Amazing Race 17 - episode 11...

It was tough to tell by the way the show was edited, but it appears that Nick & Vicki missed the flight to South Korea that all the other teams were on by just a few minutes. If that's correct, then they could have easily caught up with the others there if they had finished the Detour task in the previous episode instead of taking the 6-hour penalty.

Only a massive mistake from one of the other teams was going to save them. I was sure there was no hope for them at all. And then Brook and Claire took a taxi to the Detour task when the clue specifically said walk or take a subway only. Why do so many teams make this same mistake? It's got to be clear on the clues! Are they just reading them too quick and not paying attention?

I'm sure they're wiped out by this point, so maybe that's it. Concentrating on even simple things can be tough when super tired. I know that well as I was completely exhausted at work earlier today. The two days of moving snow along with very little sleep took it's toll and made my Sunday a giant blur. I messed up just about everything I did today - it was a complete disaster and I'm sure some of the stuff I worked on has to be totally redone. Ugh. I wish I could take a do-over on the day itself.

Anyways, luckily for Brook and Claire, the penalty for their mistake was only 30 minutes. That almost made taking a taxi worth it. When I heard how little of a penalty there was, I knew that was the end for Nick & Vicki. I'm sad to see them go - they were a good team, and the one I kind of thought would be reflective of how I would do on the race. If I was on the race, I know horrible mistakes would happen, moodiness would set in at times, and mass confusion would be life every day.

So it's the season finale next Sunday! They're really hyping up the chance of an all female team winning the race for the first time ever. With all that hype, I'm thinking it's probably going to happen.

Regardless of what happens, I'm going to be happy with whoever ends up winning. Claire has pushed herself 100% throughout the race and never gave up and Brook was a good racer, so they deserve the win. Nat & Kat were just about the perfect team, rarely making mistakes or getting flustered. That deserves the win. And then there's Jill & Thomas, who could probably use the money a little more than the other teams. And they did race well, despite occasional fighting.

Based on how things have gone this season, I think it's going to be Nat & Kat in first, followed by Jill & Thomas, then Brook & Claire. But it's so close now, just one tiny mistake will throw a team off. We'll see what happens next weekend...