From zap2it.com:

Yayyyyy! I was so afraid that it was going to be an NEL. Way to fake me out, Phil. And, nice ski moves, there! Phil can even make a ski suit look hot.

I think my favourite line of the whole show was when Mika said "I'm not stupid," and it was just after she'd thought she was driving 120mph instead of 120kph.

I'm just glad that the bald snark didn't affect Gary and Matt too much, since they're my fave team by far. I still really like Brian and Ericka, but he keeps saying stuff that makes me want to shake him. The Karma thing was a bit much, though he was a lot smarter about *how* he helped people than Sam and Dan. I mean, yeah it's a nice gesture to want to stay behind to make sure the Poker Girls got a car, but c'mon... it's a RACE. Even the girls didn't want you to stay.

As residents of the city that USED to have the world's tallest freestanding structure ( the CN Tower....remember it from the Family Edition??) we all immediately knew that the tower they wanted was in Dubai. The day that the new structure beat us out made all the papers.

Directionally challenged doesn't begin to describe Lance and Kerry. How can you go on a race if neither of you can navigate?

Kerry was the only one wearing a hat in the desert. Even the ones that had bandanas didn't use them. All I could think was that Ian and his Asshat would be fine. Looks like they gave them a cooler full of water at least. Hopefully sunscreen.

Geez, they even made Lance seem somewhat likeable. At least they're well matched, but I'm still glad they're gone.

The sledding looked awesome but how could anyone think a needle in a haystack task could be faster than building a snowman?

I couldn't concentrate on what Phil was saying at one of the expositions because of his pants. Yow!

It looks as if TAR is just now starting on CBS. Looks like it'll be a while before our American friends join us.

'Twas a sad day for all of us.

There were some great lines in this episode: "Where's the Persian Gulf?" and "I have an excuse-I'm an Asian female."

For the snowman building, it didn't look like they were out in the direct sunlight. I would have expected those things to start melting faster.

I'm glad Lance and Keri are gone. Her accent was really getting on my nerves.

::strips off t-shirt, does happy dance:: YES!!

TorontoFan, didn't someone come up with a way for the CN Tower to still be the tallest? I thought they re-classified the tower in Dubai, because it has office space or something in it. I thought I read that in the Star recently.

I was afraid it was going to be an NEL also, and nearly started burning incense. Which I'm allergic to. However, watching Cheyne in the Formula 3 car was awesome. the trying man and I would have chosen that option also, but I would have been the one to drive. ttm wouldn't fit in that tiny car. :D

See when they said "go to the tallest tower in the world" I was like Oh! TORONTO! And then my friend said, no Maylasia.... so colour us both surprised that they went to Dubai. I had always thought CNN tower got it because it didn't have office space or anything, while the CNN was just... a tower (with a restaurant heh).

Anyway, Lance is gone, Lance is Gone! I was freaking out every time someone had an issue (PokerGirl Car, Mika and Caanan....) I was like HURRY! Lance is COMING! But Lance kept screwing up. I was surprised that more people were doing FIND... not BUILD. I figured as long as you had all the Snowman fixings on it, it didn't matter how tiny it was.

I was also surprised that there is only One fastforward? I wonder why only one, didn't there used to be like... lots more? (But I don't watch the Race all the time so...).

Lance is not quite the raging asshole that some thought he was. To his credit, he is self-aware and recognises what an idiot he can be at times. Also, it looked like Phil was genuinely sad at their departure from the race.

When can we start seeing the stuntcasted teams being eliminated? The sooner, the better. I had my hopes up for a fleeting moment when the poker pinheads had car trouble, but it came to naught. I am positive that their luck will continue (and that they will come in last in the other NEL - speculation on my part).

Do all Bible-thumpers say "dang it" instead of "damn it"? Also, did you know that one of the Globetrotters is from New Orleans?

ETA: I think that it's we Canadian fans posting because TAR has undoubtedly been delayed by NFL football again.

Is only the Toronto fans posting tonight?? Keeptrying - that was news to me...so went to my friend wikipedia. Sounds like they made up new categories so that everybody can claim "the biggest". CN Tower's claim to fame is supposedly that it is all on land.

How cool is it that I actually like almost all of the remaining teams? Hopefully the poker girls flame out next week, and then the field is wide open.

Pinky and his dad continue to really impress me with their ability to make up time and move up their placements. They seem to be great at navigating. Matt blitzed through the water challenge.

