to me, makes them the resident nerd team.  Which is fine, but then the girl goes and says "ZOMG the Indy car guy called us wizards, they must really like us!"   She's acting like the classic "brain" in high school who gets star struck when the popular athlete cool kid talks to her.

[Bryce Lynch]

11 hours ago, Special K said:

Game of Thrones fans:  Was the giant "Viking" pulling the car the second actor to play Gregor Clegane AKA The Mountain?  I know that actor is Icelandic, and it looked like him to me.

I was wondering the same thing.

[Netfoot]

8 hours ago, lianau said:

Older teams  because they feel like canon fodder...

...and Chirpy blondes in pink who plan to sex-appeal their way through the race while everyone underestimates them, and are usually gone by the end of E3?  Now talk about canon fodder!

(Except the BQs, who kicked ass and took names!  Oh, how I miss you, ladies!)

[hendersonrocks]

I had no idea TAR was back, so what a treat to find it on my DVR last night. A couple of late-ish thoughts, especially re: Iceland:

• The Mountain from Game of Thrones wasn’t in the crowd.
• The big white bags are from a store in Reykjavik. I bought a cool water bottle there ten years ago. At that time it was a shop on what’s essentially the main shopping street. The core of Reykjavik is small and very easy to get around, so I’m definitely curious how and why they got all those bags.
• Black Death is intense. I brought a bottle home with me - it’s like vodka on crack.
• Iceland really is that gorgeous and more.
• Goat yoga was just banned in a city - DC, maybe? I saw a story about it recently and how the city was concerned about sanitation and safety. Ha!

[Lamb18]

15 hours ago, mikewho said:

Just a clarification for those who may be incorrect (and by no means do I intend to put anyone down).

I've seen a few posts here (and more on other sites) that state they're happy this season started in the same place as Season 1.

Technically, they didn't. This season started in Washington Square Park, in southern Manhattan.

Season 1 started at Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, approximately 3 miles north.

And as for the eyebrow-pop, Phil did it in his introduction shot.

I was one of those people and I meant that it started in Manhattan. I know that the locations within Manhattan were not the same.

[talktalk]

The gay team is pretty easy on the eyes, I hope they stick around, we need some eye candy! 

[Bryce Lynch]

1 hour ago, hendersonrocks said:

I had no idea TAR was back, so what a treat to find it on my DVR last night. A couple of late-ish thoughts, especially re: Iceland:

• The Mountain from Game of Thrones wasn’t in the crowd.
• The big white bags are from a store in Reykjavik. I bought a cool water bottle there ten years ago. At that time it was a shop on what’s essentially the main shopping street. The core of Reykjavik is small and very easy to get around, so I’m definitely curious how and why they got all those bags.
• Black Death is intense. I brought a bottle home with me - it’s like vodka on crack.
• Iceland really is that gorgeous and more.
• Goat yoga was just banned in a city - DC, maybe? I saw a story about it recently and how the city was concerned about sanitation and safety. Ha!

I think goat yoga should be banned on the grounds that it is criminally ridiculous.  

[chaifan]

Post race interview with the Ring Girls.  It explains why the one had no shoes on, but, unfortunately, does not explain anything about the white bags.

https://parade.com/634946/mikebloom/the-amazing-race-30-dessie-mitcheson-and-kayla-fitzgerald-get-knocked-out-in-the-races-round-1/

[seacliffsal]

I think the firefighters are the most 'normal' team and could have easily been cast on previous seasons.  Sure, being twins might be considered a gimmick, but it's not like they won some firefighting competition-their introduction just emphasized their being twin firefighters in the same department.  

Cry me a river Ring Girls that you are misfits because you're not as tall as other models.  

Agree with everyone who wrote a comment about the dysfunctional friendship of the goat women.  I really wanted them first out.  However, they received help at the spelling challenge and were still over 30 minutes behind the NBAers who left the challenge after they did, so I am hopeful that they will soon be out.  By the way, I would be trying to sleep on the first flight in order to have some energy during the leg (the reality would be that I would be too energized to sleep, so there's that...).

