THE AMAZING RACE VII --TAR7-- Official Show Thread & photo preview

CBS ^ | Feb 24, 2005 | Veto! with a little help from CBS.com

[Veto!]

Begins March 1 on CBS, 9 p.m. Eastern/Pacific

Here we go again, race fans, for the Seventh Season of The Amazing Race (TAR7). We'll vicariously travel with eleven teams as they fly, drive, climb, crawl, leap, slide, and boogie around the world to compete for one million dollars. They'll never know where they're going next or what they'll have to do once there. The last team to arrive at the "designated pit stop" at the end of each week's episode will be eliminated from the race -- unless it is not. So pull up your favorite armchair and travel along with the Freeper Amazing Race contingent every Tuesday night for the next few months as we root for favorites, throw tomatoes at the others, and wish we were the ones living dangerously. BON VOYAGE!

A Thumbnail Photo Guide To This Season's Possibly Amazing Racers

Brian, 27 & Greg, 24 are brothers from Santa Monica, California. Brian is an actor/bartender and Greg is a bouncer. Their primary motivation for participating in the Race is to travel the world with each other and meet new people. Veto!s opinion: Team Bro wants face time on tv. They are big, strong, in shape, and they think they're action stars. But are they wily? Could be they'll be eating other teams' dust.

Debbie & Bianca are best friends from Los Angeles, California and Woodbridge, Virginia, respectively. Bianca is a high school teacher and Debbie works as a photographer. Both are highly educated, experienced travelers, and have lived abroad. Veto!s opinion: Keep an eye on these two. Unless they scratch each other’s eyes out, they’ll probably do just fine.

Lynn & Alex are (would you believe?) a gay couple from West Hollywood, California. They both work as executive assistants. With their four-year anniversary on the horizon, they possibly hope to get married in Amsterdam—if indeed they race through Amsterdam. Veto!s opinion: Need I say?

Megan & Heidi, a make-up artist and fashion designer, are roommates from Oak Park, California. Both are allegedly extremely competitive and not afraid to take risks. They decided to sign up for the Race “just for the challenge and competition.” Veto!s opinion:. Can the Hair Queens keep up the pace when their tresses get tangled? I see hissy fits on the horizon.

Meredith, 69, & Gretchen, 66, are a husband/wife team from Easton, Maryland. Meredith is a retired executive and Gretchen is a retired nurse/flight attendant. He holds seven National Masters Swimming Championship titles, she admits to being quite loud, particularly when upset. . Veto!s opinion: If Gretch doesn’t turn into Nurse Ratched, they may go far and win Freeper kudos for their efforts.

Ray, 44, & Deana, 27, are a dating-on-and-off team from Canfield, Ohio and Youngstown, Ohio respectively. Ray, a former semi-pro football player, is a stockbroker and Deana is a marketing and promotions executive. Both enjoy weight lifting and karate. Veto!s opinion:This season’s “will their relationship last?” team. Ray will overdo it trying to beat younger guys. Ho-hum.

Rob, 29, & Amber, 26, AKA Boston Rob and Ambuh, are an engaged couple from Canton, Massachusetts and Beaver, Pennsylvania, respectively. They formed an alliance and fell in love when they competed with each other on “Survivor: All Stars.” Amber won the one million dollar prize. Rob finished as the $100k runner-up, but proposed to Amber before they knew which had won the big bucks. Veto!s opinion: Two Thumbs Up! Highly athletic and competitive, these two know how to work together. But will their “take-over-the-‘hood” skills that won them Survivor translate to racing’s Hall of Fame? Why, indeed, not?

Ron, 28, & Kelly, 26, are a dating Team from Villa Rica, Georgia and Greenville, South Carolina, respectively. Ron is a former Iraq War POW who is currently a student at the University of Georgia and works as a motivational speaker. Kelly was crowned Miss South Carolina in 2002 and works as a Legislative Correspondent…(for whom?) Ron was an Apache helicopter pilot in Iraq. When shot down, he was captured, interrogated, held captive and later rescued by the United States Marines. Following his rescue, Ron returned home and was introduced to the reigning Miss South Carolina. The two have been an item ever since. Ron is very competitive and admits he’s a thrill seeker. . Veto!s opinion: Two more thumbs 'way up. They’ll be Freepers’ favorites, and they have what it takes to win.

Ryan, 31, & Chuck, 32, are lifelong friends from Landrum, South Carolina and Inman, South Carolina, respectively. Ryan is a general contractor, and Chuck works in boiler tube replacement sales. Both are motorcycle nuts and very religious. . Veto!s opinion: Definitely wily Southern boys. Up against tough competition, but I hope they make a good showing.

Uchenna, 40, & Joyce, 44, a childless married couple from Houston. Uchenna worked for Enron as an energy trader and Joyce worked in sales for WorldCom, have different jobs since their companies went bankrupt. If they win, they say they’ll use the money for in-vitro fertilization. Veto!s opinion:A tough, scrappy pair, but too much tension here, methinks, for them to get much traction. They’re hardly Kim and Chip, the wonderful black couple who won Amazing Race two seasons back.

