Tyler & Korey, having beaten everyone to the Pit Stop in the last leg are the first to leave at 10:05am and are on their way to the Plaza San Diego to find their next clue. We get this moment to get a little backstory about how they've been friends for 8 years, and only friends despite Tyler having an initial crush on Korey. It's an interesting bit of information on their dynamics, and I've finally figured out which is which, but I'm not sure it matters. Kurt & Brodie are 15 minutes behind and Brodie is all go, go, go.
No surprise that their 15 minute lead gets Tyler & Korey the next clue before anyone else and they're now off to Castillo San Felipe De Barajas, where they'll need to search the catacombs for their next clue. Burnie & Ashley are out at 10:26 and then Dana & Matt depart at 10:56. These are the teams to keep an eye on as they have so far proven to be the most competitive this season.
At the Castillo San Felipe De Barajas Tyler & Corey are the first into the catacombs and I'm pretty sure if Wayne and I were running this task I'd look like a hunched over giant banging my head on everything and he'd have to drag me out after he found the clue box. Fortunately they didn't have too much trouble finding the next clue which leads them to this leg's Detour.
In Tickets, teams must take on the role of a conductor on the local bus system to collect 20,000 pesos and earn their next clue; while in Tejo the teams must take a 3lb metal disc and then throw the disk at a gunpowder target to explode three of them. Tyler & Korey choose Tejo. Kurt & Brodie also had no problem finding the clue box and also chose Tejo, putting them right on Tyler & Korey's tail.
Most of the other teams were all out before noon, with Scott offering to carry his daughter Blair's backpack so she could move faster. Whoop, whoop, whoop, . . . dude, stop being such a helicopter parent. As Tyler & Korey get the bad cab, Kurt & Brodie move into first place and seem to have the hang of Tejo right from the start and made quick work of the Detour before anyone else got there. Kurt & Brodie are now off to Calle San Juan De Dios in search of a marked vendor, just as Tyler & Korey show up.
Speaking of showing up, the last team to depart at 12:29pm are Darius & Cameron. They're two and a half hours behind the front of the pack and at least a half hour behind everyone so there's still hope, but not if they don't step it up.
The second group of teams arrive at the catacombs and Erin is already letting her claustrophobia get the better of her even before she gets there. Zach & Rachel decide to do Tickets as we follow Erin & Joslyn into the depths of the catacombs. Just keep breathing and moving forward and . . . voila, they've found the clue and decide to doTickets. Erin can't get out of there fast enough, but I think cutting off her left arm is a little extreme.
Sheri & Cole and Scott & Blair have arrived at the catacombs and I still can't believe that Scott is carrying both packs . . . one on his back and Blair's on his chest. His Father of the Year award isn't going to be much use if he has a heart attack earning it. They're in eighth place with Mother and son right behind in ninth . . . and somewhere back there are Darius & Cameron.
Burnie & Ashley complete Tejo and head out while Dana makes one feeble attempt after another to explode her rocks. You'd think this would be right up her alley. Over on the other side of the Detour at Tickets, Zach & Rachel get the lowdown on what they need to do to get their next clue. This side seems like it would take a lot to do but it does get you a much better view of Cartagena than Tejo.
Kurt & Brodie maintain their lead as they arrive at Calle San Juan De Dios and find the motilla vendor and their next clue, Roadblock; It's In The Bag. In this Roadblock one team member must choose a motilla bag and then search the old city for two more bags by the same designer to get their next clue. This is definitely a detail oriented task and one that I'd probably have no problem with, even with all the running between vendors. Kurt grabs a bag and runs off in search of two more and finds that his ability to speak Spanish is an asset. The only Spanish I speak gets me more beer so I may need to brush up my Espanol.
Darius & Cameron have finally left the catacombs and are still way behind everyone, while Erin & Joslyn have arrived at Tickets. The girls are having way too much fun despite not getting anyone on their bus. Meanwhile Brittany & Jessica have arrived at Tejo only to break a nail. Yeah, that's be my complaint too. Racing through the old city Kurt has found his matching bag and is now in search of his third, while Tyler is still searching for his second.
You'd think that the teams doing Tickets would have no problem during rush hour but the locals aren't all that trusting of these crazy gringos. Zach gets recognized for his videos and poses for a few selfies while Blair's excitement finally seems to work in her favour as people pile onto her bus.
After all his running around Tyler finally figures out he's looking for a bag by the same designer, not the exact same bag. Rule #1. Something Ashley sorta figured out by finding a bag that was similar, while Kurt was still searching for his last bag and Dana was stressing out until she calmed down and realized there was a tag in the bag. Maybe there's a reason the clue is titled It's In The Bag.
