"Counting Bears Is Not Rocket Science: Leg 3" - November 30
PIT STOP: NESHEIMSTUNETT, NORWAY
Hopping from Iceland to Norway, the Racers zipped down a ski jump, rowed a boat, ROCKED boats within their own teams, roller-skiied and played games. In the end, Kris & Jon (Team Restauranteurs) ended up in first, Freddy & Kendra (Team Engaged Models) were puched from sixth to eighth thanks to a penalty, Len & Kristy (Team Mormon Models) ended up in last...and Meredith & Maria went back to Queens after being eliminated.
At 2:47am local time, 12 hours after they arrived at the traditional Norweigian farm, Team Restauranteurs rip open the clue that starts the third leg...and learn that they ain't leaving Scandinavia just yet:
| ROUTE INFO: |
| Take a bus to Stockholm, Sweden. Take a marked car and drive 10 miles to
Voss, take the train to the bus station in Oslo and then any bus to Stockholm (over 500 miles away). Once there, look for the "ICEBAR" (a bar made entirely of ice) within the "nordic Sea hotel" and get your next clue outside the bar. You have $363 for this leg of the Race. |
Six minutes after their departure, Jonathan & Victoria (Team Dom-Sub) leaves... and start bickering IMMEDIATELY as they drive off. Vic doesn't mind because, according to her, it's something she LOVES about her. (O.......kay.) Right behind THEM are Gus & Hera (Team Who's Da Boss) and, behind THEM, are Hayden & Aaron (Team 'Dating' Actors). Lori & Bolo (Team Rasslers) leave a minute behind the models, determined to keep going DESPITE only have 6 hours of sleep in four days. Adam & Rebecca (Team Shrek) leave and follow the wrestlers, Rebecca being the back-seat driver.
Then Team Engaged Models depart about an hour behind the leader. OK, I know you're thinking, "But didn't Don & Mary Jean (Team Married Grands) finish AHEAD of them thanks to the penalty?" Well, yes...but Freddy wasn't the ONLY one to goof in the last leg. Remember that the grandparents took Team Shrek's car in the last leg, putting the young ex-daters at a disadvantage. For this, they were ALSO penalized 30 minutes and, as such, leaves the PIT STOP in eighth. The last team to depart (75 minutes behind Kris & Jon) are Team Mormon Models, tired but determined to do this leg on their own.
VOSS, NORWAY
Some pulled over for directions, some tried to get tickets ahead of time, some just hauled to the station. But all nine teams learned that TRAIN DEPOTS can be "equalizers" as much as airports can. All arrived before 5am... and the station itself doesn't open until 6am. So...a few more hours of sleep will do them good. It better, because not ONLY are they all on the same train to...
OSLO, NORWAY
...but they are also
all on the same LONG bus ride to...
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
Completeing the trifecta of northernmost capital cities, the eighteen Americans Depart the bus and RUSH to grab their bags from the storage compartments underneath. They then jog around the streets of Stockholm, looking for someone who a) speaks English and b) knows where the ICEBAR is. Finding a) is easy...but b) is a little more difficult, especially for Gus & Hera.
Hayden & Aaron are the first to arrive at the hotel, with Kris & Jon literally on their heels, and find this outside the bar:
| ROUTE INFO: |
| Put on parkas and enter this bar. It's made entirely of ice and is kept at a frigid 23 degrees. Slide a shotglass made of ice across the bar. Hit the target are with any part of the glass and the bartender will give you the next clue. If you miss, you must go to the back of the line. Only one member of a team has to hit the target. |
The four Racers run in to don their faux-fur parkas and enter the bar while Freddy & Kendra arrive at the clue in third. Sliding ice across ice to stop at a specific spot is a little difficult. Team 'Dating' Actors get a FEW chances before being shoved to the back of the line by the other teams entering. Team Mormon Models, Team Dom-Sub and Team Married Grands arrive at the hotel and make the line even longer. They might as well have played Rolling Stones' "Shattered" because a lot of 'glasses' did just that. Team Rasslers and Team Shrek then arrive in seventh and eighth to try their luck. As for Team Who's Da Boss...well,...they're lost.
The first one to hit the mark is Jon, vaulting Team Restauranteurs back into first and rewarding them with:
| ROUTE INFO: |
| Make your way to the neighborhood known as
Kungens Kurva
(9 miles away) and the world's largest IKEA(TM) Store. Search the store to find your next clue. |
(And who says Survivor is the ONLY CBS show to use product placement?)
As they take a taxi out, Bolo gets the CORNER of the square shotglass on the spot and he & Lori jump into second. Don gets it almost COMPLETELY on the mark and puts he & Mary Jean into third.
Meanwhile, Gus & Hera are hopelessly lost in the streets and are starting to give up hope. Finally, they luck out and find someone who knows where the hotel and bar are. They're in the back of the line, but they're not out of it yet.
