At the airport Steph & Kristin mention to Stéphane & Antoine that they wasted too long to not get the Express Pass and that was a great move. There's no reason to paint a target on your back when you don't need to. Thanks to Jillian & Emmett deciding not to help search for the Express Pass there were no witnesses to their success so why tell anyone about them.
All teams flew from the reasonable May weather of Calgary to the humidity of Vietnam and it was a mad dash out of the airport where Stéphane & Antoine managed to slip into first place and then they got the first spot in the morning for the Water Taxi, 100 kms away at the Cai Be tourist docks.
Once the morning arrived it was time for the teams to take a Water Taxi to pickup and deliver four items from a grocery list written entirely in Vietnamese. Once you figure out which line is the item and which line is the location it's a fairly strait forward task but keep in mind that it's in a floating market and teams are moving from location to location with that water taxi. Once they have all their items they need to deliver them to Mr. tam on the other side.
Stéphane & Antoine were off to a great start with Kate & Kelly right behind and it's no surprise that the girls love shopping. How many girls don't? Meanwhile, Steph & Kristen are having issues with the language to the point they actually leave the water but none of the other teams seem to care as they just power through however they can. Leading that power through were Kate & Kelly who managed to pull ahead of everyone else and after delivering the goods they receive the next clue. The girls are now taking a ferry back across the river to Cai Be to find the next clue. Overall this looked like a pretty easy challenge.
With Kate & Kelly and Stéphane & Antoine chasing ducks, on the other side of the river four teams in a row make a big mistake when they take a water taxi instead of the ferry to return to Cai Be. Remember Rule Number One. We had to point that one out to Joel & Ashley who were right behind us for the viewing. Steph & Kristen almost made the same mistake but they corrected it when they "Read the Clue".
Arriving at the clue, Ashley says she loves ducks and she looked like she was having a lot of fun chasing them around. Wayne and I love duck too, preferably roasted with a light gravy and served with a cold beer. At the viewing I asked Ashley if she still liked ducks and she just laughed so we're taking that as a yes.all four teams arrive to join the first two and it's getting pretty loud with all those quackers.
Stéphane seems to think he'll earn brownie points with the others by helping other teams but Antoine is not impressed. I don't think his father is actually doing it on purpose, he just can't seem to get all his ducks in a row. He had no problem with Ashley's ducks, which allowed Ashley & Joel to slip into the lead as they receive the next clue and now they have to race to the market with their two ducks to deliver them to the local duck vendor. Meanwhile Stéphane continues to put ducks into other teams' pens.
After completing the Roadblock, thanks Stéphane, Kate was forced to face her fear when they needed to carry two ducks across town to the market, but I think she just had Kelly carry them both. That same market where we find Joel & Ashley arrive to get the Detour: Vibrate or Hydrate.
In Vibrate teams need to get into a traditional Vietnamese costume, memorize a drum dance, and perform the routine to get their next clue. In Hydrate teams need to load a sampan with 60 coconuts then travel downriver to a marked dock, removed the coconuts from their sampan and deliver them down the road to get the next clue. It's an arduous and repetitive task but it's the one Wayne & I would have chosen because another one of our rules is "Never choose the task that you're supposed to be good at" just ask the Olympians.
Julie & Lowell and Frankie & Amy have completed their shopping lists and somehow Frankie & Amy have fallen into last place, but I wouldn't count these two out just yet. There's a lot of spunk there and even though Lou Grant may hate spunk (dating myself, I know) this mother/daughter team is fun to watch. We need more of them. At least they both took the ferry back to Cai Be.
After delivering their quackers, Kate & Kelly find their Speed Bump and must now deliver 20 toads from one side of the market to the other. Why they decide to just do them two at a time each and make five trips instead of ten at a time each and make one trip we may never know. Hopefully I'll remember to ask them someday.
As the girls hop to it, Steph & Kristen get the Roadblock clue and are about to join Rita, who's currently wandering aimlessly after her ducks, while Jillian corrals her last duck and runs off to grab Emmett. Antoine is a little ticked because he's sure that half of Jillian's ducks were corralled by his dad but maybe he should have hollered louder for Stéphane to stop doing that.
Joel & Ashley chose Vibrate mostly because Ashley was a dancer as a kid doing ballet, jazz, tap and now this, and Ashley looks pumped while Joel, not so much. He gave her that "I'm gonna hit you with a stick" look, and then later on he actually did. Way to go, dad.
Julie & Lowell are finally on their way to the duck challenge and everyone seems to have no problem barreling through it. As long as Julie does the task they should be fine because to Lowell it would just be a fluffy cloud of white, although I'm sure Stéphane would be happy to help out. As they arrive, Tanya and Rita complete the task and head to the market where Jillian & Emmett get the Detour and choose Hydrate just before Kelly & Kate complete their Speed Bump and choose Vibrate, which is what Anne & Tanya and Rita & Yvette also choose.
Three teams head to the temple where we find Joel & Ashley still practicing and the scene where Joel takes a poke at his daughter. Ouch. Kate & Kelly are happy to have caught up to Joel & Ashley as they begin watching the routine.
Meanwhile, back at the pens, Stéphane left his gate open and released all his ducks. I'm not really sure how, and Wayne figures it was all related to jet lag and humidity, but what the heck was Stéphane thinking. Steph has found it works best to work with someone so she and Amy team up to corral their ducks and beat Stéphane and Julie who have fallen into the back of the pack. Stéphane starts over, again.
Having completed the corralling Jillian & Emmett chose Hydrate but when they arrived they switched boats right at the start because Jillian didn't like the first one. Then she didn't like the life vest she had so she switched that. While they hit the water Steph & Kristen and Frankie & Amy deliver their ducks.
