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Topic: Amazing tips on winning the race (Read 407 times)

Genius
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Amazing tips on winning the race
« on: Apr 26^th, 2006, 1:08am »

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Amazing tips on winning the race
24 Apr 2006
SUZANNA PILLAY

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What does it take to last it out in the Amazing Race? Several competitors share their thoughts with SUZANNA PILLAY.

IF you have been an ardent follower of the Amazing Race series, one team that would make an impression for being unusual would have been the team of cousins Mirna and Charla from Amazing Race 5.

Both Armenian, they emigrated to the United States when they were young children and between them, they speak a variety of languages including Armenian, Turkish, French and Spanish. Their astounding language skills were not the only thing that was memorable about the duo, another factor was Charlas physique.

Charla, suffers from a form of dwarfism but did what she set out to accomplish when she joined the series, in her own words, to show the world what I can do and break all stereotypes about dwarfs!

Overall the team finished sixth in Amazing Race 5 and were pleased with their placement. But what are the team of cousins up to this year? Mirna, now a practising lawyer in Baltimore, Maryland tells us that Charla and her husband are having a baby. Mirna too has good news. She is engaged and will take a walk down the aisle a little later in the year.

Delighted to hear that Asia was launching its own version of the Amazing Race, Mirna was only to happy to share some pointers on how to run the race with Asian candidates.

Earlier on we decided because of our physiques that one of our strategies would be that I would complete all the physical challenges while Charla would complete the eating challenges, she said.

With only one month to prepare for the race she said the duo worked out every day training with their backpacks and also weight lifted to increase their muscle mass.

During the race we knew we wouldnt get enough to eat and would lose weight. There is no food at the pit stops and you virtually have to eat on the way. The only food we ate was airline food and most people lost a few kilogrammes running the race. We were also sleep deprived as we could only sleep on the plane, at park benches, bus stations etc.

Mirnas tip is to take a teammate that balances you and to never give up, always keep going.

Additionally, prepare for other cultures and languages, do some background work, and be able to ask for help.

It was a big advantage for us being able to speak many languages as we were able to get the help we needed, she said.

For amiable brothers Brian and Greg from Santa Monica, California, participants in Amazing Race 7, the challenging part of the race was being always on the run and being weighed down. Their primary motivation in participating in the Race was to travel the world with each other and meet new people.

The stress was unbelievable and months after the race we still have nightmares about it! But we definitely got the travel bug after the race, said Greg

The trick to doing well on the race, according to the brothers, is to watch past shows regularly and also to have a sense of humour.

We like to have a good time and we are competitive but we wouldnt go out to hurt people, said Brian.

Their advice is to take time to read the clues.

You dont have to go that fast although you have to hustle at the detour. You also have to perform at the challenge. Pick the right detours and challenges, he added.

Brian and Greg will appear in a comedy show opening in Hollywood this month, and according to Brian, Greg is doing a lot of stand-up comedy at the moment.

Apart from family, couples too have participated in the Amazing Race as a test of their relationship. One such couple was executive assistants Lynn and Alex, a gay couple from West Hollywood, California.

Participants in Amazing Race 7, both wanted to see what the future would hold for their relationship and whether it would hold up under the stress of the Race. Happily it did, for now they are married. The Canadian Board of Tourism offered them a chance to get married in Canada and they accepted.

It (the wedding) was awesome, said Alex. Of their run in the Amazing Race, Alex said that he and Lynn were at their best working as a team.

Lynn looked out for me and we are both each others support systems.

Seconds, he said, dont count in the Amazing Race, but minutes do.

Go and have fun. Once you decide mentally in your head its over, its over. Being negative is like the amazing race curse. Dont give in to it,he added.

His team lost, he said, because of bad luck.

It wasnt because we were not prepared, we were fit. We lost because of a bad cab ride. When it gets down to a certain number of teams anything can happen. Always, always make sure that you know where your cab driver is going.

We were fine after the elimination and I kept my cool, but when we were back in the hotel and I thought about how we lost because the cab driver took us to the wrong place, I totally had a breakdown in the hotel! Fortunately Lynn was around to keep me on even keel and the mood light, he said.

Last but not least are some words of wisdom on running the race from the winners of Amazing Race 7, husband and wife team Uchenna and Joyce.

They said that although physically the race is demanding the bigger challenge is on your mental strength. Do not be disheartened when the going gets tough. The couple also advise participants to take their time in reading clues.

Most people think that other people know where to go. Dont follow them. Stop and get your maps and plot your route carefully. It might seem frightening at first, but you will be rewarded. Also research as much as possible on the place that your are going to next. Use the internet to find out more during any free time you have at airports, hotels, etc, said Joyce.

The couple say the race has changed their outlook on life. The world is not about judgement but understanding and embracing new cultures and thats going to be big help. People can sense it when you are judgemental and will not help you, said Uchenna.

As a couple, Joyce and Uchenna said, that the race actually helped them. They are not fighting so much.

We were taken out of our element and were put into unfamiliar places and situations which required us to rely on each other to pull through. You are only as good as the strongest person on the team so you got to get over your ego. It is easy to be a team when things are going all right but when things go wrong, teams fall apart. The trick is to treat all wrong decisions as team decisions and not lay the blame on either party, said Joyce.

Financially, the couple is doing just as well.

We now have a nice savings account. Weve taken ourselves out of debt, and taken some trips but for the most part we have been conservative with our winnings.

All interviews were arranged by AXN Asia.

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