S31: Colin Guinn and Christie Woods (Life Partners)

[Whimsy]

Colin Guinn and Christie Woods (Life Partners)

Previous season: The Amazing Race 5

Colin Guinn
Age: 38
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Current occupation: Tech Entrepreneur

Three words to describe you: Loving, energetic, and capable.

What excites you most about traveling?
Getting to experience other cultures and people around the world and witnessing their way of life firsthand... seeing how different their culture can be, while at the same time recognizing how similar we all are at the core.

Who do you think will be your biggest competition: Racers, Houseguests, or Castaways? 
Racers, without a doubt. The Amazing Race is very different than the other shows in that the competitors are out in the real world having to navigate countries with different cultures and language, dealing with uncontrollable flight delays, lack of sleep, jet lag, etc. I think the people who have experienced that before and proved to be successful in that environment, will be our biggest competition.

Christie Woods
Age: 40
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Current occupation: Integrated Sex, Love, and Relationship Coach

Three words to describe you: Adventurous, curious, and fun.

What excites you most about traveling?
Seeing the world, and experiencing new people and different cultures.

Who do you think will be your biggest competition: Racers, Houseguests, or Castaways?
Racers for sure!!

[momlyd]

Suppose his ox is still broken?

[theschnauzers]

10 hours ago, momlyd said:

Suppose his ox is still broken?

Colin has been making fun about that on social media ....

[TheRabbi]

So happy these two are back!!

[Honeycocoa]

Looking forward to seeing much more of them! ( and I'm sorry we don't have access to the old forum on them...)

[SVNBob]

22 hours ago, Honeycocoa said:

I'm sorry we don't have access to the old forum on them

While we may not have that, we do still have the old recaps.  Which is good because a lot of people in the first episode thread were talking about the recap of the legendary Broken Ox Incident.   I could have posted it in there, but it really fits here more.  The recap of the episode starts here, but the Detour itself starts at the bottom of this page, with Colin and "The 22 Stages Of Breaking Down Because Of An Ox" starting on the next one.

Edited April 19, 2019 by SVNBob
accurate titling

[Babalu]

@Honeycocoa - here’s a link to the Forums page. I didn’t spend much time clicking around, but there are some threads regarding S5 episodes on pages 16 and 17 (and probably other pages, too) of the Past Seasons subforums:

http://web.archive.org/web/20140329222356/http://forums.televisionwithoutpity.com/forum/594-the-amazing-race/

[displayname]

What a horrible recap, lol.

[Browncoat]

That was one of the best race episodes ever.  I can still see Colin giving Chip the death glare from the Yield box.  And the breakdown at the ox!  Oh, the breakdown at the ox -- classic killer fatigue.  I had to go read the recap again, and I still howl with laughter at "My ox is broken!"

And yet, somehow, in the current season, I'm rooting for them.  So far.  We'll see how long that lasts.

[SVNBob]

15 hours ago, Browncoat said:

And yet, somehow, in the current season, I'm rooting for them.  So far.

Well, they are one of the most consistent and dominating teams in TAR history.  Looking at their placements on the wiki, after placing high in the back of the pack on the first two legs (7th and 6th respectively), they were either first or second for 8 legs in a row (even with nearly getting arrested in Tanzania).  It was the combination of the Yield and the Broken Ox that finally ended that streak.

[Morrissey]

I can't believe they're back. Love them! And love that both of them seem at peace and genuinely happy. I hope they make it to the very end. 

[scrb]

Are they going to stay zen if the race doesn’t go their way?

they fought the first 10 years and then meditation saved them?

[Hera]

I'm not sure how I feel about Zen Colin. The Original Colin was too tightly wound for their relationship to be sustainable (or for him not to be felled by a rage stroke by now), but that's also where this team's hustle and entertainment value came from.

It'll be interesting to see how they do given the way the race has changed since their first outing. For one thing, there's a lot less flight wrangling (something this team was particularly good at) than there used to be.

