From zap2it.com:

Megan has gotten increasingly whiny. I'd love for M & C to be the next team gone.

Shut up, Dan x 1000! But at least he realized that himself by the end.

Gary & Matt are so lovely.

That was a good episode. Meghan is showing herself to be a pill with borderline-Flo tendencies. Cheyne is a gentleman, indeed. She's very lucky to have him at her side.

I'm glad that the father-son duo was not eliminated. I like them. The Harlem Globetrotters, meanwhile, are really, really lucky. I am hoping against hope that they don't win the million. Of the remaining teams, they need it less. Stupid stuntcasting.

The bitching about the other teams showing up was way too annoying. Of course they're going to show up... you're all on the same race. And honestly, I would roll Dan up in one of the hay bales if I was Sam (or vice versa, I still don't know which one is which).

Good episode but weird leg design. What if the last team decided to quit?

Also, I found it interesting that one of the brothers(Still can't tell them apart) said "Of course the Globetrotters got it first! They were the THRID team to to arrive!" Lena and Kristy were also the thrid team to arrive and they finished last. So suck it Sam/Dan. I also can't wait to see the Globetrotters/Brothers foot race.

And even though Meghan can be whiny, at least she has a sense of humour after a grueling road block.

I felt more sorry for Megan than annoyed at her. She was the only female that did that test, and they were there for a few hours. Of course I knew that Ericka wouldn't do it. It was sweet how she faked Cheyne out.

I was *biting* my nails at the end. I have no ill will against the brothers, but I was uttering the mantra "not Dan, not Dan, not Dan, not Dan". I think that parent/child teams are going to forever be in the category of female/female teams in that neither can seem to win this race. Gary and Matt just seemed to run into a string of really bad luck, though they never let it affect them or their disposition. God, I love that team, which means of course they'll officially be eliminated next week.

The poor owner of that farm. He'll forever be known as the torturemaster with all the hay bales.

Um, Sweden is known for its BIKINI TEAM. Think of all the missed possibilities, idiot TAR producers!

The Brain is Pinky's roaming gnome. Montana Shorty?

The airport train runs every 15 minutes, good racing can overcome that.

Apparently 'Cheyne' means 'Wuss' in Swedish.

I grow weary of Sam and Diane's bickering. Can't wait for them to be gone.

GT's in first!!!!!!!

Thank goodness for the non-elim.


Edited because: Victoria's Secret sells Candella bras.

YES YES YES. YEEEEESSSSSSS! I freaking love the GTs. I love how they keep it together, especially in relation to the other teams. "We ain't have no bales of hay in the ghetto, though!" When they got to the dynamite challenge, I cracked up laughing when Flight Time was like, "we're here. We foundt it." And Big Easy standing there with all that hay on his head was hilarious. Love them. Hope they go all the way.

I know it's a race and all, but why does Sam have to be such a cock about everything? Dan was Ross Gellaring hardcore, but his advice was pretty sound: don't waste your time going through each bale, since there are hundreds of them. You have a better chance of finding one if you don't spend too much time on one bale. Dan crying that he was being a jerk was sweet.

Cheyne is really useless. I think he's my least favorite person here.

Gary and Matt are an inspiration.

That haystack challenge just as it was the 1st time is straight out of Satan's sick creation.

It is only humane, not generous that after putting the teams through this hell this is a non elim. Should have been one the 1st time.

Rooting for Meghan and Cheyne, I don't think Cheyne is useless at all, he has certainly pulled his weight through the race, he is just calmer and not as high strung as Meghan is.

Brian and Ericka were much cuter this time around. I think they got some sleep. I feel sad for them (especially her) that her mom isn’t that accepting of their relationship; he treats her well and they obviously love each other, and that should be enough. I’m lucky that my parents (moreso my mother) have been pretty accepting of my relationships, both interracial and not. (I had a long relationship with a white guy ten years my senior, and my mother had a bigger problem with his age than his race.)

That is SO MANY bales of hay. That aerial view was scary. Cheyne should have just said “You do it” rather than passive-aggressively not saying anything so she’d jump in and take it. I liked that Meghan at least had a sense of humor after all that grueling work.

