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Re: Racing report TAR18, leg #12 is on page 2
maf:
Racing report
Amazing Race Season 18, Episode 6
Film date: 2010-11-29 - 2010-11-30
Any driving times given are calculated using the web and assumes no other traffic. Also when I list the order of the teams I usually also list how many spots they have gained(+) or lost(-) since the last place team order was given.
Teams depart from the Pit Stop in Green Lake Park in the following order:
1.Jet & Cord 14:14 2.Gary & Mallory 14:16(+0:02)3.Margie & Luke 14:48(+0:32)4.Kisha & Jen 15:43(+1:29)5.Kent & Vyxin 15:52(+1:38)6.Flight Time & Big Easy15:59(+1:45)7.Ron & Christina 16:09(+1:55)8.Zev & Justin 16:10(+1:56)
Route info: "It's Tea time". Teams must now make their way to Jin Fu Yi Zhan Tea Shop where they will take part in a traditional tea tasting. That is they get to taste a tea. What they do not know is that the Papaya-Mango tea they are tasting will appear again later in the race. Once teams have completed the tasting they will receive a brick of tea and their next clue.
Choice quotes:
"Oh, we're staying in China", Mallory sounds disappointed
"No, we're staying in China", Luke's reaction is fairly close
"More China?", Zev & Justin
Jet & Cord have a little trouble finding the tea shop and are passed by Gary & Mallory. But the rest of the teams seem to have no problems finding it.
Choice quotes:
"Do we have to take our hats off for this?", Cord at the tea tasting
"That was pointless", Zev didn't see the point of the tea tasting
Route info:
--- Quote ---Fly to one of the major
stops on the ancient Tea
Horse Route:
Kolkata, India!
When you land, make
your way to Town Hall to
receive your next clue.
Note #1: Town Hall is
located near the High
Court.
Note #2: You should
bring your brick of tea
with you.
--- End quote ---
All teams travel on the same flight form Kunming to Kolkata. More exactly:
MU555 KMG-CCU 11:55-11:50 (the time difference is 2.5h)
Once they land is the customary mad dash for the taxis. Once in the taxis it really dawns to teams how many people there are around, even though it is midnight. Teams then encourage their drivers to drive fast so it is a race to Town Hall (16km 0:28).
Choice quotes:
"Why are there so many people?", Zev
"I already love India", Mallory seems to like crowds
"Calcrazy", Zev thinks it is a bit crowded and intense
"That place was packed, and it's one o clock in the morning", Jen was surprised by the crowds at the airport
"I'm pretty sure it is the Globetrotters 'cause they can't sit with their heads straight up", Cord guesses who is in the small taxi in front of them
"I think we are driving on the train tracks", Luke
"We just almost got hit by a truck", Christina find the drive a bit too exciting
Once teams arrive at Town Hall they find that it opens at 10.00 the next morning. Gary & Mallory arrive as team #5 and when they get out of the taxi the teams already there starts yelling "Run, run, sign in, sign in". Mallory, Gary and Margie & Luke start running like scolded rats for a while before it dawns to them that they have been had. But they take it in good mood and much laughter ensues.
In the morning teams get to see the city wake up before the gates open at 10. There is yet another mad dash in to the clue box:
Road Block: "Who's ready to drink in the scenery". Team members must first pick up one papaya and one mango from a table and bring them along with their brick of tea to the tea auctioneer. They must then find the tea with the same flavor they drank in China among hundreds of cups of tea. When they do they will receive a bottle of iced tea, with the next clue hidden under the cap, from the auctioneer.
In interviews racers stated that there were 1500 cups. But the judge's list contains 10 numbers between 90 and 954, so it seems more probable that there were about 1000 cups.
This road block is a giant product placement for the main sponsor of this season. It is also a really hard task since teams must drink all tea in each cup they present to the judge.
