# The Amazing Race 2/26: "You Know I'm Not As Smart As You!" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 27, 2012, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107 "2012-02-27T02:11:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/1 "2012-02-27T02:11:41Z")
Ooh…Brenchel is just gearing up for that hot blubbering mess we know they’re going to end up in, aren’t they? And yes, folks, these two are a textbook emotionally abusive codependent relationship and that’s why I hate them so much. Spoilers about the elimination: Poor clowns! At least we don’t have to witness Wife Clown’s repetitive trek to the Miracles well to dip that lyrics bucket in again and again for 11 legs… I missed a goodly portion of this ep due to having visitors, so I don’t have THAT much to say this week. Carry on… ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/2 "2012-02-27T02:20:48Z")
How the hell does a bus window just disintegrate? And why did it take the bus driver two hours to decide to do nothing? If anybody watches the Elimination Station videos, I’m curious how far behind the last team was. The cattle market looked pretty deserted by the time they left. Would Mr. Clown have gotten the answer in time if there had still been two teams behind them on the last bus? > [@jayjay](#): > > Ooh…Brenchel is just gearing up for that hot blubbering mess we know they’re going to end up in, aren’t they? And yes, folks, these two are a textbook emotionally abusive codependent relationship and that’s why I hate them so much. I remembered somebody warning about that in last week’s thread; was it you? So, what exactly did he do wrong to bring on the water works? He said something about her wanting to look for their original cab. Is that all it takes to be “emotionally abusive codependent” these days? ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/3 "2012-02-27T02:24:01Z")
Lots of doggies! 😃 Not surprised at the losers. Since we don’t have a plucky oldsters team this year, I figured last week they’d be gone quickly. Was surprised at the finish for for Team Justified (Kentucky), they were another team I picked to be gone quickly. Apparently [Uganda](http://www.eonline.com/news/jeff_rice_autopsy_amazing_race/296291) is on the race itinerary this year. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/4 "2012-02-27T02:36:38Z")
Too bad they don’t teach math at clown college. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/5 "2012-02-27T02:45:53Z")
Who is Rachel? I’m such a girl? I’m no good at math? Shut her up somebody! Is she the one who was on another show? Sorry I’m asking questions that are probably obvious to eyone else, but who that age has a problem with long division! ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/6 "2012-02-27T02:54:36Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > How the hell does a bus window just disintegrate? And why did it take the bus driver two hours to decide to do nothing? If the window already had a hairline crack, debris or pebbles from the road could have easily hit it as just the right angle with just enough momentum to make it shatter like that :shrug: As for the bus driver – who knows? Maybe he was in suspended shock? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/7 "2012-02-27T02:58:02Z")
> [@Pai325](#): > > Who is Rachel? I’m such a girl? I’m no good at math? Shut her up somebody! Is she the one who was on another show? Sorry I’m asking questions that are probably obvious to eyone else, but who that age has a problem with long division! The ridiculous thing is that she supposedly has a bachelor’s in chemistry, and even a general BS requires you to take at least calculus. Finding a freaking mean is 5th grade arithmetic. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/8 "2012-02-27T03:23:51Z")
The Argentinian guy at the mat was [Diego Maradona\*](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Maradona), one of the most famous people in the world. It’s a good thing there was a pro soccer player on the race, because not a single other racer had a clue. That would have been a classic “Ugly American” moment. - It’s not like if an Australian version of the show landed in San Francisco and nobody knew who Joe Montana was - he’s virtually unknown out of North America - Maradona is known to billions across the globe. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/9 "2012-02-27T03:59:38Z")
Another web site says that it was a Maradona imitator. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/10 "2012-02-27T04:02:11Z")
> [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > The Argentinian guy at the mat was [Diego Maradona\*](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Maradona), one of the most famous people in the world. I knew it was him; he was holding the ball in his hand. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/11 "2012-02-27T04:10:43Z")
