Recap - Episode 8 (2 Hour Episode) - 4/24/02 - Part 1
Episode Score (1-5 snaps): 5 "fabulous" snaps In this special 2-hour episode....Oswald & Danny go shopping in Hong Kong, have Mocha Frappachinos, and ride to the airport in style. Gary & Dave are ready to kill each other in a dragon boat and are jealous of Team Cha Cha Cha's calmness. Wil discovers that he is not a miner but an idiot. Blake & Wil both screw up the roadblock in Sydney and have to do it all over again. Teams climb up the Sydney Bridge where Wil hopes to not pee on himself. Tara discovers that the temperature in the Australian Outback is as hot as an oil digger's a** in Texas. Oswald, Tara, & Paige learn that throwing a boomerang in the Outback is much harder than it looks. And uh oh, we say GOODBYE to Itchy & Scratchy...oh, how we loathed and loved thee, you Ugly Americans! All this and more....in just another episode of Amazing Race 2. April 24, 2002 - Our boys did so fabulous in this episode that I am so proud of them! They were calm, thought things out, and were very resourceful. They proved to make some smart choices. This episode started out in Hong Kong. Oswald and Danny are in 4rd place and leave at 6:29am from the Chinese junk floating in Hong Kong Harbour. Their first challenge was to travel to the Statue of Tien-Hou, Goddess of the Sea. To get there, they have to board a public bus to the town of Repulse Bay (which, by the way, is the beach area of Hong Kong and very scenic), where they would have to find the statue. Their strategy like always was very smart.....to separate themselves from the other Teams and stay away from the DRAMA and NEGATIVITY. Instead of rushing straight to the route marker, they decided to head to a luxury hotel and get correct directions from there so they could ensure that they wouldn't get lost and lose time. You Go, Boys! ~Now this is where the other teams start hating on my boys.~ At 7:55 am, exactly five minutes before the Statue was set to open, Oswald and Danny arrive at the Statue and calmly joined the other Teams. Itchy (or was it Scratchy?) commented how he couldn't believe how calm and easy-going they were and at the same time, their perfect timing. His exact words were, "These guys are like some kind of mad geniuses." Whatever.... Now kiddies, gather around and listen to Miss Marcy...lesson #1 in a race, never worry what the other team is doing...it takes your mind off your own strategy and actually messes your game up because you lose focus. A perfect example of this is Will and Tara.....Tara is great and playing very well but Will is so focused on what the other teams are doing that he's screwing up his own game. I mean, who cares what Chris and Alex are doing? Geez....it's good to know your competitors but don't let it consume you. Oops, I digress....Now back to recap.... At 8:00 am, the operating hours began, and the five Teams scambled to the statue like roaches and grabbed their next clue, which sent the Teams to Murray House, some western architecture spot. Their next route marker would be there. Everyone rushed off for taxis, while Oswald & Danny casually opened a map to at least get a feel for where they are going so they won't get lost. *2 snaps* Again, Itchy & Scratchy make more comments about Ozzie & Danny while in their taxi. Why all the player-hatin'? Gary's exact comment was "It seems like Team Cha Cha Cha spent all night in a spa. And we're sitting here sweating like hogs." You have to admit, though. These guys are funny in a weird sort of way. Anyway... When the teams arrive at Murray House, they are greeted with a DETOUR: Lion or Dragon. The Dragon detour: Teams can either paddle a dragon boat along a flagged course in the water for a distance of 600 meters. The hard part is that the boat is supposed to be paddled by a crew of 12, NOT 2. So that makes the boat difficult to navigate. The Lion Detour: Teams have to carry a ceremonial lion-head through a a course of narrow streets and steep stairs. This task is easier to perform since it is a 2-person deal BUT the course is 4x times longer than the Dragon course so the team better walk fast! Oswald & Danny beat Blake & Paige to the detour (due to the Smileys getting lost in their taxi). Now, being the fun guys that they are, and after taking one look at Wil/Tara and Gary/Dave steering their dragon boats like crazy blind people and going nowhere no time soon, automatically decide to do the Lion detour. They showed such teamwork in this detour. They communicated well and actually made it very quickly. And most importantly, they had fun!
