Static Zombie

I couldn't believe that pilot reopened the plane.

And, yes, I thought, "Rob would surely have stiffed that cabbie."

If he and blondie are getting their own wedding reality-series, remind me not to watch.

I wondered about the race rules relating to them paying the cabbie. What prompted my musing was Uchenna declaring 'He said its ok' as they ran in for the victory. My thought was that if they ran off on the cabbie without his permission, that would be considered theft, and no doubt the Race has rules against breaking laws in order to win. So, while I know they wanted to do the right thing, I also wonder whether they may have had no choice but beg for money until either they got enough, or the cabbie declared that what they had given him was ok.

As for the hours of operation issue, it keeps cropping up, and I keep wondering how tightly scripted the destinations and tasks are prior to the race beginning. Had the producers worked out that there was no way for teams to make it to that location on time, and thus they were guaranteed a three way sprint to the end?

Maybe it doesn't matter as it makes for good television.

This was my first Amazing Race to watch, drawn in by Rob and Amber. After last night, I can't say that I have any inclination at all to watch again. I got used to the fact that it wasn't really a long race, but merely a set of short races, but I expected each of the short races to be reasonably fair. Having the entire first day of the final essentially not count was ridiculous.

Hey Peter. I agree with Brian in thinking that there was some rule that required Uchenna and Joyce to get the cabbie's consent before stiffing/paying him.

I am also of the opinion (and that is all it is) that the Producers had something to do with the plane coming back and letting Uchenna and Joyce on. Ron and Kelly missed that flight, and they were never in contention again. Had Uchenna and Joyce missed it, Rob and Amber would have sailed through.

I lived overseas, and I have flown all my life, and I have never once seen a pilot, especially an American Airlines pilot, open the plane doors once they are closed. I have to believe someone (other than Uchenna's hissy fit in the airport) convinced him to do it.

That said, in the final leg Rob and Amber ignored a cardinal rule of AR: don't take the first answer you get as the right answer. The directions they got to Calle Ocho were wrong, and Uchenna and Joyce got correct directions. Rob should have asked another person. And I'm surprised he didn't.

Finally, I have to agree with Jeff, that I am continually frustrated by the "short sprint" nature of the show. But unlike him, I'll watch the next one. I'm just a sucker for TV.

The hours of operation bottleneck and pilots holding planes are not new to the race or even this race. As the recap at the start of the show noted, Rob and Amber benefitted from a similarly kind pilot/ticketing crew on an earlier leg. Insufficiently clued drivers of various modes of transport also affected every leg of the race and Rob and Amber (as has been noted by a number of critics with indignation) got a number of native guides based largely on their Survivor notoriety, so my sympathy level is low. That someone they asked in the street sent them to 27th street was just bad luck. They also did not run such a perfect race--Amber didn't even see where to go for the leap before the others had completed it and were motoring in. That the others were unable to capitalize on this because of the vagaries of traffic and toll booth operators (and their own lack of a lead foot) seems comparable to not finding the King of Havana. And while their driver didn't speak spanish, Rob did, so it was all about what street to be on. I feel much more for the people who lost legs because they had a boat or car with a bum engine. While the race rules state that this is not their fault and provide another vehicle, the time lost waiting for it is gone for good. All of that said, I, too, would prefer a final leg without such a big bottleneck. Teams should be allowed to capitalize more on leads they get on the last leg. Making the Sugar Mill (or rather the spot just before it on the same island) the pit stop would have preserved leads and be more "fair" to the teams running efficiently. But, as has been noted, this could create a runaway leader which would not make for as good television. i was slightly disappointed in other aspects of the leg--going to the castillo only to then go somewhere else? Normally you do something at the location (or it is harder to get to). As for waiting to pay the cabbie, I would not be surprised if, after a contestant on a previous amazing race tried to stiff (or at least underpay) taxi drivers a couple of times, they modified the rules to prohibit contestants from doing that. While leaving teams bereft of supplies and cash seems an interesting twist on coming in last on a non-elimination leg, I am *not* a fan of having relatively well-off Americans begging in the streets of cities around the world. Nor, in the end, did the lack of money stop any of the teams involved. All 3 teams made it to the final four and one of them won it. Find a new twist.

UPDATE: Don't know if it's a rule, but an MSNBC article seems to indicate that for Uchenna:
"It was all about honor," said Uchenna. "That cab driver was going to get his money."
Perhaps it was them and not the rules.

At the TARCon two of the teams indicated that the producers (who were filling them in on what was going on with U&J and the Cab while they were waiting) said that they had to pay the cabbie. However, Uchenna said that they didn't, so there is clearly some confusion. Personally I think that they should have had to pay him to be checked in.

Also, Peter, you seem to imply that Rob and Amber's 6 hour lead over U&J was because of good game play, but of course nothing could be further from the truth. The only reason U&J were behind was because of the flat tire. Let's face it, R&K screwed themselves with bad directions, but U&J and R&A both played about equally well in the final two episodes, and the luck fell pretty equally. And considering the sleep deprevation and psychic burden of continual begging, I think U&J did a better job than R&A of racing. Especially since Rob didn't think to translate 'The King' into spanish, which by all indications was well within his abilities and would have probably won them the race. I think the better team (over the last two legs) won.

My main beef with this season is with the route they had the Racers take, east to India then back through Europe. I wanted a race around the world, and this way they never even stuck a toe into the Pacific.

I liked U&J, but I thought that the "in vitro, here we come" at the finish mat was unsettling. I was glad to see Rob and Amber make it to the end, not so much to see dysfunctional Ron and Kelly (would have been more fun to see the oldsters Meredith and Gretchen instead).

All I can say is, "Rob and Amber...Karma is a boomerang."