3/18 TAR 20 Show Discussion **West Coast Spoilers**

[PWS]

Re Brendon's slip and fall...might have been melted snow... but I think Rachel did say, Holy manure! So manure may have had something to do with it. Or she could have just had a quick witted substitute for another related term for manure that starts with S and won't pass a PG 13 show.

[AZChristian]

Re Brendon's slip and fall...might have been melted snow... but I think Rachel did say, Holy manure! So manure may have had something to do with it. Or she could have just had a quick witted substitute for another related term for manure that starts with S and won't pass a PG 13 show.

Reminds me of an old quote about Harry Truman. Reporters went to Mrs. Truman and asked her if she could get Harry to quit saying the word "manure." She responded that it had taken a long time to get him to say "manure" instead of the other word, and she wasn't going to ask him to stop. IMHO, if Rachel doesn't know what a beard is, I doubt if she knows what manure is. LOL.

[Bearcata]

Some how I don't think anyone would have left manure on the Amazing Race Welcome Mat. Brendon jumped onto the Amazing Race Welcome Mat with both feet and they immediately slipped and he landed on his buttocks.

[JohnnyK]

To me it was clear he just slipped. As to Rachel's choice of words, they were around cows after all...

I watched the episode today and it was a good one. Liked the yodelers and the castle was majestic.

Vanessa and Ralph are my least favorite team right now. Ralph being married and divorced three times? How old is he again, 35?

I would have rather had the boring feds leave over Kerri and Stacy who I kind of liked.

[sweetpea]

So, the big red flags went up when Ralph said he had been married three times and it hadn't worked out...yikes buddy. Vanessa acted like a spoiled brat on the walk up to the castle. He pushed her buttons repeatedly. They both suck. I hope they go next, and they can take the high strung army guy with them. He can leave his wife, she's cool.

Art and JJ didn't bug me much this episode. They are running a clean race and are well ahead of everyone. I wonder, though, if the wheels will come off when they hit a rough patch and things don't go their way for a change, or if they get lost, etc. As of right now they are the team to beat, though.

I'm surprised the Jersey Boys aren't bugging me at all, and I actually find them quite charming and funny at times. They aren't loud and obnoxious and they seem to be enjoying the race so far.

I when Brandon slipped on his butt.

Still loving the country boys. They are enjoying every minute. The two girl teams are/were non-entities, although I was glad the "teachers" () prevailed at the end because I loved how respectful they were to each other during that last task. Hope they go farther.

And those two castles across the valley from each other? *swoon* I must go there. I must!!
Although how so many teams couldn't figure out the one was sleeping beauty's castle is beyond me. You can totally see the inspiration for Walt Disney's castle there. So unbelievably beautiful. This is why I love this show!

[jadewarlock]

Some how I don't think anyone would have left manure on the Amazing Race Welcome Mat. Brendon jumped onto the Amazing Race Welcome Mat with both feet and they immediately slipped and he landed on his buttocks.

It's possible to track it onto the mat - cow pies especially fresh are quite soft and would allow for transfer. (Also - they preserve quite well - there are museums that have a bucket full of pies next to an iron stove in their displays to show how the farmers sometimes fueled their fires. )

That said, it is also possible for the slipping issue because I'm sure if there was some tracked in that it'd be washed off for safety reasons.

Be nice if Phil could clear up the issue in his blog (if he still does it that is) - just because as funny as it was, it'd be better to not over exaggerate it unless it really happened.

[jsciv]

And those two castles across the valley from each other? *swoon* I must go there. I must!!
Although how so many teams couldn't figure out the one was sleeping beauty's castle is beyond me. You can totally see the inspiration for Walt Disney's castle there. So unbelievably beautiful. This is why I love this show!

I've been there twice. The yellow one, Hohenschwangau, is where Ludwig grew up, and he thought that the other spot would make a glorious place for a castle. When he became king he commissioned his first castle, Linderhof, near Oberammergau (where the gingerbread task was) that is famous for its gardens. After that were commissioned Herrenchiemsee, a castle on an island in a lake to which he could retreat, and Neuschwanstein. He was a patron of the composer Richard Wagner, and was inspired by Wagner's operas: each room in Neuschwanstein was to be finished in the theme of one of Wagner's operas.

Unfortunately, in 1883 Ludwig died under mysterious circumstances ("drowning" in shallow water in a nearby lake) before it was finished (though he did live there for a few months). All of the finished rooms were themed, though, and the tours take you through them and give you the inspirations. He had also planned another castle, Falkenstein, which was to be THE fairy tale castle (on the ruins of another ancient castle of the same name).

Walt Disney and Herb Ryman did indeed borrow heavily from the design of Neuschwanstein in the design of Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland: the gatehouse (the red lower structure) and main structure were flattened together to make the castle (but they rotated the main structure 180 degrees, probably because it looked better that way), and if you compare pictures of them you can see the influence.

Hohenschwangau is a far better tour than Neuschwanstein. The former is a smaller group with a knowledgeable guide who will take the time to talk with you and answer questions, moving at whatever pace the group wants. The latter is (of necessity, to be fair) a large group tour where you can't dawdle or move at a slower pace to enjoy things, and the guide only takes a few questions because they're on a schedule with so many tourists moving through. Both have gift shops, but Neuschwanstein's is far more touristy (which only makes sense since it's the one everyone MUST go see). I love staying below in Schwangau: at night the tourists all get on their buses and head back to wherever (Munich probably) and it becomes an amazing sleepy town. But you can still get a good meal there or with a quick drive into Fussen (5km away, I almost walked it).

I can't wait to go back to that area again: both times I've gone have been off season and I haven't gotten to see the castle on a really clear day. That said, even a cloudy day is gorgeous in Bavaria so I'm not complaining!

Okay yeah, I kind of liked this episode.

[sweetpea]

Thank you, jsciv for that great description! It's amazing to see on tv, I can only imagine how it must be in person. It's definitely going on my list of places tosee.

[tbamom]

I think my favourites are Kentucky, Border Patrol, Jersey Shore then FBI.

I dislike Big Brother, Vanessa and Ralph (no respect for each other- hey I have been terrible to you for an hour now but let's kiss) and Army couple (he is a jerk and she responds in kind)

[CCL]

I still dislike Art and JJ and I think their three first place finishes should come with a big star as they only won the second as they took the fast forward. Of course they came in first when they didn't have to do all the tasks; not something to crow about (or not as much).

Say what you will about Brendon and Rachel, at least they always seem to pick the less-popular detour and will hopefully continue in that vein....I hate when all the teams go for the same detour and we don't get to see the other
one.

Ralph and Vanessa are my least favorites. She's toxic and nasty and he pushes her buttons for fun. I'm not surprised he has been divorced three times; I'm more surprised he got three different women to marry him.

I wish the federal agents/teachers were doing better.