The Amazing Race > RFF's Amazing Race: Design Challenge

The Amazing Race: Design Challenge VIII - Final Round Design Show on Page 50!

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Kamineko:


Lemontail - Mackinac Island, Michigan

Show contentFirst, we started on Easter Island. I really like the location, and the previous leg's Pit Stop is not a random beach but also has its uniqueness. The first clue is somewhat cryptic, but it's pretty useless since teams end up on the same flight. But wow at the flight connections. Arriving in Pellston at night, teams have to stay overnight, which is quite underwhelming, especially in the finale. I guess the editing would skip to the part the next morning. Also, where is the overnight stay location specifically?

Then they have the first Roadblock. The challenge idea is good since it tests the team members' stamina other than just their memory. Although you explained the task in visualization, tbh, I'm still quite confused. Maybe later, please give one or two steps of arranging the boats.

Then they have to go to a candy shop where they have to make and deliver fudge. It fits the location and also the finale theme, so a tick on that. They also have to deliver fudges to several hotels using bikes. Seriously, it's not often that we're seeing teams traveling on foot or bikes in the finale, and so far, I like it. I wonder how far each hotel is from the candy shop? You didn't provide a map of it (maybe just using several pinpoints). Also, I think that this task takes too long to complete. If they have to follow some steps correctly that it should be fine, but if it takes around four hours, it's too long. This is not a MasterChef task.

They have to go to the Grand Hotel Stables, another unique location, where they have to assemble and disassemble carriages. I don't get the disassembling part though, I think assembling a carriage is enough, but the disassembling is like another extra "task" thrown at them to prolong the finale. Then they have to go to British Landing for another Roadblock. While I like the concept and the task in general, I don't get the 20-minute limit. Especially in the final task, I don't really like a time penalty whatsoever since it can cause a team's lead even if they somehow missed by seconds. Finally, they're going to the Finish Line by bike. The Finish Line location is good, especially when teams are riding bicycles I kind of hope I can see a bike race between teams.

In summary, I love the location so much because I never heard of this place before. Also, I love that teams are racing using bikes or on foot in the finale because it's rarely seen. You provided useful details on the tasks but just missed a couple of things. I wouldn't say I like that teams are getting an overnight rest since it'll be skipped on the show and when there's a time penalty on the final Roadblock.

Nuku - Buxton, North Carolina

Show contentSo teams start in Guadalajara, Mexico, on a bridge in a national park. What time do the teams start anyway? Their first clue is directing them to Charlotte, North Carolina, where they will travel on a private (or charter) flight to Manteo in the Outer Banks. Then, they will find a treasure chest and a clue in a car. So far, it's pretty good, but you didn't provide any flights at all, so it's a big minus on attention to detail.

Then they have to go to an aquarium and search for a sea turtle rehab center, where they have to monitor five baby sea turtles. What kind of information that they have to collect anyway? After that, they have to go to Jockey's Ridge State Park for a Roadblock. The Roadblock task is pretty bland and not interesting, although it ticks the adrenaline activity usually held in the final leg. After landing, they have to complete a puzzle of the Outer Banks map. I don't understand the puzzle, is it kind of a jigsaw puzzle or just a naming puzzle?

After that, they have to go to a fishing center where they will find a clue from a fisherman, but then they have to go to a water sport site, which is weird. I don't think the clue on the fishing center is needed.

Then they have the second Roadblock, which is the memory task. The task itself is not an original one; also, the concept is just pretty bland. I even don't understand what do you mean by "U-Turn" clue anyway? You didn't mention the sample/fake/mock answer as well. After that, they go to a museum for another map puzzle. Although it's pretty much the same as the task in the first Roadblock, I prefer this task compared to the former.

After that, they have to go to a campground for a final task. After driving a buggy, teams have to match medallions for each leg. I wonder what is printed on the medallion? Is it a name or a picture? You didn't mention that. But this task is pretty good. Finally, they have to go to the Finish Line in a lighthouse, which is good.