Kurt finds his last bag and heads back for the clue as Tyler finally finds a match. Over at Tejo, Sheri & Cole explode outta there moving into sixth place long before anyone even knows where Darius & Cameron are. Not that Kurt & Brodie care because they're now one their way on foot to the next Pit Stop at Baluarte De Santiago on the old city wall. Right on their tail are Tyler & Korey.
Tyler & Korey are Team Number 2 and Korey points out that whenever Tyler does the Roadblock they come in second instead of first. Guess who'll be doing the Roadblock on the fourth leg. Nowhere near the Pit Stop, Darius & Cameron are finally throwing a few Tejo stones. On the upside, they did choose the less time consuming side of the Detour as there are still other teams trying to gather their 20,000 pesos. Erin & Joslyn and Scott & Blair were filling their buses up quicker than they could count the money, which has somehow allowed Darius & Cameron to move into seventh place.
Erin & Joselyn and Scott & Blair both figure out they've got enough pesos, now they just need to get back with their money to get their next clue. They're followed quickly by Zach & Rachel but when they get in a cab Zach points out that Rachel has been counting the money wrong and they're short about 5,000 pesos. They're going to need to head back and keep going on a new bus to make up the difference. Erin & Joslyn move into eighth while Scott & Blair slide into ninth.
Meanwhile, Ashley finds her last bag and heads back for the clue while Dana tromps all over a vendor's display area looking for a match. Seriously? Would you climb all over the shelves at your local Walmart?
Burnie & Ashley arrive at the Pit Stop and are Team Number 3, as Dana delivers her three bags completely out of breath. This girl needs to take a little bit of Matt's zen attitude and calm down. No worries though, Dana & Matt are Team Number 4.
Back on the streets of the old city Jessica and Cole seem to be working together to find their matching bags. That can be useful as long as you're not right at the back of the pack, and I applaud Jessica's commitment to helping Cole even after she found her bags, but she needs to remember that this is a race. If Cole hadn't been a gentleman and cut her loose she probably would have kept searching for his last bag with him. While they searched for bags, Zach & Rachel managed to make up their missing pesos.
Brittany & Jessica are Team Number 5, (Miss Iowa and Miss Florida meet Miss Cartagena), while Erin & Joslyn arrive at the clue box and Erin begins searching for her matching bags Darius & Cameron arrive. They've managed to make up some time but they're still behind Sheri & Cole, who are Team Number 6.
Erin is still searching for her bags while Darius has managed to find one of his and Scott sets out to find both of his bags. They're all still ahead of Zach & Rachel who have yet to arrive and now Scott and Erin have teamed up to look for their bags, until Erin realizes that Scott hasn't a clue what he's doing and heads back out on her own. He's just figured out that the tags are inside the bag (Read The Clue) and catches up to Erin. It's like running with grandpa and now Zach is in on the game.
Darius has actually managed to find all his bags but now he needs to find his way back to the same vendor he started from, and it's getting dark. Erin finds her last bag and apologizes to Scott who tells her she needs to go, which she does . . . returning all her bags before Erin & Joslyn head off to the Pit Stop. Scott finds his last bag shortly after and heads back, while Darius arrives with all three bags but doesn't realize he's where he's supposed to be and wanders back off into the streets to find the right vendor, . . . the same vendor that he got the clue from, . . . who is sitting less than 10 feet away from him, . . . 20 feet, . . . 30 feet, . . . I feel for poor Cameron.
Scott hands in his bags and he and Blair head out. Erin & Joslyn are Team Number 7, as Zach locates his last bag. and Scott & Blair arrive to be Team Number 8. As Blair points out, her dad literally carried her for this whole leg but she forgot to mention he also carried her bag.
Zach returns to get the Pit Stop clue while Darius is still wandering the streets . . . I guess it's good to be a tourist. Rachel is a little concerned about getting into a foot race against the brothers, but there's no fear of that as Darius once again returns to the scene only to wander back off into the night. What books did these two learn from? Dick & Jane?
Zach has made a mistake in his directions, leading them to an open plaza before he eventually starts asking for some, hopefully the directions he gets are good enough to get them to the Pit Stop because Darius has finally realized the error of his ways, . . . button soon enough. Zach & Rachel are Team Number 9 and unfortunately Darius & Cameron are the last team to arrive and have been eliminated. I didn't think they'd make it through to the fourth leg. They seem like really nice guys but without any drive nice guys are gonna finish last.
Next week (or this week I guess) it looks like there's love in the air for Blair and Brodie as teams finally leave Columbia. Hopefully by next week I can get back on my game and get my review up a little faster. Okay, a lot faster. Until that time.