77 replies to this topic

[Gitano]

I'm starting this thread because some information (which may or may not be reliable) fell into my lap yesterday about the route for TAR 19, which is now being planned. I don't know nearly as much about the planning for these things as people here or on RFF do, so I can't be sure of the reliability of this tidbit. Maybe some here can help figure out if it's even possibly accurate.

I live in Oklahoma City. My husband and I are professors at a small liberal-arts college here. He came home from a class he was teaching yesterday and said that one of his students works for the TSA at the OKC airport. This guy told my husband that the airport had gotten notification (or asked had been asked permission or whatever) because race was going to come through the airport the next time it is run. He said it would be in about a year or so. I looked things up and found that it is supposed to be run next in Nov/Dec which would match up with the timeline the guy was giving.

That's the complete end of my knowledge right there, just that they are supposed to come through OKC at some point. I don't know when or where they are coming from or going to. I mean, obviously it's either the first or the last leg. I do find it odd that they are coming through such a relatively obscure location, though, since DFW airport is only 4 hours south and much, much larger with far more direct flights. Kansas City is only about 6 hours north. (There are very few direct flights into and out of OKC; most all connect through Dallas, Chicago, Denver, Minneapolis etc.) Do they ever intentionally use smaller airports in an effort to be less noticed?

Anyway, I have no reason to believe the guy is lying, even though I don't know even who he is. But my husband verified he does work at the airport, that much is reliable. I don't know why he would have talked about it if it weren't true. My husband never, ever watches television and is possibly the least interested person in pop culture in general, so it's not like he is one going around looking for information. That also tends to make me think it's reliable. But beyond that I really don't know.

If it is true, and if people on RFF or here can nail down the dates they would be coming through the airport, I'd do everything I can to be there at that day and time and see if I can get pics/info etc.

Edited by Gitano, Jan 14, 2011 @ 5:27 PM.

[auntlada]

I've always wanted them to start or end in Oklahoma. If you find out any dates or anything, please let us know, Gitano. I want to be there if I can.

[tgrfan23]

The November-December taping schedule is for the spring cycle of the show, so unless CBS plans to skip a fall cycle - which seems unlikely given that the show does very well on NFL Sundays - your info pertains to TAR 20, not 19.

[cnsprcytheorist]

The current application info indicates that TAR 19 will run in the summer.

[theschnauzers]

Some things I would keep in mind. The way WRP (World Race Productions) plans the route for each Race now is with both primary legs and contingency legs for each edition. The best example of this I can think of is Camp Casey in South Korea which was seen in the second-to-last leg/episode of TAR 17. The TAR Detectives first got wind of Camp Casey as a possible leg during the filming of TAR 15, because there were blog posts and tweets about rehearsing the tasks that were to be done by the camp military personnel. More tweets and blog posts were heard again when TAR 16 was filmed, and again, when it was actually used in TAR 17.

Given this, I would think it is most likely that these were scouters sort of to speak planning for possible contingencies. The other possibility is the web-based show that Bert and Elise are executive producing for an advertiser (IIRC, Ford Motor Company) that has some similarities with TAR, but is more like a cross-country road rally/scavenger hunt; Ken and Tina from TAR 13 were in such an event at the time TAR 18 was being filmed in May and June.

So it may well have some legs attached to it; but it might not necessarily be TAR.

[TheGrimRecapper]

It's worth noting, though, that most of TAR15's original course (including Korea) was affected by swine flu and the need for direct flights. It's entirely possible that much of the original route -- which IIRC was also rumoured to have included at least two known TAR18 locations -- is still in the process of gradually being used.

If what I've heard is true, only five legs from that season (the Prague and Dubai doubles, and the Vegas finale) were going to be used in the original route, along with Mexico, Brazil, Korea, Australia, the two Ghana legs from TAR17, and one of the Balkan states (I... want to say Serbia, but I'm not 100% sure on it).

[Vyk]

And TAR19 is a go!

Teams departed from L.A. Again. Here's a possible team sighting at LAX. Can't tell if it's a men's team or a coed team:

http://yfrog.com/h27jxtmj.

Destination is Taiwan. Likely Taipei.

Edited by Vyk, Jun 19, 2011 @ 1:42 AM.

[Snim Xis]

Apparently Survivor power couple Jenna Morasca and Ethan Zohn are among the teams this season:

http://www.suite101....ng-race-a376187

I suspect the dynamic will be far less "Rob and Amber 2.0" than it might seem on the surface. Neither of them won their Survivor seasons by the same heavy scheming that Rob and Amber did.

[Vyk]

Oh, really? Ethan must be cancer-free, then. No way he'd be running while still under treatment.

RFF has a team list of spotted teams so far. Nine-and-a-half teams have been spotted as of now:

1. Laurence and Zac Sunderland (father/son)
2. Older couple in blue
3. Ethan Zohn and Jenna Morasca
4. Blonde women's team in red
5. Young couple in white and blue
6. African-American couple in black
7. African-American female wearing pink (teammate not visible)
8. Young couple in yellow
9. Men's team in green (probably surfers)
10. Dark-haired women's team with pink jackets, apparently from Hawaii

Eleventh team not yet known.