It would have been awesome (although not necessarily in a good way) if the NBAers had been eliminated due to not only helping the goat women, but also helping the Ring Girls find the parking area.

The Nathan's hot dog guy looked a little sick when Phil gave him a hot dog to eat at the start line.  I think he must very specifically prepare for the food challenges and it almost looked like he was afraid he would get sick eating that hot dog at that time.

[Bryce Lynch]

13 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

I think the firefighters are the most 'normal' team and could have easily been cast on previous seasons.  Sure, being twins might be considered a gimmick, but it's not like they won some firefighting competition-their introduction just emphasized their being twin firefighters in the same department.  

Cry me a river Ring Girls that you are misfits because you're not as tall as other models.  

Agree with everyone who wrote a comment about the dysfunctional friendship of the goat women.  I really wanted them first out.  However, they received help at the spelling challenge and were still over 30 minutes behind the NBAers who left the challenge after they did, so I am hopeful that they will soon be out.  By the way, I would be trying to sleep on the first flight in order to have some energy during the leg (the reality would be that I would be too energized to sleep, so there's that...).

It would have been awesome (although not necessarily in a good way) if the NBAers had been eliminated due to not only helping the goat women, but also helping the Ring Girls find the parking area.

The Nathan's hot dog guy looked a little sick when Phil gave him a hot dog to eat at the start line.  I think he must very specifically prepare for the food challenges and it almost looked like he was afraid he would get sick eating that hot dog at that time.

I didn't feel like the Ring Girls were whining about not being tall enough.  They were just explaining why they couldn't be "real" fashion models. 

I think Cedric and Shawn desperately need the, "It's a raaaaaace!!! speech.  Of course, they can probably afford to be polite and helpful.  Cedric made about $20 million in the NBA and Shawn made over $130 million.   I like them and hope they do well.  

BTW, while I don't think the NBAers intended to cheat, Cedric has been widely accused of cheating in the slam dunk contest he won, by wearing a blindfold other players claim he could see through.  Maybe there will be a task involving being blindfolded in the Race, so we can find out if he really has amazing blindfold skills. :)

Edited January 5, 2018 by Bryce Lynch

[peachmangosteen]

14 hours ago, meep.meep said:

Is it the violinists who I keep mistaking for the gay male flight attendants from a few seasons back? 

I was thinking they reminded me a bit of the Chippendale dancers. I loved the Chippendale dancers so that alone was making me very receptive to the violinists.

[Writing Wrongs]

On 1/4/2018 at 3:35 AM, millennium said:

The average joe no longer stands a chance of running the Amazing Race. 

This bugs me, too. I want to see regular folks with a dream. Not people who have already had their 15 minutes or have won other things.

[green]

12 hours ago, lianau said:

I often have problems with those teams . Older teams  because they feel like canon fodder  to be eliminated the moment you'll have a physically demanding task and the parent kid teams when they can't leave the parenting at home and the adult child turns into a  child again .  

I hope Goat Yoga isn't a repeat of Goat Farmers (and I liked the farmers , they were just bumbling racers with more luck then  race brain )

 

11 hours ago, Geenee said:

Regarding the former, S19 Bill "Pa" Alden says hi from heaven (with Cathi "Ma" A. also saying hi from this world), and as for the latter, the Ervins Gary and Mallory disprove such a notion.

Also from heaven Nancy of the first parent/kid team of all time (Momily) says hi as well.  Still one of my most favorite teams ever and I loved Gary & Mallory too. 

And oldsters Meredith & Gretchen (and Gretchen's large wooden elephant) from TAR 7 aka Boston Rob's TAR say hi as they made the final four.  More would do well too if they weren't only given one token slot back then and none now.  And hell The Gutsy Grannies were more entertaining on their brief time in Season 2 than anyone last season period.

