Author Topic: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*  (Read 627266 times)

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Offline georgiapeach

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1875 on: February 16, 2011, 12:53:23 PM »
Remember...Express Passes are given to the winners of a leg. :angel
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Offline Slowhatch

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1876 on: February 16, 2011, 01:11:56 PM »
Quote from: AP, via Peach
In the premiere, Keoghan informs the players that the last team to arrive on the mat will automatically face a U-turn, forcing the duo to perform both Detour challenges, while first-place finishers will receive the Express Pass, allowing a team to skip one task during the race.
That doesn't sound good; the reason the Speed Bumps were so short and easy is that any delay longer than 10-15 minutes will effectively bump a team off the race.


Offline georgiapeach

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1877 on: February 16, 2011, 01:20:11 PM »
Yeah, this is tough. Not as bad as a start line elimination...but still.   It is more about the Automatic U-Turn we picked up in the promos, slowhatch.


Hmmm...

One thing I have learned from doing the caps is that we see certain shots for a reason...clues if you like.

This season appears to be no different.  ;)
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Offline Plaidmoon

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1878 on: February 16, 2011, 08:09:35 PM »
I was just looking at Lijiang, China on Google Earth after reading Apskip's info on the map thread. I didn't realize that Lijiang was at such a high elevation, about 7900 feet (2400 m for you non US people). The timeline refers to a possible  detour/roadblock involving local Naxi customs. There are Naxi villages nearby to Lijiang that are at an even higher elevation. If they do much running around on foot or vigorous activity, there's going to be some very tired racers. Especially the more out of shape racers.  :iok Following that up, Kunming is at around 6000 feet (1800 m). The tiredness will probably accumulate even more on that leg. That's just something to think about later on when we get to those legs of the race.
« Last Edit: February 16, 2011, 08:20:55 PM by Plaidmoon2 »

Offline JETandCORDfan

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1879 on: February 16, 2011, 08:48:26 PM »
I am sure teams like the cowboys and the globetrotters won't be effected as much as some teams might considering that they are athletes....


Offline Plaidmoon

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1880 on: February 16, 2011, 09:11:42 PM »
I am sure teams like the cowboys and the globetrotters won't be effected as much as some teams might considering that they are athletes....

Good point. I agree it will be less of a problem for the Cowboys and especially the Globetrotters. I was thinking more of people like Mel who is about 70 if I'm not mistaken and Vyxsyn who was apparently wiped out at the end of the first leg in Sydney.

I've also done some more digging about the news releases today that mention interacting with animals in China. I found a tour company that includes as a part of a visit  to Lijiang a trip to a site called Yak Meadow on Jade Dragon Snow Mountain near Lijiang. The purpose is to see yaks. That sounds like a natural for TAR. I haven't been able to pin down the exact location of Yak Meadow (it probably had a Chinese name and Yak Meadow is the name given for English speaking tourists), but the meadow is likely at an even higher elevation. According to Google Earth, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is over 16,000 feet (5000 m) high, but I'm sure the Meadow will be WAY down the mountain from the summit.

I'm still looking for animal attractions at Kunming, but so far all I've found is a mention of a butterfly zoo and a regular zoo (perhaps the same place). You could interact with almost any animal in a zoo, so that will be harder to figure out.

Update:

After finding a few pictures and a review of the Kunming Zoo, I'm doubtful it would be used. The review and one picture show an old fashioned zoo with small cages that have concrete floors, not a more modern style with enclosures that have access to the outdoors with grass and dirt. Most of the pictures show peacock like birds, but I did see one white tiger and their website mentions pandas.

I think the Yaks in the Lijiang area are the best bet.
« Last Edit: February 16, 2011, 09:23:53 PM by Plaidmoon2 »

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1881 on: February 16, 2011, 09:16:10 PM »
I suspect the least altitude affected racer will be Margie Adams........she lives in Denver and is a runner. I dont know where Luke lives now, but if he is back in Denver, he should adapt well. Short burst athletes dont do well with sudden change in altitude.......that means the Cowboys. Globes should be okay.......their year round basketball game will help them adapt faster. Any other runners will adapt quicker too.
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Offline Plaidmoon

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1882 on: February 16, 2011, 09:47:01 PM »
I found a little more information about Yak Meadow. Here are some pictures and information at http://yeschinatour.com/china-guides/china-attractions/yak-meadow-lijiang/ and more information at http://wikitravel.org/en/Lijiang. It looks gorgeous and something like the Alps. It is apparently about 40 miles (60 km) from Lijiang so it would probably take a minimum of an hour travel time each way. It's served by bus partway and a tram up the rest of the way to the Meadow at about 11,000 feet (3500 m). It sounds like if they go there, it would take at least 3-4 hours of time to get there, do a roadblock/detour and return. I'm not sure they would do that. Perhaps they can arrange to have yaks brought in somewhere closer.

