Topic: Re: Racing reports TAR 37, episode #8 is on page 1

[maf]

Here you will find the racing reports from season 37 of the US race.

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 1, "Double the stakes, double the eliminations"
Film date: 2024-05-18 - 2024-05-20

We are all very happy that the race is back. The first episode starts with a montage of Phil hyping the season. Then we get transported to the starting line at the Academy museum of motion pictures in Los Angeles.

The teams are:

• Bernie & Carrigain - friends
• Brett & Mark - married Vegas performers
• Han & Holden - siblings
• Nick & Mike - brothers, have been applying for 7 years
• Carson & Jack - best friends/gamers and Dungeon & Dragons streamers
• Pops & Jeff - father/son lumberjacks
• Scott & Lori - married parents of eight
• Jonathan & Ana - married
• Courtney & Jasmin - dating nurses
• Melinda & Erika - mother/daughter
• Ernest & Bridget - father/daughter
• Alyssa & Josiah - married nurses
• Jackye & Lauren - sisters
• Mark & Larry - retired firefighters

Phil tells them that during the first leg they will encounter the first ever Fork in the Road, and that there will be two eliminations. And then they are off. They have to run down the stairs to find their bags with the first clue on top of them at the entrance.

This clue tells them to fly to Hong Kong. When they land they must race to the Tian Tan Buddha to find their next clue. There are cars parked around the corner which they can use to drive themselves to the airport (15km).

There are two flights to Hong Kong an hour apart. Both are operated by Cathay Pacific so it is the same check-in line.

The first flight is:
  CX883  LAX-HKG  23:33 - 05:30 (+2) (scheduled 23:30-05:45+2)
This carries:
  Jonathan & Ana
  Carson & Jack
  Melinda & Erika
  Courtney & Jasmin

The second flight is:
  CX881 LAX-HKG  00:16 - 06:17 (+1) (scheduled 00:30-06:45+1)
This carries:
  Han & Holden
  Ernest & Bridget
  Brett & Mark
  Nick & Mike
  Scott & Lori
  Bernie & Carrigain
  Alyssa & Josiah
  Jackye & Lauren
  Mark & Larry
  Pops & Jeff

We get signs on the screen that the first flight arrived late at 06:03 but given the different clocks shown I would guess it was rather 07:03 which seems as a reasonable time for them to exist customs after having landed at 05:30. The same sign says that the second flight landed at 06:34 (I assume they mean 07:34) so those teams are about 30 minutes behind.

Teams get out of the airport and into taxis for the trip to the Tian Tan Buddha (28km). Once at the Buddha they must ascend the stairs towards the Buddha. The clue box is located approximately 2/3 of the way up (~200 steps). Teams reach it in the following order:
  1. Carson & Jack
  2. Jonathan & Ana
  3. Melinda & Erika
  4. Courtney & Jasmin
  5. Brett & Mark
  6. Bernie & Carrigain
  7. Alyssa & Josiah
  8. Scott & Lori
  9. Han & Holden
 10. Nick & Mike
 11. Ernest & Bridget
 12. Pops & Jeff
 13. Mark & Larry
 14. Jackye & Lauren

Route info: Take the Sun ferry to Cheung Chau island and search for your next clue along the promenade.

On their way to the ferry Jonathan & Ana borrow their driver's phone and see that there is a ferry which leaves in 28 minutes at 09:00 and the next one leaves at 09:45. Their driver says it may take 25 minutes to get to the ferry terminal from where they currently are o they hope they will make it.

Jackye had a nasty accident in some stairs earlier in her life so she is a bit nervous and subsequently they are falling behind at the Buddha statue.
 "My sister doesn't do well with stairs", Lauren,

Ferry #1 departs at 09:00 and carries:
 Jonathan & Ana (they bought their tickets at 08:58)

Ferry #2 departs at 09:45 and it carries:
  Carson & Jack (arrived to the terminal at 09:04)
  Melinda & Erika
  Courtney & Jasmin
  Han & Holden
  Ernest & Bridget
  Brett & Mark
  Nick & Mike
  Scott & Lori
  Bernie & Carrigain
  Alyssa & Josiah
  Mark & Larry
  Pops & Jeff

Ferry #3 departs at 10:15 and it carries:
  Jackye & Lauren (missed #2 with a couple of minutes)

While on the ferry we get a short segment where Jonathan & Ana talk about how they have had ups and downs in their relationship, but found common ground over the race.

The teams from the second flight are very happy that they catch up to most of the teams from the first flight at the ferry.

Jonathan & Ana are very happy they made the first ferry which left 45 minutes before the next. But it turns out they are on a regular ferry and the 09:45 is a fast ferry which is 20 minutes faster. So their lead when they arrive is only 25 minutes. But poor Jackye & Lauren arrive 50 minutes after ferry #2.

Nobody seems to have any issues finding the next clue box which is just beyond the ferry terminal.

Road block: Who's ready for some ups and downs?

In this road block contestants must climb up a bamboo tower and grab their next clue at the top. The task takes place at the Pak Tai temple football court which is about 400m away. There are 8 safety lines available and as usual the principle of first come first served is applied.

This task is made harder by the fact that it has started to rain so the bamboo is getting slippery.

 "I do this for a living", Brett, who subsequently flies up the bamboo tower
 
Teams complete this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1.	Jonathan & Ana*	(0-1)	Left before the other teams arrived
2.	Brett* & Mark	(1-0)
3.	Bernie* & Carrigain	(1-0)
4.	Alyssa & Josiah*	(0-1)
5.	Han* & Holden	(1-0)
6.	Scott & Lori*	(0-1)
7.	Carson* & Jack	(1-0)
8.	Nick & Mike*	(0-1)
9.	Ernest & Bridget*	(0-1)
10.	Melinda & Erika*	(0-1)
11.	Courtney & Jasmin*	(0-1)
12.	Pops* & Jeff	(1-0)	Seems to only use his arms to climb up the tower
13.	Mark* & Larry	(1-0)
14.	Jackye & Lauren*	(0-1)

Route info: Travel to Lok Kwan street park to find your next clue. Warning, Fork in the Road ahead!

Teams must start by taking the ferry back to central Hong Kong. Jonathan & Ana get to the ferry terminal at 10:12 and find out that the next ferry leaves at 10:45. From this we can conclude that it took them under 20 minutes to find the clue box and perform the road block. And when they realize they have to wait they go away to get information about their next destination.

All teams but Jackye & Lauren make the 10:45 fast ferry. As Jackye & Lauren got to the island around 11:10 I do not think they made the 11:15 ferry back and we see that they are on a regular ferry so they can not be on the 11:45 fast ferry. Therefore they are probably on the 12:15 ferry which means that they will land in central Hong Kong almost 2 hours behind the other teams.

Back in central Hong Kong teams jump into taxis and make their way to the Lok Kwan street park (8km). The only ones struggling here are Courtney & Jasmin. It seems they say the name of the park instead of showing the driver the additional information where the name is written out in Chinese letters. Once they realize that they need to show this to the driver they get a taxi.

In the park teams encounter the Fork in the Road. Basically they have to choose which path to follow (dance or sing). The paths will be separate until the Pit Stop and the first team on each path will win a price while the last team on each path will be eliminated.

Teams reach the fork in the following order:
  1. Nick & Mike, select dance
  2. Carson & Jack, select dance
  3. Alyssa & Josiah, select sing
  4. Ernest & Bridget, select dance
  5. Bernie & Carrigain, select dance
  6. Han & Holden, select sing
  7. Mark & Larry, select dance
  8. Jonathan & Ana, select sing
  9. Brett & Mark, select dance
 10. Melinda & Erika, select sing
 11. Pops & Jeff, select sing
 12. Scott & Lori, select sing
 13. Courtney & Jasmin, select dance
 14. Jackye & Lauren, select sing

 "The Fork in the Road changed everything. Double the stakes, double the eliminations.", Mike gets the title

In dance teams must learn the steps of an ancient lion dance. Then properly perform the dance to earn their next clue. This takes place at Jao Tsung-I Academy (5km). The judges here are fairly strict, it is not enough to do the right moves. They need to have the correct timing and be in sync with each other.

In sing teams will have to perform a short sequence of Cantonese opera. They must sing, in Cantonese, and perform correctly. this takes place at the Tea House Theater (5km). Teams will first be made up and they also have to dress up before they start learning the play. The text they have to sing is:

  MALE: DUEN GOR CHUNG
FEMALE: SING YIN SAAN,
        DUNG TING CHI HAU
        WU GWONG GAAM
  MALE: TIU SOI JUU NAAAN

These lyrics are also shown to the contestants at the performance stage so it is perhaps not surprising that it is the performing part which is the hardest.

Ana wanted to dance as she is a dancer but they see that five teams have already chosen that side and only 2 are doing sing. As they know they can not be last on either side they select sing where they are not as much behind.

When Courtney & Jasmin arrive to the board there is one spot left on each side. They look at the other teams and what they have chosen and try to figure out which side contains the most teams they can beat.

On both sides the judges will actually say what the teams did wrong, which helps a lot.

Teams complete the dancing in the following order:
 1(+1) Carson & Jack, on their 3rd attempt
 2(+4) Brett & Mark, on their 3rd attempt
 3(+1) Bernie & Carrigain
 4(-1) Ernest & Bridget
 5(-4) Nick & Mike, on their 7th attempt
 6(+1) Courtney & Jasmin, on their 2nd attempt
 7(-2) Mark & Larry, on their 4th attempt

Teams complete the sing in the following order:
 1(+0) Alyssa & Josiah, on their 4th attempt
 2(+1) Jonathan & Ana, on their 3rd attempt
 3(+2) Pops & Jeff, on their 2 attempt
 4(-2) Han & Holden
 5(+1) Scott & Lori, on their 6th attempt
 6(-2) Melinda & Erika, on their 5th attempt
 7(+0) Jackye & Lauren, after a lot of attempts

The next clue tells teams to make their way to the pit stop on the West Kowloon cultural district art park terrace. Here they will find two mats, one with a pair of lion dancers as greeters and one with an opera singer. Teams are also told to keep part of their costume, pants from the dance and the headdress from the opera, so it is easy to see which mat they are supposed to go to.