Choice quotes:
"Oh my goodness", Mallory sees the tea table
"I bring you Papaya and I brink you Mango", Kent delivers his fruit
"Here homey", Flight Time is slightly less formal when delivering his fruits
"The waif(?) of the mango did come through", Ron smelled his way to the correct tea
"Just grab one and go", Big Easy yells the finer points of a strategy to Flight Time
"I had no clue what the tea tasted like", Zev pays for his inattention earlier in the leg
"The only system I had to start with was picking them out by sight, after about my sixth or seventh bowl I thought, maybe I should just smell them", Jet found a good strategy
"I'm full", Luke is not having a good day
"Zev is wearing his tea drinking pajamas. Doesn't seem to be helping though", Justin
"This is hard, hard, hard", Luke is having a hard^3 time
"Good luck Margie", Justin wishes the remaining teams good luck when Zev found it
Teams complete the Road Block in the following order:
1.Ron* & Christina (2-3)At 10:072.Jet* & Cord (3-2)At 10:103.Kisha* & Jen (3-2)4.Kent* & Vyxin (3-2)5.Gary & Mallory* (2-3)6.Zev* & Justin (2-3)7.Flight Time* & Big Easy(3-2)8.Margie & Luke* (2-3)
Ron smelled his way to the correct tea and it seems he got in on the first try. Other teams were not so lucky. According to interviews Flight Time took around 3 hours and Luke close to 4 hours to find the correct tea.
The clue under the cap reads:
--- Quote ---Go to the Jorashanko
area & find
Thakur Bari. Deliver
your bottle to
Tiwari Tea Stall.
--- End quote ---
Kisha and Jen had trouble with the clue. They did not open the bottle but instead tried to find the factory making this drink. They found somebody who knew where that was and luckily for them that was close to the tea stall they really need to go to. So when the finally got a clue and opened the bottle they were relatively close.
Ron & Christina have Taxi trouble and think their driver is lost. At 10.58 the decide to cut their losses and change to another Taxi.
Teams reach the Tiwari tea stall (3km 0:07) in the following order:
1(+3) Kent & Vyxin
2(+3) Gary & Mallory
3(-2) Ron & Christina
4(-1) Kisha & Jen
5(-3) Jet & Cord, after 11.10
6(+0) Zev & Justin
7(+0) Flight Time & Big Easy
8(+0) Margie & Luke
Detour: "Hindu Art or Bengali Literature"
In Hindu Art teams make their way to a statuary shop (Raku Paul & Sons, 2km 0:06). Once there they must paint, dress and adorn a statue of a Hindu god called Ganesha. The task is not made any simpler by the fact that the producers have placed a few musicians, who play loudly, right next to the statues.
In Bengali Literature teams make their way to Dey's Publishing (2km 0:04), a book store, where they will be give eight stacks of children books. Then they have to squeeze themselves and the books into the back of a rickshaw school bus. Once inside they must direct their driver through the congested streets of Kolkata to a School, Victoria institution (College) (1km), where they must deliver the books to the headmistress.
Choice quotes:
"I feel like a monkey in a circus parade", Gary gets the title of this episode
"It was perfect for us", Kent liked the fact that they should paint the statues pink
"I have these ear plugs, but they are not helping much", Ron does not like the music
"That's easy for you to say, good grief", The old Ron is back for a short while
"We had to paint on eye brows which looked a whole lot like ours. It was kind of like us getting ready in the morning", Kent
"You think she's pregnant or do you think she just have a gut?", Christina wonder about the goddess they are decorating
While the first teams are starting the detour we get to visit the Globetrotters and Margie & Luke who are still stuck at the road block. We learn that the Globetrotters have made a pact that they should not give up any task this season (as they did in their first season). So Flight Time keep drinking tea, and eventually it pays off and they find the correct cup.
But Luke is having a really hard time and has to continue for another hour before he finally find the correct cup. Towards the end the staff is standing around him in anticipation, there are encouraging applauses and when he finally finally get it they try to hoist him up on their shoulders. It was a quite touching moment.