Yak Meadow is inhabited by Tibetan people and the pictures I find of it on Google Earth look more like Tibet. There are a couple of monasteries and temples and there are prayer flags in places that look like ones I've seen pictures of on Mount Everest. There is also a boardwalk/walking trail that is probably about a mile and a half to two miles long. However, I have to wonder how much snow would be up there in late November, so the possibility of snow that high up may have ruled out a trip to Yak Meadow.
« Last Edit: February 16, 2011, 10:04:18 PM by Plaidmoon2 »

Offline Jobby

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1883 on: February 16, 2011, 10:24:35 PM »
I suspect the least altitude affected racer will be Margie Adams........she lives in Denver and is a runner. I dont know where Luke lives now, but if he is back in Denver, he should adapt well. Short burst athletes dont do well with sudden change in altitude.......that means the Cowboys. Globes should be okay.......their year round basketball game will help them adapt faster. Any other runners will adapt quicker too.

Kisha and Jen, Cara and Jaime should be okay. Ron and Gary... oh dear. :(

Offline narupley

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1884 on: February 16, 2011, 10:36:23 PM »
Remember...Express Passes are given to the winners of a leg. :angel

That's speculation right? I mean, there has only been one other Express Pass ever given out, and there isn't any confirmed rules from TPTB regarding the conditions for awarding one (unless I'm wrong). Realistically, the producers could choose to give one out for whatever reason they deem would make for good television!


Offline JETandCORDfan

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1885 on: February 16, 2011, 10:38:16 PM »
I am sorry but what is TPTB

The production crew?

Offline georgiapeach

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1886 on: February 16, 2011, 10:39:57 PM »
No...it is not speculation. ;)

TPTB=The Powers That Be
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Offline theschnauzers

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1887 on: February 16, 2011, 11:23:18 PM »
I think we can safely assume that the rules for the Express Pass are unchanged from TAR 17I think we won't fully know how the automatic U-Turn works until the episode airs, because of past experience with new game elements not being fully explained before the season begins to air.

I think the idea of going up to the Yak Meadow in the mountains outside Lijiang wouldn't be much different that having tasks in the Andes or the Alps, or even the Canadian Rockies. Teams have frequently had to travel an hour each way to locales for tasks in the past, and I don't see any reason why that would be different now. And let's not forget the HD camera capturing the locales.

As to the altitude issue, we can't be totally sure which teams haven't lived for a time in high altitudes in their pasts, and current residence doesn't really resolve that question by itself.  Since there are two legs in the Lijiang area, it's possible the higher altitudes tasks are on the second leg, just to give teams a chance to adapt to the higher altitudes; that is sort of what TPTB have done in the past with other legs that were in mountainous areas, or teams were provided transport to get to their tasks.

That's my $.02 anyhow.
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Offline apskip

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1888 on: February 17, 2011, 09:15:30 AM »
The altitude of Lijiang itself is 7000 feet, which would not by itself require major acclimatizing. The Yak Meadow goes up to 10,920 feet, which is above the point where acclimatization is desirable (I had a bad experience with altitude sickness traveling up to the Jungfraujoch railway station which is only 11,332 feet).

the schnauzers, where does your information on 2 episodes in the Lijiang area come from? What I see in our TIMELINE thread is the second half of episode 4 and possibly beginning of episode 5 involving tasks in Lijiang. Episode 4 starts with flights from Tokyo to Kunming plus a lengthy rail trip from Kunming to Lijiang first  and episode 5 also involves a train trip back to Kunming, then flying to Kolkata. I do not view that  "2 episodes in Lijiang" although I guess it is possible to do so.

Offline Prophet

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1889 on: February 17, 2011, 09:27:24 AM »
I suspect the least altitude affected racer will be Margie Adams........she lives in Denver and is a runner. I dont know where Luke lives now, but if he is back in Denver, he should adapt well. Short burst athletes dont do well with sudden change in altitude.......that means the Cowboys. Globes should be okay.......their year round basketball game will help them adapt faster. Any other runners will adapt quicker too.

I don't know how much physical activity they will have to do, but I have been at these elevations on multiple occasions and not suffered adverse effects. While at this altitude I participated in hiking and climbing etc. without becoming any more short of breath than normal. I can only remember a handful of instances on the Race when someone had serious trouble with altitude and/or physical activity.
Physics alone is not enough.

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Offline Prophet

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1890 on: February 17, 2011, 09:28:38 AM »
Remember...Express Passes are given to the winners of a leg. :angel

That's speculation right? I mean, there has only been one other Express Pass ever given out, and there isn't any confirmed rules from TPTB regarding the conditions for awarding one (unless I'm wrong). Realistically, the producers could choose to give one out for whatever reason they deem would make for good television!

I agree, but Peach is probably right.
Physics alone is not enough.

