# The Amazing Race 31 premieres April 17th **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 6, 2019, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113 "2019-04-06T00:49:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/41 "2019-04-25T19:07:24Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Not that I remember specifically, but there’s a lot of episodes. I got info from this wiki: [Rules and Penalties | The Amazing Race Wiki | Fandom](https://amazingrace.fandom.com/wiki/Rules_and_Penalties) > > I don’t know where they get all of _their_ info, as not all of that is cited, but I doubt someone just made that up out of nowhere and it seems to follow with the other rules regarding money. So here’s the quote I think you’re referring to: > [@](#): > > However, teams are not necessarily prohibited from selling personal items for cash. That really seems to come out of thin air. As **SBS** points out, what’s to stop them from bringing jewelry along and selling it, then using the proceeds? How is that different than straight barter? Especially with the down time we don’t see - they could easily find a pawn shop while they’re waiting 6 hours for a flight and come out with a bunch of cash. IMHO, it does not seem to follow with the other rules regarding money. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/42 "2019-04-25T19:12:06Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > Yeah, selling possessions you’d brought along would be a HUGE flaw. I’d start out loaded down with ‘charm’ bracelets full of silver and gold ‘lucky coins.’ > > In contrast, I don’t see the problem with selling things you bought during the race with the provided money. If you ‘wasted’ some of your precious taxi money buying, say, a carved wooden elephant in Laos, and later sold it in Bulgaria to pay taxi fare there – how is that really different from simply saving money you didn’t need to spend on this leg and using it on that leg instead? And that’s allowed, I’ve never heard anything along the lines of “Here’s how much money you get for this leg, and if you don’t spend it we’ll take it away from you.” For a while if you came in last, but it was a non-elimination leg, they’d confiscate all your cash, and force you to beg for more. This got removed after the people realized it was kind of shitty to see Americans on a game show for a million dollars trying to beg cash on the dirt streets of a much poorer country. Then for a while you could keep your cash, but they confiscated everything else you weren’t wearing. Which led to teams knowing they were in last place putting on every article of clothing they brought before reaching the mat, hoping it was a non-elim. Finally they added the Speed Bump, the not too onerous extra task the non-eliminated last place team has to do during the next leg. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/43 "2019-04-25T19:23:24Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > That really seems to come out of thin air. As **SBS** points out, what’s to stop them from bringing jewelry along and selling it, then using the proceeds? How is that different than straight barter? Especially with the down time we don’t see - they could easily find a pawn shop while they’re waiting 6 hours for a flight and come out with a bunch of cash. > > IMHO, it does not seem to follow with the other rules regarding money. Fair enough, but I’d like to point out that just because it’s never occurred doesn’t mean it’s not in the rules. Not to mention that as spectators we are not privy to the complete rules. **The complete rules have never been made public.** We don’t even know exactly what they are and aren’t allowed to bring with them. We know they can’t bring navigation aides with them from home, but they could be also restricted from bringing valuable items to sell, we don’t really know. I’ve no doubt their initial belongings are thoroughly inspected before the beginning of the race, and if you have no legitimate reason to have something vis a vis the race, like an excessive amount of jewelry or other items, those are surely not allowed. Bringing one or two pair of sunglasses is probably fine and easily justified. Bringing 100 pairs, not so much. . ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2019, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/44 "2019-04-25T19:38:19Z")
Of course, but we’ve heard some of the rules on the show. Such as “you can’t use personal items to settle a bill”, which is what Mark & Mike got penalized for, and “You have to use race provided cash to buy anything”, like when Dan & Andrew had to buy new shoes because they left theirs behind at a task, then later didn’t have enough money to pay the cab driver in Moscow. ---
**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:** [April 26, 2019, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/45 "2019-04-26T01:26:29Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > In contrast, I don’t see the problem with selling things you bought during the race with the provided money. If you ‘wasted’ some of your precious taxi money buying, say, a carved wooden elephant in Laos, and later sold it in Bulgaria to pay taxi fare there – how is that really different from simply saving money you didn’t need to spend on this leg and using it on that leg instead? Or, you know, pick up some black tar heroin in the golden triangle and sell it on the streets of New York to raise a little cash. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2019, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/46 "2019-04-26T13:07:00Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Or, you know, pick up some black tar heroin in the golden triangle and sell it on the streets of New York to raise a little cash. Yeah, but think of the time you’d lose getting through Customs. ---
**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:** [April 27, 2019, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/47 "2019-04-27T02:32:36Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > Yeah, but think of the time you’d lose getting through Customs. With my luck I’d get U-Turned, too. ---
**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:** [April 27, 2019, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/48 "2019-04-27T11:45:51Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > According to the TAR wiki, it used to be you could only use the U-Turn once per season, but starting in season 29 that restriction was removed. I was not aware of this rule change on the U-turn, and I’m not sure I like it. Teams are going to be much more judicial in their use of the a U-turn if they know they only get one. I thought that was one reason why Rachel was having trouble deciding whether to use it or not. (And was hoping that her using it would come back to bite her in the ass later in the race.) ---
**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:** [April 28, 2019, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/49 "2019-04-28T13:28:26Z")
Did our OP get Philiminated with extreme prejudice? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2019, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/50 "2019-04-28T18:39:37Z")