I kind of wish they'd had a task with the camels. Camels are always a comedy goldmine. Like the last time, when that one chick FLIPPED RIGHT OUT about having to milk one. God, that was awesome.

And, Canaan totally said Damn, not Darn, when they got taken to the wrong place when they were looking for the fountain. For such a self-proclaimed Good Christian, he says a lot of things Good Christians wouldn't, and probably shouldn't, say.

I hope Mika and Canaan get booted soon. If this were any other non-Lance season, they would be the joke team. Have they ever been in the top half of the pack at all?

EDIT: Not only Toronto posting. I'm in Halifax (Dartmouth actually, but whatever).

Yeah they said the CN Tower is still the world's tallest tower, because of it's lack of floor space.

I'm a Christian [aka bible-thumper] and I say damn it all the time. (And if I'm playing the wii, "F" words, "S" words, and Sons of "B" words will also fly out of my mouth). But in normal day to day life I try not to swear a bit. :)

That's what I thought too Aldebaran, that they had to do something with the Camel, like water it or something. But seeing them freak out about having to find water in the desert was almost as good.

While their building is impressive, CNN is in Atlanta, and isn't all that tall. ;) I know what you meant though, I just wanted to tease you a little.

Maybe just Canadian fans. We should hug Aldebaran.

I know what you mean. I think the poker girls will be safe though. The coming attractions kind of pissed me off. ::glares at a certain male::

ETA: Because I keep forgetting. I floved Ericka giggling like a little girl as she sledded down the hill. I was also glad that she told the other teams that the snowman was TINY once she found it. Not that it really mattered in the end.

It seems more every week, but especially tonight, that they know pretty much what the roadblock task is before they choose which teammate does it. Erica was particularly talking about how they decided Brian should do it, because they knew she would get freaked out and upset by it. Is that a change in rules, or is it just werid editing that makes it seem that they know what they're talking about?

Edited because Brian's name is not Eric.

Live streaming from a Canadian broadcast. Wonderful thing.

So, nothing says "Middle East" like... snowmen? Thanks, show!

Thank God it was an elimination. (All his tub water must have evaporated away in the desert heat.)

Three cheers for the hot greeter!

I don't think it's anything odd; just the setting made it obvious the task would involve heavy desert time, so the Brian/Erica reactions seemed fine to me.

That was some easy judging on the snowmen. A couple of them were pretty pathetic.

It's nice to see a good-looking male greeter, instead of a 'quirky and strange' male greeter. No flutes up noses for Mr. Dubai!

Someone mentioned it above thread, but I just have to second how much I loved Ericka's reaction to the sledding, even after seeing it the second time on CBS's late broadcast. So much unabashed joy! It's really nice to see.

Doing the Happy Dance that Lance is gone!

I wanted him gone since the season started. I was so scared Phil was going to say it was a NElim.

They kept scaring me that Lance would catch up. I loved watching Lance suffering out in the dessert.

I think alot of the teams wanted to ride the chair lift and sled down the hill. It was the reason so many of them tried that one. When the snowman building was obviously the easier challenge.

Today I finally caught how to pronounce Cheyne and I have to say, "Guh?" Oh my.

OK, it is 10 times worse to not know where the Persian Gulf is than to not recognize Jackie Kennedy O. Sam and Dan are idiots.

That Pokah Playah looks like Catherine O'Hara from SCTV.

Pretty sure that was pollution, not clouds.

The Globetrotters are my fav, but did one of them litter as they were leaving the Burj Dubai?

Worthless FF.

Is Dubai Ski Bear related to Hurricane Bear?

Free at last, we're free at last!

While I am THRILLED that Lance and Keri are gone, I couldn't believe how (relatively) easy-going Lance was this leg. Glad to see them leave on such a positive note.

Yes! Not only are Lance and Keri gone, but the whole episode was one hilarious FAIL after another for them, almost to the point of making me thik I'm going to miss having them to laugh at and root against.

I thought the contrast between to two tasks created an added layer of challenge that was pretty cool, and I generally like legs when so many teams are so relieved and happy to hear their placement, so this was a pretty damn good leg for me.

Not bad. Interesting to see them highlight the contrasts of temperature in Dubai.

Seeing Lance and Keri utterly, totally lose this one was kind of refreshing, if only because they're now gone. I thought there used to be a rule that one couldn't hire a cab to follow to the next cluebox or pitstop.