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Offline countryboy270

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1891 on: February 17, 2011, 10:04:01 AM »
Don't know if it has been posted, but here is a new article about the amazing race in my local newspaper (Go Gary and Mal!)
http://www.ucadvocate.com/articles/stories/public/201102/16/04Wz_local_news.html

Offline Slowhatch

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1892 on: February 17, 2011, 10:16:27 AM »
Quote from: Advocate, via CountryBoy
Over 2,000 people work on the amazing race, with each team of two traveling with a camera operator, sound operator and safety expert
That's a new wrinkle; I knew about the cameraman and soundman, but I didn't know each team ran with a safety person.

Offline Prophet

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1893 on: February 17, 2011, 10:31:20 AM »
Quote from: Advocate, via CountryBoy
Over 2,000 people work on the amazing race, with each team of two traveling with a camera operator, sound operator and safety expert
That's a new wrinkle; I knew about the cameraman and soundman, but I didn't know each team ran with a safety person.

I thought this was new, maybe they are trying to emphasize safety now. This person may also be trained in CPR or something.
Physics alone is not enough.

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Offline Plaidmoon

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1894 on: February 17, 2011, 07:02:10 PM »
Quote from: Advocate, via CountryBoy
Over 2,000 people work on the amazing race, with each team of two traveling with a camera operator, sound operator and safety expert
That's a new wrinkle; I knew about the cameraman and soundman, but I didn't know each team ran with a safety person.

I thought this was new, maybe they are trying to emphasize safety now. This person may also be trained in CPR or something.

I suspect that means that either the cameraman or the soundman or both have had some safety training now. You could easily require a safety course and a CPR/First Aid course and have them get it done in a couple of days.  We do that where I work in a single day, but their course might have to be a bit more rigorous than what we need for our desk jobs. Given that it's already a tight squeeze to get the racers, the soundman, the cameraman and their gear into a cab, I doubt they could add a safety person and get them all into a cab.


Offline Plaidmoon

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1895 on: February 17, 2011, 07:10:19 PM »
I suspect the least altitude affected racer will be Margie Adams........she lives in Denver and is a runner. I dont know where Luke lives now, but if he is back in Denver, he should adapt well. Short burst athletes dont do well with sudden change in altitude.......that means the Cowboys. Globes should be okay.......their year round basketball game will help them adapt faster. Any other runners will adapt quicker too.

I don't know how much physical activity they will have to do, but I have been at these elevations on multiple occasions and not suffered adverse effects. While at this altitude I participated in hiking and climbing etc. without becoming any more short of breath than normal. I can only remember a handful of instances on the Race when someone had serious trouble with altitude and/or physical activity.

I wasn't suggesting that anyone would have serious medical issues. I just thought that may find themselves seriously winded and not able to do much more than walk instead of run. I recall as a teenager being at 8000 feet and helping to chase my cousin's horse that got loose from it's enclosure. I was fine running around with everyone at first, but after about 10 minutes, I hit the wall and had to stop and sit down for a bit. It wasn't a medical issue of any seriousness, but if I had been racing, I would have lost valuable time. I agree that the trained athletes and experienced runners probably will not have any issues, but it did affect a fat out of shape kid like me.

Offline georgiapeach

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1896 on: February 17, 2011, 08:21:44 PM »
Quote from: Advocate, via CountryBoy
Over 2,000 people work on the amazing race, with each team of two traveling with a camera operator, sound operator and safety expert
That's a new wrinkle; I knew about the cameraman and soundman, but I didn't know each team ran with a safety person.

They don't.

This is clearly a "lost in translation" edit...

TAR has an extraordinary world class security team in place which I am sure is ever present. But no, not one person running the legs with a team...can you imagine trying to fit one more person in the backseat of those cars?? :funny:
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Offline Prophet

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1897 on: February 17, 2011, 08:34:24 PM »
I think Plaidmoon's explanation is what it actually means. The article is trying to say either that one of them is a "safety expert" or talking about this team. It is really poorly worded though.
Physics alone is not enough.

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Offline walkingpneumonia

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1898 on: February 19, 2011, 01:38:08 PM »
From here ( http://forum.realityfanforum.com/index.php/topic,24557.msg589789.html#msg589789 ) we know:
Quote
Season 18 has more medical treatments than Season 17, with the medical crew taking competitors to hospitals for stitches and hypothermia.

And from here ( http://forum.realityfanforum.com/index.php/topic,23390.msg585567.html#msg585567 ) we know that...
Quote
Tokyo, Japan, where they must endure the freezing waters from Mount Fuji as part of a spiritual ritual.

Which leads me to speculate that someone - perhaps Mel and Mike White - get eliminated in a hospital in Japan where they are being treated for hypothermia...
Has Phil ever gone to a hospital to eliminate someone?
I believe there was a hospital elimination in TAR Israel...

BTW - do the teams travel to Oshino Hakkai - the 8 pools. I thought we knew where they went but I don't see it posted anywhere...
From there to here, and here to there,
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Offline georgiapeach

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Re: TAR 18 Speculation and Discussion *contains Spoilers*
« Reply #1899 on: February 20, 2011, 01:45:40 AM »
^^ Fuji=hypothermia.  :'(
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