In summary, your leg somehow looks pretty long to complete, with an unnecessary visit to the fishing center. Your tasks are fine, but some tasks' placements are weird, because I think you can remove the second Roadblock, or make the final task a Roadblock instead, and it's still a pretty good leg. The problem with details is that you didn't provide a flight, map, or other necessities. Also, please learn how to create a post using BBCode, since it will look better than a series of screenshots.


Jimmer - New London & Old Lyme, Connecticut

Show contentTeams are starting in Togo, in the capital city of Lomé. I like the starting city since we’ve never seen the race in Togo, so I’m pretty excited about that. Then teams are flying to NYC before taking a train to New London, Connecticut. The only problem is I need to know what train schedule the teams take. Are they bunched up on the same train, or there’s a chance that a team missed their train?

Arriving in New London, they make their way to the US Coast Guard Academy for a Roadblock. I love the Roadblock task, but I hope that they’re using a decoy instead of real people though lol. After that, they have to ride a boat to a lighthouse offshore to find the next clue, which is a Detour.

For Report Detour, I want to know what kind of tools provided for them to measure. Do you mean that they are given a thermometer? Or, is there a tool that mimics the thermometer behavior? Otherwise, this task is an interesting one. The Restore Detour is pretty straightforward. I wonder if there is only one lighthouse where all three teams will perform the Detour in? Because it seems that the lighthouse is pretty small in the picture, hence making the location so packed if all three teams are working together there, not including the cameraman.

Then teams have to make their way to a museum, where they have to complete a fairy house. How big is the fairy house again? I think if it’s pretty small, then it’ll add more difficulty to teams to work on the house together. Then they have to find a sculpture for the final memory challenge. I want to know maybe what landmarks the teams encountered. Also, is the landmark visited as a Route Info destination, or maybe teams only pass the landmark or see from afar, but it’s pretty straightforward (e.g., Eiffel Tower in Paris)? The Finish Line location is not bad, but I prefer that teams have to travel somewhere else, hoping that there will be another suspense and scrambling before the Finish Line.

In summary, I like many aspects of your leg. The tasks are easy to understand and pretty straightforward. There are some concerns I would like to know regarding some of your tasks, but pretty much I’m impressed with this leg. I can see this leg happening in the real version of TAR as well.

Lemontail:
Thanks for the comments, Kami. Some clarifications:

I did specify on notes that teams stayed at Thunderbird Motor Inn at St. Ignace, just a few feet walk to the ferry dock.

I did provide a map detailing about the route map of the hotels, which is about 1.2 miles in total. Teams were free to choose wherever they wanted to go first.

I had to give teams an overnight rest since I wanted to showcase the beauty of Mackinac Island on daylight and ferries to Mackinac Island doesn't depart much later in the night, so there's that.

And I will note your dissertations on rudimentary issues of my leg design and I will improve it better. Thanks again! :)

Kamineko:


Stone - Black Hills, South Dakota

Show contentTeams are starting in Haarlem, Netherlands, where they have to fly to Rapid City, South Dakota. Their first clue directs them to Deadwood, where they have to search for their next clue on Main Street. The problem here is, you didn't mention where the exact location of the clue box is. I believe that the main street is a long one, so saying the exact location, for example, in front of what shop or any landmark will be better.

Then they have the first Roadblock. I need more explanation here, like what kind of hoist the Roadblock performer should make. Maybe you should provide a picture of the example later. Also, how big the hoist they have to make, is there any example that they have to follow, etc. Please mention it more clearly. In general, I think this task has potential, but if the requirement is that the hoist should be able to lift a bucket, I guess it's not enough to be a "finale worthy" task.

Then they have to make their way to the Cathedral Spires in Custer State Park. It's not a cryptic clue, but the location is pretty decent. There, they find another Roadblock. The Roadblock question is unusual since nobody realizes that the Cat's Meow is the name of a climbing route for the first time. But, since this is a second Roadblock, which the other team member who didn't perform the first Roadblock has to do, it's not that interesting. The Roadblock task itself is pretty underwhelming. Although the location is beautiful, it's just another climbing/rappelling task, which is boring, in my opinion.