Susan, 54, & Patrick, 26, are mother and gay son. She is the Director for Judicial Affairs for Miami University in Ohio and Patrick is a writer now living in Hollywood. Susan, married to Patrick’s father for 34 years, earned her college degree as a “non-traditional” student. Patrick says his family has always been very supportive of him,even —surprise, surprise-- when he told them he was gay. Veto!s opinion: They’re looking for love in all the wrong places; hopefully, their elimination from the show will be swift and merciful.

That’s it for the Preview.

[Chani]

ROFL! yup...it was rove.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

What's really fishy with that is Puerto Rico is a Customs entry point for the US. Post 9/11, would somebody showing up late at a gate with a ticket for another flight and no luggage really be allowed on the plane after the flight was closed and the jetway pulled back?

Also, I find it hard to believe that from any point of destination into the U.S. that this would be allowed.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Oops, I meant from any point of "departure".

[RobFromGa]

nice job on the TAR thread! THanks for all the effort. I am glad that Uchenna and Joyce won, and mainly glad that Ron and Kelly didn't. They looked so strong in the beginning, and they totally imploded.

I think Rob and Amber will be just fine in either case, and Uchenna and Joyce were a class act from start to finish. I am sure that I wouldn't be as nice as they were throughout the race. Maybe there really is "Karma".

[Elvina]

Now could one of the FReepers of the female persuasion explain Kelly to this dumb male? She spent almost the entire race, bad mouthing, dumping on, criticizing and in general making Ron's life a living hell and then goes into a boo-hooing crying jag when he refuses to commit to a lifetime of this abuse. Whats up with that?

I am female, and I agree that Kelly is ridiculous. The POW comment just enraged me. Many women can't seem to understand that when a man says "I am not ready to get married" it means "I don't want to marry YOU."

[Veto!]

Great to see you stalwarts picking through the entrails this morning. I've been tossing and turning all night about that airplane door. Seemed a huge stretch to me. The race definitely needed two teams to land in Miami on the same plane, or there would not have been a race to the finish. Viewers might have switched channels, horror of horrors, so I do see Juchenna getting some sort of boost. But I smelled a boost for Romber at the Lima airport on the first leg of the race, so perhaps there were equal opportunity boosts for all.

The customs issue: SeeBS probably notified them in advance to cut their pre-cleared racers mucho slack. The occasional scratchy agent might have balked, but in general the teams cleared all customs easily throughout the race.

As for Romber throwing the race, no way. Not intentionally anyway. They blundered bigtime at the bridge and also in Calle Ocho. The bridge did look like an extremely peculiar mistake for them, especially since they (probably) had a decent sleep at the hotel while others napped in cars. Did someone slip stupid pills into their morning coffee?

(I loved watching delicate little Amber leap into the water ans swim like a fish. Had she been there when the men were, she might have outraced both of them.)

Romber was truly lost and stupid in Little Havana as well. Rob at his best would have found a place with lots of people and asked until he had a decent answer. I've been to Calle Ocho, and there are plenty of little coffee shops and restaurants with people sitting around at all hours. But whatever was up with them, they absolutely were not trying to lose. Did you notice that vein about to pop in his head as they taxied to Fort Lauderdale? That was real stress.

Juchenna and Romber ran great races for sure. I would have preferred a Romber win. But hey.

As for Relly, they did bicker their way into third place. Had they been working as a team, Ron simply would not have missed that exit to the airport. Period.

And as for host/producer Phil, a big Booo Hisssss for being extremely cold and nasty to Romber at the finish line. They ran a great race and brought millions of new viewers to the show and certainly earned a pat on the back. (Earned. Not deserved.) But they were damned by faint praise by the fellow who made millions on their participation in his show.

[Veto!]

Amateur psych analysis of Kelly:

She's used to men falling all over themselves to woo and win her. She requires that kind of attention to feel real. Ron did not give it to her. She has no coping mechanisms for perceived rejection. Except perhaps to apply more lipstick.

Digging a little deeper, she's riddled to the core with fear of rejection, probably a trait common among beauty pageant girls who think they ARE their looks. I was friends with a Miss America for awhile. She was incredibly self-centered though she tried really hard to be "nice" and often did a good imitation. Not a bad person at all, just not best-friend material. Such women make excellent trophy wives for executives, are not good helpmates.

Ron anbd Kelly were mismatched from the start. I wish she'd handled his rejection with more grace, but as I said, she just didn't know how. He was pretty stupid about getting along with her too, you know. If he'd told her she was beautiful 25 times a day, they might have won.

[hattend]

Maybe Hattend was right, maybe she was having a visitor, but the visitor came and stayed. :)

Oh My! I thought that only happened when I was in the doghouse (forget birthday/anniversary/Christmas ... LOL)

[AxelPaulsenJr]

One of my biggest complaints about TAR has been the editing. Sometimes it is just totally impossible to follow what is going on to be able to determine just why this or that event happened in the manner that it happened.

A case in point is the bridge event, why did Romber mess up there, why or what caused them to miss the way to the bridge? The editors didn't show us, the next thing we see is Romber running down the hill and realizing something was wrong.

