START
10:13 a.m. Tammy & Victor
12:01 p.m. Mel & Mike (1:48 behind)
12:12 p.m. Amanda & Kris (1:59)
12:30 p.m. Margie & Luke (2:17)
12:53 p.m. Brad & Victoria (2:40)
1:17 p.m. Jaime & Cara (3:04)
1:51 p.m. Kisha & Jen (3:38)
2:00 p.m. Mark & Michael (3:47)
2:42 p.m. Christie & Jodi (4:29)
AUSTRIA / GERMANY
After an extended review of the first two episodes and a preview of the third episode's meltdown to come, leg three of "The Amazing Race 14" began with siblings/leaders Tammy & Victor directed to go by train to Munich, Germany then fly to Bucharest, Romania. The siblings booked plane tickets for a 4:45 p.m. then were successfully upgraded from standby to make a 3:25 flight out.
The remainder of the upper tier of racers traveled by train together with daters Amanda & Kris soliciting help from a local to book a 4:45 flight, one they would have to run to make. Spouses Brad & Victoria were told by their own local help though that the 4:45 was impossible to make. They booked a flight for a post-9 p.m. departure but resolved to look for better options once at the airport.
While the Amanda/Kris, Mel/Mike & Margie/Luke teams successfully made the 4:45 Taron flight departure, Brad & Victoria eventually upgraded by themselves to a KLM flight through Amsterdam in an attempt to stay ahead of the lower tier racers. Meanwhile, leaders Tammy & Victor were turned back to Munich airport after their plane developed technical issues. Unable to make the 4:45 departure, the siblings were knocked down to the 9:30 departure with the remaining racers.
The worst luck would befall the Brad & Victoria team as their 7:30 p.m. flight to Amsterdam arrived later than expected. Their resultant connection to Bucharest had left by the time of Brad & Victoria's arrival to Amsterdam. Worse, the Amsterdam airport had become fogged in, leaving the married couple no options till the next day. Effectively, the spouses were left all but eliminated already.
ROMANIA / ROADBLOCK
Daters Amanda & Kris would arrive first by taxi at the Sala Gymnastica gymnastics hall, triggering the first Roadblock. One racer would be required to performance a series of gymnastics steps based on the balance beam, parallel bars and floor exercises. Amanda excelled at the tasks, performing the tasks in speedy fashion to retain her team's lead. Margie of the mother/son team and Mike of the father/son team completed the Roadblock in turn.
The lower tier of racers arrived at Bucharest in turn with Tammy & Victor again the first to depart the airport. Victor soon spotted a sport stadium billboard and wrongly believed that he had already found their gymnastics hall destination. The erroneous sidetrack looking by foot in an alley for the site dropped the siblings to next to last place.
Sisters Kisha & Jen would instead be the next to arrive in fourth place with Kisha taking the Roadblock on next. The basketball oriented Kisha and most of the other remaining Roadblock racers had more difficulty with the task. Jodi would instead complete the gymnastics next to swing her flight attendant team with Christie into fourth place. Brother Mark and ex-cheerleader Cara completed the gymnastics in fifth and sixth respectively with Kisha wrapping up in seventh place.
The worst problems though were faced by lawyer/sibling Tammy whose lack of focus on the task combined with Victor's vague overbearing coaching to drop the duo well off the pace. The issues would for the time being prove academic though. Race leaders Amanda & Kris would discover that the next train would not depart Bucharest to Brasov, Romania until 6:30 a.m. the following day, leaving all racers except Brad & Victoria equalized out.
DETOUR
Tammy & Victor would again be the first team to make a departure, this time from the Brasov train station en route to the Biserica Niegra church. Amanda & Kris drew a taxi driver with knowledge of a shortcut to move the daters to the top of the field.
The daters triggered a Detour choice of Gypsy Moves (load Gypsy family belongings onto a horse-drawn cart, navigate cart to new destination and unload cart) or Vampire Remains (drag coffins to a clearing, unlock the coffins' chains & impale the frames found inside the coffin until uncovering a race flag.) While race leaders Amanda & Kris chose Gypsy Moves, flight attendants Christie & Jodi and siblings Tammy & Victor both looked to the vampires.
Back up to fourth place, Kisha & Jen chose the gypsy task. At Luke's urging, the newly aligned Margie & Luke and Jaime & Cara teams agreed to the vampire Detour. Jaime & Cara's taxi driver turned out not to know the location of the vampire task, getting both teams sidetracked in the process.
Mel & Mike and Amanda & Kris arrived first at their Detour site. The loading and unloading of the heavy Gypsy family belongings favored the younger Amanda & Kris as they completed the Detour back in the lead. The team was directed to taxi to the Villa Panoramic for their Pit Stop. Mel & Mike would follow soon afterward in the second spot with Kisha & Jen in third place.
After their taxi misadventures, the two aligned teams finally arrived at the coffin site. Margie & Luke took the task well but Jaime and Cara got their coffin stuck in the trees then appeared not to understand the procedure for unlocking the coffin chain. the mother & son clued the ex-cheerleaders on the task, then finished it themselves in fourth place.
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Brothers Mark & Michael unloaded the Gypsy belongings in 5th. Christie & Jodi completed the vampire Detour in 6th, with Jaime and Cara finally uncovering their flag in seventh place.
Tammy & Victor's detour task became an epic nightmare. Victor directed his team to follow a series of red and white markers to the coffins, in complete disregard to "Amazing Race" rules that designate official markers be colored red and yellow. Tammy knew this and attempted to convince her brother of the fact but her pleas were completely disregarded.
Even after the team found a red & white arrow pointing in two different directions, Victor still attempted to lead his team using the phony display. He finally broke down and agreed to backtrack back to try again. The siblings subsequently found the coffins only for one of the needed keys to become dislodged while the coffin was being dragged to the clearing. The sibs had to backtrack again to find their lost key.
Needless to say, Tammy & Victor had again dropped behind all teams other than Brad & Victoria. After the Amsterdam debacle, the married couple attempted an improbable comeback, training to Brasov after Victoria completed the gymnastics Roadblock.
PIT STOP
Daters Amanda & Kris' advantage departing their Detour site quickly evaporated when Kris learned that their belongings had been misplaced. The daters finally found their needed backpacks back at the Gypsy unloading location but the momentary lapse allowed father/son Mel & Mike to reach the Villa Panoramic Pit Stop in first place, winning a Costa Rica resort trip for their effort.
Amanda & Kris pitted second with sisters Kisha & Jen finishing third, the top finish to date for any of the all-female teams. Host Phil Keoghan signed another fourth place leg finish for Margie & Luke. Brothers Mark & Michael outran flight attendants Christie & Jodi to claim fifth place. Ex-cheerleaders Jaime & Cara scored seventh for the leg.
Despite all their travails, there was simply no realistic way for Tammy and Victor to drop to last place. The shaken and apologetic Victor arrived with Tammy in the eighth position, leaving the epically delayed Brad & Victoria to arrive in the night for their sadly inevitable elimination.
____________________________Labels: recaps, tar 14.3, the amazing race, the amazing race 14
