Last night’s installment of “The Amazing Race” found our Kentucky boys in a deep hole.  Although they avoided elimination last week, their last place finish several hours behind the rest of the pack meant that they began this week’s leg three hours behind the other teams.  Plus, they had to perform a “Speed Bump” Task which none of the others would have to do.

There was a “Fast-Forward” available this week.  Only one team is permitted to perform the Fast Forward, so it generally goes to one of the leaders.  Once they perform this single task, the team proceeds directly to the finish line.

Dave and Rachel (Team Army) was the first team to get underway, and since they had already done a Fast-Forward in a previous show, they were not permitted to take this advantage again.  Same was true for Art and JJ (Border Patrol).  However, Team Big Brother (Rachel and Brenden) chose to go for it.  Since they were the fourth team to arrive, Vanessa and Ralph thought (rightly so) that the Fast-Forward had been taken, so they chose to go on to the Detour. 

When Rachel and Brenden found out that the task was for both team members to get their heads shaved bald, Rachel opted out, and they went back to do the regular tasks. 

That left a little glimmer of hope for Team Kentucky, if they took the risk of going for the Fast-Forward.

Nearly the first half of Sunday’s show was over before our guys even left the site of the previous pit stop.  With no flights or long drives, it was going to be nearly impossible to catch up to the rest of the pack without a miracle.

At the detour, one member of each team had to weave rope out of coconut husks, then spin the rope onto a large spool.  Luckily for the girls, the men on each of the couples teams volunteered for the task, with Art rounding out the group.  This turned out to be a nasty job, resulting in bruised and bloodied hands all around.

Ralph and Vanessa finished first, but Vanessa tripped while running for a taxi and twisted her ankle.  While they tried to make a big deal out of the injury, Vanessa was up and running again in a few minutes.

Finally, as everyone else left the Detour, Bopper and Mark got to start out.  The Speed Bump was bodypainting a big-bellied male dancer like a tiger.  The guys seemed to enjoy it, and didn’t have any real problems.  Also, Mark seemed to be feeling a lot better after his near heat stroke during the previous show.

Going for the Fast-Forward in hopes that it hadn’t yet been taken, the best friends from Kentucky didn’t flinch upon finding out that they had to have their heads shaved. 

Unfortunately, the other teams were all well into their final task, Pachyderm or Pack a Box.  In Pachyderm the teams had to decorate an elephant, then shovel a bunch of elephant “poop” into a nearby truck.  In Pack a Box, they had to pack ten boxes with ginger root, seal and stencil an address on the boxes and deliver same.  Everyone but Art and JJ chose the elephant “dooty”, which, though strenuous, presented no particular challenge.  Art and JJ were in for a surprise with the ginger root, which proved to be very strenuous and time-consuming in the hot and humid Indian climate.  Art also cut a finger on one of the crates and was bleeding profusely.

Team Army finished first and arrived at the ferry to take them to the pit stop, bribing the captain to take off before anyone else made it to the boat.  They, consequently, finished first, with Team Big Brother and the “Dating Divorcees” not far behind.  Art and JJ limped in an exhausted fourth, leaving another last place finish for Mark and Bopper.

It’s a shame to see the Kentuckians go because they were definitely the nicest team left in the competition.  While the others continue to fight, whine and back-bite, these two buddies were always encouraging one another, and they kept their vow to remain friends to the end.

We’re proud of you, guys, and wish you the best.  It was lots of fun to cheer you on, and we’ll miss seeing you in the finals.  Good luck!!