Note to DVRers!!! The Race will begin in markets that had the NFL doubleheader at 8:58 PM.
It was on time here for once.
Ooof. Tough break. But really, Ryan? The Chippendales cost you nothing. You and Abby cost yourselves the opportunity to win 2 million dollars—no one actually cost you 2 million dollars. I hate when people play that card. If Jaymes and James hadn’t used the U-turn, what would have happened? Trey and Lexi would have used it on Abby and Ryan, and Abby and Ryan would have used it on the Beekmans—they were already talking about doing so. If you yourselves would have used it on your so-called friends, than you can’t fault other so-called friends for using it on you.
But you guys already knew that.
Jeez, Louise, pepperjack cheese, they were a couple of whining crybabies. I’m glad they got u-turned and I’m glad they’re gone. Go, Chippendales.
I was quite taken aback when Phil offered the Goat Farmers the option of eliminating themselves to allow Ryan & Abbie the chance to keep on Racing. I didn’t realize that was an option…
I liked Abbie, indifferent towards Ryan, but it’s crystal clear that the tall Goat Farmer has 110% mentally given up and would rather be anywhere else on Earth than still stuck being a part of The Amazing Race.
Ugh, Beekmans! RAAAAAAAAACE!!! Geezums!
At no point in any leg of the Amazing Race should any team even be CONSIDERING offering themselves up to the U-turn so their “friends” can have a chance at a footrace for the mat. EVER!
And I DON’T like the U-turn. I think it makes for unnecessary drama and interference in another team’s race. But it’s part of the damn game, so acting like it’s cheating or something doesn’t make any more sense than being outraged that your opponent in a Monopoly game would demand rent when you land on his property, even if you’re down to $5. The U-turn is no more cheating than taking the Fast Forward.
I thought it was pretty brilliant strategy for Jaymes and James to U-Turn Ryan and Abbie, and then have Trey and Lexi U-Turn Jaymes and James so that Abbie and Ryan could not U-Turn the Beekmans. Thus ensuring their strongest opponent was eliminated.
I cannot believe the Beekmans even half considered waiting around for Abbie and Ryan. The tall one looks like he’s ready to be done with the race altogether. I’m guessing he only has one more leg to worry about it, though.
What I found ironic is the the team who were the masterminds of the entire idea (the twins) were the only team who weren’t involved at all in the U Turn.
I picked up on that too.
And I’m still waiting for them to fall on their faces. When they do, I’ll be very happy 
Taxi Assessment:
Stuck in the Desert and Officially Detained - or, Philiminated with extreme prejudice.
Rob & Sheila and Amy & Daniel and Caitlin & Brittany and Gary & Will and Rob & Kelley and James & Abba - Already eliminated.
Abbie & Ryan (down from “Rapido!”) - Ugh. It’s kind of tiresome to keep hearing U-Turned teams whine about being betrayed and stabbed in the back and so forth and so on. Newsflash: it’s a game, and the point is to win. Increasing my chances of winning at your expense isn’t “stabbing you in the back,” it’s “trying to win.” You know, the point of the game. The game you voluntarily signed up for, and knew the rules to. To be fair, Abbie & Ryan have had a pretty miserable string of legs stemming from their one airport calamity, and competing in a weeks-long race around the world is quantitatively different from playing a game of checkers, if not qualitatively different. However, their airport troubles two weeks ago and in this episode are a result of their own poor decisions. Trying to make a tight connection is a gamble. Getting fancy with double-booking flights is a gamble. You take a gamble, you pay the price when it doesn’t pan out. This time the price was elimination.
Flat Tire - or, not likely to get anywhere soon.
No one.
Stopping for Gas - or, not broken-down, exactly, but not a good sign.
Josh & Brent (holding steady) - That little moment of self-awareness when you can see Josh admitting to himself that they’re just not as good as the other teams is kind of a mixture of sad and awesome. It’s never nice to realize you’re not quite as good at something as you thought you might be, but on the other hand being realistic about your own competence is a precious skill. And speaking of competence, were Josh & Brent actually seriously discussing sticking with Abbie & Ryan after the U-Turn? In what possible scenario is that a good idea? Is the whole point of this race completely lost on this team? In any case, although they’re far behind the other teams, it’s better than even money that bunching on the next leg will bring them into a tie, and better than even money that a last-place finish next week will still result in a non-elimination. So Josh & Brent have some chance of making it into the final three, if they have the competence to push for it.
“Rapido! Por Favor?” - or, making meaningless ineffectual comments from the back seat, but in no immediate danger.
No one.
In the Passing Lane - or, ahead of the pack, but not quite comfortably.