[Jillibean]

I’m really excited that they brought back Colin and Christie. It’s fascinating to me to see them again so many years later. They’re both maybe a bit preachy with the zen stuff, but it truly does seem to be something that they’ve committed to as a couple and as individuals, and they do seem a lot calmer. They have some very stiff competition, so it’ll be interesting to see if they can hold up against seasoned racers who are more familiar with the more recent race format now that they’re not agggressively competitive. One of the reasons that they changed “bunching” rules was this team and their ability to get 24 hours in front of anyone else through airport negotiations. 

I did feel like we got a glimpse of old Christie with the “I find [the elephants] don’t like to be yelled at.”

[lexington11]

10 hours ago, Jillibean said:

I’m really excited that they brought back Colin and Christie. It’s fascinating to me to see them again so many years later. They’re both maybe a bit preachy with the zen stuff, but it truly does seem to be something that they’ve committed to as a couple and as individuals, and they do seem a lot calmer. They have some very stiff competition, so it’ll be interesting to see if they can hold up against seasoned racers who are more familiar with the more recent race format now that they’re not agggressively competitive. One of the reasons that they changed “bunching” rules was this team and their ability to get 24 hours in front of anyone else through airport negotiations. 

I did feel like we got a glimpse of old Christie with the “I find [the elephants] don’t like to be yelled at.”

I also got the feeling that they really do try to live the Zen lifestyle as much as possible, because I remember Elissa talking in one of this week's clips about how she related to them because she's also very into yoga and generally trying to be healthy/fit.

[SVNBob]

From the S31E04 thread:

52 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

1 hour ago, theschnauzers said:

I have no use for Charla and Mirna, and they’ve already had a returning racer’s season of their own. Not interested in them yet again, ever.

I'm wondering if they watch the show, and what they think of Colin being calm these days. Actually, anyone from TAR5 chiming it would be fun. It as a great season. 

I suspect Charla and Mirna would reflect the opinion of most of us old-school TARflies: they're somewhat surprised by the "new" Colin, but they like him...but are also anticipating him reverting to the old Colin at some point.

I'd love to hear what Chip and Kim think though.  As I said in the premier thread, Colin and Christie are now in their lives more or less the same place that Chip and Kim were during TAR5.  Their take on the "evolution of Colin" would probably have some interesting insights.

Plus, while Charla and Mirna stressed Colin, Chip and Kim broke him.  (Well, them and the Ox.)  They'd have a better gauge on what might be the tipping point.

[Fukui San]

You know since they’re billed as “life partners” but are in as committed a relationship as can be otherwise, I wonder if Colin is planning to propose at some point this season. 

More, alternately, why aren’t they married? They seem fairly conventional. 

[theschnauzers]

Actually they’ve answered that question in interviews.

Basically, they just don’t feel there’s anything to be gained in their lives by being married. And that’s not as uncommon as one might think. (And in some states, there are tax and property reasons for not being married.)

[mikewho]

It's their lives to live. And apparently, it's been working for quite a while now.

[scrb]

They have children together.  They're also reaching an age where power of attorney issues may start to apply.

While they both seem very fit and healthy, if one of them became ill, would the other be able to make big decisions for them?

They set up a trust and wills with health directives to spell out what to do, who makes decisions, if one of them becomes incapacitated.

But marriage may be a short cut for a lot of these things.

If they've been together since TAR 5, does that mean over 25 years?  At this point, doesn't seem likely either are looking for something else.

[SVNBob]

2 minutes ago, scrb said:

If they've been together since TAR 5, does that mean over 25 years? 

Closer to 15 years.  TAR5 was filmed and aired in 2004, and their bio from then says that they'd been dating for over a year by that point.

[scrb]

They are beasts.  They can run with almost any other of the remaining teams.

Not bad considering they may have 10-15 years on many of them.

[scrb]

That arrow challenge saved them, let them catch up to the pack and pass them.

Well they probably would have beaten the sisters since it would have been Colin vs. Rachel on the crossbows.

[theschnauzers]

They were catching up task by task. And Colin did mention he had done shooting arrows and other things, so he had the skill set. They arrived sixth and left in third, with five other teams behind them. I’d say they just powered through it, as they always have, and dealing with a cow is easier than dealing with an ox 😊

[SVNBob]

23 hours ago, theschnauzers said:

and dealing with a cow is easier than dealing with an ox 😊

Even moreso when both members of a team are trying to handle the animal, instead of just the one.