... and cheers were heard throughout the land

That was really good!, and not just because of the elimination.

I thought it was an all around very good episode tonight. It actually reminded me of the show I fell in love with seasons and seasons ago: the editing was a bit more slow-paced without constant cuts/edits, the music wasnt overbearing and there were a lot of old classic songs used, teams getting lost driving themselves (teams driving themselves has been severely lacking the last several seasons), Phil being Phil, and good tasks too. Best episode yet this season.

Only complaint: that fast forward seemed way too easy, although it would be extremely thrilling. I think both team members should have had to do it.

At this point, probably rooting for the Globetrotters or Gary and Matt. Mika and Canaan are a little too stupid (though the kmg/mph cracked me up), Megan and Cheyne are just a little too "boring/random dating couple", the brothers are in danger of becoming the Cho Bros (them waiting for the girls to get their car was beyond stupid - even the girls were telling them to get the hell out). I don't mind the poker girls or Erica/Brian, but am not actively rooting for them.

Great show!

Oh thank goodness. I don't have tv so have to wait untl this goes online to truly enjoin the miracle that is Lance and Keri are gone.

However, I truly feel for the folks in elimination station having to put up with his asshattery. You know he will be bragging about how he would have won the whole thing but for "bad luck" or it will all be Keri's fault.

I dare say each Christian decides that individually. Some might say that saying the word has no magical power, and avoiding it with a sound-sort-of-alike doesn't do anything to mitigate the thought.

I was worried that Sam and Dan had messed up and taken a taxi to the pit stop, but apparently they were just asking for directions en route.

A very satisfying (and deserved, purely on the basis of this leg) elimination. Phil was having fun with us, varying the wording as if there was a reprieve coming up and then (hurray!) not giving one.

Best possible result! But they certainly did give Lance a much nicer edit this time. Not even like the same guy we had been seeing.

I am liking Erika more and more each episode. She is very self aware, knows she is not perfect and has a funny sense of humor. She and Brian seem to have a good relationship. Yeah- she can be high strung- but knows it. I loved that she knew she would be awful in the water searching task. Also loved when she remarked that she can get the claws out. Also- she was the only one they showed that knew right away the tallest structure was in Dubai.

I did not know whether or not to laugh or cry when the brothers ran into the airport screaming for tickets to the Persain Gulf. My gawd.

They're not that smart. Seriously - where is the Persian Gulf? They're lucky other teams showed up to buy tickets to the right country, and told them about it. I guess the pack mentality still runs large with TAR. Though seeing what happened to Lance & Keri when they split from the pack, I guess it's better to stick with the group.

Lance was so - weird. He was actually making whiny noises, not just whining with words, but actual sounds, and then the constant talking to himself, and then the acquiescence to losing - it almost made me think he had taken a few steroid hits right before the race started and then they finally wore off or something.

Erica was adorable tonight. (Did I call Brian Eric before? I did. Sorry. Will edit.) I was kind of meh about them before, but now I'm walking alongside the love train thinking about getting on.

Still mourning the loss of my boys last week, though.

I find it ironic that Lance & Kerri seemed almost likeable (or at least not as detestable as they've been) just before they got eliminated. That being said, YAY! that they are gone!

Mika hates Canaan. They don't dig each other at all. They really should break up after this race and maybe stay friends. The other couple, Cheyne and his girlfriend are just the opposite. Love them and hope they go far.

I was thrilled that Team Globetrotter were able to make up time during that Detour and were smart not to ditch that task. I knew they were going to find their snowman because only one other had been found and half the pile was turned over when they got there. My love for them grows. They do everything well, they are fun, nice, smart, and entertaining. They have surpassed Kevin & Drew and Danny & Oswald in my estimation. Big props to TAR producers for casting them.

Dubai seems like a great place to take a vacation. I want to go there!

Phil looked great tonight! Great show all around.

Wouldn't you know it? The first ep where Lance was actually tolerable, he gets eliminated! (Of course, since I doubt it would have lasted, I'm not really sorry to see him go.)

I'm in the minority, it seems: I rather like the Poker Girls. I doubt they'll make it to the final three, but I wouldn't have a problem if they did.

I was totally annoyed with the fast forward today. What kind of an easy task was that. Driving around a racetrack while following another car, I'm assuming so he didn't go too fast and hurt himself, and then getting a luxery car ride to the pit stop. Pathetic. Really Really Pathetic.