2 hours ago, hendersonrocks said:

• Goat yoga was just banned in a city - DC, maybe? I saw a story about it recently and how the city was concerned about sanitation and safety. Ha!

 

1 hour ago, Bryce Lynch said:

I think goat yoga should be banned on the grounds that it is criminally ridiculous.  

Eh, if the goats enjoy it I say go for it.  It beats sitting around just eating garbage all day long.  It's "competitive eating" that should be banned in my book.

[Bryce Lynch]

27 minutes ago, green said:

 

Also from heaven Nancy of the first parent/kid team of all time (Momily) says hi as well.  Still one of my most favorite teams ever and I loved Gary & Mallory too. 

And oldsters Meredith & Gretchen (and Gretchen's large wooden elephant) from TAR 7 aka Boston Rob's TAR say hi as they made the final four.  More would do well too if they weren't only given one token slot back then and none now.  And hell The Gutsy Grannies were more entertaining on their brief time in Season 2 than anyone last season period.

 

Eh, if the goats enjoy it I say go for it.  It beats sitting around just eating garbage all day long.  It's "competitive eating" that should be banned in my book.

How could the goats possibly enjoy it?  You can see the embarrassment on their faces.  

I am not a fan of competitive eating, and find it rather disgusting (though I do enjoy a good, "Man vs. Food" style food challenge).  But, I'd rather watch Joey and Tim devour a couple of goats than watch April and Sarah do yoga with goats.  I think the goats would prefer it too. 

Edited January 5, 2018 by Bryce Lynch

[NeverLate]

18 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

How could the goats possibly enjoy it?  You can see the embarrassment on their faces.  

I am not a fan of competitive eating, and find it rather disgusting (though I do enjoy a good, "Man vs. Food" style food challenge).  But, I'd rather watch Joey and Tim devour a couple of goats than watch April and Sarah do yoga with goats.  I think the goats would prefer it too. 

Okay, that would be hilarious...

[proserpina65]

20 hours ago, amazingracefan said:

Airport drama can be good sometimes, it adds to the storyline.  Just like you want to see some navigating and not just tasks.

But if it doesn't, I don't have a problem with airport scenes being edited out.  Sounds like that was the case with this episode.

[proserpina65]

11 hours ago, blackwing said:

 Which is fine, but then the girl goes and says "ZOMG the Indy car guy called us wizards, they must really like us!"   She's acting like the classic "brain" in high school who gets star struck when the popular athlete cool kid talks to her.

I thought she said something to the effect of "they must find us intimidating or real competitors".

[Netfoot]

3 hours ago, hendersonrocks said:

I saw a story about it recently and how the city was concerned about sanitation and safety.

Do they also ban horseback riding, and other similar disgusting, unsanitary practices?  

(If they come for my dog, they had better bring heavy artillery!)

[MyAimIsTrue]

2 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

think Cedric and Shawn desperately need the, "It's a raaaaaace!!! speech.  Of course, they can probably afford to be polite and helpful.  Cedric made about $20 million in the NBA and Shawn made over $130 million.   I like them and hope they do well.  

Somewhere I read that they plan to donate any winnings to charity.

[Special K]

1 hour ago, green said:

  It's "competitive eating" that should be banned in my book.

In my opinion, "competitive eating" is indicative of the end-times.  Maybe just for us stupid Americans though.

[Charlesman]

One of the reasons I like the 'stunt-casting' of actual competitors is that I hope it will lead to less bickering, infighting, and drama. We've seen this on Survivor and TAR before when athletes have been on the cast--they're better sports. Sportsmanship shows. When you're used to losing a dozen (or in baseball, fifty) games a year, you just roll with it.

 

I saw this when the ballers got past the roadblock. When he realized that he screwed up the O and the Ó, he didn't get angry or upset or blame the producers or say it was unfair. He laughed at himself over it. While he was in last place! His first reaction was "Oops, I screwed that up, I should have done better", not "This race isn't fair!!!! Wahhh! How should I have known that!"

