Dating from SoCal. Some more.

This dating couple looks like they'll be a lot of fun to me. I'll put them on my pre-like list.

I encourage you to do so, Dale. We happened to be somewhere a leg was being filmed while we were on vacation this summer, and actually got to meet and have a brief chat with Rachel. She was very nice, and funny, and he seemed like a fun guy, too.

Was it during a downtime?

As an old newspaperman, every time I see TK, I think "name to come." Why couldn't it have been T.K.?

I like them too and am happy to see what Eilan has to say about them. I'd actually go so far and call them my pre-favorites because out of five teams I like so far(the minister couple, grandson/grandpa, dad & daughter and brother-sister being the others) I think they have the best chance to win it all. I'm really hoping they are pleasant and efficient.

Heh. In Hindi, theek hai (pronounced the same as "TK") roughly translates to "all good." For a hippie-lookin' dude from UCSB: apt!

So, TK has the all-time record in the 200-meter backstroke in UCSB and was team captian in the swim team? If there is ever a swimming detour/roadblock, he should own it.

While they give off a hippie vibe, they thankfully aren't giving off a "Hippie" vibe. They're just smiling pleasently in the photos, and not making goofy, overexaggerating faces like BJ and Tyler did, so that is a plus. I think I might like them.

Maybe they'll be another John Vito & Jill or Kris & Jon, which would rock, as I really dug those teams.

He's TAR Ozzy.

The best of the dating teams, IMO. Plus, Rachel's very cute. TK's hair is a little too BJ/Tyleresque, but if he loses the bandanna, I'll root for them.

There have only been a handful of Racers who were competitive athletes in college, and those teams have done pretty well. (Rob and Brennan, Chris and Alex, Kris and Jon, Karli and Kami and even Eric and Jeremy).

You mean wearing feather boas doesn't make one a hippie?

Sorry. I'm still bitter.

Yeah, I don't really get much of a vibe at all from these guys, other than I'm impressed with the fullness of his beard, considering he's 22. He looks like he could've been cast on Pirate Master.

I'd concur with the Jon & Kris vibe, Dale. (I didn't see John Vito and Jill's season.) They struck me as very down-to-earth, and seemed to be enjoying the Race and the opportunities it presented. They were having fun, and at the leg in which we saw them (we were on vacation and happened upon it - some details in the Spoiler thread), they'd had a bit of bad luck but were taking it in stride. No ranting and raving and carrying-on.

When I first saw them, from a bit of a distance, I thought he was BJ. Or Tyler. (Sorry, I forget which was who.)

They're my pre-race favourites, for obvious reasons. It doesn't hurt that my husband's initials/nickname are TK, either.

No, it wasn't during downtime that we encountered them. It was mid-task, otherwise we might have picked their brains a bit more. And, you know, gotten their names.

Getting a strong John Vito & Jill vibe from these two with a smattering of Kris & Jon to top things off. Pre-like all the way for me.

Even if they are giving off a slight hippie vibe, that does automatically mean they are obnoxious. I guess BJ and Tyler managed to put everybody off so horribly that now nobody wants to do with anything remotely hippie. BTW, I never considered BJ and Tyler to be true hippies as much as famewhory poseurs.

Right, right, right. That's pretty much exactly what I meant, but you said it better. I have no problem with hippies, if that's indeed what Rachel & TK are.

I don't understand the phrasing. Does this mean he used to hold it, but doesn't anymore? Hardly the all-time record then, is it? Plus, come on, Backstroke is the WNBA of swimming strokes. Who votes a backstroker team captain?

Other than that they do seem like a cool team.

Hi there ~

I located a short article on the UC Santa Barbara website concening their Amazing Race alum TK. It states that his record has since been broken.

UC Santa Barbara Article Link

For some reason I like this couple and they are one of my early favourites. There appears to be a sense of honesty/sincerity with them.

I guess time will tell.

I hope it's more of a Kris/Jon vibe since Jill & John Vito are no longer together although they were great on Season 3.

Never had a problem with the hippies, but I can see where some might. TK's making up for lost hair with the dreds. Would rather have the bandana than hair flopping in his face the whole race.

Pre-like. They don't seem as "typical" as Jennifer & Nathan.

