Fight to the Last Minute is the eleventh episode of The Amazing Race 1.
Story[]
At 6:03 am, Rob & Brennan receive their clue, instructing them to head to the Top Pavilion of Jingshan Park in Beijing, China.
- “So we're leaving Phai Plong Beach, and we've done a little research on the airport situation. We know the best place to go to is Phuket, which is nearby.”— Rob
Rob & Brennan take a boat back to the mainland, where they have someone call a taxi to get them to Phuket International Airport.
At 6:15, Frank & Margarita are second to depart, and they receive their first clue. The two head back to the mainland and are excited to head to Beijing.
- “I feel like our approach has been very different to a lot of the other teams. We've been taking it step by step, really calm, relaxed, and it's worked.”— Margarita '
Rob & Brennan's taxi arrives, nervous about losing their lead. Frank and Margarita follow and the 2 teams head to Phuket International Airport.
- “We know there's a big distance with number one and two at this moment. That can be changed any moment by the great equalizer, which is the airport.”— Bill
Rob & Brennan arrive at Phuket International Airport at 8:20 am finding that there's an 8:30 flight to Bangkok. Unfortunately, by the time they get to the ticket counter, they learn that the flight has already left. Frank & Margarita then arrive, informed that they missed an 8:30 flight to Bangkok that would have gotten them into China at 4:30, via connecting flights. The two teams proceed to find alternate routes to Bangkok, hoping to find better flights to Beijing when they land.
At Bangkok, Frank & Margarita head downtown to look for ticket offices, while Rob & Brennan use the ticket offices in the airport to find flights to Beijing.
- “Brennan: We get to Bangkok, and we scoured every office, every tenant, anybody who could help us and we end up getting an Air China flight sometime the middle of the night, the next morning.
Rob: We think Frank and Margarita might have figured something out. Maybe they're taking a risk somewhere.
Brennan: We haven't seen Frank and Margarita running around like we have been, so maybe they figured out something that we didn't.” - “We realized we had quite a layover and I wanted to do something about our backpacks. They were weighing us down too much. So we set out somewhere we could buy bags and we found a mall.”— Frank
After finding a mall, Frank & Margarita purchase smaller bags, and begin sorting out their items into "keep", which go into the new bags, and "get rid of", which will be left behind with their old bags. Frank finds it easier than Margarita to get rid of his items.
- “When you talk about a pivotal moment in a relationship, Thailand was it. Like, we felt really bonded and together. Like, leaving all that junk there was kind of like a new us. Leave all the baggage behind and move ahead, you know.”— Frank
- “Drew and Kevin will get on the flight tomorrow that we missed today, so we'll lose about 8 hours of our lead.”— Rob
At 11:35 pm, Kevin & Drew depart, and receive their next clue. They read they have to head to Jingshan Park in Beijing. The fraternity brothers take a boat back to the mainland.
- “This leg is going to be more brutal than the final leg, because there are four teams and three are going to make it to the final leg. Earlier in the race, if you came in fourth, hey, you're in pretty good shape. Now, fourth place is last place. If you come in fourth, you're done.”— Drew
Kevin & Drew arrive at a nearby hotel late at night for help contacting an airline. Inside, they notice what appears to be a party outside. Kevin calls an airline to find a flight to Beijing, finding a direct flight to Beijing from Phuket at 8:00 am, and that there is room on the flight. They take a taxi to Phuket International Airport.
At 1:25 am at Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok, Rob & Brennan and Frank & Margarita are on their flight bound to Beijing, arriving at 7 in the morning.
At 1:30 am, Joe & Bill are the final team to depart from Phai Plong Beach. They receive their clue instructing them to head to Beijing. They head via boat to the mainland.
- “Eventually, it's going to come down to the final 3 teams. We need to be one of those three teams.”— Joe
At 3:48 am, Joe & Bill arrive at Phuket International Airport. Kevin & Drew spot Team Guido arriving as they buy their tickets to Beijing. Team Guido head to a ticket counter to find tickets to Beijing.
Rob & Brennan and Frank & Margarita arrive in Beijing. Frank & Margarita quickly find a taxi outside the airport, while Rob & Brennan wait for one at a taxi stand further away.
