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Jelani & Jenny enter the same travel agency, and they learn of the earlier flight. As Laura & Tyler’s hopes of victory dissipate, even crueler editing shows the tandem in a bar…celebrating Laura’s 30th birthday. It really IS all downhill from here, Laura! You were an unstoppable Amazing Race force when you were 29. As the couple enters the airport, Tyler re-reads the clue and notices that they could have found more advantageous flights. As the flight departs, they recognize that only two other teams are with them, meaning that they will finish third at best. Always read the clue carefully, people, even if it’s your birthday!

After 22 brutal hours of travel, the first two teams to put their boots on the ground in Peru race to the next destination. Jelani & Jenny are first to arrive, and they learn they can complete their next challenge at 7 a.m. The first two teams will have an advantage of approximately three hours over the rest, meaning that we can safely predict either Jelani & jenny or Hayley & Blair will win this leg. If it’s the former team, Blair will NEVER hear the end of it.

Amusingly, none of the cab drivers has any idea where the next destination is. They all agree it’s too dangerous to walk, however, which means they know how to bleed expensive fare out of tourists. Smart. While Hayley complains, Blair impresses us yet again by conversing in Spanish with his driver. Basically, he’s doing the best job imaginable in this situation, and Hayley still whines the whole time.

We’re ready to say that Hayley’s parents coddled her too much, while Blair will surely marry the next woman he dates, because she’ll seem like the greatest conversationalist in the world after he’s spent a month traveling with Hayley. Hilariously, Hayley’s panicked decision to drop everything and turn backward is the correct call, causing her to spend another several minutes berating him for the taxi driver’s mistake.

The next clue, we kid you not, directs the contestants to travel to Santo Domingo and then Fundo San Fernando, at which point they will have their first challenge. While the earlier teams to arrive have had a bit of downtime, the final three duos will basically travel over a full day consecutively by the time they reach the initial competition for this leg. That’s asking a lot of anybody, and we expect it to impact their performance.

This episode’s Road Block involves a machete. Say something bad about Blair now, Hayley! We dare you! Alternately, grab the machete for yourself, and we’re sure he’ll listen. Jokes about chainsaws and hockey masks aside, the challenge requires contestants to hack down a small area of sugar cane. Jenny, the first person to attempt it, notes that she’s too clumsy to wield a machete. This makes us nervous, and that goes double when a cute puppy starts following her around. Jenny & Jelani also win Date Night, which should have all the romance of stomach flu.

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