I need more details!
The ClubHouse: Archives: I need more details!
Tillie | Saturday, November 17, 2001 - 08:31 pm   I really like this show, however, as a viewer I do not get to see the whole and 'real' experience the players actually go through. I want to see how they deal with their laundry. I want to see what food(s) they eat on their travels. I want to see what toilet facilities they use, and I don't mean, the bathroom. When do they shower/bathe? How do they shop the market for their bottled water? Are they buying souvenirs?' How much does their stuff' cost in US dollars? Where and how much money are they getting? I know it is only a one hour program. I wouldn't mind if it was a 2 hour program so I could watch them experience the sights or more of the daily life rituals they 'live' through during their amazing race. They must call home and get to talk to loved ones. How do they accomplish this? The show moves too fast for me. I'm a detail girl. Give me details! Please! |
Fruitbat | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 05:11 am   Tillie, I totally agree. I want more. Emily and Nancy said in their interview that they were so tired that there was no time to site see, all you want to do is sleep. That is their experience, maybe some of the others found some time. They have 12 hours at each stop. At least 8 hours for sleep and I bet 10 in some cases, another 30 to 40 mins to bathe and dress. That leaves very little time left to do laundry (maybe production takes care of that). They must need an hour of wind down time at each stop before they could fall asleep and I have not even covered eating. I am curious how they arrange food while in the throws of the race itself. Do they get box lunches for cabs and trains? My guess is that the crew follows them only in the race so everyone is off after the completion of each leg for the most part. I think production arranges meals and supplies bottled water. It has shown them all eating together with Guido at a seperate table twice. They definately go to the same place at the same time. |
Realtvfan | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 08:33 am   To me, this is an "Amazing" Race mostly because of the the logistics and support staff necessary. During the opening credits, he says "... Nothing like this has ever been attempted before. ... This is the Amazing Race.". a) How many people did it take to plan this route months in advance? b) Determine what each team would need for visas, shots, clothing etc. c) Build in the bunching points based on studying the traffic patterns of the boats and the airplanes for multiple airports, so that a FF did not put anyone more than 12 hours ahead ever. d) Transport the contestants clothing and belonging to the next checkpoint. Just as BB had extra hidden suitcases for the HG, Amazing Race must have them as well. Amazing Race needs the contestants to look well dressed and you can not have 30 days of clothing in the backpack like that. e) Plan all the detours, roadblocks etc.. Get permissions from local governments, such as France for the sewer trip etc... They even had to plan the FFs and the Detours that it turns out no one even took. f) Determine the cab and other local transportation money to give them and how to manage it for them until the end. g) Deal with all the losing teams in Europe for 3 weeks waiting for the trip to end before they let the contestants go home. h) Have the locals meet them such as in Tunis in the Desert. i) Make immediate alternative plans when the dust storm came in the one night they were in the desert. j) I could go on and on about the planning for the logistics. To me, simply "AMAZING". It would be a fun book to read, if one of them would put it together. |
Wink | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:08 am   Realtvfan you just gave me a huge headache. The background planning required for a show like this is mind-boggling. After reading your post I found I had the same reaction I experience when I'm on a highway that has a super-interchange with several on and off ramps , clover-leafs, overpasses etc. I cannot even begin to imagine how someone manages to pull all this stuff together. Impressive. |
Realtvfan | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:20 am   Wink, I live in Boston. There is a web site called. "www.bigdig.com". The 5 pages of tiny print drawings for the on and off ramps from this 14 Billion dollar road of a mess require 2 years of college study. http://www.bigdig.com/thtml/mapframe.htm Just click on Charlestown or downtown for downtown Boston. You will have to move the sliders around to see the entire street map. Check out Leverett circle in Charlestown. Imagine visiting Boston and finding that road. |
Realtvfan | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:22 am   Wink, I saved the best for last. Then check South Boston. |
Realtvfan | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:24 am   My mistake, South Bay too. Now you have to understand. There are people in Boston who think this is going to work Better. |
Wink | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:24 am   Good job Mass General looks close by Real. I have no doubt I would experience exploding head syndrome if I were to actually see that in person. |
Wink | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:27 am   OMG . South Boston Haul Road is more my speed. Remind me if I ever get to Boston not to leave my hotel. |
Realtvfan | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:33 am   The phase is "You can't get there here." really means something when you are coming in from the South into South Bay. This road would really be funny in a comic skit. But no one would ever believe it. |
Fruitbat | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 10:11 am   Realfan, I lived in Boston for 5 years and am now in western Ma. As a result I can drive anywhere. Bring it on, nothing can be worse.........hmmmmmm I'll go check out that website, maybe they have outdone themselves. Thanks god for Alewife and the T. |
Fruitbat | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 10:15 am   Great site thanks. All quite unbelievable. It looks to be the 'oops I missed the exit' nighmare of the century. |
