‘The Amazing Race 35’ premiere recap: 13 teams race from Hollywood to Thailand in ‘The Amazing Race is Back!’ [LIVE BLOG]
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“The Amazing Race” is back! The Emmy Award-winning and recently nominated reality competition begins its milestone 35th season at the iconic Hollywood Sign, celebrating the famous landmark’s 100th anniversary. Also, for the first time, a former team surprises racers as judges at the first Roadblock, where one team member must traverse a perilous tightrope stretched from one rooftop to another at the historic Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, before heading to their first location, Thailand, on the 90-minute season premiere in its new time period, Wednesday, September 27 (9:30-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS. Phil Keoghan returns as host.
SEE ‘The Amazing Race 35′ cast: Meet the 13 new teams
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The network promises “the biggest season yet,” with 13 teams competing for the first time ever. We will also see the return of commercial travel, no non-elimination legs, the express pass and a twist on the infamous U-Turn! Here are the teams in contention: Jocelyn & Victor (married), Liam & Yemeri (brothers), Malaina & Andrea (best friends), Joe & Ian (engaged), Steve & Anna Leigh (father/daughter), Morgan & Lena (sisters), Ashlie & Todd (married), Robbin & Chelsea (childhood friends), Greg & John (brothers), Rob & Corey (father/son), Joel & Garrett (best friends), Elizabeth & Iliana (mother/daughter) and Alexandra & Sheridan (siblings).
SEE Everything to know about ‘The Amazing Race 35’
Follow are full live blog recap below.
9:30 p.m. — Previously, on “The Amazing Race”! In the season 34 finale, Derek Xiao and Claire Rehfuss crossed the finish line in first place to claim the $1 million prize. The pair formed a showmance on “Big Brother 23” and proved to be an unstoppable force when blindsides and backstabbing weren’t an option. Sisters Molly & Emily finished in second place with married duo Luis & Michelle ending in third. But enough about last season, let’s head to Hollywood and get this race started!
9:35 p.m. — The 13 teams meet at the Hollywood Sign to begin the race of a lifetime. Phil says they’ll be leaving the land of “fame and fortune” and only one team can win “The Amazing Race.” After some introductions, Phil explains there will be no non-elimination legs, an express at play and mandatory U-Turns. The teams have a plane to catch, so they race down the hill to a clue placed on one car per team. The race is on! They’re heading to the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. Who will arrive first?
9:50 p.m. — Joe & Ian arrive first closely followed by Greg & John. The first Roadblock is called “Who Wants to Be Above It All?” Teams must cross buildings on a tightrope and then unscramble letters into three words — the name of their next destination. When they do, they’ll receive their next clue from last season’s winners, Derek & Claire. Greg takes this challenge on for the brothers, followed by Joe for the engaged couple and Andrea for the best friends. Meanwhile, Elizabeth & Iliana appear to be trailing in last place, still lost on the freeway.
10:00 p.m. — More teams arrive at the Roadblock as the three frontrunners work on unscrambling the puzzle. Eventually Greg is the first to solve it, earning the next clue by telling Derek & Claire the scrambled phrase is “City of Angels.” The next clue tells them to race to LAX and fly to the other city of angels, Bangkok, Thailand! At this point no other teams have solved the puzzle and begin to work together. Eventually Rob solves the puzzle, but he’s deaf so he heads over to Derek & Claire with nobody but his interpreter. He and his son Corey will head to LAX in second place. Everyone’s inability to solve a basic puzzle has allowed Elizabeth & Iliana to catch up and now all but two teams are tied.
10:10 p.m. — Victor solves the puzzle “City of Angels” and shares it with a few other teams. He and his wife will head to LAX in third place, but will they stay there? It’s a little early to be helping other teams. After all the teams learn the answer, everyone’s heading to the airport with Joel & Garrett in last place. Flash forward to LAX and Greg & John and Rob & Corey have arrived with no difficulties. It turns out John has been taking sign language classes, so these two teams form a quick bond that could help them on future legs of the race. More teams arrive, but nobody is sure how many spaces are available on the first flight to Bangkok. Finally they reach the ticketing counter and the teams on Flight 1 are Greg & John, Rob & Corey, Jocelyn & Victor, Todd & Ashlie, Andrea & Malaina and Morgan & Lena. On the second flight will be Joel & Garrett, Elizabeth & Iliana, Steve & Anna Leigh, Robbin & Chelsea, Liam & Yeremi, Alexandra & Sheridan and Joe & Ian. The first flight leaves 1 hour 25 minutes before the second.
