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Great American Road Trip

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tory:
oh and ps i think it is the situations we relate to on this show that make it so funny.
i have northen relitives and being from va every year we would go to ct to see them, loved them btw and every yr i got teased for saying you'll, they loved it and i loved teasing them for saying yous's guys, so on the frist epi i was weeping i was loling so hard , @ the ny dad and the allabama mom omg sooo funny and so cute love loved it..

apskip:
It's episode 3 of this summer show. The 6 families have to travel to Independence KS in the southeast corner of the state and are encouraged to sing "Home on the Range". They next visit the "Little House on the Prairie" House where a docent family demonstrates what life was like in the 19th century in that area. Notable is an outdoor stove(foreshadowing?). The trip out from there involves a fairly narrow 2 lane road with a 65 mph speed limit sign. The DiSalvatores nearly run out of gas. Silvio tells Amy that they will connect the gas tank to her and she can gas it up.

My favorite family is now the Ricos. I like Ricardo's low-key nature and Erica's quiet charm. Unfortunately in challenges requiring speed or strength their children Mason and Blake are small and at a disadvantage contributing to the group effort. Being my favorite was the kiss of death for the Montgomerys. Will I do it again?

The families' motor homes arrive at the Red Buffalo Ranch where a "fire and meat" King of the Road competition will occur. The winning family gets a new Weber grill that is in the "nearly $1000 value" category as best I could tell. The 6 dads are competing and the rest of their families do a blind tasting on the burgers. The dads cook at least 8 burgers (one for themselves, presumably one of Reno, and one for each of 6 families) in 30 minutes. They have a wide range of extras and condiments available but most do not use much.  The families score each burger and comment on it.

Just on visual presentation and use of ingredients I would expect Ron Pollard to do well and also Ricardo Rico. Unfortunately as time runs out Ricardo's burgers are grossly undercooked, which makes them almost sure to be in the bottom 3.  The DiSalvatore Family really likes a certain burger; it should be no surprise that it's one cooked by Silvio. However, his scores from the other judges are abysmal and they go into the bottom 3. Lenny Faverey is rated the worst, which puts him in the bottom 3. The actual scores and the names of each burger are:

A. Meaty Montgomerys - score not shown but above 28 and less than 45.6

B. Silvio's Dream Burger - 24.6

C. McRico Burger Premier - 28

D. Bar B Coote Burger - it wins the prize for original and appropriate name plus the overall competition with 45.6

E. Faverey's Special - 26

F. Pollard Patty - not shown but above 28 and less than 45.6

So the DiSalvatores, Favereys and Ricos will face off in the later Elimination Challenge.  Keith Coote brought home the bacon for his family's third straight win. Although it was the Cootes who were offended by a false accusation of cheating in episode 1, there is no lost between the DiSalvatores and Amie Pollard. She wants them out and roots for the other 2 teams.

Next stop is at TallGrass Prairie Preserve, 37,000 acres in western Oklahoma (so I thought) loaded with bison/buffalo. Someone remarked that's buffalo is a good eating meat (he is right; it's lean and better for you than beef). They stop at Applebee's and ask for "a table for 24" which is a group of smaller tables.

The geographer in me wanted to find out where Tallgrass Prairie Preserve is. It's so special that it's not even on my Rand McNally U.S. state map set. It is 88 miles north (to central Kansas, but the wrong way to LA) and 44 miles west (the correct direction) from Independence. You will find it in Cottonwood KS, which is possible to find on the map but you have to look very carefully west of Emporia. I am surpised that NBC's producers would plot a route that deviates so strongly from Route 66, which goes southwest from Carthage MO down to Oklahoma City before turning due west. The families at Cottonwood are 235 miles off course.

The families drive on through Oklahoma to Amarillo TX, which is a pretty long drive and they eventually arrive. There must have been some good "family time" in that segment. On arrival they find the expected elimination Challenge. Each team has to transport with back and arm and leg power a group of about 12 items of varying size and shape which muct be placed along with themselves through chutes from the stockyards to reach a map of the state of Texas to finish. The Ricos go first and score 220 (presumably seconds left counting down from maybe 500). The Favereys get 347 and are safe. The DiSalvatores get 346 and are also safe. The Rico's vacation is over.
 
So I am sure you are asking "who do I like next best" so they can be eliminated next week. I guess it is the Montgomerys. I do not like the Favereys or DiSalvatores or the Pollards and I am somewhat indifferent to the Cootes. We'll see next Monday night at 8pm.

TexasLady:
I really am enjoying this show. It was sad to see the Rico family go. Probably the Coote family will win, but I hope not.

apskip:
It is sad to see each of the families eliminated, but that is the way that reality shows typically work. I do not agree that the Coote family has a lock on the end prize in spite of their King of the Road Challenge victories. Most of these challenges involve the entire family and the Coote children are a bit younger than the others. I would watch out for the Pollard and Montgomery children, who appear to be older and stronger than the Coote children. I expect it to be just like the Amazing Race. A team can win the majority of legs but not have any special advantage in the final leg, which can have luck-based elements.

apskip:
This episode starts with a drive to Adrian TX where the Midpoint Cafe is famous as the halfway point on Route 66 between Chicago and Los Angeles. Teams get a pie-eating contest there for $200 spending money for souvenirs in the gift shop there. The winners are the Montgomerys, who enjoy their new possessions. The teams drive to Albuquerque NM where they park their RVs at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. Anyone can do the "Balloon ride" but it appeared to me be to only a tether so they really weren't going anywhere. If they did, it would have required many balloons and I only saw one.

The King of the Road Challenge was at Albuquerque International Airport and involved loading mannikins from a bus onto an empty plane in 5 minutes. The teams who got the most strapped in would win a flight to Phoenix and an overnight stay at a resort and spa near there with luxury accomodations, services and food and wine. All teams evolved a divison of labor approach with different people doing different tasks, but the strap-them-in task was the hardest and the adults were doing that. The Montgomerys missed one final strap-in by a hair. The final tally was:

DiSalvatores 29 and going to the End of the Road Challenge
Favereys and Montgomerys tied with 46 and going to the End of the Road Challenge
Pollards 47 one ahead of the Montgomerys
Cootes 49 winning this for the 4th (I think this is correct) episode in a row

Teams went to Applebee's Car SidestoGo for their meals and gave that restaurant a nice product placement. Then they drove 236 miles to Holbrook AZ in sometimes bad weather. They stay the night in the Wigwam Motel, whose accomodations are only teepees.

The End of the Road Challenge was near the top of Meteor Crater in Winslow AZ. Teams were lying on chaise lounges and spotting "UFOs" as they flew over. These were:

1. Telephone set
2. Lawn Mower
3. Bowling Ball
4. Football
5. Golf Bag
6. Computer Monitor
7. Grill
8. ?
9. 3 things tied together
10. Kid's bike
11. 3 irons tied together

Teams were then taken to a board where they had to place square pieces for each item into its correct order on that board. The DiSalvatores finished first, then the Montgomerys and finally the Favereys were eliminated.

Next episode is at the Grand Canyon. That should be good.

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