Thinking Smart in Episode 2
The Amazing Race: All-Stars – Thinking Smart in Episode 2 by Jeffrey Clinard -- 03/01/2007 This leg of The Amazing Race saw several teams working together, as well as teams refusing to work with others. Which tactic is the smartest? Jeffrey Clinard analyzes the results right here. One of the things I had hoped every Amazing Race all-star team would have learned is that teams have to run their own race. While there are times it makes sense to work with another team, at least on a temporary basis, most of the time teams should only worry about their themselves, not the other teams. Teams should not give help unless there are benefits and should never expect help from another team, no matter what the circumstances. In the last leg, some teams gave help, some teams helped each other, some teams demanded help, and other teams raced without helping anybody or being helped. Working together was most beneficial at the Roadblock. Even then, teamwork should have been relegated to working with one or two other racers at most, comparing notes and attempting to solve the puzzle. It helped several teams put together the clues faster than they could have on their own. It was also early in the leg, where teams can afford to be a little nicer to each other. However, in the end, the Roadblock didn’t make a difference as all teams got ticketed on the next flight to Calama. From there, it was pure racing skill, from the selection and performance on the Detour, to navigating correctly to the pit stop. While the Roadblock did shuffle some teams, as noted before, it made no difference in the end. I did like it, as it required the racers to take notes and pay attention to their surroundings. In addition, they had to figure out not all the letters were needed to solve the puzzle (interestingly, the two letters were N and R, no doubt standing for Not Required). Some teams had a wrong answer at first, but as there was no penalty for a wrong answer, racers could afford to take a chance. It paid off for several teams. The Detour was a choice between By Hand or By Machine. Which was faster? Well, only two teams did By Machine, and they were in the top three. I’d have to say that choice was faster, though teams who couldn’t drive a stick shift may not have had much of a choice (then again, all teams should have learned how before the race anyway). In a leg filled with several heated exchanges and some high emotions, which teams were thinking smart in Episode 2? Rob & Amber: This team continues to race very well, coming in first place in both legs of the race so far. They were smart enough to book tickets on the plane that arrived in Santiago first, though the flight delay cost them about 15 minutes. From there they made good time to the Detour, landing in first place. They picked the fast option, then carefully navigated their way to a win. Their only snag was Rob’s senseless argument with Eric. I have no idea what useful purpose it had at all. Still, nobody should doubt why this team is an All-Star - they are racing better than any other team in the race so far. Danny & Oswald: This team has also done a great job of racing so far, landing in second place in both legs. Like Rob & Amber, they checked out a travel agent and got the flight scheduled to arrive first. Oswald completed the Roadblock fairly quickly, and the raced well to the Detour. They quickly completed it, and navigated to the pit stop to pick up another second place ribbon. They’ve done very well in the race so far. Joe & Bill: The Guidos did much better on this leg and the first one. While like every team but the top two, they booked the flight to Santiago scheduled to arrive 40 minutes after the first flight, they took advantage of the time delay, and Bill completed the Roadblock second only to Dustin. They got a good ride to the mine, and while they completed the Detour quickly, they made a mistake because they failed to read the directions, or at least follow them. Fortunately for them, the detail was a small one and was easily remedied. They navigated in the final segment well enough for a third place finish. Eric & Danielle: This team struggled a bit, with Eric having problems completing the Roadblock, which delayed them a bit. However, it turned out to be irrelevant in the end, and Eric was smart enough to move to the front of the newly opened ticket window. Plus, he didn’t back off from Rob’s remarks (Eric was absolutely right; it was a new line, and the fastest team grabbed it). Indeed, they did well in the rest of the leg, completing their Detour quickly, and only lost third place when their truck got stuck in the sand for a bit. They are looking like a strong team in this race. Uchenna & Joyce: The married parents did better in this leg, though they still had their problems. Joyce took forever at the Roadblock, but as they know, it’s easier to recover from a mistake early in a leg. However, Joyce shared the clue with Ian. It wasn’t advisable, but it appeared the two had agreed to work together, so I’ll give them a pass this time. They did well at the Detour, and were one of the few teams to navigate correctly the first time to the Valley of the Dead. They ended up in fifth place; in the upper tier of teams. Dustin & Kandice: The beauty queens did many things correctly, thought they did make a few mistakes. Dustin was the fastest to complete the Roadblock, and they were one of the first teams to arrive at the Detour. However, while they are fairly strong young women, they should have considered the By Machine option, as manual strength was required for the By Hand Detour they performed. That cost them some time. Plus, they got involved in a roadside argument with Mirna & Charla. Dustin & Kandice were right in not kicking in for the cab; they didn’t hire it, and they were going to the same place anyway. Eventually they got smart and just left the cousins behind and navigated on their own. They did get a bit lost, but made a better recovery from it than most teams. Finally, they blew past the gate agent at the Valley of the Moon. That was a big mistake as he may have had important information for them, such as the speed limit. These were mistakes that could have cost them quite a bit of time. Teri & Ian: By their own admission, they didn’t have a very good leg. Ian struggled with the