I didn’t understand why Dan didn’t just stop talking. (The only way I could tell them apart was that Dan kept saying “SAM, NO. STOP DOING THAT.” I actually didn’t even realize that I couldn’t tell them apart until I could tell them apart, if that makes sense.) Sam asked him to stop talking nicely at first, and then he just kept harping so negatively on everything Sam was doing. Jesus Christ. It would have been so bad if I’d been out there and Dan were my partner, because I need quiet when I get frustrated and have to concentrate, and not only was Dan not being quiet, he was being a dick. I’m glad he finally realized that, but he was being just awful up until that point.

Glad Pinky and the Brain are still in it. I was expecting a non-elimination leg since there hasn’t been one in a while. I’m very curious to see how far apart all the teams are next leg, to have some indication of how long they were all out there.

Meghan's fooling Cheyne made up somewhat for how whiny she was being during the task (although, at least she was still doing it, crying or not); his reaction genuinely made me laugh.

Dan and Sam should have annoyed the hell out of me, but I was cracking up at Dan's complete inability to shut up, and then kind of touched by his remorse and awkward attempts to be supportive.

I'm glad Gary stuck it out and that they're still there, and I was really happy to see the Globetrotters come in first.

The GT's are planning to give the money to charity if they win. I'm rooting for them or the father/son team. Great attitude from both of these teams.

Ironically, he was probably the only person to remember the last iteration of that task. And they're both kind of jerks. I'm kinda hoping they're eliminated before the final three.

I was asking myself why the switchback; why repeat this task? The obvious answer - because it's good drama.

Glad that TPTB knew to make the hay bale episode a NEL since it screwed over one of the better teams last time. It was also nice to see the brothers and Matt reference this task, which shows that they watch the show (and Ericka does not, as she was clueless).

Overall though it was a pretty dull episode. I enjoyed the amusement park bit, and I always enjoy the gnomes, but I wish someone had chosen the other detour, because the dynamite one was pretty boring. And watching more hay bales get rolled out gets old after a little bit.

I liked Cheyne this episode: he was being a perfect supportive partner when she was struggling with the RB. The brothers on the other hand, was obviously not (cant remember which was on the sideline and which was doing the task).

I'd say Cheyne is the opposite of a gentleman. That was obviously going to be a difficult challenge and he flat out didn't want to do it, let his girlfriend do it. If he were my bf I'd be very disappointed.

I love, love the Globetrotters. Yeah! Hope you liked your birthday present, Flight Time.

Erika not whiny and she was very supportive of Brian. She knew that she had to do the ride and actually won the ring toss. They had a different attitude going into this leg of the race. Maybe they just said to each other that griping and swiping each other was not worth it and just to enjoy the race. Knew she wasn't going to do it but it was the right decision.

I was praying this would not be a non elimination leg so that the Father/Son duo would stay. I like them, too.

I wanted to shut the other brother up so badly. STFU, will you.

Meghan and Cheyne -- meh. Good work Meghan.

I can't help but love the GT. Especially when the others teams kept on whining about how lucky the GT's are. Boo freaking hoo.

I did like Meghan faking out Cheyne though, that was cute.

I'm rooting for the Globetrotters and the father/son team. So glad they weren't eliminated.

Really don't like the brothers.

I loved the too-brief clip of Hot Jon from S6 doing the hay bales. He and Kris are still my favorite team of all time. But the clip of Phil eliminating Kristy and Lena made me want to cry all over again. They were such a great team.

Along with Kris and Jon and Danny and Oswald, Flight Time and Big Easy are working their way into my Top 3 Teams of all-time. I just love teams that are awesomely supportive of each other and clearly enjoying themselves along the way. FT & BE never fail to make me laugh, and I was thrilled when Big Easy found the flag in the hay bale first. What an awesome birthday present for Flight Time (and what an great contrast between their behavior and Sam and Dan's).

Thank dog this was a NEL. I'd have been gutted if the lovely Matt and Gary went home.

When Flight Time said it was his birthday, I knew they were going to win this leg! When everyone else was screaming and whining, Big Easy stayed focused on rolling out those bales. He was going to find that flag! And he did. FT was calm and supportive. Love them; love Gary (never quit) and Matt!
Also, everything 21bored said.