Everybody jumps into a taxi except Melinda & Erika who ask a local and he shows them which way to go. It is actually rather close so this is not as bad an idea as it seems.

Teams reach the pit stops in the following order:

Dance	Sing	Team
1(+0)		Carson & Jack	Win $3,000
2(+0)		Brett & Mark
3(+1)		Ernest & Bridget
4(-1)		Bernie & Carrigain
	1(+0)	Alyssa & Josiah	Win $3,000
5(+0)		Nick & Mike
6(+0)		Courtney & Jasmin
7(+0)		Mark & Larry	Are eliminated
	2(+0)	Jonathan & Ana
	3(+2)	Scott & Lori
	4(-1)	Pops & Jeff
	5(-1)	Han & Holden
	6(+0)	Melinda & Erika	Arrive just as the previous teams step off the mat
	7(+0)	Jackye & Lauren	Are eliminated

An observation here is that with two mats active Phil can be a bit rushed. And we see that as Nick & Mike arrive to the dance mat Phil is actually busy talking to Alyssa & Josiah on the singing mat.

 "It has been an absolute honor to be here", Lauren

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 2, "Very Strong Warrior Energy”
Film date: 2024-05-21 - 2024-05-22

The last episode ended on the West Kowloon cultural district art park terrace in Hong Kong. Teams are released from a pedestrian bridge above The Avenue Of Stairs in the following order:

Pos	Team	Time	Delta
1.	Carson & Jack	16:40
2.	Brett & Mark	16:56	+0:16
3.	Ernest & Bridget	17:06	+0:26
4.	Bernie & Carrigain	17:10	+0:30
5.	Alyssa & Josiah	17:18	+0:38
6.	Nick & Mike	17:19	+0:39
7.	Courtney & Jasmin	17:20	+0:40
8.	Jonathan & Ana	17:38	+0:58
9.	Scott & Lori	17:59	+1:19
10.	Pops & Jeff	18:00	+1:20
11.	Han & Holden	18:06	+1:26
12.	Melinda & Erika	18:08	+1:28

The first clue tells teams to fly to Osaka, Japan. But first they must make their way to Skywards Travel in Crocodile center (8km) and book their trip to Osaka.

In the car to the travel agency Bridget performs a rap her father taught her when she was small, and he accompanies her by beatboxing.

It turns out that Skywards Travels have multiple locations so three teams (Bernie & Carrigain, Nick & Mike and Courtney & Jasmin) go to the wrong one. This costs them about 30 minutes.

 "We're like a married couple that probably should be divorced", Bernie about their friendship
 "Today is our 7th anniversary", Ana at the starting line

There seems to be only one person working at the Skywards travel center, but she is prepared and has a printout listing all the different flights to Osaka.

At the airport Bernie & Carrigan has a small disagreement. Carrigan feels like Bernie is always ignoring her input. So this time they do as she wants and do not try to get on the earlier flight.
 "I think I'm better than everybody here", Bernie

Pops & Jeff and Melinda & Erika both get seats on the last flight but at the airport they manage to get on flight #2 instead. They did this by convincing the airline to upgrade 8 other passengers from economy to business and then buying the freed seats.

The first flight has a scheduled arrival time of 06:05 and is:
  CI920  HKG-TPE  20:39 - 22:12  (scheduled 20:10 - 22:05)
  GK50   TPE-KIX  02:38 - 05:48  (scheduled 02:30 - 06:05)
This carries:
  Carson & Jack
  Brett & Mark
  Ernest & Bridget

The second flight has a scheduled arrival time at 06:35 is:
  CX566  HKG-KIX  01:46 - 06:12  (scheduled 01:50 - 06:35)
This carries:
  Alyssa & Josiah
  Jonathan & Ana
  Courtney & Jasmin
  Nick & Mike
  Han & Holden
  Pops & Jeff
  Melinda & Erika

The third flight has a scheduled arrival time of 07:55 is:
  HX602  HKG-KIX  03:07 - 07:13  (scheduled 03:03 - 07:55)
This carries:
  Scott & Lori
  Bernie & Carrigain

Once teams land they must make their way to the Tsūtenkaku tower (53km). At the airport we see that production releases teams in one group per each flight after immigration.

Teams reach the clue box by the tower in the following order:
  1. Ernest & Bridget
  2. Brett & Mark
  3. Carson & Jack
  4. Jonathan & Ana
  5. Alyssa & Josiah
  6. Han & Holden
  7. Nick & Mike
  8. Courtney & Jasmin
  9. Melinda & Erika
 10. Pops & Jeff
 11. Bernie & Carrigain
 12. Scott & Lori

Route info: "Take a taxi to Namba Hatch to find your next clue. Watch out, intersection ahead!"

When teams arrive to the intersection (3km) they must pair up with another team. Teams did know that an intersection was coming from the beginning of the leg so the first three teams decided that the first two teams to reach it would pair up. The third team must wait for teams from the second flight to arrive.

As usual nobody rejects any other team so they pair up in the order they arrive to the intersection sign. This results in the following intersected teams:
 1. Ernest & Bridget and Brett & Mark
 2. Carson & Jack and Jonathan & Ana
 3. Alyssa & Josiah and Nick & Mike
 4. Courtney & Jasmin and Pops & Jeff
 5. Melinda & Erika and Han & Holden
 6. Bernie & Carrigain and Scott & Lori

The clue also says that this is an intersection road block: Who's ready to beat the competition?

This road block must be performed by one player from each intersected teams. The performing players must learn a Taiko drumming routine and perform to the satisfaction of the Taiko master.

In the practice area each team has a board with the music they will have to perform on. But this is not present in the performance area.

 "I used to be in band", Mark is confident in his ability to complete this task
Ernest & Mark are not having an easy time here. Or rather Mark has no problems with this but Ernest struggles a lot. They both know this, Mark is frustrated that he doesn't know how to motivate Ernest and Ernest is frustrated that they are bringing down another team.

 "The practice area was chaotic. It was like what I imaging Scott & Lori's home to be like", Jack (knowing that Scott & Lori have 8 sons)

The two teams on the last flight (which arrived almost 1.5h after the first one) arrive to this road block before anybody has completed the challenge.

Teams complete this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+1)	Jack & Jonathan	On their 3rd attempt
2(+1)	Alyssa & Mike	On their 3rd attempt
3(+3)	Bernie & Scott	On their 1st attempt
4(+0)	Courtney & Jeff	On their 8th attempt
5(+0)	Erika & Holden	On their 7th attempt
6(-5)	Ernest & Mark	On their 17th attempt

The next clue tells teams that the intersection has ended and that they should make their way on foot to the Dotonbori Bridge.

Teams reach the clue box on the bridge (650m) in the following order:
  1(+0) Carson & Jack
  2(+0) Jonathan & Ana
  3(+0) Nick & Mike
  4(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
  5(+0) Scott & Lori
  6(+0) Bernie & Carrigain
  7(+0) Courtney & Jasmin
  8(+0) Pops & Jeff
  9(+0) Han & Holden
 10(+0) Melinda & Erika
 11(+0) Brett & Mark
 12(+0) Ernest & Bridget

Detour: Mochi or Mawashi

In Mochi teams must use a mallet to pulverize enough steamed rice to make 12 Mochi balls. They must get their pulverized rice dough approved before they may proceed to make the Mochi balls, which need to be of the correct size.

In Mawashi teams must create the traditional waistband worn by Sumo wrestlers. This consist of 19 feet of heavy canvas which has to be perfectly wrapped. In this detour both racers must change into leotards and then create a Mawashi on their partner.

Mochi takes place at entrance to the Ohama Daishin Arena (13km) and the Mawashi takes place in the Sumo arena next doors.

At the sumo task the judge is one of the wrestlers. When rejecting teams he will point out what is wrong. When teams are approved they are invited to wrestle him. This is hilarious, teams rush him and he just stands there not budging at all. After they have pushed for a while he graciously takes a couple of steps out of the ring and gives them their next clue. This Sumo wrestler is the star of this episode, and he is only wearing the Mawashi so he is often blurred.

 "This man was built like a tank", Jonathan
 "This is similar to when I was in an Cambodian dance troupe", Carrigan feels confident about making the Mawashi

Brett & Mark are very happy to see that there are still other teams at the detour when they arrive.

Melinda & Erika initially said they were going to do the Mawashi but when they arrived and saw the people doing Mochi they decided to switch.

Teams complete the detour in the following order:
  1(+1) Jonathan & Ana, Sumo
  2(+3) Scott & Lori, Sumo
  3(+1) Alyssa & Josiah, Sumo
  4(-3) Carson & Jack, Sumo
  5(+2) Courtney & Jasmin, Mochi
  6(+4) Melinda & Erika, Mochi
  7(+1) Pops & Jeff, Mochi
  8(-2) Bernie & Carrigain, Sumo
  9(-6) Nick & Mike, Sumo on their 10th attempt
 10(+1) Brett & Mark, Sumo on their 1st attempt
 11(-2) Han & Holden, Sumo
 12(+0) Ernest & Bridget, Sumo
 
The next clue is a route info which tells teams to race by taxi to the Pit Stop at Tahoto Pagoda. Teams will travel by taxi to the Katsuō-ji temple (50km) where Phil is waiting by the Tahoto pagoda.