Then they have to go to the Red Shirt Community in the Pine Ridge Reservation. Their task is that they have to set up and decorate an Oglala Lakota tipi. I like this task since it's culturally fit, but I've seen this task before, like in TAR18's finale task. Finally, they have to donate all their money before going to the Finish Line, already?! While the donating task could be missed by a team like in TAR19, I'm not too fond of the placement. The Finish Line location is breathtaking anyway, so that's good.

In general, this leg doesn't scream the final leg. It fits better to be a leg in the middle of the race. Also, I think it is too short for a final leg, with only three tasks with a little chance of scrambling the team's positions. It also lacks originality and needs more polishing later. You said that it's a lot of self-driving, which is good, but for the finale, I think a long driving/getting lost drama is not fun to watch, and the editing would be more focused when teams are arriving at the locations instead. I think you can improve your leg later since I believe you can be better next time.


Declive - Key Biscayne & Key Largo, Florida

Show contentSo we're starting in Santos, Brazil. I believe the penultimate Pit Stop is the soccer field, so that's nice, especially with a specific reason for choosing that location. The first clue is self-driving to the airport. I'm sure that teams are bunched in the same flight, why bother requiring them to self-drive? In your details, you specify that it's the best option than to risk the teams or crews lives, why is that? If it's dire, isn't it better to have the teams carried by shuttle to the airport instead?

Their first destination is an Ocean Park, where they have to search for the 8th Lifeguard House. I like this if there are eight or more lifeguard houses in the park; thus, teams have to search for a specific house. It may shuffle their position, especially if the taxi drops them off too far away. Then we have a Roadblock. I like this Roadblock since it fits the finale leg euphoria. But there's a chance of linear Roadblock if the postcard is too easy to find or placed in the same spot. Then we have a cryptic clue, which I love. A picture cryptic clue is pretty hard if teams don't understand how to search by image or find someone who recognizes the poster. Even if they know the exact location, finding a specific boat from the marina can be tough, so it's nice.

Then they have to go to a turtle hospital. While the purpose of the task is good, I don't think that this will be good for the final leg since teams are on the rush and I'm not sure it'll look good on TV. Delicate details provided on how they should help the turtle, so good point on that. Then we have another cryptic clue where they have to look for a tree. While the location is good, I don't know why they don't just use a binocular instead of a smartphone, especially after taking pictures they won't do anything else with that.

After that, they have to go to the Naval Station for a memory challenge. While the concept is right, this task lacks many details. You didn't specify what airports are the answer, and the order of the airports as well. Then finally, they have to take a charter flight to the Finish Line. It's so linear like in the Season 24 finale, so I wouldn't say I like it because the winner is determined basically from whoever finishes the memory challenge first. But I love the location, though.

In summary, your choices of locations, cryptic clues, and the first half of the final leg are excellent. But the second half of the leg let me down because of the linearity and lack of details.


nrh2110 - Manalapan, New Jersey

Show contentSo teams start in Barcelona, in a majestic castle as well, where they have to fly to Newark, NJ. I would prefer you also include the screenshot of the flight later rather than just saying teams are taking an XYZ flight arriving in Newark at 2:10 PM. Your first clue using the 10-dollar bill, I find it hard to correlate between just a picture of Alexander Hamilton with the dueling grounds. Maybe it’s just my opinion since I’m not a US citizen, but I would prefer that you provide more context to the cryptic clue later.

At the dueling grounds, they get another clue to the Boxcar Bagel & Deli, where they have to make three dozens bagels. What are the steps? I don’t see baking and waiting for so long will be suitable for a final leg. Then, they have to go to Thomas Edison National Historical Park for a Roadblock. The task itself is excellent; however, I need to see the steps they have to complete.

After that, they have to go to Jenkinson’s Boardwalk and play a balloon dart game where they have to pop three balloons before getting another Roadblock. The Roadblock task doesn’t look that hard in words, but it can be confusing in real life. It’s also a new thing for the final task that correlates with only the Detours. Finally, they’re going to the Finish Line in a state park.

