'The Amazing Race 34's' Luis Colon and Michelle Burgos Reveal Their Unseen Low Moments on the Race

The married couple get into how they got each other through the worst, and came out with more love than ever.

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Luis Colon and Michelle Burgos' story on The Amazing Race 34 was always about keeping it upbeat. Despite starting with a low finish, the Pitbull backup dancer and her firefighter husband found their rhythm, always making sure to enjoy the experience around them. They strung together three first-place finishes, a tie going into the final leg. But unfortunately, it was the beat that did them in. A music-themed memory challenge failed to play in their wheelhouse, causing their race to fade to black like the keys they crucially missed.

As superfans of the show, Luis and Michelle were ready to embrace The Amazing Race experience wholly. But things started out unexpected for them with the opening "Scramble," which had them struggling and finishing third to last. But the two remained positive through the adversity, feeling their relationship was strong enough to get them through anything. And indeed, they began to rise through the ranks in the next two legs. But their breakthrough truly came in Jordan. The desert temperatures got Team Miami to turn up the heat, as they netted back-to-back victories. The two had manifested a successful run, and it ended up coming to fruition.

Jordan was a turning point for Luis and Michelle. Now knowing they had the capacity to win a leg, they were able to relieve the pressure and make the most of their experience. Whether it be yelling to Spanish beachgoers during a Detour or celebrating a heights Roadblock that had others in tears, Luis and Michelle radiated positivity no matter what place they finished. And that was no different in the final leg. Despite never taking the lead, they were always neck-and-neck with the other two teams through most of their time in Nashville. Their race ended, unfortunately, when they literally had to face the music. Despite being in the same room as the other teams, an error not regarding half of the keyboard sunk things for them. But though they crossed the finish line in last, they were number one in each other's hearts, finishing with a renewed love and an eagerness to starting a family and beyond.

Now out of the race, Luis and Michelle talk with Parade.com about the depression they experienced when they realized they lost the race, how they hit their groove in Jordan, and how the race made them see each other in a whole new light.

Related: Everything to Know About The Amazing Race 34

How are you both doing? I know that you hosted a finale party in Miami for the whole cast. So I'm glad it was celebratory, even if it wasn't a victory celebration for you.
Luis Colon: We're doing good. Aat the beginning of the leg, we thought we're gonna win. But we played ourselves.

(Laughs.) Literally! Well let's get into that. You were in a relatively good second place when you went into the memory challenge. When you see that piano in front of you, what happens?
Luis: We thought going in the Roadblock was gonna be a possible memory task. That's why I had Michelle go. That's why we wanted Michelle to be the person doing the Roadblock going into this. It turned out it wasn't. It turned out to be a difficult task, because not only did you have to play the keys, Mike, you had to get it under 11 seconds, which was wild. And halfway into it, we didn't realize the black keys were also pictures.
Michelle Burgos: Exactly. So we were basing off the pictures. So some of the pictures looked like they were relatable to maybe something we saw, we thought it was something similar. And then we realize once we hit the black keys that those were the pictures we're missing. So at the end of the day, we could have gotten first the whole way through. And it was the piano that killed us.
Luis: The piano killed us. I definitely won't be going to a Black Keys concert anytime soon.

Too much of a bad association! When you realize your mistake and you see the other two teams leave, what went through your mind? Did you instantly think that your race was done? Or were you still hoping there was a chance you could catch up and win?
Luis: Automatic depression. When I saw Derek and Claire leave, they didn't show this, but there were 10 seconds of silence that we just stood there. And I was just thinking we lost, that's it. Because we know that that was gonna be the last task. We knew Derek and Claire were great at navigation. We knew that whoever gets this right first is going to win. And to be honest, Mike, we were not close to finishing that task after Derek and Claire finished.
Michelle: The moment Derek and Claire won, I looked at Luis. And I think my heart dropped more seen his face of his reaction than the fact that we had lost. And I kept telling him, "Let's keep going, let's go strong." But it wasn't our task. That's the most beautiful thing about The Amazing Race, because you never know who's gonna win until the last task comes. And I love that. I think it's a beautiful thing. But it was not a beautiful thing for our season. (Laughs.)
Luis: Yeah, we had a rough day. But overall, it took us a few minutes to get out of that funk that we were in. And just to cross that finish line knowing that we raced every single leg and we were there till the end, it was a great feeling. They showed me smiling most of the time. I do wish they kind of showed more of my emotions. Because I feel like viewers relate to that. Tthey just showed me energetic, "it's all good." But I feel like the viewers would connect with me more if they were to show me a little bit sad. Because I was sad after seeing Derek and Claire leave.
Michelle: And before going on the race, we had a picture on our wall of Phil at the finish line. So I think that's why we're smiling so big, because we thought of this moment. The moment where you go up and all the contestants are clapping. Even though we didn't get first, that moment was still there for us. 