Teams complete the detour in the following order:
1(+1) Gary & Mallory (books), at 12.40
2(-1) Kent & Vyxin (art)
3(+1) Kisha & Jen (art)
4(-1) Ron & Christina (art)
5(+1) Zev & Justin (books)
6(-4) Jet & Cord (books)
7(+0) Flight Time & Big Easy (art), after 15.00
8(+0) Margie & Luke (art)
Route info: "Make your way to the fountain of joy". Teams must now make their way to the fountain of joy, near the Victoria memorial, and search the area for the next Pit Stop. Teams arrive in the following order:
1(+0 Gary & Mallory, win and Indian feast with entertainment and 1000000 rupee (more than $20000)
2(+4) Jet & Cord, at 13:55, seconds before #3
3(+1) Ron & Christina, a few more seconds before #4
4(+1) Zev & Justin, a minute or two before #5
5(-3) Kent & Vyxin
6(-3) Kisha & Jen
7(+0) Flight Time & Big Easy, at 15.40
8(+0) Margie & Luke, are eliminated
Kent & Vyxin arrives as the previous three teams are "enjoying" their sponsored drinks, and have no idea which place the are at (a fear of last place shines in their eyes). Phil asks Jet to tell them, and he says they are #4, which is wrong, they are actually #5.
We now get to see the final two teams battling it out at the statue decorating task. But the Globetrotters have a big lead so even if Flight Time kicks a bucket of paint and they have to redo part of the statue they finish before Margie & Luke. Flight Time takes time to give Margie & Luke a hug before they leave. He knows they are likely to be last and eliminated. Gestures like this are really encouraging to watch.
The producers try to create drama by showing how hard a time the Globetrotters have to find a Taxi, but in the end they do get to the Pit Stop before Margie & Luke. According to the exit interview Margie & Luke completed the detour about 15 minutes after the Globetrotters.
Choice quotes:
"I had to stop and give them a hug, just respect for not giving up", Flight Time
"That was so sweet of them to do that", Margie appreciated it
Next week Kisha and Jen will throw **** on a wall and Zev is bothered by the constant noise in Varanasi, India.
apskip:
One observation I have is that the Bengali Literature DETOUR was much quicker than HINDU ART. Teams that left the ROADBLOCK #2, #5 and #6 arrived at the pit stop #1, #2 and #4. I know there were 2 transportation legs in addition to the DETOUR in between, but slow Kolkata traffic was probably about an equal impediment for all teams.
maf:
Racing report
Amazing Race Season 18, Episode 7
Film date: 2011-12-02 - 2011-12-03
Any driving times given are calculated using the web and assumes no other traffic. Also when I list the order of the teams I usually also list how many spots they have gained(+) or lost(-) since the last place team order was given.
First there is the usual recap of the last leg. Then we get some product placement as we see Gary & Mallory enjoy the feast they won in the last leg.
Teams depart from the Pit Stop in Kolkata in the following order:
1.Gary & Mallory 13:18 2.Jet & Cord 13:52(+0:34)3.Ron & Christina 13:53(+0:35)4.Zev & Justin 13:54(+0:36)5.Kent & Vyxin 13:55(+0:37)6.Kisha & Jen 14:03(+0:45)7.Flight Time & Big Easy15:45(+2:27)
Route info: "Fly to the city of Varanasi". When teams arrive they must make their way to a specific Tonga stand where they will find their next clue.
In the taxi to the airport Jet & Cord say that their goal is to avoid making mistakes. And the last few legs have been successful so they hope they can keep their momentum going.
Choice quotes:
"India is a little too much for me", Zev feel overwhelmed
When Gary & Mallory arrive at the airport as team #1 they buy tickets on Kingfisher with arrival the next day at 10:45. We realize from the way the caption points out that they are on the Kingfisher flight that some team will be on another flight. Kent & Vyxin are the only team who stops at a travel agency to book tickets, but they also end up on the Kingfisher flight.
The only teams opting for another flight is Jet & Cord who book a flight which arrives at 11:45. Their mistake was to walk up to a Jet Airways counter and asking for the fastest flight to Varanasi. The clerk there sold them their fastest Jet airways flight.
From sightings it seems most teams went on different flights to Delhi and then spent the night there. The next morning six teams assemble by the Kingfisher flight and all wonder where Jet & Cord are. They eventually board and travel to Varansi by:
IT231 DEL-VNS 09:30-10:45
Meanwhile Jet & Cord are also getting worried that they do not see any other teams. Eventually they check the monitors and discover the earlier flight. But it is to late for them to make it. So they have to travel on their Jet airways flight:
9W723 DEL-VNS 10:30-11:45
Everybody on the first flight wonder how Jet & Cord could have missed it. And so do I, how could they make such a basic error?
