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The Amazing Race

By Tiff Wells

The Amazing Race. A 33,000 mile trek around the world for a $1-millon grand prize starts in Los Angeles at The Hollywood Bowl. One of the eleven teams for Season 32 is comprised of a pair of Punahou School alums, brothers Riley (’07) and Maddison (’09) McKibbin. The professional volleyball players on the AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals), more commonly known as “The Beard Brothers,” are also easily spotted throughout this season by the yellow shirts they wear. We’ve gone to Trinidad & Tobago. Now we’re headed to Colombia. Ten teams remain. Season 32 of The Amazing Race airs each Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. on KGMB. We here at ESPN Honolulu will follow their journey throughout the race with a Wednesday recap that looks back at the previous episode and previews what to expect for the upcoming episode.

Episode 2 (“Red Lipstick is Not My Color”) into a preview of episode 3 – We left off with Riley and Maddison at the Buccoo Integrated Facility in Tobago, third place out of 11 teams. We know that each episode is titled after a quote from one of the racers. For this episode, the name could very well have been “Read All of The Instructions.” We’ll explain why later on. But here’s a quick video as to how Episode 2 got its name.

Ten teams left and it’s not all about brute strength and speed. Arguably the smartest team so far has been The Married Parents (Hung and Chee). First after episode one…could they do it again? Moving forward, this formidable team is the first in choosing to not yield another teams performance for a set time upon reaching the yield. In fact, none of the ten teams chose to yield anyone. Perhaps some early strategy from everyone here?

This Hawai`i team is competitive, but also charismatic and somewhat laid back. In Episode 1, they told their boat captain he looks like Jack Sparrow and later on they say we think our mom likes our bears. This episode, it comes from Riley telling the ticket agent at the airport in Tobago, “Two tickets for Bogotá please, on the double!”

It’s only episode two. Do you have an alliance with a team or two? Do you try to hold back a stronger team now or wait to do that later on in the race? So many questions must be asked and answered on the fly while competing. We hear from the Dating Couple (Will and James) about an alliance within the first group of five teams as they leave the Salt Mine. Teams helping outone another…for now at least.

I feel exhausted just watching them race to the top of the bell tower and get there first (of course a team of professional athletes are the first ones there, right?). Doing this at elevation (Bogotá is at 8600 feet above sea level) too, man these guys are in great shape. There are more jokes coming as Riley says “we have a golden raft” that we must “give to a white-bearded man.” So “basically we have to find our dad.” Poor dad! Maybe this archeological professor has some McKibbin blood in him because as he receives the gold piece of art, he jokes to the boys, “this is a fake.” The brothers cannot believe it! The show then cuts away to the brothers talking about this part of the race and Riley gestures the grabbing of his brothers’ beard in frustration. Going back to the episode, the professor hands over the next clue before any hair from the beard is torn off. It’s quite refreshing to see the brothers joke around with one another, all the while they are competing against the other nine teams for a million dollars.

Having the right taxi driver is key in staying in the race…or being eliminated.

Communication is also key. Riley and Maddison told their taxi driver to wait…but never told him where. Guys, right? After about “25 minutes of pure panic,” they find their taxi navigating the streets.

Was anyone else nervous for Riley as he walked backed and forth on the tightrope, showing off his balancing AND concentration skills? I sure was! He successfully walks the tightrope on the first trip. With clue in hand, they leave the Circus roadblock still in third.

Remember when we said this episode title could have been called “Read All of The Instructions?” Well, this is where it’s very, very important.

Riley and Maddison, just like every team in the truck yard, didn’t read the entire set of instructions. Will this error catch up to them? While sitting inside the volqueta (dump truck), Riley rereads the instructions. Maddison is in disbelief and in fact apologizes to Riley. Horn hooked and receiving approval, the brothers head to Parque Nacional, the second pit stop of the race. Proving to be a strong contender, Riley and Maddison, for a second straight week, reach the end point in third place. In the end, former Olympic Hurdlers Kellie and LaVonne are the second team eliminated.

Episode 3 is titled “We’re Makin’ Big Moves.” Episode titles are taken from quotes made by the racers. On this episode, Riley and Maddison will make their way from Bogotá, Colombia to Manaus, Brazil. Teams will make their way through the Amazon, a first in the history of The Amazing Race. Also, teams encounter a “U-Turn,” a route marker giving them the power to have another team backtrack and complete the detour option they did not previously compete. But we also hear of a “Double U-Turn” in the preview, where two teams can each choose a team to U-Turn. Find out who says the quote for this episode TONIGHT at 7:00 p.m. For more of a video preview, click here:

To follow along via social media, visit @AmazingRaceCBS and @TheMcKibbinBros on Twitter or you can head to Instagram to visit @theamazingrace or @themckibbinbros. You can also subscribe to their YouTube page by searching for The McKibbin Brothers.

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