It seems as if all teams asked their taxi to wait by the detour (maybe the clue told them to) so nobody is having any problems finding one.

Teams reach the pit stop in the following order:
  1(+0) Jonathan & Ana, win Expedia points for a trip to Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
  2(+0) Scott & Lori
  3(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
  4(+0) Carson & Jack
  5(+1) Melinda & Erika
  6(-1) Courtney & Jasmin
  7(+0) Pops & Jeff
  8(+0) Bernie & Carrigain
  9(+1) Brett & Mark
 10(-1) Nick & Mike
 11(+0) Han & Holden
 12(+0) Ernest & Bridget, are eliminated

At the finish line Jonathan again says that it is their anniversary. But Ana said the same at the starting line the day before, so which is it?

 "We had an amazing time", Ernest

[ianthebalance]

edit: never mind. Am enjoying as usual

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 3, "Chaotic, Crazy, That's What We're Used To"
Film date: 2024-05-24

The last episode ended at the Katsuō-ji temple in Osaka. For this leg teams are released from the Osaka Castle Park in the following order:

Pos	Team	Time	Delta
1.	Jonathan & Ana	08:31
2.	Scott & Lori	08:53	+0:22
3.	Alyssa & Josiah	08:57	+0:26
4.	Carson & Jack	09:08	+0:37
5.	Melinda & Erika	09:19	+0:48
6.	Courtney & Jasmin	09:27	+0:56
7.	Pops & Jeff	09:28	+0:57
8.	Bernie & Carrigain	09:29	+0:58
9.	Brett & Mark	09:37	+1:06
10.	Nick & Mike	09:38	+1:07
11.	Han & Holden	10:34	+2:03

Route info: Travel by bullet train to the city of Kyoto. Once there take a taxi to Shimogamo Jinja Shrine to find your next clue."

The clue also warns teams that there will be an Express Pass up for grabs somewhere along this leg.

Teams travel by taxi to Shin-Osaka Station (10km) where they buy tickets for the train. The trip to Kyoto is only around 13 minutes long and there are many departures so teams end up on different trains:

Train #1 runs 09:33-09:46 and carries:
  Jonathan & Ana
  Scott & Lori

Train #2 runs 09:48-10:02 and carries:
  Carson & Jack
  Alyssa & Josiah

Train #3 runs 10:06-10:19 and carries:
  Pops & Jeff

Train #4 runs 10:30-10:43 and carries:
  Courtney & Jasmin
  Melinda & Erika

Train #5 runs 10:39-10:53 and carries:
  Bernie & Carrigain
  Brett & Mark
  Nick & Mike

Train #6 runs 11:18-11:31 and carries:
  Han & Holden

Once in Kyoto teams jump into taxis for the trip to Shimogamo Jinja Shrine (6km). Teams are not allowed to run on the temple grounds so we see a lot of power walking. Teams reach the clue box here in the following order:
  1(+1) Scott & Lori
  2(-1) Jonathan & Ana
  3(+1) Carson & Jack
  4(-1) Alyssa & Josiah
  5(+2) Pops & Jeff
  6(-1) Melinda & Erika
  7(-1) Courtney & Jasmin
  8(+0) Bernie & Carrigain
  9(+1) Nick & Mike
 10(-1) Brett & Mark
 11(+0) Han & Holden

Route info: "Buy a sheet of magic fortune paper."

Teams must buy a piece of paper from a marked (with red and yellow flowers) vendor (for ¥500) and dip it into the stream to reveal their next clue: Shiramine Jingu Shrine.

Courtney & Jasmin struggle here. It takes them a while to realize that the clue is the clue and that they need to go somewhere else. When they go to ask a bus driver their paper has dried up and the destination is no longer visible. The other teams wrote it down.

Teams travel by taxi to Shiramine Jingu Shrine (2km) and they arrive to the clue box there in the following order:
  1(+1) Jonathan & Ana
  2(+1) Carson & Jack
  3(-2) Scott & Lori
  4(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
  5(+0) Pops & Jeff
  6(+0) Melinda & Erika
  7(+2) Nick & Mike
  8(+2) Brett & Mark
  9(-1) Bernie & Carrigain
 10(-3) Courtney & Jasmin
 11(+0) Han & Holden, get here while two other teams are doing the road block here

Road block: Who's up for some kicks?

In this road block players must join a group of Japanese men kicking a football between them. They player must help keep the ball in the air until they have had time to make five passes. This task is surprisingly difficult for most teams.

This is also where an Express Pass is up for grabs. To get it both team members must complete the road block

The fight for the express pass is fierce. First Jonathan completes the task and Ana starts. Then Carson completes it so that Jack can start. Finally Scott completes it but Lori does not think she can beat either of the others so they stop there. So at this time we have two teams both having their second contestant trying to complete the road block and the first one to do so will win the express pass.

 "I have done this a million times before. This is how I'd warm up for soccer games", Holden is confident, and rightly so it turns out
 
Teams leaves this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+2)	Scott* & Lori	(2-1)
2(+0)	Carson* & Jack	(2-1)
3(-2)	Jonathan* & Ana	(2-1)	Got the express pass
4(+0)	Alyssa & Josiah*	(1-2)
5(+0)	Pops* & Jeff	(2-1)
6(+0)	Melinda & Erika*	(1-2)
7(+0)	Nick* & Mike	(1-2)
8(+0)	Brett* & Mark	(2-1)
9(+2)	Han & Holden*	(1-2)
10(-1)	Bernie & Carrigain*	(2-1)
11(-1)	Courtney* & Jasmin	(2-1)	Really struggled with this

The next clue tells teams to make their way by taxi to Yasaka Kōshin-dō temple where they will find their next clue.

At Yasaka Kōshin-dō temple we see that Melinda & Erika has an alliance with Pops & Jeff as the girls stop and backtrack a bit to help the boys find the clue.
 Teams reach the clue box here (6km) in the following order:
  1(+0) Scott & Lori
  2(+0) Carson & Jack
  3(+0) Jonathan & Ana
  4(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
  5(+1) Melinda & Erika
  6(-1) Pops & Jeff
  7(+0) Nick & Mike
  8(+0) Brett & Mark
  9(+0) Han & Holden
 10(+0) Bernie & Carrigain
 11(+0) Courtney & Jasmin

Detour: Fold It or Fling It?

In Fold it teams must fold an origami crane. The tricky part is that their paper is gigantic (looks like about 3x3m). There is an ongoing demonstration where two kids are folding cranes of more normally sized papers.

In Fling it teams get to play Ninjas. They must each hit three targets with three; throwing spikes, throwing stars and blow darts. The real kicker is that they must do without missing a single throw/blow. There is a practice area where they can practice as much as they want.

The actual detours takes place at the Helan Jingu Shrine (2.5km) so teams must first travel there by taxi.

This is one of those instances where one of the detour sides is more or less impossible. A lot of teams try the ninja detour but it seems impossible to hit the targets without a single miss. And if the thrown object does not stick to the target then it counts as a miss.

 "I'm still a ninja, just so everybody knows.", Josiah while folding paper

Courtney & Jasmin are happy that there are still three teams doing the origami when they get there, and Bernie & Carrigain are attempting the ninja side as well.

The origami task is hard and some teams start arguing between themselves about how to do it. Towards the end Han & Holden start working with Nick & Mike, which really pays off when the latter find the error Han & Holden has made.

Teams complete the detour in the following order:
  1(+0) Scott & Lori, started ninja but switched to origami before even making any attempts
  2(+0) Carson & Jack, started ninja but switched to origami after attempting it once
  3(+0) Jonathan & Ana, started ninja but quickly switched to origami
  4(+1) Melinda & Erika, origami
  5(+3) Brett & Mark, origami
  6(+0) Pops & Jeff, origami
  7(-3) Alyssa & Josiah, started ninja but switched to origami after 24 attempts
  8(-1) Nick & Mike, started ninja but switched to origami after 31 attempts
  9(+0) Han & Holden, origami
 10(+0) Bernie & Carrigain, started ninja but switched to origami before making any attempts
 11(+0) Courtney & Jasmin, origami

Route info: "Race to the Pit Stop."

The Pit Stop is located at Konkai Komyo-ji. Teams jump into taxis to get there (1km). The clue also states that the last team to check in will be eliminated.

Teams reach the mat in the following order:
  1(+0) Scott & Lori, win $5,000 ($2,500 each)
  2(+0) Carson & Jack, just after #1
  3(+0) Jonathan & Ana
  4(+0) Melinda & Erika
  5(+0) Brett & Mark, just after #4
  6(+0) Pops & Jeff, just after #5
  7(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
  8(+0) Nick & Mike
  9(+0) Han & Holden
 10(+0) Bernie & Carrigain
 11(+0) Courtney & Jasmin, are eliminated

At the mat Phil tells teams that during the next leg they will encounter another new element called the Driver's Seat.

 "On to the next adventure", Jasmin

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 4, "There's No Addresses in the Jungle"
Film date: 2024-05-26 - 2024-05-27

The last episode ended at the Konkai Komyo-ji in Kyoto, Japan. For this leg teams are released from Utsubo Park, Osaka, in the following order:

Pos	Team	Time	Delta
1.	Scott & Lori	01:45
2.	Carson & Jack	01:48	+0:03
3.	Jonathan & Ana	02:09	+0:24
4.	Melinda & Erika	02:35	+0:50
5.	Brett & Mark	02:36	+0:51
6.	Pops & Jeff	02:40	+0:55
7.	Alyssa & Josiah	03:03	+1:18
8.	Nick & Mike	04:36	+2:51
9.	Han & Holden	04:56	+3:11
10.	Bernie & Carrigain	05:38	+3:53

The first clue is a route info which tells teams to fly to Bali, Indonesia.

