An Amazing Race first: A lost crew; a lost Race.

 

Amazing Race Season 36 Episode 8

By Jim Memmott

 

Bridgetown, Barbados – Crew? What crew?

 

The Amazing Race is hard enough, all those bugs to eat, all those walls to climb, all those dance steps to learn.

There’s at least one more challenge that viewers may not have known until this episode: You aren't allowed to lose your crew.

Angie and Danny Butler (and the rest of us) learned this the hard way, and now they've gone from the Race.

 

I’m not clear what constitutes a crew, but I assume it's the folks in a trailing car, a driver, an EMT, and maybe a producer or two. If you're a racer, they have to remain in your sight. Or else.

 

How do I know? Well, in a key moment in this episode the most Amazing Race savvy contestants ever, Danny and his mom, Angie, lost their crew car in a roundabout. Or the crew lost them. It's debatable.

 

For the longest time – 10 minutes? 10 years? – they then had to wait until the crew caught up. Or so it was portrayed. Actually, in post-race interviews, the Butlers revealed that their crew took so long that another crew was subbed in for awhile.

 

By the time they restarted, Danny and his mom had lost a ton of time, falling from second to last with just one challenge to go. They lost more valuable minutes as Danny worked to make everything just right when he assembled a fish pot. Sloppy would have been OK.

 

The Butlers came in last and were eliminated, as were their pool supporters, Denny and Emily Showers.

The Butlers may have a right to complain. The whole "lost crew" incident was so confusing, and so seemingly ad hoc, that it might have been fairer to call things off and start all over again.

Regardless, it was rare for the Race to reveal anything about production logistics. The prevailing illusion is that there are no crews, no cameras. The film just happens.

Other highlights:

 

Dating couple Cesar Aldrete (far left) and Ricky Rotandi picked up their fifth win (they also have three second-place finishes.)

 

It may be that they’re invincible, though at times during this episode they looked a little rattled. But only a little. They’re good.

 

The pilots, Juan Villa and Shane Bilek, took

second, overcoming their weak navigational skills. (It’s a little worrisome that they fly jets but generally don’t know where they’re going.)

 

Ever resilient, the guys made up a ton of valuable time filling a barrel with seaweed rather than putting together a fish pot.

 

Amber Craven and Vinny Cagungun, the bickering nurse anesthesiologists, came in third. For the most part, they got along with each other. Surprise.

 

Yvonne Chavez and Melissa Main, another dating couple, were a safe fourth, and Leticia and Rod Gardner survived in fifth place, thanks, in part, to his being strong enough to push their stuck car out of some mud. (There had been a hard rain.)

 

Overheard:

 

Danny: I hate following people.

 

Amber: I’m learning about myself through this journey, and I’m learning about him.

 

Barbados barber: Remember the best haircuts in Barbados are right here.

 

Cesar: I know Ricky is a little more sportsy.

 

Angie: Who’s Rihanna? ... What does she sing?

 

Danny:  A lot of really good songs that are on the radio.

 

Angie: I lost our crew.

 

Danny: You’re not supposed to lose your crew.

 

Order of finish

 

Ricky and Cesar

Juan and Shane

Amber and Vinny

Yvonne and Melissa

Leticia and Rod

 

Eliminated

 

Angie and Danny