EPISODE 13-08: I’M LIKE AN ANGRY COW!
The Leg
RACE LOVE
Nick & Starr leave the Pit Stop first for the 4th time as they get their clue telling them to make their way to Almaty, Kazakhstan. Once there, they’ll take a taxi to the Al Agro Chicken Factory to search for the next clue on the grounds.
The siblings wonder when their luck will run out, while Toni thinks they’re flying under the radar. At the hotel, while Toni and Nick are concentrated on looking for flights, Dallas and Starr continue their flirting (signaled by harps playing). They find one flight on Lufthansa that takes them into Kazakhstan at 11:50pm.
Terence & Sarah head straight to the airport, and while Terence stresses about something, Sarah says she’s in a very good mood. Ken & Tina say they’re doing a better job of communicating, but not yet where they want to be.
Dandrew realize the teams they are up against are not to be messed with, but that they’re still in it.
At the airport, Terence & Sarah head to Aeroflot and find a flight through Moscow that gets them in at 1:20am, but with only 2 tickets. Ken & Tina spot the siblings and Toni & Dallas at Lufthansa and head straight there. They get tickets and only 3 teams make the first flight through Frankfurt. Terence & Sarah settle for the next flight through Moscow, while Dandrew end up on a later flight through Dubai.
FAST CHICKENSThe first flight arrives in Kazakhstan and they all rush to the chicken factory only to find our first Hours of Operation of the Race, allowing for the last 2 times to catch up before it opens at 7:30am.
On the way, Sarah thinks they’ll be eating chickens which Terence hopes isn’t the case.
As the gate opens, the teams sprint to the waiting clue box where they find the Road Block and the Fast Forward.
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In this Road Block, teams will “have a close encounter of the bird kind” (according to Phil). They’ll have to head inside the chicken shack and search through a sea of 30,000 chickens for one of only seven golden eggs, which they will exchange for their next clue. |
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In the Fast Forward, teams must head to a local restaurant where they will eat a local delicacy, Beshbarmak, whose main ingredient is the fat from the rear end of a sheep. When both team members finish their servings, they’ll get their Fast Forward clue. |
Nick & Starr and Terence & Sarah both rush to the Fast Forward. Sarah isn’t sure about going for it, but Terence assures her and they both agree this is a Race and they have to do what they can.
Meanwhiel, Toni, Andrew, and Tina head into the shack for the Road Block and Toni finds a golden egg first as she and Dallas get their next clue.
Teams now have to search the grounds for giant crane trucks which they must take to the Koktobe Arch at the foothills of the Tienshan Mountains. There they will follow a marked path to meet some Mongol Warriors where they will wait for their next clue.
Toni & Dallas head off, while Tina is right behind Andrew with the eggs.
At the Fast Forward, Nick & Starr dig right in while Terence, a vegetarian, says he hasn’t eaten meat in 15-16 years. He realizes it’s for a million dollars though and starts eating. Starr starts to gag, but so does Terence. The siblings continue eating as Terence debates whether or not he can finish. Sarah says she can keep going, but they ultimately decide Terence won’t be able to and they quit the Fast Forward and have to rush back to the chicken farm to do the Road Block, allowing Nick & Starr to win the Fast Forward.
MAD FOOLS
Meanwhile, Toni & Dallas are led into a clearing by a Mongol Warrior and await their clue which is attached to the foot of an eagle that flies towards them and lands on the arm of a warrior.
The clue reveals their Detour.
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In this Detour, teams must choose between Play Like Mad and Act Like Fools. In Play Like Mad, teams take a taxi to the Museum of Folk Musical Instruments where they will learn to play a simple Kazakh folk tune on two instruments, the dombra and the shang-kobuz. When the instructor thinks they’ve learned the song, the teams will head to the park and earn tips equivalent to $1.50 to exchange for their next clue. In Act Like Fools, teams make their way to a children’s puppet theatre. There, they will don a 2-person cow costume. Then dressed as a cow, teams will walk to the corner of Zhibek Zholy and Kunaev where they will find a marked stall and drink a glass of milk, which will reveal their next destination. Teams will then walk to the Zelyoniy Bazaar and find the marked butcher stall in the meat section where they’ll deliver themselves and receive their next clue. |
Toni & Dallas choose the cow and head back down as Ken & Tina head up. Dandrew are lost in the city, as they get frustrated when no one will even speak to them.