Best episode yet. I couldn't say that I disliked any team, that is if Danny and Cheyne were on the same team. smh. Extremely happy that Gary and Matt weren't eliminated, but I am even more happy that Erika pretty much was awesome this leg. Perhaps she got a good night's sleep, but she was great, and for once team zebra didn't get lost.

I hoped (and thought) this would a NEL since that task is too hard and long for a team to be eliminated after. Now I hope we have some serious bunching next ep since this is the first time there isn't one team I dislike.

Although I would prefer the GT's.

I'm with you. They're my favorite team of all time too!

Wow, all the teams were done in under three hours? Makes all the angsting and whining look pathetic next to Lena & Kristy's ordeal.

Great idea to bring back the Roadblock as a Switchback. You know what this means? Switchback: Sheepherding Roadblock in New Zealand from TAR2. Who wouldn't want that? And I'm only sorry the rest of the current season's teams weren't flown out to try it out. Can you imagine Maria unrolling the hay? Or Lance? Would've been awesome.

Don't understand the brothers' sniping about the Globetrotters. Sure, they might be professional athletes, but they're not locks to win every leg. They seem to be chugging the Haterade with both hands. Maybe it's because all other teams look like schmucks compared to the Globies' gracefulness? Oh, and that was some good dancing after the win. They're good at tasks, they don't snipe at each other . . . what's not to love?



Slightly off-topic: how much does an average 'Trotter make? It can't be that much. They get to see the world, but it's not like they roll in dough like your average NBA sub.

Watching Sam & Dan remiains me how good it is to be an only child. Shut up, guys! Nice that they reconciled at the end of the leg, but the yelling was getting to be too much.

Is anybody else happy that Dan and Matt brought up the Roadblock From Hell? I mean, even if people are being recruited, it's good to see that they're fans . . . or capable of doing research.

Anybody else think Megan and Cheyne haven't been intimate once through the season? I asks because he was kissing that gnome a little too much for my tastes.

Next week: Matt, would it be better if they called it a "Liberace candle holder"? And please don't let there be a Kisha/Jen vs. Margie/Luke showdown between the brothers and the Globies.

ETA: I saw Jon, too. All I noticed was the visor.

YAY for NEL!! It would have been too cruel for words if anyone was eliminated on NiaH.
That is luck pure and simple.

Next week looks a bit messy between my men the GT and my boys S&D.
I hope that was an accident and not a take down.

Happy Birthday Herbert! :)

ETA, Cheyne should now go by Ashamed because he should be. :P
How on earth do your send your gf into do that challenge? Total wimp.

Nice that Dan came to his senses, quite a bit late, and felt way bad about his yelling from the sidelines.
Heck even Brian had to explain he needed to give it a rest.

Also don't think Gary, even with his farm experience, should have been the one to do it over younger and bigger Matt. :/

I think that Dan takes the title for the worse partner performance so far this season. It was already a pita to be out there rolling the hay. I can't imagine doing that while someone is wailing and whining in your ear. His advice was also bad. There are only 7 flags. If you unroll the hay with no search, you're going to miss it. Each person that found the flag had to search through the hay for it. It was never just "there" when they unrolled it.

My Brian/Ericka love continues. I really do think that they have a wonderful relationship that works perfectly for them. I don't blame Meghan either. Sometimes things are stressful and I think that she's made it plain that when they are doing tasks she really needs a lot of hands on support and encouragement. As evidenced by her asking Cheyne to keep talking to her. It was obvious that her attitude didn't bother Cheyne at all. He and Brian both seem to be very aware of what type of women they have hooked up with and they both seem able to deal with it.

In contrast to them, it's obvious that Sam did not appreciate Dan's methods at all which is what bugs me. Once he said for him to shut up, just shut up. The constant screaming wasn't going to motivate him to do better. Then to cry about it on the mat? Jerky punk.

This. I loved that the first time they reference the tasked, they showed the eye candy of the season (Jon and Aaron) doing the roadblock. That was a good season.

Sam & Dan - to their credit, they figured out a really fast way to fill the sandbags, and they made the best out of working with Meghan & Cheyne. Can they actually run a leg without someone helping, I wonder?

Meghan & Cheyne - She is annoying. Her doing the hay was good karma, plus it saved Cheyne from hearing who could be more annoying - Dan or Meghan.