We can assume that the clue also told teams that they must buy their tickets to Bali at GS Travel because everybody makes their way there. Teams end up on two different flights:

Flight #1 was probably:
 GK230  KIX-NRT 07:32 - 08:37  (Scheduled 07:15 - 08:40)
 GA881  NRT-DPS 11:00 - 17:27  (Scheduled 11:00 - 17:25)
This carries:
  Jonathan & Ana
  Carson & Jack
  Melinda & Erika
  Han & Holden
  Brett & Mark
  Nick & Mike
  Scott & Lori
  Alyssa & Josiah
  Pops & Jeff

Flight #2 was probably:
 SQ619  KIX-SIN  11:09 - 16:06  (Scheduled 10:55 - 16:12)
 QZ507  SIN-DPS  18:01 - 20:20  (Scheduled 17:30 - 20:15)
This carries:
  Bernie & Carrigain

Once teams land the get into taxis and make their way to Pura Puseh Bali Aga Bayad.

At the temple (44km) teams find a sign "Your clue will arrive with the rising sun" and a board with numbers. Teams reach this in the following order:
  1. Jonathan & Ana
  2. Nick & Mike
  3. Scott & Lori
  4. Han & Holden
  5. Alyssa & Josiah
  6. Pops & Jeff
  7. Brett & Mark
  8. Melinda & Erika
  9. Carson & Jack
 10. Bernie & Carrigain

The next morning an ATV arrives and the passenger starts handing out clues. Teams are going on an ATV adventure. They will depart in the order they arrived last night and must drive along a course through the jungle, a cave and when they get to a waterfall they can pick up their next clue. Each team gets one ATV.
 "There's no addresses in the jungle", Josiah gets the title

the ATV trip looks wonderful but there is no way of passing so from a race perspective it is kind of meaningless. But it looks very fun.

The next clue tells teams to travel by taxi to the rice fields of Tapaksiring to find their next clue.

Teams reach the clue box at Gabah Ayu (19km) in the following order:
  1(+0) Jonathan & Ana
  2(+1) Scott & Lori
  3(-1) Nick & Mike, just after #2
  4(+1) Alyssa & Josiah
  5(-1) Han & Holden
  6(+3) Carson & Jack, seconds after #5
  7(-1) Pops & Jeff
  8(+0) Melinda & Erika
  9(+1) Bernie & Carrigain
 10(-3) Brett & Mark

Road block: Who thinks they can rice to the occasion?

In this road block teams must extract rice from the husks by threshing the plants.

The first team to reach it also encounters the drivers seat. They get to decide how much rice each team has to extract. They have to pick 5 teams which have to do 25lb, 3 teams doing 20lb and 2 teams to do 15lb. Basically it is very hard to do this without making enemies. Jonathan & Ana decide to give 25lb to the teams just behind them to give themselves more time, but then they mess up and also assign 25lb to Bernie & Carrigan. In their podcast Jonathan & Ana tell that production only gave them 5 minutes to think and make their decision here so they got a bit rushed by the end and had to make some snap decisions.

After Jonathan & Ana have selected which team has to do how much rice they take a look at the task. Ana thins this is going to take forever so they decide to use the express pass. To me (sitting in my comfy chair) this feels like a very bad decision, not only are their already in the lead. They have also just assigned the next few teams the most rice so they should already have a cushion. And the express pass might have been handy in future legs. On the other had I later learned that the pass was only valid until the end of leg #5, but this does not really affect the arguments.

When Scott & Lori arrive they do not see Jonathan & Ana and as they know they were not that far behind they realize that Jonathan & Ana must have used the express pass.
 "I don't mind being assigned the highest, but it's because it's from them, I'm kind of pissed", Lori thought they were close with Jonathan & Ana

Brett & Mark have bad luck with their taxi. When the dirt track they are following becomes very narrow they realize that this is wrong. They check the drivers phone and see that the place they need to go to is 43 minutes away. They did look up the place on the phone when they got into the taxi but apparently the driver must have picked a different destination.

At this task Scott seems to overplay the age card (the fact that they are older). The other teams do not really buy it as they are constantly in the top.

 "I got rice in my eyes", Nick on the unforeseen dangers of this task

Brett & Mark arrive to this task as the 5th team is leaving.

Teams leaves this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+0)	Jonathan & Ana*	(2-2)	had to do 15lb but used their express pass
2(+0)	Scott & Lori*	(2-2)	had to do 25lb
3(+0)	Nick* & Mike	(2-2)	had to do 25lb
4(+1)	Han* & Holden	(2-2)	had to do 20lb
5(-1)	Alyssa* & Josiah	(2-2)	had to do 25lb
6(+0)	Carson & Jack*	(2-2)	had to do 20lb
7(+1)	Melinda* & Erika	(1-3)	had to do 15lb
8(-1)	Pops & Jeff*	(2-2)	had to do 25lb
9(+1)	Brett & Mark*	(2-2)	had to do 20lb
10(-1)	Bernie & Carrigain*	(2-2)	had to do 25lb

Route info: Make your way by taxi to Penglipuran village.

 "I think Bali has been may favorite because we got to do something fun, and I got to see my mom crush a Roadblock", Erika

 "Right now, I'm a proud dad", Pops
 "Right now? What about all the time?", Jeff

Teams arrive to the clue box in the village (9km) in the following order:
  1(+0) Jonathan & Ana
  2(+0) Scott & Lori
  3(+1) Han & Holden
  4(-1) Nick & Mike, just after #3
  5(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
  6(+0) Carson & Jack
  7(+0) Melinda & Erika
  8(+1) Brett & Mark
  9(-1) Pops & Jeff, just after #8
 10(+0) Bernie & Carrigain

Detour: Penjor or Pajegan

In Pejnor teams must decorate a long bamboo pole with leaves, flowers and offerings. Once their Penjor has been approved they must carry it along the main street until they find a marked stand to place it in.

In Pajegan teams must build two traditional Balinese offerings. The tricky part here is that they must find the marked stores and by the fruit and flowers needed there. Once they have everything it seems to be fairly easy to assemble the Pajegan. Once approved they must balance them on their heads (they can use their hands to hold them) and deliver them to a temple.

When they arrive to the field where they get to build the Penjor Jonathan starts complaining that he needs to go to the bathroom. He is more or less useless until Ana relents and lets him go.

Han & Holden are at the detour decision point at the same time as Nick & Mike so they decide to do the Pajegan together.

There is a sign just behind the clue box with arrows pointing in which direction the detours are. But both Alyssa & Josiah and Bernie & Carrigan miss it. Bernie & Carrigan seems to spend quite a lot of time searching for the detour location. In an interview we get to see Carrigan point out that she did see it on the map and though that she knew how to get there, but Bernie said they should go this other way which made them get lost again. So their teamwork is not really working at this moment. When they finally get to the detour location they find four other teams there working on it, this gives them a bit of hope.

Nick & Mike are quicker in assembling their offerings than Han & Holden but as Mike is delivering his he leans a bit too much forward so his offering collapses. They have to reassemble it on the spot and this allows Han & Holden to pass them.

Teams complete the detour in the following order:
  1(+0) Jonathan & Ana, penjor
  2(+0) Scott & Lori, penjor
  3(+3) Carson & Jack, penjor
  4(-1) Han & Holden, offering
  5(-1) Nick & Mike, offering
  6(-1) Alyssa & Josiah, penjor
  7(+1) Brett & Mark, penjor
  8(-1) Melinda & Erika, penjor
  9(+0) Pops & Jeff, penjor
 10(+0) Bernie & Carrigain, penjor

Route info: Race to the Pit Stop. Make your way on foot to Pura Dalem Pelapuran, Penglipuran.

Brett & Mark, nick & Mike and Alyssa & Josiah end up running to the Pit Stop together. But they make a left turn too early and end up going in a big circle and end up where they started. On their next attempt they find the Pit Stop. Melinda also wants to turn left at the same place but Erika insists they need to go straight.

Teams reach the mat (750m) in the following order:
  1(+0) Jonathan & Ana, win Expedia points for a trip to Croatia and Montenegro
  2(+1) Carson & Jack
  3(-1) Scott & Lori
  4(+4) Melinda & Erika
  5(+1) Alyssa & Josiah
  6(-2) Han & Holden
  7(+0) Brett & Mark
  8(-3) Nick & Mike
  9(+0) Pops & Jeff, while the previous 5 teams are still on the mat
 10(+0) Bernie & Carrigain, are eliminated

Here we end up with 6 teams simultaneously at the mat. Phil talks a bit with them, they talk about how Jonathan & Ana has target on their back after both having finished very strong and also after what they did with the drivers seat. Melinda talk about how Scott & Lori claim to be the slowest team but she is convinced that they are faster than her. It seems all teams agree that Scott & Lori are trying to downplay their own abilities.

 "Everything that we saw, everything that we got to do was, like, so magical", Carrigan

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 5, "It's Not Personal, It's Business"
Film date: probably 2024-05-28

The last episode ended at Pura Dalem Pelapuran, Penglipuran. Teams spent the night in home-stays in Penglipuran village and are then released for the next leg in the following order:

Pos	Team	Time	Delta
1.	Jonathan & Ana	04:58
2.	Carson & Jack	05:40	+0:42
3.	Scott & Lori	05:41	+0:43
4.	Melinda & Erika	05:57	+0:59
5.	Alyssa & Josiah	06:00	+1:02
6.	Han & Holden	06:01	+1:03
7.	Brett & Mark	06:03	+1:05
8.	Nick & Mike	06:04	+1:06
9.	Pops & Jeff	06:05	+1:07

The first clue tells teams to travel to the sacred monkey forest in Ubud. Here as everywhere else during the Bali legs production seems to have arranged waiting taxis. They are all from the same company and look very clean.

