Amazing Race, 31, Episode 9
Switzerland/Croatia – First the good news. The Travelocity gnome – actually six Travelocity gnomes – survived all sorts of challenges.
The perky champion of product placement tagged along in Split, Coatia. He was, in host Phil Keoghan’s words, the racers'
travel partner. Thus, the gnome sort of rock-climbed up a monastery wall to fetch a clue. He watched snorkeling and water-tube riding. He was everywhere.
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| The gnome finishes (with Nicole and Victor) |
Tyler Oakley and Korey Kuhl embraced their gnome, teased their gnome, won with their gnome, their fourth first-place finish in a row.
It wasn’t all wine and roses for the gnome. There was a dark moment when he was left behind by life partners Colin and Christie.
His anger issues long resolved, Colin didn’t flip out. He and Christie simply cabbed back, scooped up their gnome, stayed in the race.
Team Bromance, the hugely likeable wisecracking duo of Chris Hammons and Bret LaBelle, graduates of Survivor, was eliminated.
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| Bromance finishes |
Bromance took Team Boston of this pool along with them and left only one duo, Victor Arroyo and Nicole Franzel of Big Brother, that isn’t made up of Amazing Race alums.
At a Detour, the Bros chose to do a snorkeling challenge – find five coins and a goblet in the water. Too hard.
They switched to the poetry challenge – memorize a longish poem while bumping along in an inner tube. Too hard.
They went back to the coins, then back to the poetry, and, oh heavens, make up your mind.
Come fly with me
The episode was so gnomic that you felt like firing up the Travelocity app, booking a trip.
Though, oddly, the racers, perhaps deprived of smartphones, got their flights the old-fashioned way, pleading with airline reps and travel agents.
“I will name my daughter after you and my wife after your,” Leo Temory of the Afghanimals promised one Swiss flight booker. “I won’t get married until I find someone named you.”
She laughed. Put him on a later flight. Not to worry, the Afghanimals, not the dominant team they once were, survived, barely. Their days may be numbered.
Sweetness and light
I’d like to say that nice guys finish last, which was the case, but that would have been said of any of the teams. Absent Rachel Reilly, there are no villains left. Who’s to hate?
Perhaps because the teams actually like each other, there was some significant cooperation in Split. Four of the five surviving teams gained advantage by joining forces on a memory challenge. (Follow the shifting and disappearing Roman soldiers; say where some of them went. You had to be there.)
On his own
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| A senator gives Floyd good news |
Floyd Pierce, part of Team Fun with Becca Droz, didn’t need any help to track the tricky soldeiers. The former drum major drew upon his experience. “I’m a marching band geek,” he said with pride.
On further review
Early on, Team Fun seemed to be Team Rude, cutting in line at the airport and acing out Nic and Vic, who were as peeved as they ever get, which is not a whole lot.
Besides, forced to go standby – they actually got a flight that put them ahead of Team Fun – karma city.
I’ve replayed the airport incident, and I can’t find the Funsters at fault.
Let’s say you’re in line at Wegmans; you see an opening at another line. Do you survey all the other customers? No, you make your move.
Or maybe you go to self-checkout. Newly installed at the Geneseo Wegmans, self-checkout is killing me. I don’t know where to put my bag. I punch the wrong icons. The attendant comes over, calls me "sir," in her best "we can get through this voice,” checks me out.
Thinking of ice cream
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| A new Blizzard |
A lot of you (OK, at least one of you) wondered why this blog hasn’t featured another clip of the great Parker Posey. Satisfying that demand, click here to see her as Libby Mae Brown in Waiting for Guffman.
Overheard
Korey: Croatia? I hardly know her.
Nicole (on airport woes): My heart is broken.
Tyler: Holy macaroni.
Bret: This is almost impossible. I should have stayed drinking with those guys. That’s what I should have done.
Colin: We’re water people.
Floyd: Having a big picture perspective was really helpful.
Bret: Croatia kicked our buts.
Chris: But the bromance is still going.
Bret: The bromance is excited for some beers.
Order of finish:
1) Tyler and Korey
2) Nicole and Victor
3) Becca and Floyd
4) Christie and Colin
5) Leo and Jamal