- “We were just able to get out of the airport. We got the first taxi, while Rob and Brennan walked down to the other end of the taxi stand and it made us move a lot faster.”— Margarita
Rob & Brennan find a taxi and are en route to Jingshan Park.
Frank & Margarita arrive at Jingshan Park and begin the search for their next clue.
Rob & Brennan arrive at Jingshan Park and start looking for their next clue.
Frank & Margarita find the box containing the next clue, revealing it to be a Detour. Their choices are Volley or Rally. In Volley, teams must play a game of ping-pong against a local champion and win five points to win their next clue. The task sounds easy, but going up against a professional player could lose them time. In Rally, teams must ride three means of transportation to get to Quan Xin Yuan Restaurant: A bus, a bike, and a taxi bike. This task is easier physically, but weeding through the congested streets of Beijing could be frustrating. Frank & Margarita decide on Volley.
Rob & Brennan find the clue for the Detour and decide to perform Volley, claiming that they are good at ping-pong.
In their taxi, Margarita thinks that they made the better choice as at that time in the day, traffic could kill them. However, Frank realizes that they have to score at least five points for their next clue, worrying him as ping-pong is very popular in China.
Rob & Brennan head to the nearby community center for the Volley Detour. Rob notes the condition of his hand, which is injured from the previous leg.
- “We have to go play ping-pong with a local player. We know that the Chinese are pretty good ping-pong players. We have a table at our place and we're good, too. Unfortunately, the old busted finger from the last leg is going to interfere with that, so Brennan's going to do the legwork on the ping-pong paddle.”— Rob
Frank & Margarita arrive at the Volley Detour. They choose a young boy to play against. Frank is first to play against the champion. After some time, Frank is able to score five points, though the champion was able to score on him. The separate couple receives their next clue, informing them to pick up a shopping list outside of Hongqiao Market. They leave the community center.
Rob & Brennan arrive at the Volley Detour. Much like Frank & Margarita, they compete against a young boy. Brennan is first to attempt to play the champion.
Frank & Margarita arrive at Hongqiao Market, and pick up a shopping list, in Mandarin Chinese, to purchase 5 live beetle larvae, a whole squid, and two chicken feet. They will then need to bring their items to Stall 57 at Donghuamen Night Market. The catch is that the list is written entirely in Chinese.
Brennan is struggling against the champion, with the score at 13-1. Brennan tells Rob that they will switch if the champion hits 15 points. Back at Hongqiao Market, Frank & Margarita ask a local Chinese woman to help them locate the items. They first pick up the beetle larvae, shocking both teammates.
Back at the Volley Detour, the champion hits 15 points, and Brennan taps out, giving Rob a shot. Rob is able to get their second point.
Meanwhile, at Hongqiao Market, Frank & Margarita pick up their squid.
Rob gets his team their final three points, but the champion succeeds at getting a total of 24 at the end of the task. Receiving their next clue, the lawyers head for Hongqiao Market.
At Hongqiao Market, Frank & Margarita get their chicken feet, and after thanking the local that helped them, take a taxi to Donghuamen Night Market to drop off their items.
Rob & Brennan arrive at Hongqiao Market and have a local help them. They quickly purchase their items and leave the market for Donghuamen Night Market.
Frank & Margarita arrive at Stall 57, finding their next clue, revealing it to be a Roadblock asking, "Who's hungry?" Margarita insists on performing the Roadblock since Frank is being hesitant on the status of his stomach. For the Roadblock, the teammate assigned to it must deliver their items to a chef inside the market, where they will need to eat all three items to receive their next clue. Margarita regrets her insistence on doing the Roadblock, leading to her and Frank having a little spat. Margarita states that despite her regret, she will eat.
- “I do appreciate that she's trying to help me out. I'm just a little impatient and stubborn and stupid sometimes. I guess I need to apologize.”— Frank
Rob & Brennan arrive at Stall 57 and open their next clue.
Frank apologizes to Margarita. Despite her initial skepticism over the apology being a genuine one, Frank is able to persuade her that the apology is a real one, and the two share a kiss. Margarita then playfully calls him a jerk.
Rob & Brennan enter the market, where Margarita correctly guesses Brennan is performing the Roadblock.
