One would hope that all of the teams already have a motivation to beat all of the other teams regardless of the Yield. Otherwise they should get the hell off the show and let a team who actually wants to race take their place (I’m looking at you, Chos!).
As for the competetive advantage, I seem to recall reading on one of the Wikipedia articles about the race that the Yield lasts about 30 minutes. That is a significant amount of time to put between you and a trailing team.
IIRC, sometimes they’ve been before Detours. It’s also never been made clear if two teams can Yield two other teams on one Yield. For example, say the Models Yielded the BQs. Could Rob & Kimberly have Yielded the Bamas?
I know in a previous Race, two teams Yielded one other team - there were two pictures up where it said “Yield Courtesy of: …” but I’m drawing a blank on the particulars.
Yes, I believe death-stares and making snide remarks about the team that Yielded you are required in the rules. 
I gained a tiny bit of respect for the Bamas, (and quickly lost it by the end of the episode), when they actually made an effort to study the map instead of just following another team. Maybe they’ll keep it up, now that they see it pays off.
But it’s far more than a couple of minutes. By all accounts, it’s about half an hour. Gaining a half an hour over the team behind you? Is a huge advantage. The fact that the BQs blew it by apparently driving waaaay out of their way to find the Detour location doesn’t change the fact that they used the Yield in exactly the best way it can be used, i.e. to try to make sure another team ends up in last place and to give yourself some breathing room from them in the process.
According to Racers from seasons where there’s been a Yield, only one team can Yield any one other team at any Yield point. There’s never been a case of two teams Yielding another one that I’m aware of – there’s only space for one photo – and there can’t be two Yields on one leg. Plus each team has a Yield marker that they have to carry with them, and if they lose that, even if they’re the first team to the Yield they can’t use it. Which may be the reason why neither the Models nor Rob & Kimberly Yielded anyone – they’d lost their Yield marker.
Thanks all
I would swear I remember one season where two teams put up their photos - was it the Family Edition, when the Weavers got Yielded? Someone help me out. I remember a Yield where two teams got there at the same time and both gleefully put their photos up and said, “We Yield the … whoevers !”
Or am I just senile?
Thought I’d do some research into the history of the Yield – not sure if this data means anything, but I like crunching numbers, so there. 
The Yield has been used nine times in the history of TAR:
Only once (Dani/Danielle) has the Yielded team been eliminated on that leg. Three other teams (Colin/Christie, Adam/Rebecca, and the Weavers) finished last, but were saved by an NEL. In three cases (Freddy/Kendra, Joseph/Monica, and the 'Bamas) the Yielded team actually finished ahead of the team who Yielded them!
From TAR5 to TAR8, all Yielded teams ultimately finished in the Top 3. (This is a bit skewed by the Yield’s nasty habit of appearing on an NEL…)
The Weavers hold the not-unworthy distinction of being the only team in TAR history to be Yielded twice. 
I don’t think the BQ’s are out of it – remember, they don’t get the 30min penalty if they finish first, which they are well capable of doing. It all depends on the severity of Kimberly’s “Flo Moment” at the tomatoes next week…
What’s really exciting is that we’re guaranteed to have an all-female team reach the finish line, the first time in TAR history this has ever happened!!
Nice work KGS!
Does this mean that there was no yield for the first 4 seasons, or that nobody bothered to yield anyone during the first four seasons?
Season 5 was the first with the Yield.
There was, to the best of my recollection, 8 minutes separating the Addicts from the BQs at the start of this leg (I believe the boys left at 7:33 and the girls left at 7:41). The Ugly Americans didn’t leave until 8:19, IIRC, which is nearly a 40 minute difference between the 2nd and 3rd place teams. I have no idea what time Bama left, but clearly it was longer than 40 minutes behind the Barbies. Since the start times coincide with the previous finish times, If the previous leg had been a “Marked for Elimination” leg and the Barbies had to wait 30 minutes at the mat, they still wouldn’t have lost their 2nd place finish, they’d’ve just had the other 2 teams closer on their tails starting this one.
And even though the Barbies started with that much of a lead, the bunching points coupled with some excellent navigating on Bama’s part and dunderhead navigating on the Barbies’ part, completely reversed the order of advantage. So I’m certainly not losing hope just yet. Absolutely anything is possible, and the Barbies are so much better racers overall than Bama, they’re certainly capable of making up the current difference and widening the gap beyond 30 more minutes, even if they don’t finish first.
What a great episode! I’m anxiously awaiting Sunday!
Apologies to anyone who thinks information showed in the frickin’ onscreen TV Guide should be spoilered. But come on now, people. :rolleyes:
Nothing memorable this week, unfortunately. And I suspect we already saw the entire Kimberly blowup at La Tomatina in the previews. Let’s just get this over with.
Yeah, when I saw the previews, I thought, well, Rob and Kimberly make into the final 3. Nearly everytime they show a team having a melt down in the previews, they do just fine on the next leg of the race. If that holds true R & K and the single moms will be in the final 3.
Some of us don’t look at the on-screen TV Guide. But I accept your apology because it’s so heart-felt.
So who’s up for some talk about Amazing Race All-Stars?
I’m not going to spoiler this information because it was reported in Variety last week.
So far the lineup looks to include:
Rob & Amber (this would be their 4th reality show, not including the wedding)
Joyce & Uchenna (who won that year because a plane stopped at the gate)
Colin & Christie (aka C&C Anger Factory)
David & Mary (Kentucky from this season)
Charla & Mirna (Little person who speaks 18 languages but says ‘vamoso’ a lot)
it will not include Chip & Kim, the winning hippies from last season, anyone from Family Edition, or Jonathan and Victoria (aka *athon)
I for one would love to see C&C again, along with Charla. That could be nostalgia dimming the memories, but Colin & Christie were great racers. Heck, they created the “Cruising with Earl” metaphor!
Woo hoo! I’m glad to see Charla & Mirna back. I know a lot of people hated them, but they always cracked me up.
I think Rob/Amber vs. Colin/Christie could make for a VERY competitive race!
Who was the really nice (and popular with the viewers) young dating couple from 3 or 4 seasons ago? Both very good looking, blondes, athletic, competitive?
Ahh, yes… Kris & Jon
Maybe they are too laid back and cooperative to produce the kind of onscreen conflict that reality show producers like, but they were damn good racers and Kris is sexy as hell!
Would also like to see the Mormon girls back. Their exit last time seemed so cruel.
Might as well throw in Flo and Zack to make it a complete hate-fest for all-stars. I think it’d be really interesting to make it an all-star show but mix up the partners.
The haystacks in Sweden was atrociously mean.
No Team Guido? No Drew and Boyd? No Team Cha Cha Cha? Bah.
Variety was wrong about at least one team:
Colin & Christie won’t be in it because a six-month-pregnant Christie was seen onstage and photographed this past weekend at the Miss Teen Texas contest. If you want a link to the photo, I’ll go dig it up. It’s unmistakeably a very pregnant Christie, however.
Which is a SERIOUS bummer.
From a spoiler site:
Teams who have been sighted by fans1. Rob and Amber
2. Charla and Mirma
3. The Guidos
4. Kimi and Karli
5. Millie and Chuck
6. John Vito and Jill