You talked on the mat about applying for the show while watching season 33, and it's obvious that you two are big fans of the show. What made you decide to become a part of it?
Luis: Well, it was more with Michelle's career. We never applied before because of her career. She was always traveling, always working. We just didn't have the opportunity to apply. And we knew that this year was going to be Michelle's last year dancing for Pitbull. And that's when she looked at me and she told me, "Let's apply. This is gonna be my last year. And if I get on, I'll resign a little sooner than expected." And, dude, this year has been so crazy. In February we applied. We got a call four hours later. And ever since then, it's been wild. And this has been such a blessing.
Michelle: And hosting last night too, and having everybody there with us. It was a beautiful thing. It completed it. 

So, as big fans of the show, how surprised were you when you ended up finishing the first leg in 10th place?
Michelle: (Laughs.) Luis was very upset at that moment. Very upset. And it was disappointing. And this whole entire season has been that way. You're five minutes behind for whatever reason, and you will drop places like no other. It's insane.
Luis: When Phil said, "You're team number 10," I never expected to hear "10" come out as come out of his mouth when I'm stepping on the mat. That felt so crazy to me. And I wanted to come in here and dominate every leg. I told her, "Let's win first place every leg." I was so excited to be a strong team from the get-go. I was in a sad place. And Michelle brought me out of it. Like after that day I was sad. It wasn't what we wanted. And Michelle really got me out of it. She lifted me up. And she said, "This is just the beginning. We're still in it. Let's go ahead and push." In Petra, she also motivated me. We had a great pep talk before Petra. We were crying in the hotel room after Italy getting into getting into Jordan. I was just like, "I'm done with this. I don't want middle of the pack." And that's when you know, we just clicked. And we did good ever since then. 
Michelle: Yeah. I mean, it's hard to get out of that tenth place, back of the pack. And we kind of did it. We went from tenth to fifth, which was a huge challenge. But at the same time, it was hard to get towards the front because you start later. It's difficult. There's strong teams. So I was very proud of how we did.

Talk to me more about that attitude shift after you get back-to-back first-place finishes in Jordan. Was it as simple as flipping a switch to realizing you can actually do this and win?
Luis: Is it as simple as flipping a switch? Maybe not. But we did grow confidence from those two legs. It's crazy how even in life like once you get a groove going, once you grow momentum, you feel stronger. It just flowed well, and it felt good after.
Michelle: That's why it's hard to get towards the front. Because all those people have that confidence and momentum in the front. So it's hard to get to them. But like once we were there, that's it. We didn't get fifth after that.

Luis, you talked at the finish line about how you had gained even more admiration for Michelle racing with her, and you'd propose all over again if you could. Talk to me more about how much this experience changed the way you two see each other.
Luis: I grew in admiration for this woman. Just to tell people what we did, it's something so special. Not a lot of couples are good to be in competition with together. I didn't come into this to test my relationship with my wife. We've been tested already. There are so many things in our life. We have so many struggles. I didn't come here to test our relationship; I came here to grow. And to just go and have a moment, have a memory, have an experience with her. Just when I thought relationship couldn't get any better, it did. We've grown so much. And so I feel so happy. I'm filled with joy just talking about this race.
Michelle: That's how I felt too. I didn't think that we could get stronger. And just looking back at how he was with me on the race. Because on the race, I felt strong. I could feel that we bonded more and we grew together. And now rewatching it, it made me love him even more. And I don't know where that love is coming from. But it keeps building up and I love it.

Next, check out our interview with The Amazing Race 34 runners-up Emily Bushnell and Molly Sinert.