Roadblock, and was one of the last teams to finish it (and only then with help from Joyce). They were also one of the last teams to get to the Detour, and while they made decent time with it, they committed the sin of not following the directions, and taking off in a cab before they realized their mistake. They did take advantage of some mistakes by other teams, and took seventh place, but things could have been much worse for them if some of the teams hadn’t self-destructed. Charla & Mirna: How much do I despise this team? Let me count the ways. They team was extremely happy to take help from David & Mary twice, once when they had their car pulled out of the muck by them, and again when Mary told Charla the answer to the Roadblock. However, later on, they were unwilling to help them. It was probably smart because it was a race to stay alive, but it does show their character. The Detour caused this team trouble either way; I’m not sure Charla could have driven the backhoe, but the height of the tires made it difficult as well (and for some reason Mirna wanted to yell at Charla when she went off for a footstool). Plus, while they hired cabs twice, the first one pulled over from some unknown reason, then got into a fight with both Dustin & Kandice and a cab driver. At one point Mirna said she was willing to stay there all day, and in fact stayed there long enough to let several teams pass them. That kind of thinking is just plain stupid. David & Mary: The coalminer and wife came in next to last again, and deserved it. While Mary did solve the Roadblock quickly, their leg was full of mistakes. Part of the reason is it seems they have no confidence in racing by themselves, and have tried to make alliances with other teams, notably Mirna & Charla, by doing favors for them. Mary shared the Roadblock clue with Charla (mistake), spoke it out loud so Kevin could overhear it (mistake), and they stopped to get Charla & Mirna’s vehicle unstuck (mistake). They also had serious problems at the Detour and left in last place. If this team doesn’t start having some confidence in running their own race and doesn’t stop helping people who don’t care about them, they are going to lose the race quickly. Oh, and on a side note, I’ve always considered people who put their luggage at the front of the plane to be rude, though admittedly it helps them deplane faster. Kevin & Drew: What went wrong? Pretty much everything. From the start, they got stuck in the muck, and after Kevin helped get the vehicle out, Drew kept driving, forcing Kevin to run or be dragged. Kevin only solved the Roadblock when Mary opened her mouth instead of just showing the written answer, though admittedly Kevin was smart to take advantage of a weak team like that. The frat boys had a hard time with the Detour, but their worst mistake was not paying attention to the directions, which said they could go 50 km/hour at a certain point after the Valley of the Moon. While I admire them for believing they were racing at the legal limit, this lack of attention to the instructions was the primary reason they lost the race. Maybe it was for the best; Drew seemed out of it and didn’t seem to care much about losing.
The Amazing Race: All-Stars – Thinking Smart in Episode 2 by Jeffrey Clinard -- 03/01/2007 This leg of The Amazing Race saw several teams working together, as well as teams refusing to work with others. Which tactic is the smartest? Jeffrey Clinard analyzes the results right here. One of the things I had hoped every Amazing Race all-star team would have learned is that teams have to run their own race. While there are times it makes sense to work with another team, at least on a temporary basis, most of the time teams should only worry about their themselves, not the other teams. Teams should not give help unless there are benefits and should never expect help from another team, no matter what the circumstances. In the last leg, some teams gave help, some teams helped each other, some teams demanded help, and other teams raced without helping anybody or being helped. Working together was most beneficial at the Roadblock. Even then, teamwork should have been relegated to working with one or two other racers at most, comparing notes and attempting to solve the puzzle. It helped several teams put together the clues faster than they could have on their own. It was also early in the leg, where teams can afford to be a little nicer to each other. However, in the end, the Roadblock didn’t make a difference as all teams got ticketed on the next flight to Calama. From there, it was pure racing skill, from the selection and performance on the Detour, to navigating correctly to the pit stop. While the Roadblock did shuffle some teams, as noted before, it made no difference in the end. I did like it, as it required the racers to take notes and pay attention to their surroundings. In addition, they had to figure out not all the letters were needed to solve the puzzle (interestingly, the two letters were N and R, no doubt standing for Not Required). Some teams had a wrong answer at first, but as there was no penalty for a wrong answer, racers could afford to take a chance. It paid off for several teams. The Detour was a choice between By Hand or By Machine. Which was faster? Well, only two teams did By Machine, and they were in the top three. I’d have to say that choice was faster, though teams who couldn’t drive a stick shift may not have had much of a choice (then again, all teams should have learned how before the race anyway). In a leg filled with several heated exchanges and some high emotions, which teams were thinking smart in Episode 2? Rob & Amber: This team continues to race very well, coming in first place in both legs of the race so far. They were smart enough to book tickets on the plane that arrived in Santiago first, though the flight delay cost them about 15 minutes. From there they made good time to the Detour, landing in first place. They picked the fast option, then carefully navigated their way to a win. Their only snag was Rob’s senseless argument with Eric. I have no idea what useful purpose it had at all. Still, nobody should doubt why this team is an All-Star - they are racing better than any other team in the race so far. Danny & Oswald: This team has also done a great job of racing so far, landing in second