Next ones OUT of the bar are Lena & Kristy, thanks to Lena's delicate touch, but RIGHT behind them are Jonathan & Victoria. Hayden & Aaron leave in 6th, Adam & Rebecca in 7th...and Gus & Hera in 8th thanks to Gus' FIRST slide! But Freddy & Kendra are mere SECONDS behind them.
KUNGENS KURVA, SWEDEN
Ut-oh...another "equalizer". The store is closed until 10am, so everyone is tied for first yet again! Some decide to camp out at the store while a few go BACK to Stockholm and get a hotel room for the night.
As it must, time marches on. And, at 1000 hours, the doors open and 18 tourist bum rush the store...and they ain't looking for no furniture! The place, as you might guess, is HUGE! Two floors, thousands upon thousands of square feet of floor to search... and only one Route Box to find.
By a computer cabinet and a bin of pans, Team Shrek finds the clue first. And, just their luck, it's a:
| DETOUR: Count It or Build It |
(Two tasks IKEA(TM) employees might have to do)
COUNT IT: Count the number of frying pans, pot and stuffed dolls in the three assigned bins. Give your answer to the supervisor near the bins. If you're number is correct, you will receive your next clue. Otherwise, you'll have to recount. (The correct number is 2304)
BUILD IT: Take a boxed computer cabinet and build it using EVERY piece available. A floor manager will determine if you did it correctly and, if so, they will give you your next clue. Otherwise, you'll have to make sure every piece is in or, at worst, start all over. |
Team Shrek decide to COUNT IT, as well as Team Rasslers right behind them. They make their way to the counting/building floor just as Team Married Grands decide to COUNT IT and Team Dom-Sub decide to BUILD IT instead. One by one, the other teams find the clue. Team Who's Da Boss, Team Restauranteurs and Team 'Dating' Actors choose to BUILD IT, while Team Mormon Models and Team Engaged Models go to COUNT IT.
As soon as Hayden & Aaron SEE the bins, they do a 180 and decide to BUILD IT instead. The other COUNT IT teams divide the work up between them, one taking pans, another counting the dolls. The BUILD IT teams work rapidly to get out the instructions and start the construction. Talk about your "comedy of errors". Bolo counts by twos: "66...68...80...82", Victoria has a problem with pins in the diagram, Lena & Kristi are off by over 700 in their first count...and the other counters are racking their brains to come up with the right total...while the builders take it relatively easy.
As such, Kris & Jon finish their cabinet first and receive their next clue:
| ROUTE INFO: |
| Travel by train to Häggvik (18 miles away). Take a marked tandem bike 2 miles to a rural farmland where you'll find your next clue. |
As they leave, more incorrect guesses in counting lead to frustration. Hera allows Gus to take control in building and they depart in second place. Right behind them are Hayden & Aaron. They all head for the subway.
The first counters to escape are Lena & Kristy. This frustrates Team Rasslers and Team Shrek to no end. What's more, Jonathan & Victoria build their cabinet and leave in fifth, leaving nothing but frustrated counters behind.
Gus & Hera arrive at the train station first...but they have to exchange their money for Euros across the street since the station doesn't take U.S. currency. This allows Team 'Dating' Actors and Team Restauranteurs to meet in the station, buy their OWN tickets (with Euros) and talk about Team Dom-Sub's SERIOUS anger control problems. And said problems continue in their cab as they try to find out WHERE the station is located (Jon nearly STRIKES Vic in the arguing). The two teams board the first train...and leave Team Who's Da Boss stranded on the platform. They get on the next train, along with Team Mormon Models and the calmed-down Jonathan & Victoria.
Meanwhile, back at the inventory bins, Team Engaged Models finally get the right number of knick-knacks and bolt out the door in sixth. This, of course, frustrates the other teams even MORE. But Adam & Rebecca find out the number not-to-soon afterwards and leave in 7th. After a few more missed counts, a frustrated Lori & Bolo and an exhausted Don & Mary Jean decide to abandon this numerical nightmare and build the cabinets instead.
HÄGGVIK, SWEDEN
The first train lets out in the small town. Four Racers exit and look for the tandem bikes. Kris & Jon leave first, Hayden & Aaron in second (Hayden complaining about Aaron's backpack hitting her as they ride). Meanwhile, Team Shrek beat Freddy & Kendra to the third train out, leaving the models to twiddle their thumbs and wait for the fourth one arriving in 10 minutes.
The two teams exchange the lead a few time on the two-mile trek down the marked course. But, when Team 'Dating' Actors arrives first at the farm, they see many, many, MANY bales of hay... and a little something else, too:
| YIELD #1 |
| On only three legs of the Race, a YIELD is placed. All teams MUST stop at the YIELD to decide if they wish to use it... or to see if it has been used against them. A team may use the YIELD to make another team stop racing for a pre-determined amount of time (denoted by an hourglass they must flip over) before they can continue. Any team can be YIELDed any number of times, but any one team may only utilize a YIELD once during the course of the Race. |
They decide not to YIELD anyone at this point in the Race, so they jog off to the clue box where they find a:
| ROAD BLOCK: (Who's got "hay fever"?) |
| Your next clue is located inside the 270 bales of hay out in the field. The one chosen to do this task will unroll the hay bales until they find their next clue. There are only 20 rolls with clues inside them. |
As Aaron decides to do the task and reads what he must do, Team Restauranteurs arrive at the YIELD and decide against using it. Jon is chosen to take on the hay. Both men start unrolling the bales...and finding nothing but straw.