Terence & Sarah arrive back at the chickens as Sarah heads into the chicken sea and like her care with the birds last week, takes care in asking the chickens to stand up so she can look under and to move so she can pass through. She finds the egg and they’re off to the warriors.
At the Pit Stop, Nick & Starr arrive 1st and each win a 180-hp wave runner.
At the puppet theatre, Dallas takes the front half and Toni takes the back half and head out just as Ken & Tina walk in. On the way to the milk stand, mother and son have fun as Dallas moos his way along the streets.
Tina, meanwhile, expresses her concern of being in the back as she is a navigator so she’s the head and they head out.
Back at foothills of the mountains, Andrew walks ahead of his partner, while Dan is a little behind. Andrew asks Dan if he’s okay and he offers to carry his bag, but Dan simply asks his partner to walk with him, but Andrew won’t have it. (“The Race isn’t won by walking everywhere.”)
Back to the cows, Toni & Dallas arrive at the street corner but pass by the milk stand. Ken & Tina see it and she drinks the glass of milk but has no idea what to do next and think they’re at the wrong stand. Toni & Dallas come walking back and Ken & Tina leave as the mother & son get their clue at the bottom of the glass and head to the bazaar.
Ken & Tina head back to the stall and find the clue, but think they have to return the costume first, so they walk back to the theatre. Dandrew is still back at the mountain and are trying to decide who’ll be where in the cow.
MOO-VIN’ TO THE PIT STOP
Toni & Dallas arrive at the market and find the marked stall and receive their clue telling them to make their way on foot to the Pit Stop, Old Square, the oldest part of the city. They must bring their cow head with them to the Mat.
As they leave the market, Ken & Tina come walking up and Dallas asks where’s their costume. They tell Ken & Tina that they need to still be wearing their costume, but Ken & Tina head in anyway. The lady won’t give them their clue without their costume. They head back.
Toni & Dallas say they shouldn’t have told them the critical piece of info. Regardless, they arrive at the Mat, Phil’s eyebrow in full force and take 2nd.
Terence & Sarah head off from the mountain as Dandrew leave their shoes at the theatre and head out in their costume. They ask an older man to take them to the milk stand and he does, for 1000. Ken & Tina return to the butcher and they finally get their clue. They finish 3rd.
WALK TO THE FINISH
It is now between Terence & Sarah and Dandrew.
Terence & Sarah are being led a nice man who asks if they’re tired. They say to go faster.
Dandrew get their clue from the butcher, but don’t read carefully enough and take a taxi to the Pit Stop. Phil tells them to go back and read their clue correctly.
Terence & Sarah get their clue at the bazaar and we are to believe they are neck and neck. Dandrew has another little spat walking back to the Pit Stop about being patient with each other.
Despite their disagreements, Dandrew barely escape elimination again and place 4th.
Terence & Sarah arrive last at the Pit Stop and despite Phil’s misleading pause, they are Philiminated.
They say they’ll take away a lot from the Race and hope to spend the rest of their lives together.
Overall
Finally! We get some fun animals on the Race, not only live but huge talking ones as well.
We get the first hours of operation on this Race (and it was a legitimate one). I can’t complain too much about that bunching.
I’m kind of so-so on the Fast Forward though since I’m not really a fan of the eating challenges. I guess they’re standard, but I’m sure they could come up with better, still cultural tasks that don’t involve food going into the Racers and coming back out a few minutes later.
The Road Block was not the typical needle in a haystack task, though I wouldn’t even really call it that either. It was just great having all the chickens there and it was funny and I guess a little cute seeing Sarah being gentle with the chickens this week as she was with the birds at the hospital last week.
The clue with the Mongol Warriors reminded me of a TAR8 clue where the teams met a trained elephant. An eagle is just as awesome I think, couple with the warriors.
The Detour, I’m sure the instruments and asking the old ladies for money would be fun, but the cows were just so much more fun and probably easier as long as you read your clue carefully.
It’s a wonder that even down to the final 5, teams still make the little mistakes that could cost them the Race. Lucky for Ken & Tina and Dandrew this leg, but those kinds of little things could really spell the end of the Race for you if you aren’t lucky enough to recover or someone else makes a bigger mistake than you.
And Nick & Starr take 1st again. While it’s great to see a team doing well, it makes me want the Fast Forward back on every leg again just to see other teams come back from behind or something and take 1st. That could have an adverse affect too, but I guess that’s the price to pay.
All in all, a great leg. Definitely lots of fun.