We also learn that Jonathan & Ana got pregnant last summer but the pregnancy did not end well, it was a hard time but they got through it together.

In the last leg Nick got a little bit of rice in his eye so it is quite swollen today.

Phil tells us that teams will encounter a double U-turn vote in the monkey forest. Often when there is an U-turn coming up the earlier clues tells teams this, presumably all so that they will have time to conspire with each other. But it seems as if this one comes as a surprise to them.

The drive to the monkey forest teams takes about 40 minutes and once there teams find a sign saying that it will open at 8:00. There is a bit of discussing the Drivers seat from the last leg while they wait.

At 8 teams get to walk up through the monkey forest and eventually they leave their bags and line up in front of Phil. And that is where Phil tells them that two teams will have a monkey on their back after they have completed a live double U-Turn vote.

This time each team get a pack of pictures of all the teams. The contestants are given a short while to confer with their team mates, but not between the teams. Then they gather back with Phil again and reveal their votes.

If you are going to have a U-Turn vote then I think this is the best way to do it. Teams are not given any chance to work together to vote strategically and unlike season 31 teams can not base their vote on what the teams going before them has voted.

 "We came in here guilting them a little bit in the hopes that they won't U-Turn us", Scott about Jonathan & Ana
 "It's not personal, it's business", Jeff gets the title as they decide

During the vote revealing Scott & Lori play the "we are old and slow" card again. This is not received well by the other teams. They may be old and not be that fast when it comes to running, but they are good at the challenges and have never finished outside the top three.

After some internal team deliberations the votes are revealed to be:
  Brett & Mark votes for Scott & Lori
  Jonathan & Ana votes for Nick & Mike
  Pops & Jeff votes for Jonathan & Ana
  Han & Holden votes for Scott & Lori
  Melinda & Erika votes for Scott & Lori
  Carson & Jack votes for Jonathan & Ana
  Nick & Mike votes for Scott & Lori
  Alyssa & Josiah votes for Jonathan & Ana
  Scott & Lori votes for Jonathan & Ana

So the end result is that Scott & Lori and Jonathan & Ana get four votes each and Nick & Mike gets the last one.

Scott & Lori does not take getting this many votes well.
 "I know it's a game and a competition, but some of these teams are our friends. They're not my friends anymore.", Lori

Then Phil gives teams their next clue and restarts the race.

Route info: Travel by taxi to Pantai Pandawa to find your next clue at the Gazebo Pier Segura.

Teams jump into the waiting taxis and make their way to Pantai Pandawa (55km).

Team reach the next clue box in the following order:
 1. Han & Holden
 2. Brett & Mark
 3. Nick & Mike
 4. Carson & Jack
 5. Alyssa & Josiah
 6. Melinda & Erika
 7. Jonathan & Ana
 8. Pops & Jeff
 9. Scott & Lori

Detour: Coconuts or Coral?

In coconut teams must use a bicycle to transport 60 coconuts to a beach cafe along the shoreline (550m). At the destination they must stack 30 of them atop a table and place the rest next to it. Once done they get a receipt they can bring back and exchange for their next clue.

In coral teams must attach 18 pieces of coral belonging to five different species to a frame. Which species of coral they place where matters. Once approved they must get into the water and plant it on the sea floor outside a couple of buoys.

For the coconut detour teams see that the bike is just an ordinary bike, there is no cargo rack or anything. But the coconuts do come in bunches so it possible to hang bunches on the bike. But there is no way of transporting 60 coconuts in one trip so everybody makes multiple trips. It seems teams make between 2 and four trips each. Nick & Mike is the only team which seems to have any issues with the stacking part of the detour, but they on the other hand struggles a lot with it.
 "Just be one with the coconut", Holden while stacking

In the coral detour Jonathan & Ana start by just quickly strap 18 pieces of coral to their cage, but this is not approved. It seems they did not stop and realize that the type of coral matters. One additional wrinkle in this task is that the corals only show their colors when they are wet, so if you leave them out of the water for too long it gets a lot harder telling the different kinds from each other.

We learn that Ana almost drowned when she was 5 so she has a big fear of going into open water. But she is race mode so after a false start she does get into the water to help place their coral scaffolding.

 "Maybe slow and steady does win this race", Josiah realize they can't run with a bike carrying 30 coconuts

Both the U-turned teams struggle with the second detour. Jonathan is about to shut down from the heat and Scott & Lori just can't get their coral correct. When Jonathan & Ana finish with the coconuts Jonathan is in a bad shape. He complains about headache and makes a point of refusing to move until he has had a little break and drunk some water.
 "I had reached my personal limit, as far as sun exposure and heat exposure goes.", Jonathan
Ana tries to get him to start moving again but he is having none of it.
 "I'll go when I'm ready", Jonathan
 
Teams complete the detour in the following order:
 1(+3) Carson & Jack, coral reef
 2(+0) Brett & Mark, coral reef
 3(+2) Alyssa & Josiah, coconuts
 ----- Jonathan & Ana, coral reef
 4(+4) Pops & Jeff, coconuts
 ----- Scott & Lori, coconuts
 5(-4) Han & Holden, coconuts
 6(-3) Nick & Mike, coconuts
 7(-1) Melinda & Erika, coconuts
 8(-1) Jonathan & Ana, coconuts
 9(+0) Scott & Lori, coral reef

Route info: Grab a taxi to Nusa Dua Beach, then find your next clue.

Teams reach the clue box at Nusa Dua Beach (11km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Carson & Jack
 2(+0) Brett & Mark
 3(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 4(+0) Pops & Jeff
 5(+0) Han & Holden
 6(+0) Nick & Mike
 7(+0) Melinda & Erika
 8(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 9(+0) Scott & Lori

Road block: Who wants to meet their match?

In this road block players must choose a surf board from a rack. Then swim out into the surf and search between the marked buoys for a surfer who has the same decal on their board as the player has on theirs. There are a lot of surfers waiting out by the buoys and the constant waves make them shift positions all the time, which just serves to make the task harder.

Jack initially misremembers the task so he just looks for a surfer on a board with the same color as his. But after a while he seems to realize that he should focus on the decal.

While Brett and Mark are out looking Mark and Carson are relaxing in some shade on the beach.
 "It feels like we're just on a little gay beach hanging out", Mark

 "This challenge was hard hard work", Jack

It is also interesting to see how this segment is filmed. The boards the players use have cameras on them filming them. Then in some shots you see that some surfers are holding up sticks with small cameras on them and then there is the drone.

Josiah is paddling out as Jack is returning and as the task seemed to take a while we can assume that the first two teams have a decent lead.

Holden is very happy about this as she got into surfing two years earlier.
 "This was a Roadblock in heaven", Holden
As Holden is going back there is a wave coming so she catches it and actually surfs for a little bit.

Jonathan seems to have recovered a little bit here. And he is the only racer smart enough to actually wear a hat on the surf board (a lot of the surfers out by the buoys do wear something on their heads). But his energy is not enough for the entire task so he takes more and more breaks where he lays down on the surf board. To be fair, he was not the only contestant taking breaks during this grueling task. As Jonathan is out searching the surfboards Scott & Lori arrives and Scott gets into the water.

Jonathan is the first to find his matching surf board. but he is very tired so the trip back to shore is agonizingly slow.
 "Oh, I'm tired. Just need a break", Jonathan
You also see that there is another surfer following close behind Jonathan on the way back, I assume this is a life guard.

When Jonathan has received his clue he refuses to let Ana take it while he slowly walks back with his surf board. This feels typical for this team and not a good sign for the future.

Teams leaves this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+1)	Brett* & Mark	(3-2)
2(-1)	Carson & Jack*	(2-3)
3(+0)	Alyssa & Josiah*	(2-3)
4(+0)	Pops* & Jeff	(3-2)
5(+0)	Han & Holden*	(2-3)
6(+0)	Nick & Mike*	(2-3)
7(+0)	Melinda & Erika*	(1-4)
8(+0)	Jonathan* & Ana	(3-2)
9(+0)	Scott* & Lori	(3-2)

Route info: Race to the Pit Stop. Make your way on foot to the Taksu Art Stage and search the perimeter for Phil on the mat.

At the mat Phil has an entire Balinese dance troupe with him.

As they leave the road block Ana gets a hug from Lori. Then the editing tries to make it look like it is a close race between the last two teams. But as usual we do not see both teams in the same shot so we do not know how far apart they actually are. But we know it is not super close as they are not on the mat together.

Teams reach the mat (650m) in the following order:
 1(+0) Brett & Mark, win $10,000
 2(+0) Carson & Jack
 3(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 4(+0) Pops & Jeff
 5(+0) Han & Holden
 6(+1) Melinda & Erika
 7(-1) Nick & Mike, had issues finding the pit stop
 8(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 9(+0) Scott & Lori, are eliminated

 "We had so much fun, and it was such a great adventure that we'll remember forever.", Lori

[Maanca]

Lori said on their YouTube recap that she asked how far ahead J&A came in.

6 minutes.

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 6, "It smells like the desert"
Film date: probably 2024-05-30 - 2024-05-31

The last leg ended at the Taksu Art Stage near Nusa Dua Beach, Bali. For this leg teams are released in the following order:

Pos	Team	Time	Delta
1.	Brett & Mark	03:55
2.	Carson & Jack	04:04	+0:09
3.	Alyssa & Josiah	04:09	+0:14
4.	Pops & Jeff	04:19	+0:24
5.	Han & Holden	04:40	+0:45
6.	Melinda & Erika	05:08	+1:13
7.	Nick & Mike	05:10	+1:15
8.	Jonathan & Ana	05:29	+1:34

The first clue tells teams to fly to Dubai.