Meanwhile, Team Who's Da Boss, Team Mormon Models and Team Dom-Sub take off on their bicycles built for two to the farmland. After unrolling a number of more bales, Aaron unrolls one with an actual clue in it...and it's the one they've been waiting for:
| ROUTE INFO - PIT STOP: |
| Make yourself to the next PIT STOP: The Af Chapman boat in Stockholm. (The boat was once "floating barracks" for the Swedish Navy) Bike back to the train station and travel back to Stockholm. Then search along the river banks for the boat. WARNING: the last team to check-in may be ELIMINATED! |
|
As the cook and waitress make their way back to the station, Jon finds HIS clue and he & Kris pursue in second place.
Back at IKEA(tm), the two remaining teams battle for...eighth in a cabinet-building competition. This they find FAR less frustrating than counting pans. Back at the train station, Adam & Rebecca disembark and ride in the rain in third, Freddy & Kendra a good ten minutes behind.
More teams arrive
at the YIELD/ROAD BLOCK. One by one, they decide not to YIELD anyone and try to decide who does the ROAD BLOCK. Team Mormon Models choose Lena, Team Dom-Sub choose Victoria (or, rather, JONATHAN choses Victoria) and Team Who's Da Boss picks Gus. Vic has a hard time with the FIRST hay bale, huffing and puffing while the first two teams arrive at the station and await the train to the capital.
Back at the store, Team Rasslers prove that they're MUCH better with their hands than their heads and leave in 8th...much to Mary Jean's chagrin. Thankfully, though, Don finishes the cabinet shortly afterwards, making it a nine-team Race again.
Back at the haystacks, Lena is STILL having troubles...but Victoria, who FINALLY catches her OWN breath, finds a clue and moves her team into third. But they'll have to wait for the next train back to Stockholm...
...because Team Restauranteurs and Team 'Dating' Actors arrive in the capital and ask around for directions to...
PIT STOP: AF CHAPMAN SHIP, STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
It's a foot-race down the bank to the mat beside the ship where Phil and the ship's captain await. By mere seconds, a team wins and Phil announces, "Hayden & Aaron,...you're Team Number 1!" As a bonus, they get a Royal Caribbean Cruise to the Mexican Riviera. A happy Kris & Jon patiently wait for the winners to depart the mat so they can officially be named Team #2.
Back in
Häggvik, Gus finds HIS clue and makes SURE to tell Lena that she doesn't need to go through the hay itself as the clue will appear easily. As he & Hera leave, Team Shrek appears, shuns the YIELD and decides that Adam will roll in the hay...or just roll the hay. As Adam and Lena continue, Team Engaged Models arrive and, likewise, shun the YIELD. Freddy goes out to find the clue. After a time, "Shrek" finds his clue and leaves with "Fiona" in 5th place.
In Stockholm, Team Dom-Sub get lost along the river and argue about whether they're on the right bank. As such, Team Who's Da Boss passes them by taking the bus and arrives as Team #3. It turns out that Jonathan & Victoria weren't on the wrong BANK...just coming from the wrong DIRECTION. They DO manage to become Team #4, though.
Freddy finds his clue and reiterates how easy it is to find to Lena. But this doesn't help her confidence in the least. Her hands are cut and numb, she's exhausted...and she's caused her & Kristy to drop from third to seventh. Adam & Rebecca arrive at the PIT STOP as Team #5 as the last two teams arrive at the ROAD BLOCK. The YIELD is unused this time, and Bolo and Don are chosen to look for the clues. Don may NOT have been the best choice since he seems to have his allergies acting up. Bolo finds his clue first and runs out to ride back to the station.
Freddy & Kendra are Team #6... and Lori & Bolo arrive as #7. Don and Lena roll... and roll... and roll... and, finally, Don finds a clue! They're in eighth!
But give credit where it's due. Lena keeps on going and going, despite her dehydration, fatigue and frustration... not to mention the relative futility. As the Rasslers arrive at the PIT STOP and Team Married Grands arrive nearing sunset as Team #8, Lena continues to look for that elusive clue. As the night falls, however, it seems obvious to her that they are done for. But, still, Kristi pushes her on, saying that it might not be an elimination leg. Two hours pass since Don & Mary Jean check-in...and the sisters are still there in the dark.
For only the SECOND time in Race history, Phil leaves the PIT STOP to meet a team in the field. He commends the girls for unrolling over 100 rolls in eight hours and never giving up. Unfortunately, this IS an elimination leg and, since they failed to even MAKE it to the PIT STOP, they're history. And Mormons everywhere mourn the double-whammy of Ken Jennings and Lena & Kristy being defeated on the SAME NIGHT!
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