10:20 p.m. — After a 14 hour flight to Taipei, teams transfer to another flight to Bangkok. Teams will race to the gold statue of Buddha at Wat Paknam to pick up their next clue. Group 1 arrives before Group 2 as scheduled. Everyone grabs a cab to the clue box and Morgan & Lena arrive first. They must travel by boat and tuk tuk to Wat Suthat. When they arrive they’ll search the temple grounds to find their next clue. As the first team to arrive at the clue box, they have a chance to win the Express Pass. It will allow them to skip any task they don’t want to complete. To win this, they’ll have to eat a plate of insects. It’s a disgusting task, but it’s worth it and these sisters dive in. Andrea & Malaina arrive second to the clue box, and launch themselves into first place while pair ahead of them continues their attempt at the Express Pass. With one final chew of a tarantula, Morgan & Lena have won the Express Pass!
10:30 p.m. — Although they may have lost out on the Express Pass, Jocelyn & Victor are the first to the boat and now lead the race. The other teams from flight one are close behind. Finally, flight two has arrived and all teams are now in Bangkok. The first six teams are now making their way through town on tuk tuks, with Jocelyn & Victor reaching the clue box first. It’s a Detour. In “Sword Play,” teams need to learn 30 seconds of a routine OR in “Spa Day,” teams will experience a massage from a professional masseuse…but it sounds less painful than it is. They must get through an entire routine before they get a clue. Jocelyn & Victor and Rob & Corey are the first two teams and both choose Spa Day. It’s 30 minutes of muscle torture. All the other teams in the front pack choose Spa Day except for Andrea & Malaina, who choose Sword Play, will that pay off her set them back?
10:40 p.m. — The second flight of racers is en route to the Detour as this race heats up! Liam & Yeremi are currently in last place. Up front, Jocelyn & Victor and Rob & Corey complete their Spa Dayand retrieve the next clue. The will race to the next Pit Stop at Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat Worawihan. With no non-elimination legs, the race will come to an end here for one team. Over in Spa Day, Todd makes a huge mistake by uttering “stop,” which means he and Ashlie will have to start their 30-minute massage all over again. Yikes!
10:50 p.m. — All other teams have reached the Detour. It’s going to be a race to the finish. Everyone chooses Spa Day except for Joe & Ian and Alexandra & Sheridan, who choose Sword Play. Up at the front of the race, Jocelyn & Victor have won this first leg! They win a trip to Patagonia, Chile. Full results of this first leg are below. Back at Spa Day, Morgan & Lena and Greg & John complete the Detour, positioning themselves well for the remainder of the leg. Andrea & Malaina attempt their first Sword Play routine, realizing the actual swords are much more difficult to maneuver than the sticks they practiced with. They decide to switch Detours and go the Spa Day. How much will this wasted time impact their race? As Todd & Ashlie finally finish up their own spa experience, the teams from flight two start funneling in. By the time Andrea & Malaina arrive, they’re behind a handful of them.
11:00 p.m. — While everyone else suffers through massages, Alexandra & Sheridan and Joe & Ian begin practicing their sword routine. When Elizabeth & Iliana arrive at the spa, all masseuses are at work so they have to sit and wait for their turn. Fearing they’re in last place, they ponder switching Detours. They decide to stick it out and as other teams leave it’s finally their turn. Meanwhile, Joe & Ian become the first team able to complete the Sword Play Detour, but they’re in 11th place and have no time to waste. As of now, Alexandra & Sheridan are struggling to pass their Sword Play test (they fail eight times) while Elizabeth & Iliana sit through their painful massage. Finally both teams finish their Detours and it’s a race to the Pit Stop! Elizabeth & Iliana arrive broken-hearted, but are relieved when Phil tells them they’re the 12th team to arrive. Sadly, it’s Alexandra & Sheridan who finish last and the siblings have been eliminated from the race.
Leg 1 results:
1. Jocelyn & Victor
2. Rob & Corey
3. Greg & John
4. Morgan & Lena
5. Todd & Ashlie
6. Steve & Anna Leigh
7. Joel & Garrett
8. Liam & Yeremi
9. Joe & Ian
10. Andrea & Malaina
11. Robbin & Chelsea
12. Elizabeth & Iliana
13. Alexandra & Sheridan (eliminated)
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