Originally I had Kynt/Vyxsin as my pick to win TAR12, but after seeing the other teams' profiles, I'm now leaning more towards Rachel/TK as my favorite. That victory would make up for JVJ's fifth place finish in TAR3 (and first out in AllStars), and Kris/Jon falling short due to a railroad crossing in TAR6.

They could also turn out to be the "who?" team of this Race, especially given the strong personalties and/or images they're competing against. I'll still like them anyway to outlast Nathan/Jennifer (my least favorites), Ari/Staella and maybe Jason/Lorena.....

...unless they do something really jaw-dropping like play with water pistols in the airport (the Chos lost me right there in TAR10, long before the "racing with honor" crap kicked in).

So anything can happen, but at least right now, I say Rachel/TK for the win!



Isiscloud, I'm glad to see I'm not alone in that exact opinion on BJ/T, but that's a whole nother thread.
I do like teams that draw (at least partially, anyway) on the laid back, "alternative", willingness to try new experiences vibe that categorized the 60s-70s pre-punk "counter" culture (before the negativity set in; again, that's a different thread), so I'm glad to see it here represented by these two (and perhaps some of the other teams as well).

TK's hair bugs and I can tell that I'm going to be hoping for a head-shave Fast Forward the whole time they're on the race. But otherwise I like this team.

They do seem pretty down to earth and agreeable

Given that he was a high level college athlete and she owns her own business (at 23) I imagine they're both pretty hard workers, and will be able to handle the high level of stress on the race. Since there's no alpha male team again, I'm making these two my pre race favourites to win it.

Ha. I totally have prejudice against guys with long hair, too. Not at all fair, really, but there you are.

Just on the photo alone, I keep flashing back to Kristin Wiig, playing Nancy Pelosi on SNL, introducing her dream cabinet: "Secretary of the Environment: This hippie, and his old lady."

I have a first elimination vibe from these two, but it's just a vibe.

TK Reminds me of Will Ferrell's character with Rachel Dratch as Lovahs.


I only have a problem if his hair is better than mine...in this case, I'm not worried!

These guys didnt argue at all so they got no screentime this episode

I think Rachel's cute, and her voice reminds me a lot of Jessie from The Apprentice 1 and Michelle from Survivor: Fiji. I also find T.K. pretty cool. Since they weren't showing any vile behavior, I hope to see them around here for more than half of the race.

Didn't see too much of them, but I liked what they saw. I felt for them, when they went the wrong direction, but I was glad to see that they didn't seem too upset, about losing 1rst place. No point at crying over 3rd place, when it's only the first leg.

Rachel is defintley cute as hell. And TK is so far, no way similar to BJ or Tyler, thank God.

He looks like he was recycled from My Name is Earl.

They're another forgettable couple team. I suppose I should be grateful they aren't annoying.

I don't know why they have been called "hippies" so many times by other teams, aside from his hair.

They have self-identified themselves as such in this video I saw on YouTube, as well as in their Buddy TV interview.

I really like this team. So far, at least, they've displayed the kind of mutual respect that the casting directors tend to eschew in favor of Icky Drama in couples, plus they seem to be having fun (and I actually kinda like his hair). He reminds me vaguely of an old bf who was a great guy, so that works in their favor too. And the names have significance for me, too. I'm glad they turned out to be so nifty. So far they are right up there with Ron and Chris as my favorites this season, and since I don't expect R&K to make it too far, these two are my team, so far. Although I'm sort of shocked by just how many teams I quite like so far (especially since one of the few I didn't were eliminated first).

Same here. Rachel seems lovely, and I gotta support a fellow Gaucho. I don't have strong positive vibes for any team yet (although I did like Ronald singing "Danny Boy," but that's for a different thread), but this team is about as close as any.

I sort of liked their low-key friendly vibe, and then I have to admit TK won me over by admitting he was scared stiff on the highwire bike. I'd have needed sedation after a stunt like that, and I liked knowing at least one team was nervous.

Definitely pre-like. I have a soft spot for scruffy, friendly young men and she has a really sweet face. I'm rooting for these two to do well and remain likable.

Rachel looks and sounds so much like my best friend that it is scary. Anyways, I'm happy that we finally get a real hippie team as opposed to the fakeness that was BJ & Tyler.