So is Rupert gone? I’d like to watch this without ever letting that asshole appear on my tv. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2019, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/51 "2019-04-28T19:33:36Z")
> [@singular1](#): > > So is Rupert gone? I’d like to watch this without ever letting that asshole appear on my tv. Yes. I don’t remember – they might do a little “previously”, in which case you might want to skip the first couple minutes. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2019, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/52 "2019-04-29T02:15:36Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Did our OP get Philiminated with extreme prejudice? :dubious: Been wondering about that. Been a member for 16 months, with just one post, the Opening Post. And who ever it is, knows enough about the SDMB history to know Zut’s Taxi Assessment ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2019, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/53 "2019-04-29T22:09:45Z")
Laos. Laos? Laos! Has any TV show ever gone to Laos? Anthony Bourdain…Michael Palin? David Attenborough? Shoot, has there been a _movie_ set in Laos? James Bond, Jason Bourne…? ---
**Author:** ![aurora\_maire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aurora_maire/32/328_2.png) [@aurora\_maire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurora_maire)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2019, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/54 "2019-05-01T04:37:08Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > They never have. They can’t use any sort of smart phone, though they can ask bystanders to use one for them. They can buy things (like maps) to help during the race, but they’re given a fairly small set amount of cash for each leg, and that’s the only medium of exchange they can use - teams have been penalized for trading personal belongings for rides in the past. I don’t know if a standalone translation device is specifically banned, or just that no team has ever thought it would be cost effective - looking online dedicated translation devices seem kind of pricey (over $100, I’m sure it’s more in airport stores). > > ETA: Racers have been observed on flights finding someone who speaks both English and the language of their destination, and practicing useful phrases with them. In the beginning racers were allowed to get a local to help them navigate the entire leg. They stopped that after a few seasons. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2019, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/55 "2019-05-01T16:59:56Z")
> [@aurora\_maire](#): > > In the beginning racers were allowed to get a local to help them navigate the entire leg. They stopped that after a few seasons. I remember one time a pair of racers enlisted a local to go with them on a cab ride and give the cab driver directions. The woman just told the cabbie where she wanted to go, and hopped out when they arrived having scored herself a free cab ride home. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2019, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/56 "2019-05-01T23:39:16Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Not that I remember specifically, but there’s a lot of episodes. I got info from this wiki: [Rules and Penalties | The Amazing Race Wiki | Fandom](https://amazingrace.fandom.com/wiki/Rules_and_Penalties) > > I don’t know where they get all of _their_ info, as not all of that is cited, but I doubt someone just made that up out of nowhere and it seems to follow with the other rules regarding money. Only thing I’d add is that it seems like all bargaining has to be done _before_ the trip. The period ranging from Colin and Christie’s season where Colin nearly got thrown into jail because the cabbie changed rates (or Colin misunderstood the rates) to the season where those “dwarf”\* stunt men who kept scamming drivers by taking the cab ride and then saying “Oopsie! We don’t have the cash. How about a watch instead?” drama has died completely. They also seem to have gotten rid of Ferns (to the n00bs–a “Fern”, named for the first person appointed to the role–is a local who will hang out on the entire leg (or most of it, but it doesn’t count if they only go on a part of the leg) with you, guiding you, providing direction, etc.). We haven’t seen one in years. And holy _shit_ Rupert is an obnoxious pompous attention whore. I’m so glad he’s gone. Also, Colin is clearly reading from a script that some PR person gave him. New Zen Colin is just…weird. \*I don’t know the appropriate term. ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2019, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/57 "2019-05-02T14:58:10Z")
Dancing and karaoke - this leg was specifically designed for Team Fun, wasn’t it? Maybe it was to make up for their horrible experience the last time they were in Vietnam. The 218 Dance Crew were featured in this episode. They’re somewhat well-known in the region after they appeared in [Asia’s Got Talent](https://youtu.be/zqyWbSC4iR4). > [@Fenris](#): > > They also seem to have gotten rid of Ferns … We haven’t seen one in years. Ferns are now specifically prohibited by the rules. Racers have to run the race on their own. (This doesn’t preclude teams joining up to race together) ---
**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:** [May 3, 2019, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/58 "2019-05-03T01:45:04Z")
I wish someone would tell the producers of _The Amazing Race_ that they’re making _The Amazing Race_. If I wanted to see all the backstabbing and conniving of _Survivor_, I’d watch _Survivor_. I don’t really remember Leo & Jamal from their earlier appearances. Were they always assholes? > [@notfrommensa](#): > > And who ever it is, knows enough about the SDMB history to know Zut’s Taxi Assessment Zut’s Taxi Assessment deserves to be more widely known. ---
**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:** [May 3, 2019, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/59 "2019-05-03T02:13:49Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I don’t really remember Leo & Jamal from their earlier appearances. Were they always assholes? I thought they were assholes their first season, but I think I remember being in a minority on the SDMB thread. Or I could be mixing that last bit up with the goat farmers, who I hated that they won but were very popular. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2019, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113/60 "2019-05-03T02:47:50Z")
I think it was widely agreed that they were assholes, but good racers. Not mutually exclusive. StG [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-amazing-race-31-premieres-april-17th/832113.md?page=4)