Choice quotes:
"So, if nobody else gets on this flight it means they are all ahead of us", Cord
"It's gonna be a looong day", Jet
When teams arrive in Varanasi the show degenerates into the usual taxi race. Eventually teams reach the clue box at the Tonga stand in the following order:
1. Kent & Vyxin
2. Flight Time & Big Easy
3. Kisha & Jen
4. Gary & Mallory
5. Ron & Christina
6. Zev & Justin
And significantly later (but there are still three teams left)
7. Jet & Cord, at 13:40
Choice quotes:
"When you push the gas then horn blows in India", Flight Time thinks the drivers honk too much
"These streets are totally wild. There's like cars, motorcycles, tractors, cows, lions, tigers and bears", Vyxin thinks the streets are crowded
Road Block: "Who's ready to search for the meaning of life?". Using pictures for reference team members must search for six Sadhu's (holy men) who will each hand them a clue. When they arrange the clues in the correct order the meaning of life will be revealed (Once you're over the hill you pick up speed). They must then find the a last Sadhu and tell him the meaning of life to receive their next clue.
Different teams work together at various times during the road block. Gary and Kent worked together for a while, but once they got the last piece of the puzzle Kent bolted for the final Sadhu (who he had found earlier). When Kent got back to fetch Vyxin Mallory asked were her dad was. Kent gave an evasive answer, but Mallory correctly guessed what had transpired.
Jet & Cord arrive dead last at the detour when the first three teams are already done. But they have not given up and Cord takes off in search of the Sadhu's like he's on fire. So we get to see shots of Cord running down the street and finding Sadhus, and then we switch over to Ron who is aimlessly wandering along the waterfront looking for the right Sadhu's. It kind of feels like the hare and tortoise.
Choice quotes:
"Times square has got nothing on the Tonga stand intersection, it was insanity", Kent was impressed by the bustle
"The holy men, they looked like anorectic Santa Claus", Justin
"My strategy right now is to follow Gary, he seems to know what he is doing", Kent
"I don't like this place", Varanasi is a bit too much for Zev
"We see cowboy hats bobbing over the crowds, and I think all three of us girls were concerned", Vyxin and the other racers are concerned about the efficient cowboys
"Howdy howdy", Cord greets one of the holy men
"You don't get paid unless you win", Cord explains bull riding and why they don't give up
"I might have to go further up or further down, I'm not sure", Ron can at least be sure of one thing, he's lost
Teams complete the Road Block in the following order:
1(+2)Kisha & Jen* (3-3)2(+4)Zev & Justin* (2-4)3(-1)Flight Time & Big Easy*(3-3)4(-3)Kent* & Vyxin (4-2)5(-1)Gary* & Mallory (3-3)6(+1)Jet & Cord* (3-3)at 14:157(-2)Ron* & Christina (3-3)
Route info:
--- Quote ---Namaste!
Make your way to the
Swaminath Akhara near
Tulsi Ghat.
--- End quote ---
Teams must now make their way to a wrestling and strength conditioning club. There they will find their next clue.
On the way to the club one of the cameras run into the rear end of a cow. Much hilarity ensues.
Choice quotes:
"Keep wearin' yourselves out, guys. We'll be there in a minute.", Cord thinks they will have to wrestle the club wrestlers
Teams reach this club in the following order:
1(+1) Zev & Justin
2(+1) Flight Time & Big Easy, seconds after #1
3(-2) Kisha & Jen
4(+0) Kent & Vyxin
5(+0) Gary & Mallory
6(+0) Jet & Cord (around 14:30)
7(+0) Ron & Christina
--- Quote ---Detour: Feed the Fire or
Feed the Buffalo
Feed the Fire: Help to
prepare fuel for a
traditional stove. Then
light the stove and put
on a pot of milk for the
local children to receive
the next clue.
Feed the Buffalo:
Working together, carry
bales of hay to the home
of a Milk Farmer, who
will give you the next
clue.