Teams must first go to Abbey Travel and buy tickets to Dubai. Jonathan & Ana are disappointed that Carson & Jack voted for them at the U-turn last leg so we get some awkward interaction at the airport.

All teams end up on the same flight which probably is something like:
  TR281  DPS-SIN  10:50 - 13:30
  SQ494  SIN-DBX  15:10 - 18:25

Once teams land they must travel by taxi to the Platinum Heritage Desert Gate. Here they will find a Bedouin camp where they must select a coffee cup with a release time for the next morning. There are two times available 5:10 or 5:20 (four each).

 "We got to win when we're in the car, 'cause they're a lot younger and faster than us", Erika
 "It smells like the desert", Jack gets the title

Teams arrive at the camp (65km) in the following order:
 1. Alyssa & Josiah, will depart 5:10
 2. Jonathan & Ana, will depart 5:10
 3. Han & Holden, will depart 5:10
 4. Carson & Jack, will depart 5:10
 5. Melinda & Erika, will depart 5:20
 6. Pops & Jeff, will depart 5:20
 7. Brett & Mark, will depart 5:20
 8. Nick & Mike, will depart 5:20

It seems like all teams actually checked all the times before picking one. Which means that none of the do the embarrassing thing, which has happened in the past, where people do not pick the earliest available departure time.

In the camp there is music and dinner and eventually teams get to spend the night in a big tent with lots and lots of carpets in.
 "We had dinner, and now we're having desert", Jonathan brings forth the dad jokes

The next morning teams get to ride camels, one camel per team, to the next clue box. This box is located about 13km from where teams spent the night so we can assume they got a car transfer to somewhere closer before they mounted the camels.

Teams dismount from their camels and reach the next clue in the following order.
 1. Han & Holden
 2. Alyssa & Josiah
 3. Carson & Jack
 4. Jonathan & Ana
 5. Nick & Mike
 6. Melinda & Erika
 7. Pops & Jeff
 8. Brett & Mark

Road block: Who wants to drop into Dubai?

In this road block contestants must perform a tandem skydive. First they must make their way on foot to Skydive Dubai, which is nearby, where they must sign up for one of two flights. By the time teams reach the clue the morning fog has descended so the visibility is rather poor. But teams still have no issues finding the airport.

Teams sign up for the skydiving flights in the following order:
 1(+2) Carson & Jack
 2(-1) Han & Holden
 3(-1) Alyssa & Josiah
 4(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 5(+3) Brett & Mark
 6(-1) Nick & Mike
 7(+0) Pops & Jeff
 8(-2) Melinda & Erika

This is another one of those tasks where the only way to pass another team is if that player hesitates or refuses. And nobody does so the order they land is the same as they signed up in.

At the landing zone we get to see that Josiah is really worried for Alyssa. Not that she won't be able to complete the task but more an irrational fear for her safety.
 "I will be really happy when she lands", Josiah

Teams leaves this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+0)	Carson & Jack*	(2-4)
2(+0)	Han & Holden*	(2-4)
3(+0)	Alyssa* & Josiah	(3-3)
4(+0)	Jonathan & Ana*	(3-3)
5(+0)	Brett* & Mark	(4-2)
6(+0)	Nick* & Mike	(3-3)
7(+0)	Pops* & Jeff	(4-2)
8(+0)	Melinda* & Erika	(2-4)

The next clue contains a fast forward and a route info.

The fast forwarded clue says: "Keep diving. Race by luxury car to Deep Dive Dubai and take a deep scuba dive to retrieve the Fast Forward."

To start the fast forward teams must locate the orange luxury car. Both Carson & Jack and Han & Holden go for it. But it is Carson & Jack who find the car first. It turns out that only one team can even attempt this fast forward.

Route info: Take a taxi to Atlantis The Royal and search for your next clue.

Teams arrive to Atlantis the Royal (13km), which turns out to be a very posh hotel.
 1(+1) Alyssa & Josiah
 2(+2) Jonathan & Ana
 3(-2) Han & Holden
 4(+0) Brett & Mark
 5(+1) Pops & Jeff
 6(+0) Nick & Mike
 7(+0) Melinda & Erika

Route info: Prepare an afternoon tea for chef Cristophe to receive your next clue.

In this task teams will need to finish the garnishing of a bunch of sweet and savory treats. The task is not trivial as they are exquisitely garnished and there are lots of small details.
 "Today we honed in on being very patient and doing it right the first time", Nick

Teams complete this task in the following order:
 1(+0) Alyssa & Josiah, on their 2nd attempt
 2(+0) Jonathan & Ana, on their 1st attempt
 3(+0) Han & Holden, on their 1st attempt
 4(+0) Brett & Mark, on their 1st attempt
 5(+2) Melinda & Erika, on their 1st attempt
 6(+0) Nick & Mike, on their 1st attempt
 7(-2) Pops & Jeff, on their 2nd attempt

The above attempt counts comes from the telecast. I have heard rumors that teams did a lot more attempts and the hardest thing was noticing the small white flowers which should be on one of the cupcakes.

The next clue tells teams to travel by taxi to Burj Al Arab Public Beach.

Meanwhile at the fast forward *27km) Jack & Carson must dive into the deepest diving pool in the world. This pool is built to look like a sunken city and the clue is hidden somewhere in it. The place is huge but they do find the clue standing up on a pool table. Once they get back on dry land they get a new clue which tells them to get back into their luxury car and then the driver will take them directly to the pit stop (15km).

Teams reach the beach (15km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 2(+1) Han & Holden
 3(-1) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+0) Brett & Mark
 5(+0) Melinda & Erika
 6(+1) Pops & Jeff
 7(-1) Nick & Mike

Road block: Who's ready to ride a wave?

In this road block contestants must learn to ride an eFoil (a motorized surfboard). They must start at one buoy, get to their feet before they pass the second buoy and then travel standing past the third.

It is time for Jeff to do a road block so he goes for this one despite him being very unused to the water. For example he keeps his shoes on when he gets into the water, he soon realizes that it this makes it much harder to swim.

Teams leaves this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+1)	Han* & Holden	(3-4)	On her 1st attempt
2(-1)	Alyssa & Josiah*	(3-4)	On his 3rd attempt
3(+1)	Brett & Mark*	(4-3)	On his 2nd attempt
4(+1)	Melinda & Erika*	(2-5)	On her 1st attempt
5(-2)	Jonathan* & Ana	(4-3)	On his 2nd attempt
6(+0)	Pops & Jeff*	(4-3)	On his 2nd attempt
7(+0)	Nick* & Mike	(4-3)	On his 3rd attempt

The next clue is a route info which tells teams to travel by taxi to the Mall of the Emirates Metro Station (4km), then ride the metro to the Museum of the future (17 minutes). The clue also tells teams that they may not run within the metro stations, and that the last team to check in will be eliminated.

Trains depart every 4 minutes.

 "Playing with a lead is a lot better than playing from behind", Holden finds it easier to be in the front

This time there is an exciting race for last. Pops & Jeff are in the lead from the road block. But Pops has a bad ankle they are not really able to run that fast so a lot hangs on them managing to get on a train before Nick & Mike. As Pops & Jeff come up to the platform a train is there with the doors open. They are supposed to be on platform #1 but Jeff see a 4 on a screen so they get unsure and hesitates for 2 seconds. As they hesitate the doors to the train closes. Jeff puts his arm in there but the doors keep closing so he yanks it back again. Would they have made the train if they didn't hesitate, maybe but we do not know.

Pops & Jeff have to wait four minutes for the next train (and the time is now 11:15). Three minutes into the wait Nick & Mike arrive so both teams end up on the same train. The race for last ends up as a footrace. Things are even as long as teams are inside and unable to run (or maybe Nick & Mike decided to stay with Pops & Jeff until they saw Phil). But once they are outside there is no contest.

Teams reach Phil at the mat in the following order:
 1(+0) Carson & Jack, win Expedia points for a trip on an Alaska cruise
 2(+0) Han & Holden
 3(+0) Alyssa & Josiah, close after #2
 4(+0) Brett & Mark
 5(+1) Jonathan & Ana
 6(-1) Melinda & Erika, just after #5
 7(+1) Nick & Mike, shortly after #6
 8(-1) Pops & Jeff, are eliminated

 "This is the most challenging and fun thing that we could have possibly done together.", Jeff

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 7, "Be one with the hay"
Film date: 2024-05-02 - 2024-05-03

The last pit stop was by the museum of the future in Dubai. For this leg teams are release from the same spot in the following order:

Pos	Team	Time	Delta
1.	Carson & Jack	12:34
2.	Han & Holden	13:16	+0:42
3.	Alyssa & Josiah	13:19	+0:45
4.	Brett & Mark	13:27	+0:53
5.	Jonathan & Ana	13:35	+1:01
6.	Melinda & Erika	13:36	+1:02
7.	Nick & Mike	13:37	+1:03

The first clue tells teams to fly to Sofia, Bulgaria. It also tells them that they will be self-driving in this leg.
 "Oh crap, we're driving", Erika

Teams go directly to the airport and we do not see any of them getting tickets and all of them are on the same flights. So I assume that production provided the tickets for this trip. Teams probably flew:
  EK2553  DBX-IST  16:23 - 19:39  (scheduled 15:50 - 19:09)
  TK1027  IST-SOF  07:40 - 08:29  (scheduled 07:15 - 08:30)

Once teams arrive in Sofia they are, as is standard operating procedures nowadays, released together and they run out of the airport and into the garage to find their cars.

Route info: Drive to the village square of Negushevo to find your next clue.
The clue also includes a large scale map of Bulgaria.

