TAR19, Recap Leg 1, 9/25/11

Welcome to Leg 1! We’re back to TAR after a hiatus, and it couldn’t come soon enough. This time, we get sun, surf, California, Phil and TAR busses?! (Toyouke: “Oh, they have to take a BUS? Weak.”) Getting off the bus at Hsi Lai Temple, the eleven teams are: (click for more)

Andy and Tommy, AKA The Snowboarders, are snowboarders from California. Andy: “We both competed in Olympic games, and people think we look like slackers.

Ethan and Jenna, AKA Team Famewhore, are from Survivor. (Toyouke: “BOO Survivors. But, dating for 7 years? And still "dating"? Sad.”) Ethan is also a cancer survivor. Jenna: “If we can beat cancer, we can beat anything!”

Laurence and Zac, AKA The Adventurers, are father and son adventurers from California. Zac is the youngest person to sail around the world solo. Laurence tells us in his Australian accent that they will rise to the occasion. (Toyouke: “Don’t you dare. . .”)

Ernie and Cindy, AKA Team Chinatown, are engaged from Chicago. Cindy is a control freak. And she’s Asian.

Justin and Jennifer, AKA Team Patience, are brother and sister from Georgia. Justin: “We talk out our issues, but Jennifer is a hothead.”

Bill and Cathi, AKA The Grandparents, are farmers and former educators from Oregon. They love an extreme challenge.

Liz and Marie, AKA Twinderellas, are twin sisters from Deerfield, Illinois. Marie: “Our communication is awesome! (Toyouke: “15 seconds and I already dislike the blonde twins.”)

Jeremy and Sandy, AKA Team Tryout, are dating from San Francisco. They have been in three marriages, and they are testing their relationship on the Race. (Kmanpat: “I can tell you how this ends!”)

Ron and Bill, AKA Rainbow Air, are domestic partners and flight attendants. They can work together. (Auburnium0513: “Hmm..another team of flight attendants, I wonder if they will fare better...”)

Amani and Marcus, AKA Team Football, are in a ten year marriage and are from Georgia. Marcus used to play for the Colts and misses competition.

Kaylani and Lisa, AKA Team Showgirl, are former showgirls and current cocktail waitresses in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kaylani: “We’re intelligent.” Mmm-hmm. (Toyouke: "You'd be surprised at how smart a cocktail waitress is! See how hot I look in this bikini? Smart!")

The camera careens to the Hsi Lai Temple where the teams are standing where Phil gives his standard speech. There will be twelve legs where each team will get a “small amount of cash”. Phil tells them that their first clue is NOT on their bags. Instead, teams must go to a wall of umbrellas with six letters above them: WAN PEI. They must then find the umbrella with the correct three letter combination (TAI) to complete both words and find out their next destination. (Toyouke: “Wow. This is an intensive first challenge.“) Phil will them give them their keys to the Ford Explorers and they can drive to LAX. The first EIGHT (8) teams to arrive at the airport will get tickets on the first flight out on China Air. The last three teams to the airport will get tickets on the second flight on Eva Air, twenty minutes later. AND the first team to check in on Leg 1 will get a special prize: an Express Pass, which will allow them to skip any one task on a leg that they choose, either before they start it or during. AND the last team to get their keys will receive a Hazard, a new challenge similar to a Speed Bump that they must complete before the end of the leg. Oh, and the first team to finish will win ONE MILLION DOLLARS (US$1000000)! Then oh so sexy Phil does his standard patter: “Ready? The world is waiting for you. Good luck, travel safe. (Toyouke: “WOOO I FINALLY GOT MY EYEBROW POP!!”) GO!” Who will be eliminated . . . tonight?

Hsi Lai Temple, Hacienda Heights, California, USA

Clue: Travel to Taipei, Taiwan! Once in Taipei, travel by bus to Ximending Commercial District and find a billboard with the information for your next clue.