(Both instances were part of a Detour.)

[Guest]

On 5/11/2019 at 5:36 AM, Fukui San said:

You know since they’re billed as “life partners” but are in as committed a relationship as can be otherwise, I wonder if Colin is planning to propose at some point this season. 

More, alternately, why aren’t they married? They seem fairly conventional. 

Colin has already proposed on national television. It was during their appearance on the CBS morning show after the TAR 5 finale. I actually just assumed they were married because I remembered watching them get engaged. 

[scrb]

Made a mistake but still came in 4th despite being on the third plane.

Wonder if they'll get U-turned again.  They're good but Tyler and Korey must have won the most legs by now.

[HawaiiTVGuy]

14 hours ago, scrb said:

Made a mistake but still came in 4th despite being on the third plane.

Wonder if they'll get U-turned again.  They're good but Tyler and Korey must have won the most legs by now.

They said all the U-Turns are gone I thought.  Or was it just no more NELs?

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

They said all the U-Turns are gone I thought.  Or was it just no more NELs?

No more non-eliminations.

Spoiler

In the preview for next week, there is another double U-turn (blech).

[iMonrey]

I don't mind "the new" Colin and Christie, per se, but I'm not terribly interested in them either. They're just sort of there. They're good racers but without Colin's distinctive "Manson Lamps" as we used to call them, he's just kind of blah. I'm neither rooting for them nor rooting against them. 

[green]

Actually I find them really interesting and am full on rooting for them ... through time and space and locked in results. 

Alas I don't think they are getting the winner's edit.  Tyler & Korey are getting that in bucket fulls and with four straight wins in a row it is easy to understand.  But C&C certainly are getting the "good guys finish second" edit this time around with the good guys part being well earned. 

Ironic because they had the "intense, crazy but super great racer guy with a beauty queen along for the ride finish second" last time thing going.  Though the editors hid the final results far better in TAR5 if I have the edit figured out right this time. 

But I would LOVE to be wrong about my guess on the edit this time and see them win instead.  I'd love to see Colin get his reward as one of the legendary, great Racers of all time and them win this season.  I just don't think they will.  Sniff.

Also I want to add that on TAR5 though I was rooting for Charla & Mirna and Chip & Kim and even the Bowling Moms; I never hated Colin.  I felt really uneasy about the taxi incident in Africa because that was totally no bueno.  But other than that I enjoyed watching him as in really good entertainment and a perfect foil for Mirna, an ox, and, in the end, Chip.  And I always respected his uber mad race skills.

Edited June 17, 2019 by green

[scrb]

There's no stopping them now, unless it's a real physical task that he can't help her with.

They got to the U-turn first so they should be the favorites now, though if there's a lot of running involved, Tyler and Cory might have an advantage.

[bunnyface]

https://ew.com/tv/2019/06/19/amazing-race-31-colin-christie/

This is an interesting interview with them.  While I am happy for them and their personal growth, Crazycakes was fun to watch.  I think they are some of, if not THE, best racers.  TAR5 is my favorite season.  I just would like to see how the zen holds up with a Mirna and Charla challenge.  But then, I'm a terrible person.

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

https://ew.com/tv/2019/06/19/amazing-race-31-colin-christie/

This is an interesting interview with them.

This is FASCINATING. They really go deep into their relationship, season 5 and both how it felt and how it was received, and their massive life changes in recent years. Thanks for sharing.

[green]

On 6/20/2019 at 5:12 PM, bunnyface said:

https://ew.com/tv/2019/06/19/amazing-race-31-colin-christie/

This is an interesting interview with them.  While I am happy for them and their personal growth, Crazycakes was fun to watch.  I think they are some of, if not THE, best racers.  TAR5 is my favorite season.  I just would like to see how the zen holds up with a Mirna and Charla challenge.  But then, I'm a terrible person.