"It's really been our strategy that when we go to the Detours we try to go for the opposite of what the crowd is going to do." - Oswald (during this episode) Oswald & Danny completed the Lion Detour and headed off in second place on Chris and Alex's heels, leaving Wil & Tara and Gary & Dave eating their dust. YEAH! The next route marker informed them that they were to head to the steps of the famous Opera House in Sydney, Australia, over 4500 miles away. Instead of rushing to the airport amid chaos from the other teams racing to get on a flight, Oswald & Danny again make the smart choice of taking their time, thinking things through and making a calculate decision. While, looking for a taxi, they see a man watering his plants and ask him to use the phone. They then get booked standby on the next flight to Sydney. Oswald & Danny decide to go to the Mandarin Oriental, a 5-star luxury hotel. They casually pass Gary & Dave on the street. Nervously, Gary watches Oswald & Danny pass and tells Dave, "I feel like they might know something…more than us." You got that right! LOL.... They speak to the concierge and get recommendations on a good travel agency. After visiting the travel agency and placing their request for their airline tickets to Sydney, the travel agency informed them that they needed an hour to book their flights. So the friends decided to use the time to go shopping! Now I could not believe this....but it was a good way for them to unwind. They headed to a mall, where they stopped at Starbucks to buy mocha cappuccinos. Then they went in this cologne store and Danny saw a cologne he liked. As they walked out of the store, Oswald asked him if they should buy the cologne. Danny said yes and Oswald went back in and bought it. That was so nice! "We forgot that we were racing for a million dollars. And we just said, 'you know what? We've got limited funds, but we need a moment to breathe.'" - Oswald (this episode) Ok, now get this.....Os & Danny return to the travel agency and are told that a black Mercedes has been ordered to take them to the airport. WHAT?!? OH MY GOD! So they are styling and get to the airport and at 2:30pm, board their flight to Sydney via Singapore. The other 3 teams were wondering where Team Cha-Cha-Cha were. And the way CBS positioned the episode, it made you think it was going to be the Grannies all over again with Os & Danny getting to Sydney late and being eliminated. But, surprise, surprise....after a commercial break, we learn that Os & Danny arrive FIRST in Sydney. Can you believe the luck these guys are having???? All I have to say is that Qantas ROCKS! The other teams arrived a half hour later. "Yesterday was an adventure, a pampering day. Today is a 'let's-kick-ass day'." - Danny, as they headed to the Opera House in Sydney Oswald & Danny were the first to arrive at the Opera House and were greeted with a ROADBLOCK. Oswald decides to do it. This roadblock has the chosen Team member taking a walking tour of Sydney, following a series of clues they would pick up along a confusing course through the city. The trick of the task was that the clues were written in local Australian slang and they would have to figure out the meaning of each clue so they can figure out what the heck they're looking for. They would follow this trail of clues through the city until they reached the final clue, which would then direct them to return to their partner back at the Sydney Opera House. Sound confusing? Anyway... Oswald was great in this roadblock. His ability to be nice and not be afraid to approach people to ask questions is awesome. He has a way of being so nice that people respond to that. While on the bus towards the first clue, he asked a guy about the first clue, to which the guy gladly offered the info. As he navigated through the roadblock, he never lost his cool and found all the necessary spots along the course. The last spot on the course offered Oswald the final clue which directed him to return to Danny and go to the next Pit Stop, the Museum of Contemporary Art. He returned to Danny and the two of them rushed off to find the museum. They arrived and stepped on the mat to learn that they were TEAM #1! YEAH! What makes this so great is that they did this without a fast forward and they took their time in Hong Kong. This was a great moment. And to put the icing on the cake, Host Phil Keoghan informs them that as the first-place winners of this leg, they have won a seven-night vacation with Royal Caribbean Cruises! DOUBLE YEAH! "We were so happy to be number one because, you know, we had been dragging a little bit in Thailand. We made up some time. We were very happy that our strategy worked out." - Oswald (after winning the prize) This leg of the race was an non-elimination leg so imagine my disappointment when Blake & Paige arrive last and are not eliminated! Damn...so close.