I would have liked to have been shown where they missed the marker that should have directed them to the bridge. Or am I wrong here, in this case was there not any marking, just written instructions as to how to get to the bridge that Romber miss-read?

[AxelPaulsenJr]

The bridge did look like an extremely peculiar mistake for them, especially since they (probably) had a decent sleep at the hotel while others napped in cars. Did someone slip stupid pills into their morning coffee?

Either that or making too much whoopie in the hotel room having that same said effect.

[RobFromGa]

Or am I wrong here, in this case was there not any marking

All I saw was a sign marked "Jump" with an arrow or "To Jump".

[hattend]

How about also when Romber is nearing the finish line in the cab and Rob says something like "There's Uchenna!" and then they come in what seems like 5 minutes behind 1st place? Lots of creative editing there, I think. I was expecting a close foot race, although I thing Uchenna and Joyce were the stronger runners (Amber almost always seemed out of gas)

Did anybody else hear Rob say, "There's Uchenna" or something like that or did I dream it?

[AxelPaulsenJr]

All I saw was a sign marked "Jump" with an arrow or "To Jump".

I missed the sign. Ironic that team Romber the only team that got a good night's sleep was the team making the most mental mistakes last night. Or perhaps as I speculated to Veto, perhaps Rob and Amber weren't doing much sleeping in that hotel room.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

I think you are correct, I thought I heard Rob say that as their cab pulled up. No doubt if team Juchenna did get to the mat first, that the producers held team Romber back so that Phil could have his mental orgamsim over team Juchenna winning.

Also, you know that the arrival of team Relly had to have been staged. They no doubt got there quite some time after the first teams.

[hattend]

Or perhaps as I speculated to Veto, perhaps Rob and Amber weren't doing much sleeping in that hotel room.

"We're gonna have another million, Bay-Bee!" [start porn guitar music (not that I know what that is...no, of course not. LOL!!!)]

[AxelPaulsenJr]

Just checked with my wife an avid TAR fan. She said that yes Rob did say, "There's Uchenna and Joyce".

[wildehunt]

I never saw a guy look so happy to get dumped, and on national TV too.

Princess Kelly was the definition of "anchor".

[LizJ]

Now could one of the FReepers of the female persuasion explain Kelly to this dumb male?
She spent almost the entire race, bad mouthing, dumping on, criticizing and in general making Ron's life a living hell and then goes into a boo-hooing crying jag when he refuses to commit to a lifetime of this abuse. Whats up with that?

Well, I guess I am the only person in the entire world who has some sympathy for Kelly. She is a young women who wanted to get married and was dating someone who didn't feel the same way. I don't think she handled it in the best way, but she is (was) only 25! I honestly don't know too many people who have handled similar situations better. Unfortunately for Kelly, she was being filmed at the time.

The show highlighted every silly comment that Kelly made, and probably ignored footage that showed Kelly in a better light. I remember how they made a big deal about Uchenna and Joyce at the orphanage, but it was Kelly who showed the most warmth to the kids. She ran right over to the kids and started hugging them and said how much she wanted to stay with them. They highlighted how Uchhenna gave them clothes, but didn't let on that Kelly did so also. I don't blame them for playing up the relationship story, but I don't think it paints the full picture.

They did show times when Kelly was supportive and helpful to Ron, but I think the other things are more colorful so that is what people remember.

I am not sure why Kelly loved Ron, because they didn't show much love between them, but I am sure he did things to make her think he loved her. She was probably right about Ron not being good at (relationship) committments. He is divorced and has a son (who was never mentioned for some reason.) And clearly, he is not interested in a committment now.

I just watched the Early show, and they did say they are just good friends now (what a relief.) Kelly admitted she said things she wished she hadn't said but it was a stressful race and she can't take it back. I thought she looked great and presents herself well.

I'm not exactly sure why I feel the need to defend Kelly. :-) It may be because I was in her situation (while I was even a little older and smarter hopefully) and it is not easy. It might also be because she admitted on TV that she voted for George W. Bush and I liked that. :-)

[hattend]

It might also be because she admitted on TV that she voted for George W. Bush and I liked that. :-)

Okay, I'll change my opinion of her a bit. :-)

[Veto!]

I thought I heard Rob say that as their cab pulled up. No doubt if team Juchenna did get to the mat first, that the producers held team Romber back so that Phil could have his mental orgamsim over team Juchenna winning.

Yes, I heard Rob say that too. You can only imagine Romber's anguish as they heard the cheers for Juchenna while they were being held back at the gate. IMO, Phil officially sux.

As for Romber's wild night, I sincerely doubt it. They were both absolutely bushed. If anything, they overslept in the morning and began the race groggy and half-awake. Another little factor was the heat and humidity. As I recall, Romber tired more easily in tropical locations and performed better in cooler climes. (Brilliantly in London!) Juchenna is from Houston, Romber from the NE, so one might argue that ending the race in the Carib and SoFlo instead of Alaska gave them an advantage. But TAR wouldn't do that intentionally, would they?