Globetrotters - this is the first time I can remember a Racer being too tall to do a task.

Hayfield/NEL - A wise move, though we'll never know if it was supposed to happen last leg. At least Phil didn't have to go to the field and Philiminate someone, though it would have been a short walk.

Erika & Brian - did well overall, and split the tasks wisely.

Gary & Matt - I liked that they never gave up, though navigation & travel tasks seem to slow them up a bit. Shouldn't use the gnome like that as a stool, though at least Matt sat on the right end.

So big props to Gary for sticking out the task and big props to Brian for telling Dan to shove it. "Daniel, it's harder than it looks" Using the full name just as a parent would. Yes, Dan you were acting like a child.

I so hope that Flight Time and/or Big Easy give the brothers a beatdown next week.

I loved the look on Phil's face at the mat when Dan was having his wimp weep. He looked as if to say, "Are you for real?" Priceless! I really was hoping that team would come in last.

This episode was totally worth it to me because it was a non-elimination and my favorite team, the Globetrotters won on Flight Time's birthday. I was sooo happy that they came in first place.

Pinky and the Brain live to see another week! What fine, quietly dignified men they are. I can't say enough about their graciousness on this race. I really really hope they can overcome their odds and be contenders for the final three. I still want the GTs to win, but I would certainly be thrilled if they won.

Erica is one lucky woman.

I get the distinct impression that Cheyne loves Meghan much more than she loves him (if at all). Shame, really. He is a terrific guy. And he's adorable too.

I'm rooting for the brothers. I really like them. Not a fan of the Miss America Team. I was surprised that Cheyne took the road block. If I saw all the those hales, I would pass it to the guy to do.

Honestly the hay bale challenge is not a fav of mine. I prefer tasks that are not won by dumb luck alone which this one was. That being said, I was happy for the GTs cuz they totally entertain me.

If I could have reached through the TV, I would have shoved something down both Sam and Dan's throats! Good gracious man! Shut up already. I was rooting for them to be eliminated.

I actually like Brian and Erika again by the end of the episode.

Does the preview really show Pinky as not knowing what a candelabra is?

Yeah, that does suck. Shoot, if anything, I'd think Brian is a little too good for Ericka at times, but they were "cuter" this week, so I'll give them a pass.

Also, Gary's probably in better shape than most of the non-GTs. And Meghan might be too Type-A, but that girl is bad. She really persevered. She's tough, and I like that.

They're both low-drama teams, who see the humour in things & get the job done. As opposed to:

Meaghan: Cheyne? Cheyne? Come here! Why aren't you talking to me? Why aren't you supporting me? This is the worst day in my pampered princess life, Flo redux ad nauseum.

Dan: Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam! Sam!

SHUT UP. Lena & Kristy had so much more grace under way more pressure.

Note to self: if a Swede ever invites you to a hay bale unrolling contest, decline.

I love the idea of bringing back classic TAR challenges from past seasons (can we have the ox/rice paddy roadblock next, please?) and that was almost as brutal as the first time around. I'm glad that Megan finally found a flag, because it would have been too much to see another woman unroll those big heavy things for hours in vain. I am also glad that the NEL saved Matt & Gary for the moment after the effort Gary put into it. It does seem like TPTB chose this leg for the second NEL of the race just in case a team did wind up out there for eight hours.

And the Globetrotters' easygoing humor and good attitude is growing on more more every week.

When I saw how close the pit stop was to the challenge, I hoped it would be a non elim. Normally there is a drive to the pit stop in which someone could lost, but Pinky and the Brain knew they were last when Sam and Dan left. The only motivation to go on (besides Brain's admirable "never give up" attitude) was the hope for a non elim leg. Really happy that all of their racers were rewarded for their hard work and no one got sent home. That's also probably because this is the first season in forever where I don't hate any of the teams.

Dan has gotten on my nerves since pretty much leg one, and he was insufferable this week. I realized though if I was on this show with my sibling, I would probably complain and argue a lot more than with a friend or romantic partner. It's the point of having a sibling. Also, once he saw how much Sam was struggling and chilled out, he actually really won me over. And Sam is the most adorable racer ever, so I'm always on his team.

It is good.