--- End quote ---
In Feed the Fire teams travel by boat down the Ganges and the follow a marked path to the home of a local milk man. Once there they must make 50 traditional fuel patties out of buffalo manure and then slap them onto a wall to dry. Finally they have to load a stove with patties and light it. Production are providing plastic gloves for the teams which choose this option.
In Feed the Buffalo teams cross the Ganges and pick up a large load of hay. Then they must cross the river again and carry their hay through the narrow streets to the address attached to their bundle.
Choice quotes:
"I think fuel definitely has somethin' to do with manure", Kisha & Jen realize what the detour option is about
"We thought we knew India from Calcutta, this is so much different", Mallory upon seeing funeral pyres at the Ganges
"Varanasi is like another planet. I have never seen anything like it, but I'm glad we saw it", Mallory enjoys the experience
"The crap you do for a million dollars", Jen is kneading manure
"Vyxin, I can't keep up with you", Kent is tired
"Cow manure, seems like that is my Amazing Race Theme", Mallory fondly remembers a roadblock from her previous season
"This is the exact same outfit I wore standing in that pile of cow manure in Russia", Mallory revels in memories
"This outfit will go into trash after this. Because I know the next time I wear this, cow manure will be involved", Mallory again, perhaps those memories weren't so rosy after all
"I was worried about not putting on deodorant this morning, Ha ha", Vyxin thinks she will smell of cow manure after the detour
Zev & Justin and the Globetrotters encounter a live road block while delivering hay. In one of the narrow alleys the encounter a herd of buffalo. They eventually manage to squeeze through, but not without the buffalo extracting a toll from the hay they are carrying.
The lady judging the patties teams make in fire is quite harsh, but at least she shows which patties are not good enough.
Teams complete the detour in the following order:
1(+0) Zev & Justin (buffalo)
2(+0) Flight Time & Big Easy (buffalo), before 14:36
3(-1) Kisha & Jen (fire)
4(+0) Kent & Vyxin (fire)
5(+0) Gary & Mallory (fire)
6(+0) Jet & Cord (buffalo)
7(+0) Ron & Christina (buffalo)
The next clue is a picture of a doorway with the caption "Pit Stop: Ramnagar fort".
Kent & Vyxin follow the advice of some locals and hop onto a boat. But there is some discussions between the driver and some other guy so the boat stops a couple of meters from shore. Vyxin decides they have to go off so she jumps into the water and tows them to land. That is brave, or stupid, considering how polluted the water is. They decide to take a Taxi instead.
Choice quotes:
"Trying to go from last to first baby", Flight Time has hopes
"It's really scary, we don't know the whereabouts of Ron & Christina", Kent is nervous on the way to the Pit Stop.
At the end it comes down to a race between Kent & Vyxin in a Tuk-Tuk and Ron & Christina in a water taxi. Or at least that is how it is cut. We do not know how far apart these teams really were.
Teams reach the pit stop in the following order:
1(+1) Flight Time & Big Easy, win a trip to the Big Island of Hawaii
2(-1) Zev & Justin
3(+0) Kisha & Jen
4(+1) Gary & Mallory
5(+1) Jet & Cord
6(-2) Kent & Vyxin
7(+0) Ron & Christina, are eliminated
Finally I must say that I very much like the band aid Big Easy has on his head. It's flesh colored and thus virtually invisible. Or at least would have been if he were a bit whiter:-) As it is right now it kind of stands out.
Next week we'll be in Vienna and there will be lots of Schnitzel and a couch.
apskip:
"Everybody on the first flight wonder how Jet & Cord could have missed it. And so do I, how could they make such a basic error?" There is an easy answer to that: trust. Jet and Cord did not ask the right questions and they got stuck on the later Jet Airways/Jet Airways flight combination rather than the Kingfisher/Jet Airways combination that all other teams got.
The most egregious example of this was the finale of AR6, where Kris and Jon arrived at Honolulu International Airport first, but failed to properly question the American Airlines customer service person on which flight arrived in Chicago first rather than which one was the fastest. They lost to Kendra and Freddie solely for that reason.
redskevin88:
travel agents are up there with used car and insurance salesmen in terms of honesty...
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