Yeah, an imitator I think. The guy on the show had an all black beard (I think), and Diego seems to have let the point of his beard go white in recent years. Also, on his Wikipedia page there are some very anti-US quotes (mostly pro-Chavez/anti GW Bush)…not sure if he would appear as a mascot on a US TV show. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/12 "2012-02-27T06:58:57Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > He said something about her wanting to look for their original cab. Is that all it takes to be “emotionally abusive codependent” these days? Not by a long shot. Rachel and Brendan earned that description over four solid months of being on camera together 24/7. > [@Lamar\_Mundane](#): > > - It’s not like if an Australian version of the show landed in San Francisco and nobody knew who Joe Montana was - he’s virtually unknown out of North America - Maradona is known to billions across the globe. It kind of is the same thing. That Americans don’t know athletes from sports they don’t care about (soccer, among many others) is exactly the same as the rest of the world not knowing athletes from sports they don’t care about (the NFL, among many others.) ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/13 "2012-02-27T07:16:31Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > It kind of is the same thing. That Americans don’t know athletes from sports they don’t care about (soccer, among many others) is exactly the same as the rest of the world not knowing athletes from sports they don’t care about (the NFL, among many others.) Not in terms of numbers, it isn’t. The number of people who follow world soccer vastly outnumbers the number of people who follow the NFL. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/14 "2012-02-27T07:24:45Z")
Numbers are irrelevant. ---
**Author:** ![Sharp\_as\_a\_marble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sharp_as_a_marble/32/1071_2.png) [@Sharp\_as\_a\_marble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sharp_as_a_marble)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/15 "2012-02-27T07:39:12Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I knew it was him; he was holding the ball in his hand. Thread over. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/16 "2012-02-27T08:00:52Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > Not by a long shot. Rachel and Brendan earned that description over four solid months of being on camera together 24/7. Oh, he may well turn out to be a jerk, I just haven’t seen it yet. But it really didn’t seem to take much to set her off. I was watching and said “other teams aren’t even in the same city, yet. Find another cab, go to the Pit Stop, and shut up.” It’s the second leg of the Race, for goodness sake; If she’s breaking down from the stress of being in fourth place, it’s not exactly his fault. ---
**Author:** ![tsm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/db5fbb/32.png) [@tsm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsm)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 8:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/17 "2012-02-27T08:26:29Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Oh, he may well turn out to be a jerk, I just haven’t seen it yet. But it really didn’t seem to take much to set her off. I was watching and said “other teams aren’t even in the same city, yet. Find another cab, go to the Pit Stop, and shut up.” It’s the second leg of the Race, for goodness sake; If she’s breaking down from the stress of being in fourth place, it’s not exactly his fault. It doesn’t take much to set her off. She’s like a 3-year-old sometimes. Before they are gone (which can’t come soon enough for me) she will complain about another team doing something that she thinks is not fair, but she’ll end up doing the same type actions herself. He is a whiner also, and a big-time enabler for her (witness how he went into all the “baby, it’s ok” stuff when she started crying over his innocuous comment that she got upset about). Also notice earlier in the ep when she was saying something like, “I’m stupid. I’m not good at anything.” She did stuff like that all the time on Big Brother to get Brendon or whoever else would fall for it to give her the “no you’re not. You’re great” business. They are the two most obnoxious reality show contestants I’ve ever seen and I hope with all my might that I never see them again after this season of TAR. ---
**Author:** ![zut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zut/32/2875_2.png) [@zut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zut)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/18 "2012-02-27T12:32:01Z")
Hey! I’m back, at least for a little while. Can I play? Math! I knew driving a stick shift, conquering a fear of heights, packing light, and not losing your government-issued ID were all high on the TAR skill list, but I didn’t think we’d ever see fifth-grade math skills. **Taxi Assessment:** **Stuck in the Desert and Officially Detained** - or, Philiminated with extreme prejudice. _Misa & Maiya_ (Golfing sisters) - Already eliminated. _Dave & Cherie_ (Sad clowns) - Dave & Cherie struck me as a team that was focused on _keeping a positive attitude_. That’s not such a bad thing on the Amazing Race or in life itself, but, thing is, _keeping a positive attitude_ isn’t an end goal in itself; it’s a _tool_ you use to attain your end goal. A little less focus on stemming the tears of a clown and a little more focus on _Racing_ would have done this team some good. Or…not, actually. Some remedial math tutoring would have done even