I realized while watching tonight that I am pretty fond of all of the remaining teams - some are a bit more annoying at times than others, but I generally like them all. Gary and Matt are my favorites though.

As soon as I saw the hay bales, I said out loud, "This *has* to be a non-elimination leg this time." Glad I was right. Still looked awful, though. The brothers were so annoying but in a standard kind of sibling way, and the obnoxious one getting all teary at the end was kind of cute. Also, I laughed when Yelling Brother mentioned the famous 8-hour hay task (Lena?), and Calmer Brother was like, "why would you even say that to me right now?!" Ha.

The amusement park ride looked fun - I love those drop rides.

Meghan took the road block, and after all her whining and bitching, I'd be tempted to shut up and make her do it too. It's like she's gunning for the ultimate backseat racer award.

Agreed. I've never cared for dumb luck challenges. Actually, teams getting there late are at an advantage because there are fewer hay bales to unroll. It's a sucky roadblock, but it did make for some nail-biting tension.

I think that's actually a way to lose terribly - those flags were small, and the GT found it by accident while kicking some hay out of the way after it had fallen out. I think this would have been a much easier task if the flags had been a lot bigger - like 4 times that big, so they wouldn't be missed.

I loved Brian in the hay bale task. "It isn't as easy as it looks, Daniel."

I kept calling to the tv, "Meghan, just sit down, take five minutes, you'll be fine." Good on her, being the only woman to shove those bales around.

So glad Matt and Gary are still in the race. I love them and the GTs, since they are such calm teams. These guys are proving to be supportive teammates, and none of them have been panicked in the face of likely elimination. Love.

I kept hoping Sam would go over there and shove a handful of hay into Dan's mouth. Oy.

I don't fault Meghan for her breakdown. Sometimes when you are super-frustrated, you just need to flip out and cry for a bit before you can move on. And she did move on, found the flag, and even had enough good spirits to play a pretty funny joke on Cheyne.

Also, it's probably slightly cheaper since it's already been done before, and therefore the logistics should be similar. Though I wonder, since the race course is tested in advance, would that mean that some farmer got paid to set up a bunch of hay bales for the producers to sort through? And did we see production staff wandering around in the background?

I agree that luck played a role here. But I think almost as important was attitude and perseverance. If someone broke down and cried instead of pushing through, they could have been last.

Meghan: She took on a task that she was clearly ill-suited for because her boyfriend refused to take it. At the detour, it seemed to me like she was trying to get Cheyne to commit to a strategy like the one Matt & Gary took, but Cheyne seemed to have no interest in making any kind of decisions today. To me, he's the one who comes out looking worse in this leg.

I was very surprised to find myself rooting for Meghan at the Roadblock but unsurprised by my gratefulness at the non-elimination leg. I hate seeing teams eliminated by needle/haystack tasks and really want to see Matt & Gary stick around. Personally, I'm fine with any of the remaining teams winning except, perhaps, Brian and Ericka.

If anything the haybale roadblock this time was even more difficult, if for no other reason than they had to find TAR flags, and not clue envelopes in plastic sheaths. Those were bigger, flatter, and easier to see/feel than the flags.

What was the purpose for winning the gnomes this time? They all got to the Amazing Mat, but no explanation. And no explanation why Sam/Dan's gnome had a big red "X" on the bottom, and not the others, once the detour clue was removed.

When Meghan was running back to Cheyne with the flag and fell in the ditch, Erika's first reaction was to point and laugh. I guess she missed the lesson on integrity in pageant class.

Lena and Kristy seemed to complain less over the ten hours they got stuck doing that task than some of these teams did in the few hours they had to unravel those rolls of hay.

I thought it was funny that Dan (or Sam, not quite sure which is which) felt so much guilt about yelling at his brother because it's not as though Sam was some sort of shrinking violet (I mean he did flip his middle finger at his brother). Whatever he threw out at his brother, he got it back.


Yeah. I got the impression he didn't want to do it, but he didn't want to appear like a bad guy by asking her to do it. I can't blame Megan for being a little frustrated with him at times.

The Globetrotters are easily my favourite team. Who wouldn't want either of them as a partner. It's a stressful game, but they still find the time to crack jokes, which you really need in times like these to that the edge off the stress.

An unseen roadblock or detour that was dropped in editing?