The cars do have manual transmission but teams are not shown struggling with that. The only thing we see them struggling with is how to put it in reverse. There is a bit of gridlock as they try to exit the parking structure. Han & Holden are blocking the exit and need to reverse to get onto the ramp, Mark comes to the rescue.
 "If I tell you what to do will you let us out first?", Mark
 
 "Alyssa's great at navigation, and this is what we practiced, so we're hoping that it pays off.", Josiah
 "I am not of a generation that has ever used a map. Give me a phone and I can get you anywhere.", Erika

Carson & Jack get seriously lost on the way here. At one point they are shown asking for directions at a hotel outside Ihtiman which is 65km away from where they need to be. They are not happy about being this lost but realize that they are probably getting eliminated.
 "So we're, I think, hours behind", Jack

Teams find the clue in Negushevo (34km) in the following order:
 1. Jonathan & Ana
 2. Alyssa & Josiah, just after #1
 3. Brett & Mark, as the first two teams are leaving
 4. Han & Holden
 5. Melinda & Erika
 6. Nick & Mike
 7. Carson & Jack, about 3 hours behind

Here teams must must load two crates of apples into a cart and transport this wile carrying a third crate along a marked path to a nearby garden where they must leave them as an offering to the Kukeri. The scene at the destination is wild. There is music a lot of people in very hairy costumes dancing and generally creating a very big ruckus.

This task is fairly straight forward so teams complete this task in the same order they arrived. The next clue tells teams to drive themselves to the Osoitsa village library where they will find their next clue.

On the way here Carson & Jack talk about how they feel less bad for getting eliminated in such beautiful surroundings.

Teams arrive to the library (8km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 2(+0) Alyssa & Josiah, as #1 are leaving
 3(+0) Brett & Mark
 4(+1) Melinda & Erika
 5(-1) Han & Holden
 6(+0) Nick & Mike
 7(+0) Carson & Jack

The previous clue only said that they will find their next clue in the library and did not specify more exactly how or where. It turns out that the clues are wedged between some of the books, but they do stick out a little so they are fairly easy to find.

Detour: Haystack or Woodstack?

In haystack teams must search through 3 haystacks for a martenitza, a small red and white yarn bracelet. Each team get their own set of three haystacks and it is hidden in one of them.

In woodstack teams must use a wheelbarrow and a backpack to transport 200kg (~440lb) of wood to a home in the neighborhood.

The actual detours take place in the village of Sarantsi (7km) and teams arrive here in the following order:
 1(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 2(+1) Brett & Mark
 3(-1) Alyssa & Josiah
 4(+1) Han & Holden
 5(-1) Melinda & Erika
 6(+0) Nick & Mike
 7(+0) Carson & Jack

Production is providing teams with gloves for these tasks.

One thing which adds drama here is that the wood the pick up point is next to the field where they haystacks are so teams can see each other.

Jonathan misses the sign for the designated parking and parks in a ditch around the corner instead, this will soon come back to haunt them. Then he is frustrated that Ana chose the haystack detour.

Brett & Mark have no idea how much 200kg of wood is.
 "200 kilos of wood, whatever that is. A hundred pounds?", Brett

Teams doing the wood detour soon realize that 200kg of wood is heavy. Meanwhile most teams doing the hay side realize that they have to be careful so that they do not miss the bracelet as they deconstruct the haystacks.

On their first trip Nick & Mike bring 98.5kg and on the next they bring 100.5 so after two trips they are 1kg short. They do not know it yet but this single piece of wood will turn out to have drastic consequences as it allows Melinda & Erika to pass them.

Teams complete the detour in the following order:
 1(+1) Alyssa & Josiah, haystack
 2(-1) Jonathan & Ana, haystack, as Brett & Mark are loading up for their second trip
 3(-1) Brett & Mark, wood in two trips
 4(+1) Melinda & Erika, haystack
 ----- Nick & Mike, wood in three trips, about 20 seconds after #4
 ----- Han & Holden, wood in three trips
 5(-1) Han & Holden, haystack
 6(+1) Carson & Jack, started haystack but quickly switched to wood which they did in three trips
 -DNF- Nick & Mike, got eliminated after spending about 6 hours trying to find the bracelet in the hay

The next clue tells teams to make their way on foot to the church in the village or Sarantsi where they will find their next clue. It also tells teams that there is a double U-Turn ahead.

Teams reach the U-turn board at the church in the following order:
 1(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 2(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 3(+0) Brett & Mark
 4(+0) Melinda & Erika, U-Turn Nick & Mike
 5(+0) Nick & Mike, U-Turn Han & Holden
 6(+0) Han & Holden
 7(+0) Carson & Jack

Melinda & Erika feel that they do not have any choice as they think Nick & Mike were the only team behind them. So they are shocked when, after the U-turn, they open the box and there are four clues in there. They are also so stressed that they do the U-Turn wrong, they put their own portrait in the big box and Nick and Mike in the small one. It seems as if nobody cares about this and Nick & Mike follow their lead and do the same mistake. After the U-Turn Melinda & Erika feel really bad.

On their way back from the U-turn board Nick & Mike meet Han & Holden and tell them that they had to U-Turn them. In the end it seems as if none of the U-Turned teams hold any grudge against the team which U-Turned them.

 "I think we have better attention to detail than them", Holden when they get to Hay just after Nick & Mike
 "Be one with the hay", Holden gets the title

We soon see that Nick & Mike go through their haystacks much faster than Han & Holden. But this means that they are not looking carefully so by the time they have torn down all three haystacks they still have not found their bracelet. They have no choice but start searching the hay on the ground again.

Carson & Jack are shocked when there is still one car here when they turn up. Nick & Mike are discussing if they should give up when they Carson & Jack arrive. This energizes them and they go back to searching the hay. Carson & Jack start searching their hay stacks but quickly realize that they do not want to end up like Nick & Mike so they switch to the wood.
 "We saw our futures in Mick & Mike", Carson
Nick & Mike are completely exhausted after having searched for hours out in the sun so they are not able to search very quickly.
 "If you don't laugh, you'll cry.", Mike
To make matters worse the cameraperson has found the bracelet and sometimes makes sure it is in the frame.

Once Carson & Jack learn about the U-turn they are convinced that they will be on the board so they are floored when they're not.

Route info: Drive yourself to the village Belopoptsi and go to Snezha's Farm to find your next clue.

This is where Jonathan & Ana realize that their car is seriously stuck. Brett & Mark arrive after having done their detour and they stay and help for a couple of minutes before they leave.
 "Hey, you guys, just go", Jonathan to Brett & Mark as they have helped a bit
Also while this is going on Han & Holden, Melinda & Erika and eventually Nick & Mike arrive (but they do not stop to help). Some locals come by and try to help by putting branches under the wheels.
 "It seemed like they knew what they were doing, so I was hopeful that maybe that would work. But it didn't", Jonathan
Eventually a local arrive with his car and tows them back up on the road. All in all it took about an hour from when they arrived to the detour until they could drive out of there.

Teams arrive to the clue box at Snezha's Farm (15km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 2(+1) Brett & Mark
 3(-1) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+2) Han & Holden
 5(-1) Melinda & Erika, got lost
 6(+0) Carson & Jack

By the time teams get here they are pretty spread out, in fact none of the teams see any others for the rest of this leg.

Road block: Who's ready to fill her up?

In this road block contestants must milk a sheep. Once they go to the judge with half a liter of milk they will be given a bowl of Bulgarian Yogurt and once they have eaten this, no problem as it is good, they will be given their next clue.

Teams will be shown how to milk the sheep and there is a local holding the sheep for them.

Next to the judge sits Nevenka who is 102 years old and comments on some of the racers (in Bulgarian).
 "Oh, this time it's going to be a lot", Nevenka when Ana comes

 "I'm in Bulgaria milking a sheep on a farm", Alyssa reflects on the absurdity of the situation
 
 "My desire is to pass away from this life without ever having to touch an udder.", Mark
Marks fails in this desire as he has to milk the sheep. But to his credit he does not delay but instead gets at it immediately.
 "Good boy or girl", Mark seems to lack some base biology knowledge
Mark also hopes to get done early so when he goes to check his milk the first time he has only gathered about 2dl.

Teams leaves this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+0)	Alyssa* & Josiah	(4-4)
2(+0)	Brett & Mark*	(4-4)
3(+0)	Jonathan & Ana*	(4-4)
4(+0)	Han & Holden*	(3-5)
5(+0)	Melinda* & Erika	(3-5)
6(+0)	Carson* & Jack	(3-4)

The next clue tells teams to make their way to the pit stop in the village of Elin Pelin.

Teams reach Phil at the mat (17km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Alyssa & Josiah, win Expedia points for a trip to Marrakesh, Morocco
 2(+0) Brett & Mark
 3(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+0) Han & Holden
 5(+0) Melinda & Erika
 6(+0) Carson & Jack

 "We have become better men because of The Amazing Race", Mike

[maf]

I apologize for the delay in the reports here. Life got in the way. I will try to catch up.

[maf]

Racing report
Amazing Race Season 37, Episode 8, "We are letting race brain win"
Film date: probably 2024-05-04

The last leg ended in the village of Elin Pelin, Bulgaria. This is also where teams are released for this leg of the race in the following order:

Pos	Team	Time	Delta
1.	Alyssa & Josiah	07:34
2.	Brett & Mark	08:10	+0:36
3.	Jonathan & Ana	08:33	+0:59
4.	Han & Holden	09:47	+2:13
5.	Melinda & Erika	10:06	+2:32
6.	Carson & Jack	11:15	+3:41

The first clue envelope contains two clues. One route info and a separate Express pass clue.

