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During the Trunk task, the cousins seem unhealthily fixated on beating Jet & Cord. I understand the desire for first but the “beat them THIS leg” mentality is foolish. The brothers and cousins are neck-and-neck as they start following their elephant for the first load.

Over at Sheets, I’m impressed with the gusto with which these teams thrust their hand into elephant dung. There is not hesitancy by anyone, even Rachel, who I would’ve pegged as the one most likely to complain about it. The mixing of paper pulp is under way and it appears that all the teams, regardless of the task, are staying tight.

Well, that is until, the pulp needs to be spread on the screen. It doesn’t matter if you are a big basketball player, a country singer or a professional reality show contestant; this is your stumbling point. None of them can seem to get it right.

This delay is enough to give the Trunk teams a lead. And there is a clear separation between these four teams as well because the chain-challenged David & Connor and John & Jessica encounter the same problem with the prepping the elephant’s log each time. That means that the cowboys and cousins are the first two out of the Detour and heading to the Ambepussa Rest House, where they have to let their ears guide them to the clue.

Now in the somewhat safer regular-sized cab, both teams are racing through the streets of Rambukkana.

Flight Time & Big Easy are the first to figure out they are overlooking the crucial “pressing the pulp” step of the process. Once they do, they begin to get a bit of a lead on the other two but only a bit, since Jennifer & Caroline and Brendon & Rachel see the error of their ways too.

While they press the dung, John & Jessica and David & Connor have left the Detour as third and fourth to go to the next location. Speaking of, the cowboys are now at the “wise man” playing the flute in a tree house where he gives them their clue. As they climb down, the cousins have caught up. It really will be a footrace to the mat for first.

Crazy cab adventures continue with the Leo & Jamal cheering on their speedy cabbie to beat the brothers to the Mount Lavinia Hotel Beach/Pitstop. At the drop off at the same time, the cousins make the better choice to jump down and cross the tracks at the railway station to get to the other side, while the brothers hoof it up over the bridge. This is just enough of a lead to make the sprint to Phil on the beach end with Leo & Jamal finally claiming a first place spot. Jet & Cord are only seconds behind for second.

Back at the Detour, the Globetrotters have finished with Sheets and head to the wise man well before the other two.

In quick succession, John & Jessica, David & Connor and Flight & Easy get their Pitstop directions and create a caravan to the beach hotel. During the back and forth of the ride, Team Murphy’s Law’s driver says that the guy driving the Globetrotters is his brother. Unfortunately for the basketball players, their driver asks his brother for directions. In a brilliant strategic move, daddy David asks his driver to give him the wrong directions, which he does. That’s enough to put the father/son team only running against one team. And run they do.

At the beach, John & Jessica easily outpace David for third but Team Murphy’s Law isn’t downtrodden about getting fourth. I will confess that with every step that David took, I feared he would blow out his knee or something.

Team Fetch and the singers are done with the dung at this point and heading to the wise man’s treehouse in sixth and seventh but the lost boys, otherwise known as Flight Time & Big Easy, are MIA at the mat.

This slip-up is just enough for Brendon & Rachel to squeak by and into fifth place. Thankfully, the Globetrotters rebound and avoid last place by hitting the mat in sixth ahead of the singers. I am relieved that the guys are still around because this leg was a great example of the competitiveness they can show. Unfortunately, it didn’t earn them a higher place. Big Easy explains that they need to only beat one team each leg and then two teams on the last leg. While true, I pray the Globetrotters stoke the fires they ignited this leg and with better results.

That puts the singers in last place and Phil delivers the bad news that…they are NOT eliminated. Well, it’s bad news for me and not the girls. The singers are excited but seem to finally realize that they may be outmatched on the Race since they ran a flawless leg and still came up short. A Speed Bump awaits them on the next leg.

Well, we have to wait two weeks for that next leg, since we will be Amazing Race-less next Sunday. Until then, have a good week.

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