Since teams have to find their clues in order to leave, the departure order follows naturally. If the teams solve the clue, they know they want to find an umbrella that says TAI. (Toyouke: “I wondered if they were going to have to remember where they were going, but I guess we had to use the video system.”) Thus, the order of departure for the airport is:

1- Andy/Tommy
2- Amani/Marcus
3- Liz/Marie
4- Ethan/Jenna
5- Jeremy/Sandy
6- Ernie/Cindy
7- Ron/Bill
8- Bill/Cathi
9- Laurence/Zac
10- Justin/Jennifer
11- Kaylani/Lisa – who get the Hazard penalty. (Toyouke: “Can't say I care that the showgirls are last.”)

Teams drive themselves to the airport and find the marked parking lot. Well, everyone except Kaylani and Lisa who get a little sidetracked. They stop at a gas station for directions, where Kaylani proceeds to drop her passport. Oops. (Toyouke: “Why was your passport anywhere it could fall out of the car?!?!”) They realize the error, go back, and it is not at the gas station. (Toyouke: “Wait...it's not there? Did the production team pick it up? I mean, I can understand they don't want to interfere and be like "Hey you dropped something" but you can't leave someone's passport laying around where some random person can steal it.” Auburnium0513: “Really? A lost passport already? AND a team breakdown? These girls are rushing the season!”) Hoping someone picked it up, they go to the airport, where they eventually find that someone did, and using Twitter, figured out that they should go to the airport and hope the team member was still there. (Auburnium0513: “Saved by Twitter? Wow, and yet I still don't want to do Twitter.”) And so Kaylani got her passport back so she could race. Intelligence Count: 1. (Toyouke: “That's going to be one for a top ten list. Losing your passport before you leave the starting city.”)

Once everyone arrives, there’s no jockeying for position, and the flights shake down like this:

Flight 1, China Air:
1) Ron/Bill
2) Ethan/Jenna –who discuss not telling teams about being on Survivor. But they totally already know. (Toyouke: “Are you stupid? Everyone knows who you are already.”) Two words: Peanut Butter.
3) Ernie/Cindy
4) Amani/Marcus
5) Laurence/Zac
6) Justin/Jennifer
7) Andy/Tommy
8) Jeremy/Sandy

Flight 2, Eva Air:
1) Liz/Marie
2) Bill/Cathi
3) Kaylani/Lisa

So, teams board their respective flights. We follow the Amazing Blue and Green Lines across the Pacific to Taipei.

Teams leave Sydney Airport for Ximending in the following order:

1- Laurence/Zac
2- Andy/Tommy
3- Ethan/Jenna
4- Amani/Marcus – who work on keeping the info about Marcus playing football from the teams. Why hide, folks? We all know famous people race. This is why Jenn and I have never made it on.
5- Ernie/Cindy
6- Jeremy/Sandy
7- Justin/Jennifer
8- Ron/Bill
9- Kaylani/Lisa – who make the second bus with . . .
10- Liz/Marie
11- Bill/Cathi – who are on the third bus from the airport. Uh Oh.

Teams arrive at Ximendeng in the following order:

1- Laurence/Zac
2- Ethan/Jenna
3- Andy/Tommy
4- Amani/Marcus
5- Ernie/Cindy
6- Jeremy/Sandy
7- Ron/Bill
8- Justin/Jennifer
9- Kaylani/Lisa
10- Liz/Marie
11- Bill/Cathi

Once at Ximendeng, teams have to “look up” to find an electronic billboard with the following characters: 台北孔廟, which means Taipei Confucius Temple (Toyouke: “None of them can read characters. This is mean.”), which is the location of their next clue. (Toyouke: “Look for a billboard? How do you know what billboard to look for?”)

Teams read the billboard and find the clue in the following order:

1- Jeremy/Sandy
2- Ernie/Cindy
3- Amani/Marcus
4- Justin/Jennifer
5- Ron/Bill
6- Ethan/Jenna
7- Andy/Tommy
8- Laurence/Zac
9- Kaylani/Lisa
10- Liz/Marie
11- Bill/Cathi – who get woefully confused. Sad times. (Toyouke: “No! I want to root for the old people and they aren't doing well.”) They finally decide to look for the clue in the district that they are supposed to look in. (Toyouke: “Why did it take you FOUR HOURS to think to look for the district they told you about in the clue?”)

Once they arrive, teams get the first roadblock clue.