Finally, the biggest pains in the ass are gone, something Survivor can't say. Speaking of which, it's nice to see that CBS can utterly ruin the suspense of that show in addition to last week's TAR.

Seriously, how is Lance a lawyer? It's like watching "The Rock Obama" sketch on SNL, except there's no Barrack to start with. What a friggin' meathead, especially with the smashing of the urn. I think we would've been better off with the vegan yoga people instead of Lance & Keri.

Tasks . . . is it that costly to do more than one Fast Forward per season? It's a buzzkill when a leading team snags one and the others back off from it. And there's rarely any suspense, except for maybe the time Adam couldn't do his FF correctly. Oh, and how come only Cheyene got to do it? On the other hand, the 100-plus degree contrast was pretty good, even if the Detour options kinda sucked. "We're in a fancy indoor ski resort . . . so you're going to build a snowman or find a lil one. Oh, and if you choose the latter, you have to slide down the hill for no real reason." Whatever.

Aside from L&K getting the boot (and who wasn't worried that it'd be a non-elim?), there were lots of nice moments . . . like Ericka freaking out over going to the Pit Stop, the brothers going on about how it would take the Globies forever to find a snowman followed by those guys getting that done, Sam & Dan sticking around for Maria & Tiffany . . . if next season totally sucks, this would be the episode to send to the Emmy committee.

Did anyone catch Lance asking the snowman judge if he could he kick the snow man? She responded by asking him if he wanted the clue, and then he asked her again if he could kick it, and she said to just take the clue. When given the water to the judge he through the water satchel and the ladle to the ground instead of handing them over like everyone else. There was nothing redeeming or likeable about him this episode.

Just in case anybody was wondering, I did a quick tally of which team came in what place. So far, the average standings are:

1st: Flight Time & Big Easy (AVG placement at 2.8)
2nd: Meghan & Cheyne (AVG placement at 3)
3rd: Gary & Matt (AVG placement at 3.8)
4th: Sam & Dan (AVG placement at 4.4)
5th: Brian & Ericka (AVG placement at 5)
6th: Maria & Tiffany (AVG placement at 7.6)
7th: Mika & Canaan (AVG placement at 7.8)

So basically, Mika & Canaan and Maria & Tiffany suck, while Gary & Matt continue to surprise everybody by being awesome. I don't think anybody is shocked to see Team Generic and The Globetrotters at the head of the pack.

As a resident of North Dakota (home of the world's second tallest manmade structure - second to Burj Dubai), I knew right away where the world's tallest building was, for much the same reason as all you Toronto residents.

And on to specifics about the episode, how is it that five teams picked the needle-haystack detour? And of the two that didn't, one was because she couldn't sled (WTF?) and the other was out of it and just wanted to build a snowman.

Last week I was wondering if maybe the teams were too dumb to try to connect through Bangkok instead of waiting 16 hours for the nonstop flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh, and after seeing their detour choices this week, maybe they actually were?

Well, I think it really says Dubai decadence.

I knew that the world's tallest building was now in one of the rich Gulf microstates, but I wasn't sure which one. But to not know where the Persian Gulf is! That's brutal.

I'm like Brian and Ericka. It's cool that she knew where the building is without research. I think it's okay to do some good for other teams when there are still a bunch of teams in the Race, because they may return the favor. But Brian was pushing it. I wonder if he knew that Keri and Lance were that far back. It's one thing to help out a team or two, but then were helping most of the teams behind them. In a really tight situation, they might get passed by all the others in a Needle/Haystack detour.

Speaking of which, the Detour was a hard decision. If there's not significant melting, building a snowman seems pretty easy and straightforward. But I had no idea whether the melting would be really serious. And it also was hard to tell until they started digging how tough the Needle/Haystack choice would be. Or in this case, it was more like polar bear in a snowstorm.

I would have like to see Meghan due the FF. She's probably lighter, so she could go faster.

So glad to see Lance and Keri gone. They were really bad at directions. Not just driving, but finding clueboxes in location, finding the correct entrance, etc. It seemed like they often lost times navigating between tasks.

Is there anything Mika's not afraid of? I sympathize a bit because I had a lot of fears growing up. But I learned to power through, especially if there's something important on the other side (so I think I'd just grin and bear it to complete a task). It's ironic that she so fearful, but when she thought she was driving over 100 mph, she was cool with it.