Rita & Yvette also chose Vibrate and find Ashley & Joel and Kate & Kelly still there so they feel a lot better about where they are in the pack and have a good chance of staying in. Which is what Jillian hopes to do with her sampan as Emmett climbs over the coconuts.
Julie gets the last of her ducks and heads off, leaving Stéphane with a shout of encouragement but Antoine is looking pretty angry. He calmly chastises his dad for helping everyone else and Stéphane just shakes his water soaked head. That probably wasn't his plan when he started but now they've fallen from second to ninth and he's as upset with himself as his son is. Stéphane starts again but then they decide to take the four hour penalty. Big, . . . huge, . . . mistake.
Steph & Kristen and Anne & Tanya both arrive at Vibrate but after seeing the moves they both rapidly switch tasks. Rita can't believe they gave up that easily. That puts both just ahead of Julie & Lowell who deliver their ducks and choose Hydrate, while Stéphane & Antoine drop their quackers and choose Vibrate. Which is what Jillian is doing on the water as she keeps yelling at Emmett.
Rita & Yvette's first attempt at the dance was fun to watch but nowhere close to accurate. At least they knew that as they went back to practice.
Steph & Kristin and Anne & Tanya both fill their sampan and hit the water, and as Julie & Lowell run past them on the road Julie asks Steph who directs them back to the dock but Lowell couldn't tell who it was until Julie told him. This is one of those times when his sight works against him but they're still doing great this leg.
Emmett & Jillian find the dock but they have no cooperation in unloading their coconuts and Jillian just keeps yelling at Emmett who keeps on ignoring her. Jillian is starting to take her frustration with Emmett out on some poor, defenceless coconuts as he hauls them out of the sampan. I'm beginning to wonder if Jillian is crazy, or if Emmett just can't process auditory commands, or maybe he's going deaf from all her shrieking. No wonder they broke up, they both handle pressure completely differently. Oddly enough they seem to make it work for them.
Joel & Ashley make their first attempt at the dance and they nailed it, bringing cheers and applause from the viewing party crowd as they get the next clue.They need to make their way by water taxi to the Pit Stop which is poolside at the Mekong Lodge where the last team to arrive may be eliminated. Let's be serious though, it's far too early for a second non-elimination, especially back to back, so somebody is going home.
The teams who chose Hydrate start unloading their coconuts while Jillian & Emmett deliver all their coconuts and also get the Pit Stop clue. In the temple Kate & Kelly complete Vibrate and get the clue, while Rita & Yvette keep training.
Julie & Lowell have passed Anne & Tanya and as Lowell starts unloading he realizes that they could pass the supermoms. As they unload, the twins complete the dance and head out, but not before giving hugs to the remaining teams. One of those teams is Stéphane & Antoine who decide after watching the routine to switch detours and haul coconuts. This has not been their leg.
While a bunch of teams are trying to figure out how to get to the Put Stop, Joel & Ashley are the first team to arrive but because they took a water taxi instead of the ferry they've incurred a 30 minute penalty. According to both of them those were the longest thirty minutes and Ashley's watch had stopped working which made it feel even longer. No worries though, as the water taxi pulls up Joel & Ashley are Team Number 1 and also win a trip for two to Tokyo, which coincidentally enough is the one place both of them wanted to win a trip to. That's damn good karma.
Meanwhile Julie & Lowell and Anne & Tanya are neck and neck unloading their sampan while Stéphane & Antoine are just getting started, and Frankie & Amy have completed the dance and are on their way to the Mekong Lodge. That's where we find Jillian & Emmett completing their penalty and Jon announces that they are Team Number 4. It's a bit of a slide from their last two legs, but they'll take it.
Rita & Yvette arrive to start their 30 minute penalty while Stéphane & Antoine paddle down the river to where Julie & Lowell and Anne & Tanya are trekking coconuts. As Julie & Lowell jog past the supermoms, Tanya can feel her body revolting against her. She's dehydrated, shaking, feeling nauseous and now she can barely feel her legs. Anne calls for a medic and as they tend to her teammate Anne keeps taking coconuts down the road in the hope that Tanya will pull through.
Tanya going down is the only chance that Stéphane & Antoine have while Frankie & Amy have become Team Number 5 thanks to Rita & Yvette's penalty which finally runs out and they're Team Number 6. By the last coconut run Tanya is feeling better and helps Anne to run that last load as Julie & Lowell complete the task just ahead of them.
Both teams caught the same water taxi and as it became a foot race to the mat Julie cut the corner a little to close and poor Lowell ran straight into a vine covered post. That's gotta hurt. Anne & Tanya had to serve their 30 minute penalty so Julie & Lowell were Team Number 7.
Stéphane & Antoine finally saunter in and as they hit the mat Jon calls Anne & Tanya over to join them. Because they failed to complete the Roadblock their 4 hour penalty saved Anne & Tanya who became Team Number 8 and Stéphane & Antoine were eliminated from the race. It was a really bad leg for them and quite a letdown but they had no regrets.
Next week the teams will be racing through the chaotic streets of Ho Chi Minh City where it looks like a detour will have teams singing bad foreign karaoke or mixing drinks. Wayne & I would go for the drinks because we might need those to wash down the live grubs in a food delicacy challenge.
I'll still be here to do my review next week and I may even find a guest host for the videos but Wayne will be enjoying a well-earned family vacation over the next two weeks, right after editing this week's video. Im sure many of you will miss his briefer reviews but I'll do what I can to keep you entertained. Until that time.