In summary, I think the tasks are excellent, except for the cryptic clue using the $10 bill. You didn’t provide any details for maps and flight as well, so later, please include those in your leg. Also, I think that the leg is a bit too short, but maybe “less is more” can be applied here? You’ll find out.

Kamineko:


BourkieBoy - Superior National Forest, Minnesota

Show contentSo teams are starting in Winnipeg, Canada. The first clue instructs them to drive themselves to the airport and sign-up for individual charter flights. I don't like it because it just basically determines the team's order right at the beginning. So the first team to arrive at the penultimate Pit Stop will have a massive advantage in this leg.

Arriving in the forest, they have to find a marked 2013 Ford Mustang. So are we in the year 2013 right now, or you pick that model year only to fit with the picture given? Looking from the sponsor side, I don't think they'll provide the old model of their product. Then they have to drive to a campground where they have to set up a camp. While the task explanation is detailed, I don't see it as finale-worthy. I can see this task happening in the middle legs in the race, but not in the finale.

Then they have to make their way to a lake for a Roadblock. I have to say that this Roadblock is tough and nearly impossible to complete. Remember this task appeared in TAR26's Thailand leg as a Detour option? All teams who picked that eventually changed Detour, right? Also, why will they get a 4-hour penalty for the task that they don't have a chance to change, possibly risking the racer's lives? Seriously, I'm not fond of this task at all. Instead of endangering my life, I would instead take a 4-hour penalty and lose the $1 million prize.

They have to go to the Eagle Mountain base for a hiking task while collecting pictures of the race. Once again, this task won't look interesting to watch, especially at the finale. Where's the picture located? Are they in marked stations or attached to trees? On the top of the hiking track (I assumed), they find the second Roadblock. I think this task is too easy to complete. Teams will have the chance to discuss along the way to the top, and then it won't take them 2 minutes to complete this task, which is underwhelming. Finally, they have to drive to the Finish Line –I assumed that they have to walk down the path again to reach the base– in a monument. I like the Finish Line location anyway, so good job on choosing the right spot.

In summary, your leg is better fit as a leg in the middle of the race. Your first Roadblock is the pitfall for your leg because the production would get sued in case something happened to the racer. Your second Roadblock placement is also disappointing. It's not a "Roadblock" where only one team can perform since teams will already have an idea of what's coming next and plan before while walking through the trails. Finally, you said in your notes that you had done some tasks before, but you will never do it again. Why force others to do that task if you don't even want to do that at the beginning?


MikeDodgers - Talladega, Alabama

Show contentOkay, first thing first, your formatting reminds me of someone's style of formatting. Are you sure this is your original presentation style? I don't care about the "Previously on…" part. I'll score purely based on the leg, not on the fanfic because it's not a fanfic challenge. But it seems that you like Bopper & Mark, huh, since they always appear in your design.

So teams are starting in Nagoya Castle where they have to fly to Birmingham, Alabama. Arriving in Birmingham, what do you mean by "travel by taxi or marked Ford Mustang"? Why were teams provided cars to self-drive, but they have the option to take a taxi instead? It's just peculiar and just a waste of money for the production if somehow all teams are not using the vehicles. The first location is the Idlewild Plantation House for a Roadblock. The task is excellent in concept, but I don't understand what they should do. Maybe later you should give a video or steps on what they should do. I even searched for cotton milling, and I don't understand what the team can do because it's all machine operated.

Then they have to go to the Hall of Heroes Museum. But where's the picture of the location? If you don't provide a picture, I would think that it's a fictional place. Why do you use so many Route Info envelopes again? You can replace them with the location pictures right. Arriving in the museum, they have to search for statues then take a picture using a camera. While this task is excellent in terms of history, it does not fit for a final leg because it's boring. Please provide the pictures or even the statue of said key players, so I know that the statues are real and not made for this task.

