After a rocky start at the Detour that exposed fractures in their relationship, friends Peter & Sarah recovered nicely to claim a victory over models Tyler & James. Tears were shed elsewhere as both Kandice and Kimberly fell from horses in dramatic fashions, but in the end the directionless cheerleaders Kellie & Jamie made many wrong turns and became the third team eliminated from the Race.
Departing the Pit Stop in first place at 9:04 pm, models and friends Tyler & James discovered they had to travel 963 miles by bus and train deep into the barren landscape of Outer Mongolia to the capital city of Ulan Bator. Once there, they had to make their way to the Choijin Lama Temple where they would observe a ceremony to receive their next clue.
Arriving at the bus station, the models happily signed up for a 12 am bus to the train station, giving them a two-hour lead over the second bus along with father and daughter Duke & Lauren, friends Peter & Sarah, dating couple Rob & Kimberly and beauty queens Dustin & Kandice. While the Teams on the second bus were understandably concerned at beginning the leg with a considerable time deficit, they remained positive simply because of the company they kept. Boyfriends Tom & Terry remarked, "Coming into the Race, I never imagined there would be such bonding in such a short period of time. There is power in this back pack. We've got great competitors here and we're having fun." Coal miner's wife Mary added, "I'm making friends with people I would have never thought in this world I would have met. I've never known an Asian person in my life and the Cho brothers, I love them to death. Honest to goodness, we've never been around gay people, but buddy, I like them."
At the Erlain Train Station in Erenhot, China, the lead five Teams booked tickets on a 4 pm train to Ulan Bator, Mongolia. Before the second bus comprised of the "backpack" arrived and excitedly secured seats on the same train, friends Peter & Sarah took in some sunshine on the station steps where a group of locals gathered in amazement staring at her mechanical leg. Never one to pass up an opportunity, Peter unsuccessfully tried charging the locals a fee to watch her run and perform with the leg, commenting, "It's good having a physical disability because we're going to use that to our advantage."
Arriving in Ulan Bator, Mongolia, all 10 Teams made a mad dash to taxis trying to reach the Choijin Lama Temple as quickly as possible. While they got an early jump on the other Teams, the taxis of friends Peter & Sarah and father and daughter Duke & Lauren took a "shortcut" that proved otherwise. Cheerleaders Kellie & Jamie and boyfriends Tom & Terry celebrated their first place arrival at the temple where the two Teams saw a sign that stated performances would commence every 10 minutes. With the arrival of dating couple Rob & Kimberly, the temple doors opened to reveal a traditional Mongolian dance with rich, vibrant colors and ornate masks. Dancing to the beat, the cheerleaders enjoyed every minute, remarking, "[We've] never really been out of the country, so this is really an interesting experience for us seeing cultures of other people that you don't get to see every day." After the short dance, the three Teams opened their next clue instructing them to drive 43 miles in an old Russian military jeep to the village of Terelj and make their way to the riverbank. Once there, they had to ride two and a half miles on horseback, led by a Mongolian nomad, to a meadow where their next clue would be waiting.
The scant 10 minute lead the Teams at the first performance had was quickly squandered away as all three became lost trying to leave the city limits of Ulan Bator for the desolate, expansive countryside. This allowed friends Peter & Sarah and beauty queens Dustin & Kandice to take the lead after wisely asking for directions before they left the temple after the second performance. Coal miner and wife David & Mary went one step further and enticed a local man to drive with them. Initially, this tactic paid off handsomely as the pair vaulted into third place, but after the local directed them squarely into a mud bog, they needed a replacement vehicle and fell to ninth. Absorbing Mary's relentless criticism of David's attempt to remove their vehicle from the mud, he remarked, "No matter what, she's always right. I just sit back and I take it. It doesn't bother me."
While Erwin & Godwin's great directions moved them from last to third on the drive to Terelj, problems continued for other Teams. Cheerleaders Kellie & Jamie continually stopped for directions, but seemed unable to comprehend how to leave the crowded city streets. Having survived a bad taxi ride that put them in the last performance at the temple, models Tyler & James faced a greater struggle when they blew out a tire on the quiet country highway to Terelj. Unable to use their jack, they saw a glimmer of hope when dating couple Rob & Kimberly stopped to help, but that hope quickly disappeared when James discovered that the couple's jack was firmly lodged in their backseat. With single moms Lyn & Karlyn pulling up right behind, Tyler begged them to stop, but the moms kept driving, with Karlyn shouting, "Screw that! I don't feel sorry about their tire being flat. It's not like we're being mean. We just want to win." Finally, the models implored a well dressed local man to stop and help them change the tire and they continued on their way. Meanwhile, the cheerleaders still lagged behind them having car troubles of their own when their jeep stalled while slowly climbing a hill. Driver Kellie panicked, but Jamie did her best to keep her friend calm, cheering and clapping once Kellie got the jeep moving again
After switching out her running leg to her walking foot, Sarah had no problems riding her horse to the meadow. The same couldn't be said for Kandice, who took a nasty spill before reaching the clue box. However, the plucky beauty queen quickly stood up, dusted herself off and assured her worried teammate that she was okay. Opening their clue first, friends Peter & Sarah found a Detour where they had to choose between Take It Down and Fill It Up. In Take It Down, Teams had to take down the canvas walls and roof of traditional nomadic shelters known as a gir, fold them properly and pack the materials onto a camel. In Fill It Up, Teams would have to take a cart pulled by an indigenous animal known as a hynik to a river, fill metal jugs with water, return to the nomad camp and fill a barrel with the water they collected. Once they filled the barrel to the designated line, a nomad would hand them their next clue.
