In what can only be described as stunt casting, last summer's sweethearts, Jeff and Jordan from "Big Brother" were cast on "The Amazing Race." The pair is billed as "newly dating"; however, a clip from last season's "Big Brother" makes the cross-over casting clear.
Good casting? Bad casting? If Jeff and Jordan make the final three teams, everyone will be patting themselves on the back. If they are eliminated early, producers might be shocked at how quickly their new "fans" quit watching the show!
Each season, I like to look over the teams and decide who I think will go the furthest. I read the bios, watch some tape, and then make an "informed" decision. Usually I am wrong! But it's fun to speculate and I like it. For the record, I thought "detectives" Michael Naylor and Louie Stravato would go far but the premiere has left this theory in the air.
Anyhow, the show started off in Los Angeles, a now predictable setting for the start of the race. Phil gave another version of his standard starting speech with a twist. This time, transportation was not waiting a short run away. Instead, they had to navigate the public transportation system of LA to reach LAX.
For those less schooled in TAR, that was potentially a brilliant move on the part of the producers as it took the racers immediately off guard. First destination: Chile, and let the race begin!
The Cast
Now to the racers themselves. I like a lot of the teams but I found myself asking where did they find some of these racers?
Jet and Cord are brothers who happen to be cowboys. Yeeee Haaaawwww! At first glance, they seemed down-to-earth but damn, who wears cowboy boots while RUNNING a race? First bonehead move of the game? Cashing in their American dollars for Brazilian currency. Helloooo! Brazil and Chile are two different countries!
Brent and Caite are billed as dating models. He's 28 and she's 20 but there's more to their story too. Caite was a beauty pageant contestant who came in third but managed to solidify her "celebrity" by having the worst answer to a geography question EVER. If you have not found it on youtube, look! I won't spoil it but one of the contestants had a dead-on impression of her.
Monique and Shawne are moms and attorneys. Obviously, this pair has the smarts to go far, but an all woman team has never won the race. They do seem to have it together though and seem to know the game. (Understanding the game, IMO, is an important factor in how far teams go in TAR.)
Dana and Adrian are married from Texas. High hopes for this team but the roadblock proved to be too much for them. I think they will forever regret the decision that brought the game to an end. More later.
Steve and Allison are father and daughter from California. They seem to have a good relationship but a problem reading the clues! Hard to say how far they will go but personally, I don't see them in the final three. They provided one of the most hilarious moments that I can recall in TAR history when they misread a clue, wandered inside a house that just happened to have an unfinished wall in similar shade of red as they were supposed to paint on the OUTSIDE of a house! They painted quite a lot before they discovered their mistake.
Daniel and Jordan are brothers who are very similar yet different as Daniel is quick to point out. A big difference is their sexual preferences. If you are not aware, I won't spoil the surprise. Jordan is a sarcastic delight doing a dead-on impression of Caite. He also seems to understand the game better than his brother. This team also made a bonehead mistake and needs to clean things up.
Joe and Heidi are married and ran a great first leg. They were the first to realize the need to switch flights before time ran out. As the race tightens, I look for them to run consistently and smartly.
Jody and Shannon are the sentimental favorites as grandmother and granddaughter. I honestly thought they would be the first eliminated so more power to them for making it through the first leg.
Carol and Brandy are a dating couple living in LA. Every season there seems to be one team that kind of rubs me the wrong way and this season it just happens to be Carol and Brandy. I haven't decided why just yet, maybe it was because they give an air of being better than other teams.
The Race
The first leg of the race generally sets the tone for what is to follow. Carol and Brandy complained that no one uses public transportation in LA. That may be so, but on the other hand it's part of the game so who cares?
Airports can be the great equalizer and it was in the first leg when the three teams that were supposed to be on the first flight experienced a delay due to mechanical failure. Ouch! All teams ended up on the same flight.
Once in Chile, everything progressed pretty quickly to the the roadblock. The females definitely did a better job with this challenge than their male counterparts. The challenge was to cross a space by walking on one wire while holding another. It was not for the faint of heart as the wind was gusting and created an even more difficult challenge.
The challenge was so difficult, in fact, that one team failed to even complete it. Adrian fell off the wire once and was pulled back. Weak from his first attempt, he failed to make good on his second attempt either. His weight probably was a factor in his unsuccessful attempt.
Jordan (Jeff's partner) did a great job of cheering herself on and telling herself she could do it! Caite also made quick work of the task. Some of the men definitely struggled in this task!
The Detour was unique. Explaining that brightly colored houses are part of the local setting, Phil says that the city pays for them to be repainted. The task is simple: each team carries four buckets of paint and a ladder to a house with an unpainted section. The teams must locate the house with the same color as they are carrying. Sounds easy enough but teams had a hard time finding the houses in need of painting.
Once the teams arrived, they painted a small patch at ground level. Scratches head and wonders why they needed to carry the ladder? Of course, this is TAR and sometimes you just need to do things to make the task more difficult.
Jeff and Jordan quickly located their house and made short work of the task and on to the pit stop where Phil declares them the first team to arrive. Their reward for being first is a 5-day trip to Vancouver.
Brent and Caite arrive second but Phil explains that they failed to follow directions between the Roadblock and Detour. The instructions clearly stated that they must take a 120-year-old funicular down to the Detour. Instead, they chose to walk down. As a result, they incurred a 30-minute penalty.
Monique and Shawne stepped on the mat and into second place while a sulky Caite and Brent watched from the sidelines.
Arriving in third place was the surprising duo of cowboys Jet and Cord. Honestly, I had about given them up for dead after their debacle with the money exchange.
Next on the mat were brothers Daniel and Jordan. A misplaced paintbrush cost them a 15-minute penalty which in a tight race like this could have been the end of their run.
Eventually, 10 teams made it to the mat but Adrian and Dana remained back at the Roadblock. Their disappointment was obvious. Adrian commented, "Going out in the first leg is not something that we planned on doing." Obviously!
Teams to Watch
Previews of next week's episode show that alliances are being formed which might impact the gameplay of other teams. Jeff and Jordan appear to be one of the teams that are being targeted by the others. In the meantime, though, they seem to have the stamina for this game. While Jordan has never been out of the country, Jeff seems to have some travel experience. Tough call right now as to how much the alliances will actually affect them.
The female team, Monique and Shawne, are showing a competitive edge that could make the race interesting. If they can avoid the usual pitfalls of a single sex team, they will go far in this game.
I also think that Daniel and Jordan will be a force in this game. They need to clean up the small mistakes. Daniel's goal, according to his pre-interviews, is not necessarily to win but to go far enough so that true fan of the game, Jordan, can feel like he accomplished his dream. Might need a mindset change on Daniel's part to really make a run for the final three.
Even though they finished further back in the pack than the others, I really like Joe and Heidi. They seem to have great communication skills and I really enjoyed watching them race.
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