The route info tells teams to drive to Lake Ariana in Sofia to find their next clue.

To win the express pass teams must make their way to Fabrica 126 in Sofia where they must perform a task. The clue explicitly says that there is only one express pass but multiple teams can attempt to win it. Alyssa & Josiah go for the express pass and all other teams assume they did and as they have a sizable lead there is no point for the others to even try going for it. And looking at the episode this seems to be the correct conclusion. Unless Alyssa & Josiah get lost on the way there, and their navigation has been spot on so far, there is no way anybody else can get it before them.

Jonathan is pissed and comments that if their car hadn't been stuck in a ditch for an hour in the last leg they might have had a chance to go for this Express pass.

At the express pass location teams are greeted with a number of fires and a sign:

WALK BAREFOOT ON HOT COALS TO WITH THE EXPRESS PASS!
* There is a demonstration of how to walk on hot coals.
* Both of you must walk the entire length of hot coals, one at the time.
* If one or both fail. You may try again. However you must go to the end of any line that may have formed.
* The two minute rule applies to this event.
* There is a short safety briefing. Listen carefully to all instructions.

I find the mention of the two minute rule intriguing. I assume this means that once you get to the front of the line you have two minutes to start doing the actual task before you have to go to the end of the line.

Alyssa gets excited when she sees the sign while Josiah is less enthusiastic as he does not like hot things. The actual hot coal walking takes place inside the building. The difficulty with this task is purely mental. As long as you keep walking you will not get seriously hurt.
 "It hurt, it was a lot longer than I though it was gonna be.", Alyssa
 "[]I'm on the beach. I'm on the beach[/i]", Josiah

In the end Alyssa & Josiah do not hesitate so they get the Express pass, which turns out to be valid through leg 10. This whole Express pass detour probably cost them about 40 minutes.

 "I'm gonna do way better at directions today", Erika
 "Spirits were high but delusional", Jack as they know they are more than an hour behind the team in front of them
 "You're not on my map anymore", Erika realize they are lost

Teams arrive to lake Irina (25km) in the following order:
 1(+1) Brett & Mark
 2(-1) Alyssa & Josiah
 3(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+0) Han & Holden
 5(+0) Melinda & Erika
 6(+0) Carson & Jack

Here teams must retrieve a golden cross thrown into a lake by a priest. This is normally a part of the Jordan Day festival. The task is simple, the depth is less then a meter and teams see where the priest throws the cross. The only snag is that the water is cold. There is a bunch of worshipers standing in a circle in the water and there is music (drums and bagpipes) and generally a boisterous atmosphere.

None of the teams eve see each other here so they complete the task in the same order they got here.

Route info: Make your way to the neighborhood of Russian Monument Square and open the doors of the marked Klek shop to receive your next clue.

The Klek shop is located in the basement of the building next to Boulevard "General Mihail D. Skobelev" 75. The shop is more like a kiosk so you do not enter it. But to find it you must open the doors which look more like a utility box. The doors are marked with a small sticker but there is also some red and yellow graffiti which reads AR37 (masked among some other unrelated tags).

The clue also says that teams can not take a taxi for the rest of the leg, they must travel on foot or by public transport. Brett & Mark decide to go on foot to the next location as they do not know which bus to take.

 "You must travel by taxi for the rest of the leg", Erika misses a crucial NOT when reading the additional info

So all teams either travel by foot or public transport to the Klek shop, apart from Melinda & Erika who take a taxi. We can assume that they will get a time penalty at the end and we can also feel fairly certain that this will doom them.
 "Maybe somebody else will make a bigger mistake than us?", Erika, refers to their navigation and does not even realize they just made an even bigger mistake by taking a taxi

Carson & Jack jump onto a bus, and there they randomly run into the wood-chopping judge form last leg. They ask him what a Klek shop is and he does his best to explain, but he does not speak that much English.

The Klek shop is surprisingly hard to find for most teams. Alyssa seems to be the only one spotting the graffiti. The other teams eventually spot the small race flag sticker. When Melinda & Erika run around looking for it we can see an open Klek shop next to number 77 but they do not make the connection.

Teams find the shop (2.5km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Brett & Mark
 2(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 3(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+0) Han & Holden
 5(+0) Melinda & Erika
 6(+0) Carson & Jack

Route info: Make your way to Sofia University's St. Kliment Ohridski Central Library

This library is actually very close to lake Ariana so teams are making their way back.

Teams reach the library (2.5km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Brett & Mark
 2(+0) Alyssa & Josiah, just as #1 are leaving
 3(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+0) Han & Holden
 5(+0) Melinda & Erika
 6(+0) Carson & Jack

Route info: Use a cypher to translate a passage from Cyrillic to English

The Cypher is a round metal disc where one part holds the Cyrillic letters and this can be rotated. There is also a book open on a page with some text in Cyrillic on it. The trick is to turn the disc over and on the back there is a window where you can read English letters. To make this translation work the message must have been written in English but with Cyrillic letters.

Mark seems to be fairly quick to look at the back and there he spots the English characters. Alyssa & Josiah starts looking for a book which can help them, the problem with that plan is that they are in a library so there are lots of books around. Alyssa & Josiah struggle with this task. They are still there when Jonathan & Ana arrives. Jonathan seems to quickly find the back of the Cypher and then they are careful to not let Alyssa & Josiah see them turn their Cypher over. Once Jonathan & Ana have received their next clue they tell Alyssa & Josiah to flip it over. They see this as an investment and hope that Josiah & Alyssa might help them in the future.

Han & Holden are stumped. While they look dejectedly at their Cypher Melinda & Erika arrive, both teams decide to work together. But that does not really help because none of them have any idea.

When Carson & Jack arrive to the library Han & Holden and Melinda & Erika are still there and having no clue as to how to do the task. They boys are very happy to have caught up and the others are not.

It seems as if Jack fairly quickly looks at the back of the Cypher. Then they do their best to solve the puzzle without the other two teams seeing what they are doing. But Han is observant and see what they are doing. Then Melinda & Erika leave the room to try their solution, TZKONTZKOMMOTNKMMTZKO, which gets rejected. While Melinda & Erika are out Han & Holden turn to Carson & Jack and offer to work together. Once Han & Holden get approved the decide to wait for Carson & Jack to get it before they tell Melinda & Erika to turn their Cypher over. Carson & Jack are not impressed by their decision to tell Melinda & Erika as it is always good to have a buffer.

The translation is "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word". Teams get this in the following order:
 1(+0) Brett & Mark
 2(+1) Jonathan & Ana
 3(-1) Alyssa & Josiah
 4(+0) Han & Holden
 5(+1) Carson & Jack
 6(-1) Melinda & Erika

Route info: Make your way to the museum of Socialist Art and search for the sculpture garden for your next clue.

Han & Holden work together with Carson & Jack to find the museum but they have trouble locating it. Eventually the boys stop to ask for directions but Han & Holden keep running.
 "We're letting race brain win", Holden gets the quote

Teams arrive to the museum (4.4km) in the following order:
 1(+0) Brett & Mark
 2(+1) Alyssa & Josiah
 3(-1) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+1) Carson & Jack
 5(-1) Han & Holden
 6(+0) Melinda & Erika

Route info: Make your way to the Central Military Club to find your next clue.

Looking at a map it seems teams are very much just traveling back and forth between two areas. To get to the Central Military club teams can ride the metro back to the stop next to the library.

Teams arrive to the clue box at the Central Military Club (4.6) in the following order:
 1(+0) Brett & Mark
 2(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 3(+0) Jonathan & Ana
 4(+0) Carson & Jack
 5(+0) Han & Holden
 6(+0) Melinda & Erika

Road block: Who wants to step back in time?

In this road block contestants will learn to dance an old Bulgarian dance called to Horo. They will learn what Phil calls a complicated routine which they then have to perform together with a group of dancers. Before they can learn the dance they have to get into costume.

Mark feels confident going into this as he feel that this task plays at their strength. And he is right to be confident as he aces the dance.

Carson thinks the task is going to be military history so they select Jack to do it.

The last three teams are all at this task together.

Teams leave this road block in the following order (* denotes team member doing the roadblock):

1(+0)	Brett & Mark*	(4-5)	On his 1st attempt, and before any other team has arrived
2(+0)	Alyssa & Josiah*	(4-5)	On his 3rd attempt
3(+0)	Jonathan & Ana*	(4-5)	On her 3rd attempt
4(+0)	Carson & Jack*	(3-5)	On his 2nd attempt
5(+0)	Han* & Holden	(4-5)	On his 2nd attempt
6(+0)	Melinda* & Erika	(4-5)	On her 1st attempt

The next clue tells teams that they will find the pit stop by the St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.

The edit makes it look like it was a close race between Melinda & Erika and Han & Holden. And perhaps it was, they probably arrived from different directions so we do not see both teams in the same shot. But we hear Erika saying that she see Han & Holden. We do not know if she see them running to the mat, on the mat or walking away from the mat. All of this could be very exciting if we did not remember that Melinda & Erika has taken a taxi when they were supposed to walk so they must have a substantial penalty waiting for them.

Teams reach Phil and the mat (300m) in the following order:
 1(+0) Brett & Mark, win $15,000
 2(+0) Alyssa & Josiah
 3(+0) Jonathan & Ana, just after #2
 4(+0) Carson & Jack
 5(+0) Han & Holden
 6(+0) Melinda & Erika, are eliminated

At the mat Phil tells Melinda & Erika that they misread the clue and he has them reread the relevant note. As it turned out their mistake did not matter as they arrived last, but in interviews after the race we heard that they would have received a 30 minute penalty for each taxi trip they took. As they took four trips that would have meant a 2h penalty.

 "We've loved it. Thank you. It's a gift.", Melinda to Phil