 

 

(also, I'm impressed that so many teams got through the roadblock in just one trip on the course. Memorizing 11 letters and numbers in one try is not easy. They didn't know what the rest of the task was going to be... that the correct letters were provided and no extras were included. Most paid attention to the numbers and got it right away (with the exception of the aforementioned O's). That has me optimistic about the abilities of these teams going forward. That will make for a good season of TAR if this keeps up.)

[Lantern7]

2 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

BTW, while I don't think the NBAers intended to cheat, Cedric has been widely accused of cheating in the slam dunk contest he won, by wearing a blindfold other players claim he could see through.  Maybe there will be a task involving being blindfolded in the Race, so we can find out if he really has amazing blindfold skills. :)

Oh, so that's him! IIRC, this was a few years after Dee Brown won by covering his eyes with an arm while he slammed with the other. I reckon Cedric had to one-up that. Does anybody really care about the Slam Dunk Contest anymore?

22 minutes ago, Charlesman said:

One of the reasons I like the 'stunt-casting' of actual competitors is that I hope it will lead to less bickering, infighting, and drama. We've seen this on Survivor and TAR before when athletes have been on the cast--they're better sports. Sportsmanship shows. When you're used to losing a dozen (or in baseball, fifty) games a year, you just roll with it.

Double-edged sword: less conflict might make for weaker television. I think TAR28 wasn't as exciting because most of the Racers were Internet personalities (the rest being related to them), and they didn't want to alienate their respective fan bases

[ByaNose]

Just listened to the exit interview with the Ring Girls, Dessie Mitcheson and Kayla Fitzgerald on RHAP. They had a positive experince on the outcome and seemed like super nice girls. They were laughing and answering the questions without any bad attitude. They explained the trouble with parking was due to driving 20 hours, being hungry and basically brain dead by that point. All in all, they showed a lot of personallity and I sort of wish it was Goat Yoga who were elimintated.

Edited January 5, 2018 by ByaNose

[plurie]

1 hour ago, Charlesman said:

(also, I'm impressed that so many teams got through the roadblock in just one trip on the course. Memorizing 11 letters and numbers in one try is not easy. They didn't know what the rest of the task was going to be... that the correct letters were provided and no extras were included. Most paid attention to the numbers and got it right away (with the exception of the aforementioned O's). That has me optimistic about the abilities of these teams going forward. That will make for a good season of TAR if this keeps up.)

I don't know that this is actually true. They probably edited out a lot of repeat trips for many of the teams.

[Pallas]

1 hour ago, ByaNose said:

All in all, they showed a lot of personallity and I sort of wish it was Goat Yoga who were elimintated.

Goat Yoga may be fine: goats are great; yoga is great; inter-species interplay is great. It's these Goat Yoga business owners -- and see how the last two words don't seem to belong with the first two? -- who can fix themselves up, or leave.

[Special K]

12 minutes ago, Silver Raven said:

The biggest winners in competitive eating are Japanese.

Interesting -- of course Americans don't have a monopoly on wastefulness.  :)

[iMonrey]

Quote

I often have problems with those teams . Older teams  because they feel like canon fodder  to be eliminated the moment you'll have a physically demanding task and the parent kid teams when they can't leave the parenting at home and the adult child turns into a  child again .  

Ironically, I think younger teams do better not because they're physically fitter, but because older teams tend to hesitate and over-think, while younger teams are brash and jump in feet first without thinking about it. While that doesn't lend itself to good decision making in real life, it's a benefit when you're in a race.

[spritz]

6 hours ago, chaifan said:

Post race interview with the Ring Girls.  It explains why the one had no shoes on, but, unfortunately, does not explain anything about the white bags.

https://parade.com/634946/mikebloom/the-amazing-race-30-dessie-mitcheson-and-kayla-fitzgerald-get-knocked-out-in-the-races-round-1/

About those shopping bags, makes one wonder if they went on some shopping spree. If they did spend time shopping, then they probably deserved to get eliminated. 