Margarita receives her food and begins to chow down on the squid. Brennan receives his shortly after and begins with the chicken feet. Margarita consumes the beetle larvae with the help of a drink, and she finally eats her chicken feet.
- “The money was not the motivating factor for doing this at all, but yeah, when I was eating those chicken legs and stuff, I tried to use that as a motivation mostly for our daughter. I thought, like, college tuition. One more bite for her.”— Margarita
Brennan begins his beetle larvae, while Margarita finishes and receives her next clue, informing them to head to the South Gate of Temple of Heaven Park for the Pit Stop. As they get into a taxi, Margarita remarks that the food was not as bad as she thought.
Brennan finishes the Roadblock and the lawyer receives their next clue. They get a taxi and head to the park.
Frank & Margarita are the first team to arrive. The greeter offers the couple some tea.
Rob & Brennan finish second for the leg. They toast their teacups to making the Final 3.
- “Brennan: Frank and Margarita and the two of us are kind of front-running right now. And the third team is a wild card.
Rob: Joe and Bill are scrambling a little bit right now. I think Drew and Kevin are a little more confident than they are, but tomorrow, one of 'em's history.” - “Joe and Bill, Drew and Kevin, the total antithesis teams. I mean, of all teams in this race, of all 11, I'd say those are the 2 most opposite. What I do know is that both teams will be equally aggressive, equally determined, equally driven.”— Margarita
At 4:45 pm, Kevin & Drew and Joe & Bill arrive in Beijing. Kevin & Drew quickly find a cab, while Joe & Bill have to wait for one to arrive.
Kevin & Drew arrive at Jingshan Park and find their next clue.
Joe & Bill arrive at Jingshan Park and begin looking for the clue.
Kevin & Drew decide on Rally and head back to their taxi driver to find the bus. Their taxi driver does not know where the bus is located.
Joe & Bill get to the Top Pavilion of the park, finding their next clue. They decide to do Rally.
Kevin & Drew find the 101 bus, and head to the motorcycle at Hu Jia Lou.
Team Guido ride the 101 bus to Hu Jia Lou.
The fraternity brothers arrive at Hu Jia Lou and find the motorcycle driver. They show them to head to Liu Jia Yao.
Joe & Bill arrive at Hu Jia Lou and get to the motorcycle driver. They are en route to Liu Jia Yao.
Both teams arrive at Liu Jia Yao within a few minutes of each other. Both teams get their pedicab and travel to Quan Xin Yuan Restaurant. With how close the teams are, the pedicab drivers begin racing to try to stay ahead.
Joe & Bill are first to arrive at Quan Xin Yuan Restaurant, with Kevin & Drew arriving closely behind. They receive their next clue, but will not be able to enter Hongqiao Market until 6:30 am.
- “We're absolutely determined to knock out Drew and Kevin out of third place and move into third place ourselves.”— Bill
- “I have no animosity toward Team Guido, but if we have to take them out to win, we have to take them down to win. That's what we came here to do.”— Drew
- “Bill and I have been totally focused on moving into third, which basically guarantees you a real chance to win the thing and we have not been thinking about how we're going to win the whole race just yet. We've just been fixated on "let's knock out Drew and Kevin".”— Joe
- “Drew: We've spent the night in a pretty decent hotel, went out, had food. Not Chinese food because we're in China, so we-
Kevin: Just food.
Drew: Just food, and that's where we met our interpreter.”
Kevin & Drew use their interpreter to inform their cab driver where to take them. When they arrive at Hongqiao Market, they notice Team Guido. Team Guido asks a female local to help them with their shopping. Both teams get their shopping lists and head into the market. Both teams begin battling it out to retrieve their items.
They finish the task quickly and hop into taxis to head to Stall 57 at Donghuamen Night Market. They open their clues, revealing a Roadblock. Joe and Drew bring their items to the chef inside the market. Joe and Drew get their meals and begin to eat.
Drew finishes first, receiving their next clue. They rush out of the market to get a taxi to Temple of Heaven Park.
Joe finishes, and they run to get a taxi. Both teams head to the South Gate via taxi. As their taxis merge into traffic, Kevin & Drew get behind a bus, but Joe & Bill's driver reveals that he does not know where Temple of Heaven Park is located.
