The Amazing Race
Season 35, Episode 12
By Jim Memmott
Seattle – The result wasn’t a surprise, but the road to the result was.
In an Amazing Race finale for the ages – the finales are always for the ages – the heavily favored Franklin brothers, Greg (near left) and John, had to come from behind to finish first and take home $1 million.
Thus Emily and Denny Showers finished first in our pool, winning $100, as they often do. (Bitter? Who's bitter? I'm not bitter.)
The season itself was a winner, too. A terrific cast, wonderful scenery, and lots of backstories.
There were some changes. Thirteen teams, rather than the usual 11, started out in the first episode. Each episode – or leg – lasted 90 minutes rather than 60. Non-elimination legs were, well, eliminated.
The added minutes and larger cast worked. More was more. Way to go, CBS.
In the finale, the smart and athletic Franklins took the lead in the 11th hour, acing the final challenge, a memory test, before hopping on the finish mat first.
The Franklins had been predicted to win (by me, anyway) because of their earlier performances (four first-places). But they weren’t themselves earlier on in the episode.
They almost blew the glass-blowing challenge, and they were bad roadies, taking ages to set up the equipment for a grunge band. Why? Computer scientists, they failed to think inside the (speaker) boxes, and thus couldn’t find the necessary power cords.
Nonetheless, they had almost no trouble flying on the trapeze, and thanks to John’s terrific memory, they aced the final challenge, arranging in the right order some kayaks labeled with episode and challenge titles.
Though they lost, Joel and Garrett won a lot of hearts.
Not all that athletic, the duo seemed to have been miscast for the Race. But self-deprecating and quick with a quip (especially Joel), they embraced (and earned) the underdog role.
Underdogs or not, they might have won it all were it not for a mistake on the memory challenge that they took too long to correct.
The father/son team of Rob (near left) and Corey McArthur came in
third, winning #30 for your host, Jim Memmott.
Rob struggled on the trapeze,
and they had problems with glass blowing, Given that, they arrived at the memory challenge too late to make up for lost ground.
While they lost the race, Rob and Corey emerged as the stars of the season, remarkable in their optimism, their persistence, and their affection for each other.
For sure, being deaf did not hinder Rob. Using sign language, he and Corey communicated flawlessly, even when Corey was in the backseat and Rob was driving.
It was impossible not to cry at the end when Rob expressed his gratitude to Corey for signing with him “all the way” and being “proud to be a CODA.”
Corey, in turn, expressed his thanks: “I’m so entirely grateful to my parents because they raised me with sign language and pulled me into their world,” he said.
Thus, the season ended on a warm note, a fitting finish.
As always, there were moments in the season that stood out.
I close my eyes and see boatloads of pomelos. I see Joel doing the best he can at River Dancing, the Franklin sisters eating bugs, Ashlie Martin slowly, carefully arranging a wreath as the clock ticks away.
I see Steve Cargile and his daughter Anna Leigh Wilson climbing up a ski slope they didn’t have to climb. I see racers lugging mattresses up a narrow stairway. And there they are riding huge horse bicycles. Why?
Look up. Everyone is high in the sky, walking a tightrope between buildings, riding in a glider, parachuting for no apparent reason, creeping around on the top of the Space Needle. I hate heights. I love The Amazing Race.
It’s over. “Eight countries, 19 cities, more than 23,00 miles,” according to host Phil Keoghan.
Franny Mokris, 7, and her sister Margot, 5, new fans of The Amazing Race, agreed that it’s sad when a season ends. It is.
Wipe those tears. word on the internet is that Season 36 is already filmed. Bring it on. I’m ready.
Overheard:
Corey: If the roadblock is to find the best piece of pizza in Seattle, I’m winning.
Joel: We didn’t come this far just to come this far.
Garrett: I’m somewhat afraid of heights.
Corey: I took guitar lessons for a year, and then my parents made me stop because I didn’t practice.
Joel: We ran the entire race without yelling at each other.
Garrett: This guy pushed me through so much
Corey: It’s really bittersweet, the race coming to the end.
Order of Finish
Greg and John Franklin, brothers
Joel Strasser and Garrett Smith, best friends
Corey and Rob McArthur, son and father
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