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Max & Katie are now at the stadium with the new bride above lobbing baseballs at her groom on the ground. The fact that Max can’t catch the ball is good news for the Sock ‘er Moms, who are circumnavigating the stadium looking for the clue box. Once the moms find the clue, Beth is catching and Mona is flying.

At Hains Point, the brothers' fear of a mental challenge is realized with the sight of a colossal adult-size Chuck E. Cheese ball pit filled with inflatable globes. On the globes countries are highlighted, so one person fetches a ball for each of the ten countries they visited and the other person puts them in order. Anthony jumps in the pit to get it started.

As they start the globe task, Max finally catches the ball upon seeing Mona suiting up. The pressure of another team actually helped him make it happen. They are now heading to Hains Point and have a decent chance of passing up the brothers. The guys are making some progress thanks to staring at maps on planes over the last month but Bates is now anxiously staring at the street for other teams as Anthony struggles to find another country. He is swimming in the pit of globes for quite awhile without any luck.

Seventeen attempts later, Beth has caught the ball and the moms are now out of the ballpark but the fact that Max & Katie still haven’t arrived at the location should give encouragement to them and me, as the viewer.

The time gap is enough to let Bates & Anthony successfully recreate the country/globe timeline and get their next clue. Team Slapshot is now heading to the home of George Washington and the finish line. Mount Vernon ho.

As they are driving to what they hope is the finish line, both the other teams are in the tank and sorting the globes – Max and Beth start out in the tank and Katie switches after Max makes little progress. She is exponentially more successful and they are now heading to the finish line, too.

That leaves the Sock ‘er Moms all alone at the task. You know who’s not alone? Bates & Anthony.

Because with little drama, the hockey brothers (and the only team that I think deserves to win) are all smiles as they run up to Phil and past the eliminated teams. They are the official winners of the Amazing Race 22. Bates says that he wouldn’t have wanted to do the Race with anyone else and that they wouldn’t have been as successful with another teammate. I think this is so true. The familial bond of brothers and teammates resulted in them making it through 11 legs with only one real dustup, which happened near the end of the whole Race. That patience with one another is rare.

I applaud them for the way they raced and thank them for being a bright spot on an otherwise dull season with unmemorable or unlikeable teams.

Second goes to Max & Katie, who hit the mat with a sense of confidence in their new marriage. I don’t think that Max likes the taste of the humble pie he’s eating thanks to his bragging that wasn’t backed up with the big win at the end.

Mona & Beth are pleased with the fact that mommies did so well and completed every leg of the Race. They should also relish in the fact that they could say "I told you so" to all the teams that bypassed targeting Bates & Anthony for U-Turns. If someone had followed the Sock ‘er Moms suggestion, then the brothers could’ve easily been eliminated.

Congratulations again to Bates & Anthony. And I will see you all you in the fall for The Amazing Race 23.

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