Kevin & Drew get out of their taxi, deciding to run to the park. They find that they are actually at the East Gate. Using a compass, Kevin directs them south. They run to the gate.
Joe & Bill arrive at the South Gate of Temple of Heaven Park, and finish in third place, beating Kevin & Drew.
Kevin & Drew arrive at the Pit Stop. Host Phil Keoghan arrives, revealing they are the last team to arrive, and are the final team eliminated from the race. Both are disappointed to be eliminated, but they agree that they had a great time racing.
- “This has been grueling. Physically, mentally, emotionally. We have nothing to be sorry or ashamed of, or nothing to regret, because we gave it our all.”— Drew
- “I was reading a thing in a book about the teaching of Buddha, and it said, "When you speak, just speak. When you feel, just feel. When you see, just see. When you hear, just hear." And the last one is, "When you know, just know." And we can walk away here knowing that we did our best and it didn't work out.”— Kevin
Route Markers[]
The order of departure from Phai Plong Beach are as follows:
- Rob & Brennan (6:03 am)
- Frank & Margarita (6:15 am)
- Kevin & Drew (11:35 pm)
- Joe & Bill (1:30 am)
Teams are to fly to Beijing, China. To get there, they must book their flights in Phuket first. Once in Beijing, teams must travel to the Top Pavilion of Jingshan Park and get their next clue there.
The Fast Forward is no longer usable because all four remaining teams already used their pass in previous legs. However, if there is still a team still eligible for the pass, the Fast Forward is found within the Forbidden City.
Choice A: Volley
Teams will play China's national sport: Ping-Pong. Teams had to score five points a local champion at a nearby community center and score five points to receive their next clue. The task sounds easy, but going up against a professional player could lose them time.
Frank & Margarita and Rob & Brennan chose this task.
Choice B: Rally
Teams had to take three common forms of local transportation to follow a series of clues. First, teams had to travel by bus 101 to Hu Jia Lou. Next, teams had to ride a motorcycle taxi to Liu Jia Yao. Finally, teams had to a ride a pedicab to Quan Xin Yuan restaurant. When they complete the trip, teams would get their next clue. This task is easier physically, but weeding through the congested streets of Beijing could be frustrating.
Teams made their way to Hongqiao Market and they had to use a shopping list written almost entirely in Mandarin Chinese to buy three Chinese delicacies; (five beetle larvae, one squid, and two chicken feet). Once all the items had been purchased, they were directed to stall #57 of the Donghuamen Night Market.
"Who's hungry?"
One team member had to give all the items previously bought to a chef at Donghuamen Night Market and eat all three delicacies. Once all the food was eaten, they would receive their next clue.
The Roadblock performers per team are underlined:
Teams must go to their next Pit Stop: the South Gate of the Temple of Heaven.
Leaderboard[]
First Place • Eliminated • Last placer on a Non-Elimination Leg or continue racing on a No-Rest Leg • Season winner • Season 2nd place • Season 3rd place • ► Used the Fast Forward
Frank & Margarita
Separated Couple |
Rob & Brennan
Best Friends/Lawyers |
Joe & Bill
Life Partners |
Kevin & Drew
Fraternity Brothers |
Trivia[]
- In this episode, Rob & Brennan and Frank & Margarita already left for this leg of the race, while Kevin & Drew and Joe & Bill were still out performing the tasks of the previous leg.
- The final three teams happen to be the top three teams in the very first leg of the race.
- This leg marks the first time the race visits the country of China.
- This leg was the only time in this season in which a team who came in last in a Non-Elimination Leg was not the team eliminated in the next leg.
- This leg was the first time that the subtitle of each team said "CURRENTLY IN XTH PLACE" where they are currently in.
References[]
The Amazing Race 1 Episodes |
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"The Race Begins" · "Divide and Conquer" · "Home for Some" · "Colossal Showdown" · "Desert Storm" · "Whatever It Takes to Win" · "Triumph and Loss" · "Competition to the Fullest" · "The Unexpected Twist" · "To the Physical and Mental Limit" · "Fight to the Last Minute" · "Race to the Finish (Part 1)" · "Race to the Finish (Part 2)" |