 

I am curious how much time Phil and the production people actually spent sorting out who came in last. It was a photo finish, but did the photo show which lady stepped on the mat first? From what I remember, the photo showed which woman's head/upper body was ahead of the other as they reached the mat. Was it the first to cross some imaginary line -- like crossing the plane of the end zone in an NFL game for a touchdown -- or was it the first foot on the mat that determined the winner? 

[Snappy]

On 1/4/2018 at 1:43 AM, millennium said:

This show's continued recruitment of semi-celebrity teams at the expense of ordinary people leaves me disinterested from the word "go."   Whatever happened to the parent-child teams?   The middle-aged racers?   The husbands and wives?   The college buddies?   The longtime friends?   The mom teams?   I'm sick and tired of watching people who have already had their 15 minutes get another bite at the apple, whether they're former athletes, youtube stars, Big Brother winners or whatever.   There are a few "almost ordinary" teams this season, but none that remind me of the show's heyday.   Not to mention that most of the competitors are conspicuously youthful.   The Amazing Race, not so amazing anymore. 

As much as I love TAR, this explains exactly why I haven't felt the usual excitement lately. Thanks for putting my feelings into words.

[ByaNose]

47 minutes ago, spritz said:

About those shopping bags, makes one wonder if they went on some shopping spree. If they did spend time shopping, then they probably deserved to get eliminated. 

 

I am curious how much time Phil and the production people actually spent sorting out who came in last. It was a photo finish, but did the photo show which lady stepped on the mat first? From what I remember, the photo showed which woman's head/upper body was ahead of the other as they reached the mat. Was it the first to cross some imaginary line -- like crossing the plane of the end zone in an NFL game for a touchdown -- or was it the first foot on the mat that determined the winner? 

The girls said on RHAP that it was literally minutes. Phil turn around a few minutes and came back and told them. They said they were so exhausted and never even gave it a thought to argue it or not. 

[dgpolo]

50 minutes ago, spritz said:

About those shopping bags, makes one wonder if they went on some shopping spree. If they did spend time shopping, then they probably deserved to get eliminated. 

 

I am curious how much time Phil and the production people actually spent sorting out who came in last. It was a photo finish, but did the photo show which lady stepped on the mat first? From what I remember, the photo showed which woman's head/upper body was ahead of the other as they reached the mat. Was it the first to cross some imaginary line -- like crossing the plane of the end zone in an NFL game for a touchdown -- or was it the first foot on the mat that determined the winner? 

Re the shopping bags, the first person I noticed that had one was the BB guy, the whole time his partner was trying to get him to listen to her he had that while bag in his hand. I'm sure the posters up thread had it right that they were give cold weather gear.

 

It was the last foot on the mat that they were looking for. Dessie had the last foot on the mat and so they were eliminated. The team (both members) must both be on the mat to be clocked in.

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

Re the shopping bags, the first person I noticed that had one was the BB guy, the whole time his partner was trying to get him to listen to her he had that while bag in his hand. I'm sure the posters up thread had it right that they were give cold weather gear.

The logo on the white bags is 66 North, which is a very cool Icelandic brand with several shops in Reykjavik. It absolutely makes sense that outdoor gear would come from there. (It still doesn't make sense why they'd be hauling the bags around instead of leaving them in their cars or wearing what they needed or putting it in their packs, but whatever.)

[ByaNose]

11 minutes ago, hendersonrocks said:

The logo on the white bags is 66 North, which is a very cool Icelandic brand with several shops in Reykjavik. It absolutely makes sense that outdoor gear would come from there. (It still doesn't make sense why they'd be hauling the bags around instead of leaving them in their cars or wearing what they needed or putting it in their packs, but whatever.)

I hate to sound like a broken record but on the exit interview with RHAP the clue told them to bring all bags. They assumed it meant everything and realized some others had them and others didn’t. Add that to the backpack that Desi had it was extra baggage she didn’t need. 

[PhD-Purgatory15]

TAR is almost old enough to vote lol.