I was just going to comment on the same thing.
I loved that judge - 'do you want the clue or not"?
Great episode I thought.
And I am very glad to see these two go.

Yes, props to Ericka for knowing Dubai instantly, and anti-props to my beloved (but not-that-smart) brothers for asking to be driven or flown to "the Persian Gulf."

Their insistence on sticking with the Poker Gals was odd, since their remaining would do nothing to expedite production providing a new vehicle. It was like they wanted to be perceived as loyal more than they wanted to actually do anything helpful (which they couldn't anyway).

I'm glad that most of these teams remaining seem to grasp that even if you're all in competition there's no reason to randomly piss off others, and even something to be said for offering a bit of help or advice if you're ahead anyway. (It can be carried too far, but suggesting winter gear or lending a ladle seems mild enough.)

I dunno. Lance tossing (and subsequently breaking) that clay pot in the desert, Lance rudely dropping the canteen and ladle at the clue giver's feet, and then asking the other clue giver if he could kick the damn snowman did nothing to change my opinion of him as a ridiculous, ridiculous man.

Brian and Ericka have hustled! That was my hope for them after the first episode, and they have been steadily climbing the ranks. Yay them! They have a sense of humor that I dig (most especially because their joke about chocolate melting in the sun is something I've said on particularly hot and humid days during August in DC). Meghan & Cheyne are another team that I'm genuinely liking. They're smart racers, and they don't seem to take any of the experience for granted. For that reason, I'm liking the Globetrotters, too. They're nice, but they hustle.

Maria & Tiffany (and Sam & Dan, and mainly Sam & Dan) are going to have to realize that the Amazing Race doesn't really work like Survivor. Alliances aren't all that important. I mean, yeah, you don't want to be Yield'd or what have you, but that's so far ahead in the race. Doing silly things like waiting while a replacement car gets delivered when you could be heading to the next task just seems way too much. If you wanna be helpful, do it the way Brian does--he gives the info after he and Ericka have finished their own task (well, except for telling Sam and Dan about Dubai).

Didn't Mika run from sledding because she was afraid of heights, even though she didn't say so?

Maybe the producers are laying a setup for the next group of contestants who had a chance to watch tonight. So they come in thinking, "Hey, maybe the FF will be easy" and it ends up being something like an unsecured walk on a jagged glass tightrope above vats of boiling oil.

Was I seeing things, or were Brian and Erika labelled Cannan and Mika at one point?

Did Lance ask if he could kick his snowman? He's like an angry, rude six year old.
Thank God him and his fiance off my tv.

Sam and Dan are morons. Not only did they not know where the Persian Gulf was, they didn't know it was NOT a country.

Also, Canaan is, if not completely, at least moderately abusive. That couple will not last past the end of the race. Lance was no prince, but I really do feel like he cared about his partner more than Canaan does. He felt bad when he felt like he was letting her down.

Brian and Erica were labeled as Meghan and Cheyne at one point, I think. I still get Meghan/Cheyne and Mika/Caanan mixed up.

After watching Lance tip over the vase and let the rest of the water in it spill out, I really, really wanted the bedouin to tell him he didn't have enough water in his flask and needed to go get more.

Phil looked pretty good on skis.

"Chocolate melts." I guess if *you* say so it's okay, but I would not go anywhere near that line.

Bald snarks a-plenty at the Detour. But I was kind of disappointed at how the blazing Dubai sun didn't even make so much as a little puddle around the contestants' snowmen.

Anyone who is so convinced that Karma plays a big role in TAR must not have seen the season that Zack and Flo won. There's plenty of us out here who are of the opinion that Karma is in the tub. (So to speak)

I am still one of those who find the Poker Ladies appealing. They really seem to get that their continued presence is not because of some divine mission or innate talent, but are just happy to get whatever they happen to get anyhow. But the "woman Asian driver" quip was just weird, I have got to say.

I don't much agree with the opinion that Lance got a very favorable edit this episode. Breaking up the clay jar and running his fool mouth constantly just didn't seem to be all that appealing to me. Hope I never have to see that dude again.

Brian and Ericka were labeled Meghan and Cheyne. Which made me wonder how far ahead M&C actually finished timewise. Maybe driving to the FF and running the race took longer than they showed and they didn't actually finish as far ahead as the editing made it seem.