It was hilarious how the non-Roadblock doing person was in a scarier position. Rachel was so light that she was swinging left and right like a pendulum. If I were her, I would've been paralysed with nervousness and fear. I felt a little sad when they lost 1st place thanks to such a minor mistake, but it is just the first leg after all. I would be more than happy if this top three happened to be the F3 as well(which won't happen now, as I've jinxed it).

They do give the JVJ/Kris & Jon vibe now that it's been mentioned here, but TK reminds me more of Zach than John Vito or Jon. He has a cool, collected way about things...

And thank jeebus Rachel doesn't act like Flo, and doesn't look like she'll be acting like her anytime soon.

And they're 22 and 23 years old? their a pretty young team.. Would anyone know if they're the youngest team to ever race?

Woah, you just blew my little mind! A team made up of a Zach and a Jill or Kris? I'm dizzy with the very thought of it. I think I could forget there ever was a Jonathan if these guys are close to as good as that.

Danielle/Dani were both 22 and I think they still hold the record. Rachel/TK may be youngest competent team ever.

Even though I'm in the age bracket, the under 25 teams are usually the dullest and this one even more than usual. At least without non-elimiations they won't waste as much airtime.

I've always looked at teams in terms of the skill sets needed to be successful Racers. Dull and boring means little in terms of Race skill sets; the lack of drama often means successful communication and social skills.

As a recently "retired from competitive" swimmer, TK fits the Jon (of TAR 6's Kris/Jon) mode, as a captain of his swim team in college also suggests to me that TK knows how to deal with personalities.

Their only apparently weakness in episode one seems to be navigation, but that seems to have been a common trait in early legs of other seasons.

So they're not drama queens. Guess I'd rather they be a UTR team that emerges later on as favorites to win.

<TAR Stats geek hat>

If their combined age is 45, that would make them the fourth youngest team in TAR history. Danielle & Dani (TAR9), Allison & Donny (TAR 5), and Kellie & Jamie (TAR 10) all had combined ages of 44. Brandon & Nicole (TAR5), MoJo (TAR9), Flo & Zach (TAR3) and Blake & Paige (TAR2) all had combined ages of 46, but nobody else has a combined age of 45.

So yeah, youngest competent team ever.

I didn't think a team this young could actually do so well early on in the race.

They quite sucked tonight. And by God, they are boring. They are K/J and JVJ 2.0 in that respect to me.

They really did suck, but Rachel was clearly their saving grace at the Roadblock.

But then they mess it up looking for the dropoff point.

Kris and John Vito were smoking hot pieces of ass.

TK got lost on his way from a Dead concert and never found his way back.

Yeah, and it also looked like Rachel finally got them moving on the Detour, that T.K. was screwing up. I think I might like her a bit.

But yeah, despite placing decently, they really need to get their act together. They seem nice, but that doesn't win you the race, as this show has proven quite a few times.

I do not think they sucked tonight.

Sure, they didn't race as well as they did last time, but they treated each other with respect and kindness during what was a difficult task for them. I thought that was pretty awesome. And they switched with a minimum of fuss.

So they missed the Pit Stop, briefly. It cost them one place and a few minutes (it looked like).

Haha I thought it was hiliarious to see these two slide by the pitstop and not even see Phil. Other than, these two have bored me two episodes in a row. I wish they could leave soon.

When Rachel did the Hoist detour, I suddenly thought she was one of those American Apparel models with those leggings. And she kinda looked hot doing the hoisting. I don't care to remember what TK did.

I started pre-hating this team, but I think they're my new favorite team.

I really like this team. I hope they get their shit together and not make more mistakes like driving right past Phil, but I really love how they are with each other. It's a nice contrast to how some of the other dating couples have been treating each other. Even when things were getting into high-annoyance territory, they kept the snark to a bare minimum, and left it behind them as soon as the task was done.

Boring schmoring, I like 'em. This early in the season, with this many teams, it's hard not to be a little boring without being either one of those screechy mean or whiney teams who casting trolls think make good TV, or one of those teams that cheeses around for the camera. I mean, it would be better if they were just kick-butt racers from the word go, but I'll settle for them being decent people who can manage to get frustrated without screaming or crying or giving up. I like to see nice, normal, decent people on the race.