Signal's wonderful detective work on Finland inspired me to prowl the Chinese sites for any spoilers, and with the help of Skald_Missa on the Chinese boards, I found something!
http://forum.friends6.com/view-49420.htmlhttp://forum.friends6.com/view-50526.htmlFor those who can't read Chinese, here's how the threads go...
Scott910 (posting 22 May, +8 GMT) says that he chanced upon a company the previous day looking for translators, and so he submitted his resumé. The very next morning, he got notified for an interview in the afternoon. It was only when he got there when he found out that the job was for TAR production, from the 26th to 29th of May. (Perfect timing, anyone?) After almost passing out, he signed the confidentiality agreement, and was asked a few normal questions. The next few posts (other than the obvious envy and jealosy) identify him as being from Beijing. In the post dated that very evening, Scott910 says he got a call to start work on the 27th.
In the second thread, whoami80 (posting June 16) says that his friend was hired to help out in production, and earned Y1000 (about US$125) in five days. He bets on his underwear that the race will pass through Beijing. Not much disclosure, but he does later say that (his friend said that) Phil was really tall in person.
I think we should work on the dates given to us. Since the call stated that work starts on the 27th, it probably means that the 26th stated on the hiring notice was just a window period kind-of-thing. Working for five days would mean that the production process lasts until the 31st, the day the teams are sighted (starting?) in Ulan Bator. Perfect, with the teams departing Seattle on the 27th (arriving in Beijing on the morning of the 29th, Beijing is 16 hours ahead). We've seen from the Barcelona spoiler that production begins the day before the teams arrive, so that should give us the 29th, 30th and the 31st in China, enough time for a leg. Plus, how much production would be needed if the teams were just blasting through China without tasks?
On a side note, does anyone have any flight information for the 'United flight to Bejing via Tokyo'? United doesn't even serve Tokyo to Beijing.