Jaymes & James (up from “Rapido!”) - Another good leg from Jaymes & James, giving them three first- or second-place finishes in a row. Of course it helps to know that there are a couple teams far behind you, so not only is the competition less stiff, but it’s more relaxing to not worry about elimination.
Natalie & Nadiya (holding steady) - A good decision to opt for the Fast Forward, and Natalie & Nadiya cruise into an easy first place finish.
Trey & Lexi (holding steady) - It was a little hard to tell just how well Trey & Lexi did on this episode, because they were all alone for almost the entire leg. Still, they were all alone and not anywhere near last place, so it doesn’t really matter just how well they performed.
Cruisin’ with Earl - or, drivin’ on the shoulder, takin’ shortcuts, and generally kickin’ butt.
No one.
I don’t think it is, really (save for the obvious method of quitting and not checking in at the mat). I think Phil was just gauging how committed they are to actually Racing.
Yeah; I feel the same way. To be fair, teams have a lot more time and effort and emotion invested in the Amazing Race than they would in a game of Monopoly, so losing is a bigger blow; but still, getting angry at the competition doesn’t really make sense.
That was a lame Roadblock. First, they’ve already done it once before, and it took all of about 30 seconds for almost all of them to do it. There are plenty of things to do in the Netherlands, they should have sent them to find the right woman in the Red Light district or something.
When the top 3 teams were discussing the U-Turn plans, I was hoping it would be a blind U-Turn so the 2nd team to show up wouldn’t be sure which team got there first, and would have to take a 50-50 shot at U-turning the wrong team. The FF made that moot unfortunately. I didn’t like the combination of 5 teams, FF, double U-turn, and no start bunching anyway - there’s not enough teams left to keep any tension going throughout the episode.
It was funny that the Fast Forward involved eating multiple herring, while everyone else got delicious pastry. And what was with the twins talking so much while eating the herring? I was praying they’d fail just because they wouldn’t shut up and eat!
I think they were discussing it in the sense of Josh wanted to wait, but Brent was thinking “How do I say ‘If you make us wait for them, I will set you on fire’ discreetly?”
The arrogance of Ryan and Abbie is what killed them. With how often the goat farmers get jammed up, if R&A had actually put some distance between them they might have survived a u-turn. But no, they figured they could just beat them whenever they felt like it, so let’s just race together so no one gets lonely in the mean time.
I don’t see how that is necessarily the case. They were only together for one task this time (the painting, and only because they were already at the same place at the same time) and there was no indication that the goat farmers would have had difficulty on it if left on their own.
Ryan and Abbie were screwed as soon as they missed the connection in Frankfurt. And I’m guessing that neither one of them will ever willingly return to Frankfurt.
No, it’s not necessarily the case, but they didn’t even give themselves a chance. If they had taken off, the goat farmers might have gotten lost on the way to the painting task. I was frustrated the last two episodes that the two last place teams would even consider an alliance.
And he did manage to say it discreetly, by following Josh’s line of thought to its logical end. “So, we all get to the mat at the same time and then what do you suppose happens? They step out of the way and say ‘after you’?” (Paraphrased, obviously).
I still love the Chippendales most of all. I thought it was awesome that they whipped off their shirts and busted out the cuffs and bow ties when their audience was flagging midway through the task.
Despite everything I’ve thought about Abbie and Ryan, the hugging moment with the woman who gave them the last of the 30 euro was pretty touching. I think Abbie just wanted that woman to take her home and tuck her into bed.
I actually felt bad for Abbie and Ryan this time. They seemed to have learned their lesson from their last layover mistake and secured back-up tickets just in case; only to have their backup plane break down. You could almost hear the gods laughing at them.
Still, when you’re one of the last two teams, it never makes sense to team up with the other one.
I can’t help noticing that it’s been a long time since there was any kind of bunching. I thought for sure we would see some at the airport on this leg, but no two teams took the same flights to Amsterdam.
I was surprised that Abbie and Ryan were able to book multiple flights. I know there is a rule against booking first class, but I didn’t know you could book more than one flight.
And even after rewinding and watching again, I’m still not sure I get what happened with the first connection. They didn’t get there early enough to check in so they couldn’t board, even though the plane hadn’t left yet?
No.
They should have sent them to the Grasshopper, and given them a well-rolled spliff, and told them to either smoke it, or wait for it to burn out naturally, or some combination of the two. Smoking it down quickly would get them through the task quicker, but also might cause… complications… for later tasks.
By the way, what are those treats that they ate in the middle of the river called? And what are they made of? They look freaking delicious!
Judging from the name of the stand (Poffertjesboot), I looked them up on Wiki…
poffertjes. They’re basically fluffy pancakes served with powdered sugar.