ROADBLOCK:

Confucius says: “Who’s ready to play telephone?”

In this roadblock, one team member must find the payphone and dial 1-800-CONFUCIUS to listen to a proverb: “In all things success depends on previous preparation, and without such previous preparation there is sure to be failure.” Roadblockers must memorize the proverb and recite it perfectly for a monk who will give them their next clue.

The following teammates take the Roadblock:

1- Sandy
2- Cindy
3- Amani
4- Jennifer
5- Ron – (Auburnium0513: “Aw, little gay flight attendant is sweating really bad under the pressure...”)
6- Ethan
7- Andy – (Auburnium0513: “Ha! That monk is totally trying not to laugh at the snowboarder!”)
8- Zac
9- Lisa
10- Liz – who gets ridiculously tongue tied and stuck. (Toyouke: “Jeez, I had this memorized 5 minutes ago.”)
11- Cathy

After much phone calling and proverb reciting, teams complete the Roadblock in the following order:

1- Ernie/Cindy
2- Justin/Jennifer
3- Jeremy/Sandy
4- Ethan/Jenna
5- Amani/Marcus
6- Laurence/Zac
7- Ron/Bill
8- Andy/Tommy
9- Kaylani/Lisa
10- Liz/Marie
11- Bill/Cathi

Teams are now instructed to travel by taxi to Dajia Riverside Park to get their next clue. Well, everyone except Kaylani and Lisa, who are sent to Core City Pacific Mall instead. (Toyouke: “That mall looks terribly familiar.” Kmanpat: “It looks like the mall TAR Asia went to in their first episode, but that was Malaysia.”)

HAZARD:

A hazard is a task that must be performed by the last place team on any specific task. Once they complete this task, they may return to the place where the hazard occurred and continue the leg. In this Hazard, one team member must bungee jump in the mall. Once completed, they will receive their next clue.

Teams complete the Hazard in the following order:

1- Kaylani/Lisa

After Kaylani jumps, they catch up with the teams heading to Dajia Riverside Park.

Teams get their next clue in the following order:

1- Ernie/Cindy
2- Justin/Jennifer
3- Jeremy/Sandy
4- Ethan/Jenna
5- Andy/Tommy
6- Laurence/Zac
7- Amani/Marcus
8- Ron/Bill
9- Kaylani/Lisa
10- Liz/Marie
11- Bill/Cathi

Teams are now instructed to join a dragon boat racing team and complete a course with them. One team member must keep rhythm on the drum, while the other joins the team and rows. Once complete, they will get their next clue.

Teams get their next clue in the following order:

1- Ernie/Cindy
2- Jeremy/Sandy
3- Justin/Jennifer
4- Ethan/Jenna
5- Andy/Tommy
6- Laurence/Zac
7- Amani/Marcus
8- Ron/Bill
9- Kaylani/Lisa
10- Liz/Marie
11- Bill/Cathi

Teams must now get themselves by taxi to the PIT STOP, Martyr’s Shrine. This is the first pit stop in a racearoundtheworld. The last team to arrive MAY be eliminated!

1- Ernie/Cindy – who win the Express Pass.
2- Jeremy/Sandy
3- Justin/Jennifer
4- Ethan/Jenna
5- Amani/Marcus
6- Laurence/Zac
7- Andy/Tommy
8- Ron/Bill
9- Kaylani/Lisa
10- Liz/Marie
11- Bill/Cathi

And Bill and Cathi are the last team to arrive, and have already gotten the elimination edit. Bill and Cathi, this is the first non-elimination leg! You will have a speed bump on the next leg, and there will be a double elimination at the end of Leg 2! Oh dear.

ORDER NOW:
1st – Ernie/Cindy
2nd – Jeremy/Sandy
3rd – Justin/Jennifer
4th – Ethan/Jenna
5th – Amani/Marcus
6th – Laurence/Zac
7th – Andy/Tommy
8th – Ron/Bill
9th – Kaylani/Lisa
10th – Liz/Marie
11th – Bill/Cathi

Next week: Justin goes up against Jennifer in the first sibling take down, and teams worry about the double elimination. Until next time!