Thanks so much for the link.  I'm gonna re-post it in the main thread and credit you cause so few people come to these side threads and it was the most intelligent interview I ever read from anyone on reality TV.

[LadyChatts]

Quote

https://ew.com/tv/2019/06/19/amazing-race-31-colin-christie/

This is an interesting interview with them.  While I am happy for them and their personal growth, Crazycakes was fun to watch.  I think they are some of, if not THE, best racers.  TAR5 is my favorite season.  I just would like to see how the zen holds up with a Mirna and Charla challenge.  But then, I'm a terrible person.

Might be my opinion, but I never really considered Colin a villain.  It could be that the group that came after the TAR5 cast made Colin and his antics look pretty darn good.  I think he was just super competitive, but he seemed to really enjoy the race and competition, and I'd probably say he was a character if anything.  He and Christie weren't any worse than some of the other couples who came before and after them, and depending who we're comparing them to, they probably were more favorable.  The only person he really clashed with was Mirna, but he wasn't the only one who had an issue with her.  And he was friendly with Chip/Kim, until they Yielded them (which gave us one of the best moments ever, the death glare from Colin at the Yield sign).  I'd say his worst moment was with the cab driver in Tanzania.  

Edited June 22, 2019 by LadyChatts

[green]

26 minutes ago, LadyChatts said:

... I'd say his worst moment was with the cab driver in Tanzania.  

In that interview Colin agrees with you. Said they couldn't watch TAR5 again for nearly 14 years but then realized their kids had never seen them on TAR and they re-watched it for the last time a year or so back.

He said though he has learned to forgive his younger self finally that incident still makes him feel really really bad.  The ox he had made peace with years before though and finds the scene as funny as any of us at this point.

That re-watch was what lead to them being on this season btw.  All explained in that awesome interview.

Edited June 22, 2019 by green

[scrb]

Sounds like he's mellowed -- I didn't watch TAR5.  Got a lot of reasons to be grateful about how life has turned out, regardless of what happens on TAR.

She could have bailed and found someone else, since he didn't lock her down.

[Ruprecht]

I loved Colin and Christie during their first season. I knew they bickered but figured that production was highlighting the moments that fit the narrative. I've been so happy to see them again this season. They are by far the team I want to win tonight. Therefore, they have no chance. 😀 I just think either Tyler and Korey are going to continue to dominate or something ridiculous will happen like the Afghanimals stumbling to the finish line in first. Luck is such a huge factor in the final leg. 

HOWEVER, if Colin and Christie manage to win this thing, I will be screaming my fool head off. 

[scrb]

They both speak this spacey jargon, part of whatever belief system they’ve latched onto.

But they’re not zen or chill when they needed to power through some tasks or difficulties.

Christie was going to freak out on the taxi driver and Colin might have lost it on the drums if the other team completed it first.

But they both reined in each other before the other lost it.

Many of the tasks involved luck or random chance.  But they all required persistence and iterations to improve enough to complete them.

I roll my eyes at some of the things they say but it clearly works for them in life and worked for them in the Race.

[chaifan]

5 hours ago, scrb said:

They both speak this spacey jargon, part of whatever belief system they’ve latched onto.

But they’re not zen or chill when they needed to power through some tasks or difficulties.

Christie was going to freak out on the taxi driver and Colin might have lost it on the drums if the other team completed it first.

Whatever your predominate personality is, it's only human to have some other aspects show sometimes.  I'm sure even the Dalai Lama lets out a few choice words when he stubs a toe.  It's like all the criticism thrown at Becca if she shows any emotion other than unbridled enthusiasm - all of a sudden she's a "poser". 

I'm guessing a lot of people lost money in "when will Colin lose his cool" betting pools. 

[Rinaldo]

On 6/27/2019 at 10:10 AM, chaifan said:

Whatever your predominate personality is, it's only human to have some other aspects show sometimes.  I'm sure even the Dalai Lama lets out a few choice words when he stubs a toe.  It's like all the criticism thrown at Becca if she shows any emotion other than unbridled enthusiasm - all of a sudden she's a "poser". 

Exactly. Nobody's a one-dimensional robot.