more good, but look: this team clearly had the least aptitude of any this season, and it’s just as well that they get tripped up early by a surprising educational hole, because they were going sooner or later anyway. **Flat Tire** - or, not likely to get anywhere soon. _Joey & Danny_ (Fitness Guidos) Hi! I’m all about image! Why should I bother to learn to drive a stick shift when my Granny offers and I know I’ll need it? Gah! OK, Joey & Danny aren’t complete dimbulbs, but I think they’ve spent long enough pretending to be such that it clouds their judgment. They probably won’t be the very next team eliminated, but I really don’t see them making it taht far. **Stopping for Gas** - or, not broken-down, exactly, but not a good sign. _Mark & Bopper_ (Kentucky boys) A pretty decent third-place finish from Mark & Bopper this episode, but I’m a bit skeptical that they can maintain that momentum over the rest of the Race. Their finish order was pretty much set by their performance on Detour (and some bus luck), and the Water Detour was right in Bopper’s wheelhouse. They clearly _have_ a wheelhouse, unlike some teams, but not all tasks will be so friendly, and I predict we’ll see a lot of, “we don’t do a lot of XXXXX back home in Kentucky.” _Elliot & Andrew_ (Twin guys) This is an alpha-male team that ought to be doing much better than they are. Sure, some of their performance is due to luck, but they haven’t exactly been burning up the screen with their competance, either. _Brendon & Rachel_ (Big Brother team) Brendon & Rachel actually have a second- and a fourth-place finish, and have spent pretty much the entire Race so far in the upper half of the competition. However, I’ve always been suspicious of teams with interpersonal-relationship issues. That type of thing might be little impediment on Big Brother, where travelling is restricted to “down the hall,” but there’s not that kind of downtime on TAR. I predict much erraticness from this team (ummm… duh? BB fans?), and that’s hard to maintain over the length of the Race, where a single bad leg eliminates a team. **"Rapido! Por Favor?"** - or, making meaningless ineffectual comments from the back seat, but in no immediate danger. _Kerri & Stacy_ (Southern cousins) Kerri & Stacy are a fun team. I have a feeling that they might be a bit too flighty to make it into the final three, but I haven’t quite got a handle on them yet. _Nary & Jamie_ (women Feds) Nary & Jamie seem pretty competent, but I haven’t yet figured out just how much their real-world skills translate into TAR skills. _Vanessa & Ralph_ (Brunette divorcees) Vanessa & Ralph’s performance has been middling so far, although hurt in part by the bus issue this episode. However, I like their attitude, they look pretty good on paper, and I think they ought to be doing better than the final standings show. Right now, they’re my pick to sneak in as the third of the final three. **In the Passing Lane** - or, ahead of the pack, but not quite comfortably. _Art & J.J._ (Border patrol) Art & J.J. seem to be a step behind Dave & Rachel, but that means they’re several steps ahead of pretty much everyone else. They had a little issue with navigation on this leg, but they also had a clear reason to choose the Fire Detour, which actually wound up more than making up the time they lost. **Cruisin’ with Earl** - or, drivin’ on the shoulder, takin’ shortcuts, and generally kickin’ butt. _Dave & Rachel_ (blonde & US Army officer) Dave & Rachel look like the best of the lot so far this season. A good attitude, work well together, and they even have a pretty impressive skill set on paper. They’ve got a pair of first-place finishes, so their on-paper skills must be translating into real life. And, don’t forget, they have that Express Pass. It’s a long Race and luck plays some role; having a Get-out-of-task-free card in your fanny pack can be worth an awful lot, if you can use it strategically. But wait: Guess what? Dave’s a military science professor at UW. Did you catch that? He _teaches_ strategy. Literally. How awesome is that? ---
**Author:** ![lorene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/65b543/32.png) [@lorene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorene)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/19 "2012-02-27T12:35:01Z")
> [@Pai325](#): > > Who is Rachel? I’m such a girl? I’m no good at math? Shut her up somebody! Is she the one who was on another show? Sorry I’m asking questions that are probably obvious to eyone else, but who that age has a problem with long division! Seriously. Irritation station. Although it allowed me a teaching moment with my daughter and son about how wrong those statements were. Thanks, **jayjay** , for mentioning the same thing I did after the elimination last night—at least ew are spared from hearing about the Tears of a Clown every fucking episode. ---
**Author:** ![LH75](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lh75/32/4438_2.png) [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2012, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107/20 "2012-02-27T13:00:51Z")
Welcome Back, zut! We missed your commentary last time. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-2-26-you-know-im-not-as-smart-as-you/614107.md?page=2)