Choosing to tear down the gir, friends Peter & Sarah found the task increasingly difficult as they attempted to tie up the canvas walls in the proper fashion. Their relationship began to show signs of strain as Peter chided Sarah saying, "Just focus on your task. You don't need to talk." Sarah apologized, replying, "I'm just talking to myself. If that bothers you, I can zip it." Eventually, with more Teams arriving and choosing to fill up the jugs with water, Peter & Sarah reluctantly opted to switch tasks. This proved no better for the pair when they soon realized their obstinate hynik did not like to be led anywhere. With a teary Sarah trailing behind the cart picking up stray jugs, Peter unsuccessfully tried to control the beast and Sarah as well. Not wanting to continue until Sarah calmed down, Peter scolded, "Sarah, this is fun. I need you to be cool with me." A frustrated Sarah retorted, "Stop lecturing me! Let's just keep moving." After their hynik ran away one more time, the pair returned to pack the camel vowing not to give up.
LOSING GROUND Meanwhile, beauty queens Dustin & Kandice loved their beast as the pair quickly filled their barrel to finish the Detour in first place. However, after reading the clue instructing them to drive 47 miles to the Hotel Mongolia, problems began as Kandice realized she lost her required helmet to ride her horse back to the jeep. This mistake cost them dearly as the crying beauty queen watched Team after Team complete the Detour and mount their horses. Finally, after falling all the way to eighth place, a nomad found the helmet for a very grateful Kandice who gave the bashful hero a big hug.Although not losing any ground in placement, dating couple Rob & Kimberly had a very difficult afternoon in the Mongolian countryside. The trouble began as a terrified Kimberly fell off of her horse while Rob looked on, not entirely sure of what to do. At the Detour, the pair constantly bickered, which lead to a big fight where Kimberly shouted, "Stop yelling at me! Let me get through this!" Later, Kimberly commented, "Rob needs to know he can't talk to me that way regardless of what situation we're in."
After having problems tying the canvas walls, single moms Lyn & Karlyn decided to switch tasks, which pushed them down into last place with cheerleaders Kellie & Jamie. Racing back to their jeeps together, both Teams discovered that their batteries were dead. In a race to leave the parking lot, the cheerleaders got help from a local to fix their jeep and finally climbed out of last place. Lyn & Karlyn got help soon after and the two Teams met on the road traveling in opposite directions after the cheerleaders turned around on the advice of a local.
Pulling into the Hotel Mongolia in a tie for first, friends Peter & Sarah and models Tyler & James opened their clue to find a Roadblock. In this Roadblock, one Team member had to use a traditional Mongolian bow to shoot a flaming arrow to ignite a target 160 feet away. After hitting the target, the Team could run to the Pit Stop at a pavilion on a hill.The battle between Peter and Tyler on the archery field was short-lived as Peter hit the target on his second try even before the slower Tyler could get a shot off. After stepping on the mat in first place, friends Peter & Sarah learned from Phil that they had won a trip for two from Travelocity staying at Playa del Carma in the heart of Mexico's lush paradise. On her rocky day with Peter, Sarah later commented, "There are things that I'm learning about Peter and I'm not always impressed with that. I make no judgments right now, but I'm making note of it."
With beauty queens Dustin & Kandice gaining back some lost time by finishing in fifth place ahead of the still bickering couple Rob & Kim, brothers Erwin & Godwin, falling four spots due to a stalled jeep, claimed eighth place leaving only two Teams still needing to arrive at Hotel Mongolia. Cheerleaders Kellie & Jamie realized their mistake in having gone the wrong way after the Detour, shouting, "Today's our stupid day!" Arriving in ninth place, Lyn took to the archery field, but had difficulties in shooting her arrow. Not appreciating the advice from her partner, Lyn eventually hit the target and the relieved single moms arrived at the mat, simply saying, "Still in it."In last place, Kellie tried in vain to hit the target, shooting arrow after arrow. With the sun setting, the emotional cheerleaders decided to quit the Roadblock and walk to Phil where he informed the pair they had been eliminated from the Race. Jamie reflected, "On this Race, I had to learn to rely on Kellie and Kellie had to learn to rely on me and I think that's why we bonded so much. I know she's going to be my friend for life." Kellie added, "This whole experience has brought us so much closer and I love her so much. I'm glad we got to do this together."