I watched TAR1 when it aired in Australia during the summer of 2001. To think we've gotten 30 seasons over 17/18 years is kind of mind-blowing.

[Whimsy]

Hey all. Previews, even if they’re spoiler tagged, are not allowed in the episode threads. If your post is missing, that’s why. 

[Kelda Feegle]

Question - are the teams allowed to carry travel sickness tablets? If so, and I knew I'd be on a loooong flight, I'd be taking them and sleeping in order to conserve my energy (and wits). I know the first flight would indeed be harder to sleep on due to excitement so I'd use them there as well.

[Lantern7]

@hendersonrocks: Rob Has a Podcast, from Rob Cesternino, credited for introducing advanced gameplay in the sixth season of Survivor (The Amazon, where he finished third).

I think at least one person saw themselves in the opening. I discovered my appearance, much to my chagrin. Who else is out there?

[Geenee]

It was a step in the right direction to keep this premiere leg Detour-free after the last four seasons inexplicably brought them back for no good reason, the mystery of the unexplained North 66 shopping bags implying rather an edited-out Route Info task. 

[babs1226]

15 hours ago, spritz said:

About those shopping bags, makes one wonder if they went on some shopping spree. If they did spend time shopping, then they probably deserved to get eliminated. 

 

I am curious how much time Phil and the production people actually spent sorting out who came in last. It was a photo finish, but did the photo show which lady stepped on the mat first? From what I remember, the photo showed which woman's head/upper body was ahead of the other as they reached the mat. Was it the first to cross some imaginary line -- like crossing the plane of the end zone in an NFL game for a touchdown -- or was it the first foot on the mat that determined the winner? 

I think it was down to which second member of each team stepped on the mat first.

[Netfoot]

3 hours ago, babs1226 said:

I think it was down to which second member of each team stepped on the mat first.

Yeh, they both have to be on the mat, so the last one to arrive sets the time.   

[watch2much]

On 1/5/2018 at 11:59 AM, green said:

And oldsters Meredith & Gretchen (and Gretchen's large wooden elephant) from TAR 7 aka Boston Rob's TAR say hi as they made the final four.

I actually met these two once.  They had more energy than people half their ages.  They also told me they made money after the race endorsing Tylenol...so they did ok

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I know this is super nitpicky but I had an immediate dislike of the ring girls when they described themselves and their jobs. They said they work "in the boxing industry" and that they "do everything." No, girls, you don't "do everything." You show up at the weigh in, the press conference, and the actual match to stand around and then walk in a circle while holding a giant rectangle with a number.

As for working "in the boxing industry," eh. That reminded me of a tv show where a mother told someone at a party that her son worked in the film industry when he actually worked at the photo hut where people dropped off their film to be developed. Technically, yes, it's true but it's not really what people expect when you describe it that way. It would be like someone saying they work in the tech industry and then you find out that they work for a tech company doing accounting. Technically you're not lying but you are definitely presenting yourself in a certain way.

For the record, I don't have an issue with ring girls in general. If you want to make money for being fit while you're still young and hot, more power to you. Just don't try to make it sound like it's more than what it really is!

When one of them couldn't park their car in what looked to be a pretty large parking space, I just rolled my eyes. I live in Berkeley so you're lucky to find a parking space at all, let alone one that's big enough to fit your car. There's one particular parking spot in the garage closest to my building that people refer to as the sunroof spot because it's so tight that once you squeeze your car into it, the easiest way to get out is to climb out of the sunroof. I used to have a tiny Honda Civic and even when I was super flexible from taking yoga, it was a contortion act for me to crack the car door open a few inches (before the car door hit the cement wall) and slither out. So seeing that girl unable to park in a space that looked almost twice as big as the sunroof spot just made me dislike her even more.

I was not heartbroken to see that team eliminated, but I would have been happier to see the goat yoga girls go because I do not need to hear them sniping at each other about something like who was less irresponsible for sleeping on the plane vs getting directions. I hope they go next!