Spygirl | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 10:26 am   I think the human heart with all the veins and arteries is less complicated. |
Fruitbat | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 10:42 am   It absolutely is. I just looked in my anatomy book! |
Fifi | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 12:28 pm   You all should read that Entertainment Weekly article from the Sept 7, 2001. They talk alot about the logistics of the Race and how the concept of the show originated etc. Go to this url to see a list of articles on AR http://www.ew.com/ew/allabout/ 0,9930,30885~11~~amazingrace,00.html I took a boo at the application form for AR2 and to answer one of your questions, Tillie, the teams are NOT allowed any communication with their family and friends during the course of the race - even after they are eliminated and sequestered. I agree with Realtvfan that the contestants could not possibly have *all* their belongings in that backpack. They probably only have their "race" clothes in that backpack and they must have other clothes to wear during their 12 pit stop downtown. Every leg of the race we've seen seems to last 24-36 hours and the stuff in their backpack is there to use during those 24-36 hours. In episode 3 when some of the teams camped out in front of the ferris wheel, I noticed some of them had sleeping bags - where did they get that from? They must have had it in their backpacks??? The bottled water they carry is most likely given to them by the crew. I suspect with all the different countries they visit, some places have cleaner water than others. If they weren't given water in India, most of them drinking the unclean water there would suffer from dysentry. As for food *during* the race, I suspect that's all up to them. During the pitstops when they all eat together, I suspect the production crew arranges the meals for them. What I really want to know is what they do during the pit stops. We've estimated that they probably sleep most of the time and eat a meal. However, I read in Karyn's interview that most teams didn't get as much sleep as we thought - they spent alot of the pit stop time getting their money changed, buying travel books and talking to locals. One of the most interesting things from that EW article was this quote from exec producer Bertram van Munster on how quick and creative some of the teams were in getting from point A to point B: "There was one time that I actually had to charter a jet to jump ahead of these guys. I kid you not. It was wild: 'Everybody on the jet! Let's go!'" |
Demented_Freak | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 01:17 pm   I think all their belongings for the race are in the back packs. I once traveled around Europe for 3 months with only a backpack, it had clothes, tent & sleeping bag etc. You get used to rinsing things out each night, or every couple of days & let then dry overnight. In that kind of situation, you really only need 3 or 4 changes of clothes. You want your bag as light as possible, so that it doesn't slow you down when running. |
Fruitbat | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 02:25 pm   Fifi, I get an error message when I try your link. Is it possible to copy the article in this thead? thanks.  |
Fifi | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 02:38 pm   I divided the url into two lines so that I wouldn't "upset" people reading this thread who had to scroll sideways. However, I'll copy the article here. Mind you, the article they have on their website isn't the complete article that appears on the Sept 7 issue of EW (with Sarah Michelle Gellar on the cover). If you want to read the whole article (and I highly recommend you do), go to a local library and look for this article or find a copy from your EW reading friends. Here's the article: One day in 1999, Bertram van Munster returned home from a ho-hum TV industry trade show in France and said to his wife-to-be, Elise Doganieri: ''Hey, why don't you come up with a TV show? I'll give you five minutes.'' Her light bulb was this: a race around the planet between couples who have to spend as little money as possible. Van Munster, a ''COPS'' producer who created the syndicated globe-spanning nature series ''Wild Things,'' fleshed out the idea with Jerry Bruckheimer's TV company and approached CBS. ''I've gotten pitches for many 'race around the world' projects,'' says CBS VP of alternative series development Ghen Maynard, ''half of which are from people who have never filmed outside the country. So when Bert came in, there was a part of me like 'Okay, here we go again,' but the difference was, here was a guy who knows the entire world like the back of his hand and has a vision for the show based on his own experiences. This show is about something that's very relatable, which is the pressures of travel on existing relationships.'' That's why the producers believe ''The Amazing Race'' boasts universal appeal, even for those who've never dreamed of, say, hightailing it to Azerbaijan by way of Suriname on $46.50. ''We've all traveled, we've all fought, whether you're backpacking with your college friends and you stopped talking halfway through Europe, or you're on your honeymoon with your spouse and you're at each other's throats in two days,'' explains Jonathan Littman, ''Race'' consulting producer and president of Bruckheimer TV. ''Traveling is inherently stressful. Now add that to the fact that you don't know where you're going, and that only amps it up. The game is just a backdrop to the melodrama of two people traveling together and the dynamics between the contestants: 'How are they holding up? Have they killed each other yet?''' It's clear from the choice of contestants that this race will be taking a few detours through Conflict City. Keep your compass on these combustible combinations: the wide-eyed 45-year-old Texas mom and her headstrong 21-year-old daughter; the hypercompetitive corporate trainer and his way-more-meek wife (from whom he's separated); and the two bald ''bridge