Episode #9: "Don't Talk to Me Like I was an Animal or Something"

Four families set out from lake Powell, Arizona. With new trailers in tow, they raced to Monument Valley, Utah. Teams took a ride to a tower of rock. And then they repelled down a canyon. Teams encountered a grizzly bear. The Linzes targeted the weavers and yielded them at the roadblock. Then after a wild splashdown, arrived at the mat in first place. The weavers came in last but were not eliminated. This is a non elimination leg, and you're still in the race. Now, four families remain. Who will be eliminated next?

We start out in Utah the 9th pit stop in the race. Founded in 1847 on the shores of the great salt lake, the largest inland salt sea in the western hemisphere. At an elevation of 4,000 feet, this city is the capital of Utah. Teams arrived here at the end of the last leg for a mandatory rest period. The weaver family arrived last at the pit stop but was not eliminated because this was the third in several predetermined non elimination legs. However, they were stripped of all cash and will not receive any money at the start of the next leg. 

Now that the Linz family has finally claimed the top spot, will they be able to maintain their momentum for the rest of the race? The Linz family who was first to arrive at 12:46 P.M. Will depart at 12:46 A.M. "Drive to Park City High School and find your next clue." Megan Linz tells the boys they can’t run. She feels sick today. The Bransen family gets underway and comment about the tension between the other three teams. They hope it works to their advantage. They are followed by the Godlewski sisters and finally the Weaver family.

The Linz family arrives at the school first and takes a number and the next clue. Teams must now help a crew to inflate a hot-air balloon then get on board for a scenic ride over the Utah countryside. Upon landing, teams will receive their next clue. Starting at 6:00 A.M., Shuttling to the balloon site. Shuttles will leave every 10 minutes with one team per shuttle. The Linz family gets into the camper to catch some more sleep. While the Bransen family arrives and takes ticket two for the shuttle. The Godlewski sisters get ticket three, and the Weaver family turn up as everyone is getting up. They carry on about getting to sleep in a bed and had a great night sleep. Then they ask the Linz family if they are sorry they wasted your yield? When they say no Mom weaver says, “You will be.”

The shuttles arrive in order and take each family to a park where they have to inflate the balloons, once all the gear is set up. Megan is playing with one of the cords while her brother is trying to start a fan and gets a nasty look. All the teams get up in the air, the Bransen and Linz balloon get close and touch up in the sky. Everyone seems to enjoy the ride. But the Weaver family is not impressed about the landing. The next clue. Teams must travel 14 miles to Heber City, Utah and find Heber Valley Railway. They'll need to search the grounds for their next clue. Part 1 [11 minutes]

The Linzes are the first to arrive and get the next clue. It’s a detour, so they have a choice between two tasks each with its own pros and cons. In this detour teams have to choose between Spike it or Steam it. In Spike it, teams use old-time materials and tools to complete a 20-foot section of railway track. The task requires precision work, but teams with an eye for detail could finish quickly. In steam it, teams use buckets to fill this tender of an old-time steam locomotive with nearly 400 pounds of coal. The task requires no precision work but running hundreds of pounds of coal back and forth could take time. In both tasks teams would need to have a railroad engineer approve their work before receiving their next clue.

Linzes choose spike it and with their normal enthusiasm get going. Megan lets the men handle the work. The Bransen family also choose this task and Dad is better at hammering. One of the girl hits gets hit in the head with a sledge hammer but keeps going. The Godlewski sisters are also at spike it and Chrissie is driving them and me crazy. The Linz family is finished first but the engineer doesn’t approve of their work, not all the spikes are touching the rails. So they have to fix it. Once done, they are the first to get the next clue. Teams must now travel 148 miles to the Bonneville salt flats. Here they'll find an7-foot sculpture known as the tree of Utah which was built to bring color and beauty to the stark landscape. Teams need to scan the surrounding salt flats to find their next clue.

Back at the Railway, the Weavers who chose Steam it are almost done with the task. They have coal dust all over their faces. The Godlewski sisters are at spike it and are fighting about who chose this task. The Weavers finish before them and make their way to the next clue.

The Linz family is the first to arrive at the sculpture. The Bransen team finds the sculpture, one of the girls says it looks like hemorrhoids. They find the clue box and get the next clue. All teams are currently traveling nearly 400 miles to Garden City, Utah to find Bear Lake Rendezvous State Park. Teams will be camping here for the night and whatever order they arrive will determine their morning departure. Starting at 8:30 A.M. Departure times will be 15 minutes apart. All the teams arrive at the park. But due to a production error, the Linz team’s car battery had to be fixed. This made them fall into last place. The Weaver family finds some  people at the park and is given some money.

The next morning, the teams start off in the order they arrived. The clue is waiting for them on the windshield of the vehicle. Teams must now travel 137 miles and find Dunham Ranch Wyoming. Once there they'll find their next clue. Wally Bransen seems to be a little moody on the way to the next clue. The girls in the back are tormenting him and giggling. The Weavers set off next.

Once they arrive, they find a roadblock. This roadblock will be performed by two members of a team. In this roadblock two people will mount horses and take six cattle from a holding pen and herd them a quarter mile into a corral. Once they've completed their round-up the cowboy will give them their next clue. Beth and Lauren head out for the Bransen family. They pick a good-looking cowboy. He explains not to worry about the baby cows as they will follow their mothers. The Bransen family finishes as the Weaver girls set off one their horses. While the Godlewski girls miss the turn off to get to the ranch and can’t turn their vehicle around. 

The Bransen’s finish the task and get the next clue. Teams must travel 190 miles to Yellowstone national park and find old faithful. The geyser goes off roughly every 92 minutes. After teams have watched an eruption, a fireman will hand them their next clue. The Bransen family is first there and misses and eruption by 15 minutes. The Weavers arrive next and they wait together. Just as the Godlewski girls arrive, they see in the distance the geyser going off in the distance. The will have to wait 92 minutes for it to go again. The Linzes arrive there just after and have to wait with the Godlewski family. The Bransen and Weaver families get the next clue. Drive south on highway 287. Find the ranch at 15200.

The Bransen finds the ranch and the weavers have followed them. They are looking for Phil and both teams spot him at the same time. It’s a race for the mat. One of the Bransen girls falls over but they manage to make it to the mat first. Phil asks the Weavers to join them and explains that the leg of the race is not over and hands both teams the next clue. We see ... Part 2 [9 minutes]

Thanks to AmazingNut, Jem, mo, Morty and smirnoff for contributions to this recap.

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