So two men's teams, two women's teams, and five coed teams are definitely identified. We could have three women's teams if the black girl in pink has a partner identified as female, or six coed teams if said partner is identified as male. Still waiting on word about that last team.

First stop was indeed Taipei, Taiwan, though.

Edited by Vyk, Jun 19, 2011 @ 2:45 PM.

[Fukui San]

Jenna and Ethan! Way to keep current and relevant, TAR! Were Sue Hawk and Kelly Wigglesworth already booked?

Well, before I get too down on things, at least it isn't Russell.

[Isuzu]

at least it isn't Russell

Yet.

As for Jenna and Ethan, I've read that since her (unbearable) stint in the Amazon, Jenna has matured a lot. She has stayed with Ethan through his cancer, and is allegedly much more funnier and sweeter than she was in the past. Frankly, I'm willing to give her a chance, because I kinda want her to definitely redeem her image.

[Vyk]

According to RFF, the first leg is complete already!

TEAM MAT ARRIVALS WITH TIMES:

Team 1: Couple in yellow; woman speaks Chinese -- Win Express Pass!! 0930
Team 2: Couple, dark-haired man, blonde woman 0937
Team 3: Black couple, woman in pink (this is the man not seen at LAX, so it looks like they're another couple) 0940
Team 4: Ethan & Jenna! (had a bad taxi driver, who takes a slow route to a department store they had to go through) 1008
Team 5: African-American couple, 1016
Team 6: Laurence & Zac: leading out of airport, maybe lost in a Confucian Temple (7-8th there) 1024
Team 7: Surfer Dudes (footrace with Laurence & Zac nearly same time) (alleged named Jamie & Tommy??) 1025
Team 8: M/M team, both in Blue (our team missing @ LAX) 1048
Team 9: F/F with dark hair, Hawaiian girls 1110
Team 10: Blonde girls 1132
Team 11: Older couple Not seen from airport onwards, not arrived! >> very lost?

Phil left the MAT and went to this dept store ~ noon (Phil was seen walking down the upwards escalator, shooting a stand up). Phil came back to the Mat much later, but still no team.

Conflicting info...did Phil do an onsite elim at the Dept Store, right on the first leg, a la Dana & Adrian in TAR16?

(spec=ish) OR *new info* one observer says older couple arrived at MAT around 4 in the afternoon and were NOT eliminated!

Don't know which is true.

But in any case, leg two has started. Teams were seen leaving the Pit Start onto the second leg.

Apparent destination is Jakarta, Indonesia, where they will take a seven-hour train ride to Yogykarta.

There are 3 direct flights to Jakarta in the AM although also possible via HK and Singapore for example

CGK Jakarta CI 5855 China Airlines 8:05 AM
CGK Jakarta CI 761 China Airlines 8:45 AM
CGK Jakarta BR 237 EVA Air 9:00 AM

Yay! New country! I don't think Indonesia's ever been visited yet!

[TheGrimRecapper]

Indonesia! And a long-distance train ride, too! About fucking time, show!

I wouldn't be surprised if we got several new countries this season, considering we only got one TASK in a new country last season.

ETA: Indonesia's been done twice on TAR Asia, and was the first destination visited by TAR Australia, but none of them have gone to Yogyakarta yet.

Edited by TheGrimRecapper, Jun 20, 2011 @ 9:45 PM.

[ClaireO]

Yay! New country! I don't think Indonesia's ever been visited yet!

They had several legs there in TAR4, IIRC. But that was many seasons ago.

[Vyk]

It's official. RFF says the oldsters did make it through the first leg. Despite arriving HOURS behind all the other teams. They have a Speed Bump coming up in Indonesia that I'm pretty positive they won't overcome unless someone screws up massively.

Also just in. One of the two black couples is Karl Malone, a big name in the NBA, and his wife, Kay.

[BDArizona]

Also just in. One of the two black couples is Karl Malone, a big name in the NBA, and his wife, Kay.

I really like Karl Malone. My best friend actually went by his house in Salt Lake when he played with the Jazz, and he invited the whole group in and made them sandwiches. That said, I'm so done with stunt casting. I don't care how much I like the person, I just don't want to see this kind of thing anymore. We have both Ethan/Jenna and Karl/Kay this time? That's really too much.

[Vyk]

Usually, I'd agree, but if these are big draws for viewers, I'm all for it. Especially since most of the rest of this cast seems pretty . . . well . . . vanilla so far.

[tgrfan23]

Also just in. One of the two black couples is Karl Malone, a big name in the NBA, and his wife, Kay.

Would have been better if it had been Malone and John Stockton.

[DoleWhip]

They had several legs there in TAR4, IIRC. But that was many seasons ago.

