Amazing Race update – Team Africa wins the Race!

TAR recap: Peru, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Botswana, India, Turkey, England

The final three teams started out from London, England and made way for Kingston, Jamaica and Frenchman’s Cove for the next clue. Of course, the first direct flight doesn’t leave for hours and hours, so all the teams are bunched onto the same flight. This gives Team America a long stretch to bicker and Ron makes it clear that he’s not ready for marriage. Kelly weeps and smudges her makeup. Oh well.

At Frenchman’s Cove, teams hit the first Roadblock and this is a creative one. One team member has eight chances to limbo under a limbo bar; the lower the person can limbo, the earlier they can depart from the beach the next morning. All the women (Joyce, Amber & Kelly) do this one; Amber & Kelly get an 8:15 departure and Joyce goes to 8:30am.

After a night on the beach, the teams head off to Grant’s Level and the next clue. Detour: Raft It or Build It. Teams must either go down a river eight miles on a bamboo raft or build a bamboo raft and simply cross the river for the next clue. All teams decide to build a raft but only Team Africa decides to wear work gloves as they hammer together bamboo and tie wire around the bamboo. Yet again, here’s another great task for Team Survivor since Rob is a construction worker and built a raft on Survivor. Maybe there will be a coconut-eating contest later. Anyway, the next clue informs teams to head to the Pit Stop at Montego Bay.

All three teams finish the tasks and take taxis to the Pit Stop - and all three taxis need to stop for gas. Then, past the gas station, there’s a random police check and Rob & Amber are pulled over. (Karma! It’s karma!) Team Africa and Team America race ahead of them, laughing all the way. But then a couple miles down the road, Uchenna & Joyce’s taxi gets a flat tire and they need to stop. (Reverse karma!) Back on the road, all three teams are taking different paths to the Round Hill Hotel and it’s anybody’s guess who will arrive first.

It’s Team America as Team #1, followed seconds behind by Team Survivor. Team Africa arrives a moment later as the last team…but…it’s the final non-elimination leg of the Amazing Race so they’re still in the competition.

Halftime:

#1 – Team America – Ron & Kelly
#2 – Team Survivor – Rob & Amber
#3 – Team Africa – Uchenna & Joyce – NON-ELIMINATION LEG

Second half: teams start out from Jamaica in the final leg in the race for one million dollars. They start out for Lucea where teams must pick up a sack of onions and take it to a restaurant and chop ‘em up. Ron & Kelly refuse to share a taxi with Team Survivor then tell their driver not to call up a driver for them. Because they came in last, Team Africa has no money and it’s impossible for them to beg money or find free transportation in the middle of the night. At one point they’re talking to some ambulance drivers but they can’t help. Eventually they find a kind soul who takes them to the airport where they can beg for cash.

Rob & Amber arrive first and start chopping up 50 onions. Ron & Kelly arrive soon afterward and we hear that Kelly isn’t used to chopping things – shock. Meanwhile, poor Uchenna & Joyce can’t seem to find anybody in the airport willing to give them a couple bucks. (Side discussion: it seems that teams are allow to say they’re “in a race” but not that they’re in “The Amazing Race.” Hmmm…) Eventually, they scrape up $40 and find a driver to take them to chop onions. Meanwhile, Team Survivor finishes their task and head to Rose Hall and the next clue.

At Rose Hall, both Team Survivor and Team America arrive together. Detour: Pony Up or Tee it Up. Teams must either take horses into the water and allow them to swim around a buoy or hit golf balls until they land one ball onto a small green. Both teams decide to tee it up and they must take turns until they hit the green. Everybody sucks, but Rob hits the green and Team Survivor receives the next clue telling them to head to San Juan, Puerto Rico. However, they arrive too late to catch the early flight despite their pleas. Rob disgustingly says something like “my mother's sick” then “this could change my life.” Yes, winning another million dollars changes everything. Putz.

Team Survivor makes the first flight to San Juan and Team America is on a flight three hours later. Rob & Amber are shown arriving in Puerto Rico just as Uchenna & Joyce are arriving at Rose Hall to tee it up. Team Survivor finds the next clue and must drive themselves to a sugar refinery. The teams are really splitting up now with Team Survivor way ahead and Team Africa way behind.

No matter! The sugar refinery doesn’t open until 7:30 in the morning so all the teams are bunched up again and it’s a brand new race. In the morning the teams race into the refinery to a Roadblock: one team member must jump off a 35 ft. high bridge then swim to a buoy. Ron jumps for Team America, then Uchenna for Team Africa. Inexplicably, Team Survivor gets lost finding the bridge and for the jillioneth time this episode we hear Rob say “This could have cost us a million bucks.” He’ll fill that in as his catchphrase on the application for “The Amazing Race – All Stars.”

Teams must now travel to Miami, Florida and find the Rickenbacker Causeway for the next clue. On the drive to the San Juan airport, all the teams are together again. Ron & Kelly take a wrong turn and the sniping starts up. Meanwhile, Team Survivor and Team Africa both book an 11:15 flight to Miami but somehow Rob finds out there’s a flight boarding that very moment and he and Amber race down to the gate. Son of a....they get on the flight.

But wait! Back from commercial, they move the gangway back to the plane and let Uchenna & Joyce on! Rob says “this sucks” but not “that may have cost us a million dollars.” With Ron & Kelly on the later flight, it looks like it’s a race between these two teams. At the causeway in Miami, teams find the next clue and must head to Little Havana and find the “King of the Havanas.” Team Survivor gets bad directions and are sent to a corner 14 streets past the right location. Team Africa find the Cuban cigar store right away and are instructed to head to the finish line.

Best moment: Rob is looking for the King of the Havanas and sees a sign with a crown. Oh, no, it’s the Tire King.

Team Africa is racing to Fort Lauderdale and the finish line but they don’t have enough cash to pay the taxi driver. Uchenna starts begging people as they’re driving (leaning out the window) with little luck. When they arrive, they need to pay the driver as they are standing right outside the finish line. Team Survivor is catching up…but Team Africa is still a couple bucks short. Finally the cab driver gives them a break and they sprint into the park and to the finish line.

After an agonizing amount of time, Team Africa races to Phil and arrives as Team #1 to win the Amazing Race. They’re really ecstatic and Uchenna gushes in tribute to the other teams assembled; Joyce is weeping yet again. All the other teams are thrilled to death that it wasn’t Team Survivor and Rob & Amber receive a smattering of applause as they arrive as Team #2. Team America arrives as Team #3 and Kelly brings up marriage again in front of a speechless Ron.

Final standings (as predicted!)

#1 – Team Africa – Uchenna & Joyce – WINNERS of THE AMAZING RACE 7
#2 – Team Survivor – Rob & Amber
#3 – Team America – Ron & Kelly

Great race – see you next time.

Extra – Kris has her final TAR7 analysis. Hey Kris, it’s been great working together!