and tunnel'' Noo Yawk goofballs who are just begging for a beer commercial. ''The charm of this race is that anybody can win,'' insists van Munster. ''I've seen people that have never traveled make brilliant moves on this show -- absolutely brilliant chess moves in terms of how to get from A to B -- that blew me away. It goes both ways. It doesn't take only muscles or only brains.'' Both of those traits certainly came in handy while mapping out the logistics for this sucker. In spring 2000, van Munster began scouring the globe for potential locations; he got his passport stamped in about 20 countries and visited the final sites twice. Then there were the scores of permits and visas that had to be obtained from various government agencies (luckily, his work in 60-plus countries over the years had resulted in a fat Rolodex). The production staff ballooned to over 250 people at times, including 18 camera crews. The show's ''bible'' of rules, regulations, and ass-covering what-if scenarios fills three thick three-ring binders -- and for good reason: By the time the $1 million gets doled out, the winning squad will have traversed 44,000 miles on four continents in 31 days, which, roughly translated, amounts to the most hideous Dramamine hangover in history.-- Dan Snierson |
Moondance | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 02:38 pm   . |
Wink | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 04:16 pm   Thanks Fifi. I think my head just re-exploded. |
Car54 | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 04:38 pm   I wonder how much more the logistics will change with the world political climate now? Security alone would have to be a nightmare. |
Hippyt | Sunday, November 18, 2001 - 09:22 pm   Gee,no kidding,Car54,think of the countries they WON'T be visiting next season. Lots of time in England,Australia,and Russia!Oh,and Canada. |
Corriecat | Monday, November 19, 2001 - 04:33 am   I caught an episode of Real World over the weekend and they got lost in Boston! You left out one thing though, the Boston drivers who do not take kindly to anyone trying to find their way around and slowing up traffic. |
Fruitbat | Monday, November 19, 2001 - 04:47 am   Thanks Fifi. |
Kep421 | Monday, November 19, 2001 - 04:58 am   Gee, maybe the entire AR2 season could be filmed solely in Boston. Sounds like it could take 31 days just to get out of the city!!! |
Realfan | Tuesday, November 20, 2001 - 03:24 pm   <<"'The charm of this race is that anybody can win,'' insists van Munster. ''I've seen people that have never traveled make brilliant moves on this show -- absolutely brilliant chess moves in terms of how to get from A to B -- that blew me away. It goes both ways. It doesn't take only muscles or only brains.'' >> What moves do you think he's referring to? I'm a little braindead right now, but I can only think of one clever move, when Lenny (I think?) hired a cab which he then followed in his little red car in Italy along the back roads. Any others? |
Car54 | Tuesday, November 20, 2001 - 03:31 pm   The big dig is just the newest Boston driving challenge. You haven't lived til you have driven in a busy Massachusetts "Rotary" with 3 or 4 major highways converging in a circle and then everybody goes round and round at 60 MPH. Kind of like a game of "chicken" with cars. I have to go by 2 busy rotaries for work, and I have mastered every possible combination of back roads to avoid them! |
Llkoolaid | Tuesday, November 20, 2001 - 07:58 pm   I have been in Boston twice. The first time the traffic was crawling and we took the wrong exit and spent hours trying to get back on the I-95, we couldn't find a way back on and everyone we asked just got us more lost, finally a police officer let us follow him to an on ramp. The second time we went the traffic was moving fast, it was around Christmas and I was never so afraid in all my life. It was a mixture of rain and snow with high winds and these people were driving like bloody maniacs. All they had to do was slow down for the conditions and things would have been fine, it seemed like everyone was thinking, "bad conditions, I better speed up and get off these roads" and they were, every half mile someone had slid off the road. I was terrified that someone was going to hit us. L.A., New York, Montreal none of these places have anything on Boston traffic and roads but I love to go there. I can't imagine how people travel there everyday. As for more details, that would be nice maybe we will see more now that there are less teams to cover. |
Corriecat | Wednesday, November 21, 2001 - 03:37 pm   I always thought LA and New York would be the worst but they were nothing compared to Boston. And the drivers here in Worcester are not much better. We saw this old lady with handicapped plates the other day. She was driving like a bat out of hell, weaving in and out dangerously passing everyone, and honking constantly at everyone just like Momily's taxi driver. She would be perfect if they had a Massachussetts leg of TAR. |
Wink | Wednesday, November 21, 2001 - 04:12 pm   Hmmmmmm Corriecat. Did you say "bat out of hell"? Was she driving an airstream by any chance? Just exactly where were you yesterday Fruitbat when you told us you were home baking up a storm for Turkey Day? |
Car54 | Wednesday, November 21, 2001 - 05:06 pm   Corriecat, what day of the month was it? I am new to Massachusetts, and driving here is really wild, but back home they always taught me to stay home on the third of the month- that is the day all the senior citizens drive to the bank to deposit their social security checks- so you are taking your life in your hands that day! |
Corriecat | Thursday, November 22, 2001 - 05:06 am   No it wasn't the 3rd it was one day last week (12th - 17th). It was the same in Arizona. There are so many seniors there and you knew what days they went out. She wasn't driving an airstream it was a Lincoln so that lets Fruitbat off the hook. |
Wink | Thursday, November 22, 2001 - 09:30 am   LOL Corrie. Fruit has a Lincoln and she has been known to cause some havoc when "Driving Mr. Lincoln". |
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