Actually Indonesia hasn't been visited yet by the US version of TAR, according to Wikipedia. So I'm happy that there's a new country already. I'd like to see a repeat of TAR12, whose route was full of new countries.

[Vyk]

Not entirely new in that season. The Netherlands, Italy, and India were all repeats. Ireland, Burkina Faso, Lithuania, Croatia, and Taiwan were new, though.

[theschnauzers]

First, TAR 4 went to South Korea, not Taiwan.

Second, Zac Sunderland, 19, achieved fame three years ago, when at the age of 16, he sailed solo around the world, the youngest person ever to do so. His sister apparently failed in her attempt to become the youngest female to do so within this past year.

I'm only bothered by stunt casting who are specially recruited and placed in the cast (if they've applied, or expressed a strong interest in being on TAR as fans, that's fine with me.) Which is where Jenna comes in, there's an audio interview posted online where Jenna did just that. Secondly, Ethan's win on Survivor was fall 2001 (Survivor Africa) and his overcoming cancer and his tireless work over this decade for youth soccer around the world is a plus in my book. I like that casting.

Some of the folks at RFF think a couple of the other teams ought to be familiar, but no ID yet. So far, it's much like casting in many of the better seasons. The good news is that now that Rob has won his million on Survivor finally, we won't ever have to hear of him again.

[DoleWhip]

Not entirely new in that season. The Netherlands, Italy, and India were all repeats. Ireland, Burkina Faso, Lithuania, Croatia, and Taiwan were new, though.

I know S12 wasn't entirely new. Only S1 (for obvious reasons) and S3 had routes that consisted of previously unseen countries. Still, 6 out of 11 legs is very good for such a late season, especially since there are always fewer and fewer unseen countries. I think expecting an entire season of new countries is too much (and would be impossible since Taiwan is confirmed), but 4-5 new places would be nice, and the fact that the Indonesia leg is so early might be a positive sign.

[TheGrimRecapper]

Second, Zac Sunderland, 19, achieved fame three years ago, when at the age of 16, he sailed solo around the world, the youngest person ever to do so. His sister apparently failed in her attempt to become the youngest female to do so within this past year.

19, show? What, Caite and Kevin wasn't enough blatant application-age-limit-ignoring for you?

and the fact that the Indonesia leg is so early might be a positive sign.

Ghana was also Leg 2, and yet Bangladesh was the only other new country in TAR17.

That said, I agree with your basic point -- Phil's actually said there were some new areas coming up this year, which (while coming across as a bit of a defensive response to last season's route, where only Liechtenstein and Switzerland hadn't been visited three times or more beforehand) suggests multiple new countries. Or possibly just that they'll be hitting new areas of India and Argentina.

[Pooki]

19, show? What, Caite and Kevin wasn't enough blatant application-age-limit-ignoring for you?

That was what I was thinking too. It seems like they should just drop the application age limit to 18 or something instead of continuing to make exceptions for special cases when regular people of the same age are barred from applying.

[Mybrainhurts]

Second, Zac Sunderland, 19, achieved fame three years ago, when at the age of 16, he sailed solo around the world, the youngest person ever to do so. His sister apparently failed in her attempt to become the youngest female to do so within this past year.

19, show? What, Caite and Kevin wasn't enough blatant application-age-limit-ignoring for you?

You know what, I think this exception is OK. Zac Sunderland sailed around the world by himself--he's actually done something that can be related to what the Amazing Race does. Caite was just some YouTube sensation who screwed up at a pageant--a so-called redemption arc to prove that she wasn't as stupid as people thought (which she failed to prove, IMHO) made no sense.

[Zach808]

I don't mind if a contestant is younger than the age limit, just as long as they're not blatant idiots like Caite.

Also, Jenna's in this cast? No. Just no. I HATED her on Survivor. She wasn't even a fan favorite or anything like Jordan from season 16.

Edited by Zach808, Jun 24, 2011 @ 5:28 AM.

[Neeney]

Blatant idiot or not, if they're gonna continue to let people they consider "important" on the show who are underage they might as well lower the age limit. It's not fair to regular people who may not have had the notoriety.

I hope there are new countries/areas this season. I love seeing them!

Edited by Neeney, Jun 24, 2011 @ 9:18 PM.

[Isuzu]

Also, Jenna's in this cast? No. Just no. I HATED her on Survivor. She wasn't even a fan favorite or anything like Jordan from season 16.

As I said upthread, I used to think like you, but she truly does seem to have matured. She seems much more funny and relaxes now, and she forms a great couple with Ethan, so I'm willing to give her a second chance.

[Vyk]

Oh, wow. According to RFF, there was a double elimination Pit Stop on the first Indonesia leg (there were apparently two legs run there). The team count immediately went from eleven to nine after that leg was over.

[DoleWhip]

According to RFF, the race is headed to Malawi. Hoping to see even more Africa, so this is good news to me.