After that, they have to go to the silk stocking district, with another no picture provided. Also, where's the clue box located? Making your way to an area to find their next clue is similar to saying, "Make your way to Brooklyn and search for your next clue." Please provide the exact location (a specific shop, for example) next time. Then teams have to solve a series of cryptic clues, but all of them are random.
Moreover, we have Kim Possible. I don't think everybody knows who she is. Are you sure that the locations are real as well? I cannot find a clue for it. A map would be nice next time.

Then they have to go to Talladega College's Swayne Hall. Finally, you have a picture of it. Here they will watch a video then answering a 20-question quiz. Seriously, in the finale? Also, what's the minimum score to get a C? Finally, they have to go to a NASCAR speedway. For the final Roadblock, I guess you're overly excited to imagine the last task that you wrote a long text for it. Tbh I'm baffled. While the flag part of the task can be done anywhere else, I think you want a visit on a NASCAR speedway, and you just combined types of tasks possible on that location, even though it may look weird. Then they proceed to the Finish Line, which is actually at the victory lane, which is underwhelming.

In summary, I'm confused about this leg. It's not screaming the final leg. I cannot imagine the adrenaline rush that the teams may have because it feels like an ordinary leg. Your presentation also doesn't improve after the last time I saw your leg in the previous TARDC. Your map and flight screenshots are not tidy with your Chrome tabs still there, you gave too many Route Info envelope pictures instead of the location picture, not forgetting that the sizes are not consistent. It's a fragile leg, especially for a final leg, and you're a veteran in the Design Challenge. If you survive this round, you must improve your design and presentation because I know that you can do it.


NELs - Waskish, Minnesota

Show contentSo teams start in Winnipeg, Canada, where they have to fly to Minneapolis. The first clue is a cryptic clue, but I can’t say it’s cryptic because the word “Kensington” is the answer to the next location. Arriving in the Runestone Museum, teams have to ride a Viking longboat. Unfortunately, I don’t know the correlation between this location and the Vikings before I had to search on Google about this location. But I think it’s pretty weird to put a Viking longboat on the lake, even though there’s a museum dedicated to Nordic & Native American history.

They have to go to Menahga and find the statue of Saint Urho where they have to dress up as the Grasshopper King. Who is that? What does it look like? Please provide a picture of it later. This task looks off for me because I don’t understand the correlation with the location once again. After that, they have to go to the Headwaters of the Mississippi for a Roadblock. While I don’t understand US geography, this task is okay, but it is not fit for a finale.

Then they get another Roadblock after the first Roadblock, that’s pretty new. However, this is just another US geography kind of task, which is weird. Also, you didn’t provide both Roadblocks’ questions. After the second Roadblock, they get a cryptic clue directing them to Bemidji. It’s a pretty good task since it requires some navigation and knowledge of the area and can get some position scrambling. Finally, they have to go to the Finish Line in a recreational area, which is okay.

In summary, I understand that maybe you need more time to make the presentation in the Fantasy Game style. However, I think that you might need to learn it in the future if you make it into the next round. The problem is that I don’t know the locations well; hence I need a picture of them. Some of your tasks don’t scream final-worthy, with both Roadblocks just typical US geography quizzes with a twist. The Active Route Info with the grasshopper needs more explanation like the correlation or the history behind it. Otherwise, it will look like a random task for those who don’t know anything about that. You took a courageous attempt to visit never-before-heard locations (at least for me), so that’s good. But I need more than just a Wikipedia-style presentation for your leg to impress me.

MikeDodgers:
Yeah...for being my first finale leg design, I figured I'd mess up. No one gets it right on the first go. When I planned this leg, I wanted to go with a civil rights theme, considering what was going on in our society at the moment with the Black Lives Matter protests. I wanted to showcase what sorts of barriers African-Americans had to go through in order to attain equality and how far we still have to go in order to achieve that goal of racial equality. With the final RB, considering we've already showcased the past and how far we have to go in the present, I wanted to showcase the ever-advancing technology in the future yet to come. I wanted it to be a leg with the profound message of 'history set the stage, now you write the last act. The future is yours to grasp.' So that's what I was going for.

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