place in both legs. Like Rob & Amber, they checked out a travel agent and got the flight scheduled to arrive first. Oswald completed the Roadblock fairly quickly, and the raced well to the Detour. They quickly completed it, and navigated to the pit stop to pick up another second place ribbon. They’ve done very well in the race so far. Joe & Bill: The Guidos did much better on this leg and the first one. While like every team but the top two, they booked the flight to Santiago scheduled to arrive 40 minutes after the first flight, they took advantage of the time delay, and Bill completed the Roadblock second only to Dustin. They got a good ride to the mine, and while they completed the Detour quickly, they made a mistake because they failed to read the directions, or at least follow them. Fortunately for them, the detail was a small one and was easily remedied. They navigated in the final segment well enough for a third place finish. Eric & Danielle: This team struggled a bit, with Eric having problems completing the Roadblock, which delayed them a bit. However, it turned out to be irrelevant in the end, and Eric was smart enough to move to the front of the newly opened ticket window. Plus, he didn’t back off from Rob’s remarks (Eric was absolutely right; it was a new line, and the fastest team grabbed it). Indeed, they did well in the rest of the leg, completing their Detour quickly, and only lost third place when their truck got stuck in the sand for a bit. They are looking like a strong team in this race. Uchenna & Joyce: The married parents did better in this leg, though they still had their problems. Joyce took forever at the Roadblock, but as they know, it’s easier to recover from a mistake early in a leg. However, Joyce shared the clue with Ian. It wasn’t advisable, but it appeared the two had agreed to work together, so I’ll give them a pass this time. They did well at the Detour, and were one of the few teams to navigate correctly the first time to the Valley of the Dead. They ended up in fifth place; in the upper tier of teams. Dustin & Kandice: The beauty queens did many things correctly, thought they did make a few mistakes. Dustin was the fastest to complete the Roadblock, and they were one of the first teams to arrive at the Detour. However, while they are fairly strong young women, they should have considered the By Machine option, as manual strength was required for the By Hand Detour they performed. That cost them some time. Plus, they got involved in a roadside argument with Mirna & Charla. Dustin & Kandice were right in not kicking in for the cab; they didn’t hire it, and they were going to the same place anyway. Eventually they got smart and just left the cousins behind and navigated on their own. They did get a bit lost, but made a better recovery from it than most teams. Finally, they blew past the gate agent at the Valley of the Moon. That was a big mistake as he may have had important information for them, such as the speed limit. These were mistakes that could have cost them quite a bit of time. Teri & Ian: By their own admission, they didn’t have a very good leg. Ian struggled with the Roadblock, and was one of the last teams to finish it (and only then with help from Joyce). They were also one of the last teams to get to the Detour, and while they made decent time with it, they committed the sin of not following the directions, and taking off in a cab before they realized their mistake. They did take advantage of some mistakes by other teams, and took seventh place, but things could have been much worse for them if some of the teams hadn’t self-destructed. Charla & Mirna: How much do I despise this team? Let me count the ways. They team was extremely happy to take help from David & Mary twice, once when they had their car pulled out of the muck by them, and again when Mary told Charla the answer to the Roadblock. However, later on, they were unwilling to help them. It was probably smart because it was a race to stay alive, but it does show their character. The Detour caused this team trouble either way; I’m not sure Charla could have driven the backhoe, but the height of the tires made it difficult as well (and for some reason Mirna wanted to yell at Charla when she went off for a footstool). Plus, while they hired cabs twice, the first one pulled over from some unknown reason, then got into a fight with both Dustin & Kandice and a cab driver. At one point Mirna said she was willing to stay there all day, and in fact stayed there long enough to let several teams pass them. That kind of thinking is just plain stupid. David & Mary: The coalminer and wife came in next to last again, and deserved it. While Mary did solve the Roadblock quickly, their leg was full of mistakes. Part of the reason is it seems they have no confidence in racing by themselves, and have tried to make alliances with other teams, notably Mirna & Charla, by doing favors for them. Mary shared the Roadblock clue with Charla (mistake), spoke it out loud so Kevin could overhear it (mistake), and they stopped to get Charla & Mirna’s vehicle unstuck (mistake). They also had serious problems at the Detour and left in last place. If this team doesn’t start having some confidence in running their own race and doesn’t stop helping people who don’t care about them, they are going to lose the race quickly. Oh, and on a side note, I’ve always considered people who put their luggage at the front of the plane to be rude, though admittedly it helps them deplane faster. Kevin & Drew: What went wrong? Pretty much everything. From the start, they got stuck in the muck, and after Kevin helped get the vehicle out, Drew kept driving, forcing Kevin to run or be dragged. Kevin only solved the Roadblock when Mary opened her mouth instead of just showing the written answer, though admittedly Kevin was smart to take advantage of a weak team like that. The frat boys had a hard time with the Detour, but their worst mistake was not paying attention to the directions, which said they could go 50 km/hour at a certain point after the Valley of the Moon. While I admire them for believing they were racing at the legal limit, this lack of attention to the instructions was the primary reason they lost the race. Maybe it was for the best; Drew seemed out of it and didn’t seem to care much about losing.