Amazing Race 7 update: TAR jumps the shark

Here’s a quote posted on the front page of Jump the Shark:

"What makes this show so great is that (for the most part) it's the real people - not the people that are STILL trying to make it in Hollywood (i.e. Rob & Amber). This is a true Jump the Shark moment."

There’s no argument here: the “stunt casting” of Survivor alumni Rob and Amber has cast a pall over the show that won’t be lifted until they’re gone. The other Teams openly resent them (esp. Patrick) and Rob’s heavy Boston accent is like a cheese grater over the cochlea.

Well, let me do a brief recap from the top of my head. The teams started out from Long Beach, California and headed to Lima, Peru. Once there, they had to go to some square in the middle of the city. Even though they were on a later flight, Rob & Amber raced ahead because they found somebody who recognized them from Survivor and agreed to help them. The other teams – handicapped by their lack of television exposure – had to find their own way.

Now the teams need to take a bus to some place called Ancon. Team Friends Forever (Debbie & Bianca) find the bus station muy rapido because one of them speaks fluent Spanish. Off to some beach where teams must sift through mounds of sand to find plane tickets for three flights that leave the next day at staggered times. Several teams stupidly dig away at the 7:40am flight mound without taking 20 seconds to walk over and notice there are tickets in the 7:00am mound. No matter: these flights are delayed leaving the race to the three teams on the 6:00am flight.

All teams head high into the mountains to Cuzco, Peru where the altitude immediately slows everybody down. It’s a marked taxi to a snack bar (why?) and then to a zip line. Everybody is shown screaming in that classic “I can’t believe I’m doing this” style central to every TAR episode. Once off the zip line, there’s a Detour: Llamas or Baskets (although I think they called it “Herd” or “Haul.”)

Teams must either lead two llamas to a marked pen about a hundred yards away or carry two large baskets two-thirds of a mile to a market. All the young teams carry the baskets while dressed in traditional Peruvian garb. The others herd llamas which really do spit when they’re angry and we see Patrick from Team Mom/Son catch quarts of llama saliva as he shoves them into the pen.

After the Detour, teams take a truck to an open air market to find the next clue: go to the church in Cuzco for the Pit Stop. Teams Mom/Son, Friends Forever, and Survivor are far ahead so it’s a three-way race at this point and it mostly depends on who has the craziest taxi driver. Debbie & Bianca make it first and win $10,000 each (!). Wow – it looks like the TAR producers want teams to race for first instead of just avoiding last place. Speaking of which: Team Redneck, Ryan and Chuck, come in last and are eliminated. This marks the second season in a row where the team I picked at the start couldn’t even make it past the season premiere (right, Avi & Joe?).

Next week: Team Showtunes (Lynn and Alex) argue over the size of their snapper and everybody hates Rob.

Final standings – Leg #1:
1 - Team Friends Forever – Debbie & Bianca
2 – Team Mom/Son – Susan & Patrick
3 – Team Survivor – Rob & Amber
[Seven other teams]
11 – Team Redneck – Ryan & Chuck – ELIMINATED