REAL WORLD / ROAD RULES The Gauntlet

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Episode 1 (Part 1)
Are you ready?! Twenty-eight alumni from The Real World and Road Rules, along with host Johnny Mosley, have descended upon Telluride, Colorado for the ultimate challenge: The Gauntlet. This time, y'all, the stakes are higher with $300,000 on the line. It's anybody's guess as to who will survive The Gauntlet and take home the money.
The group arrives in Telluride via private plane and as they disembark, the trash-talking and boasting starts immediately. Norm, the eldest-statesmen of the group claims that a lot of the other alumni are "star struck" because they grew up watching New York when they were in high school. Hope that being star struck doesn't get in the way of their performance.
On the bus to the resort, Sarah from Campus Crawl chats with Matt from New Orleans about how she was unhappy with her Road Rules performance and hopes to prove here that she's tougher than what people might think.
They all meet with Johnny Mosley in front of the gauntlet and they are told there are 14 challenges, each worth $10,000. The final challenge is worth $150,000. They are looking at almost $300,000 that is up for grabs in this Challenge. Each time they win a mission, $10,000 is banked and only the finalists will win the money. Fourteen players will make up those finalists. After every challenge, each team must select one person who will be thrown into the gauntlet to be sacrificed. The gauntlet is a series of challenges that only two people compete in. The winner stays and must face their team who tried to kick them off and the loser goes back to their casa empty-handed.
After their intro to the Challenge, the group checks out their six-story cabin nestled in the mountains of Telluride. For the first time in challenge history, Real World is living with Road Rules. At dinner, Laterrian (Maximum Velocity) talks with Theo (Chicago) and David about how he was a little "crazy" during the last Challenge, but he's changed a lot in the last year and knows that this game is also a mental contest. David talks about how he's fine doing any mission as long as it doesn't involve water (hmm...foreshadowing?).
During a night of partying, Mike "The Miz" squares off with Abe, the "Mini Miz" and "Mini Miz" upsets the aspiring wrestler. Undaunted, Mike assures us there will be many more rounds during the course of their stay. Meanwhile, Sarah and Rachel (Back to New York) sip wine and choose not to partake in the drunken-fest. They are not interested in being part of the "frat party," but also realize this could make them outcasts.
Adam (The Quest) talks about how he and Trishelle (Las Vegas) previously dated. "She has the ability to make you feel like you're really, really special; like you're the only person in the world, and then you find out she's kind of doing it to a lot of different people," he laments. But there doesn't seem to be any bad blood, as the two are friendly towards each other. Meanwhile, newly single Elka and hot-body Theo flirt on the hammock and they both make a promise that if they win, they'll get married. Someone wanna tell them they are on different teams? For now, Theo has professed his "undying affection for the lovely Miss Elka." We'll see if they make good on their pledge to wed.
While Matt continues to distance himself from the group by talking about his religious beliefs, Trishelle admires Coral's (Back to New York) boobs. Matt interjects that he feels bad for girls that have implants. Tonya (Chicago) listens quietly and then informs him that she's had breast enhancements--not for the guys, but, like, for herself. Tonya believes that Matt needs to be more respectful when it comes to giving his opinions. Before they've even had one mission, Darrell is already thinking about sending Sarah, his former Campus Crawl teammate, to the Gauntlet. Real World and Road Rules meet separately to talk about how they are going to decide who goes to the face-off. During the Real World meeting Matt digs a deeper hole by saying that, as spokesmen for Life Teen, he can't do anything that would jeopardize that job, meaning he can't be naked, among other things. This comment raises some eyebrows.
Steve (The Quest) comes up with a nifty point system that will help choose the player for the Gauntlet and the rest of the group argues about the method. Sarah feels like she is already being pinpointed as persona non grata. Meanwhile, Real World decides on an open forum discussion system so that there's no lying or backstabbing. By the end of the meeting, Road Rules is still undecided on how they will vote and their team unity is in question.
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Episode 1 (Part 2)
Matt receives their first clue that tells them they must wear a bathing suit. Nathan is worried about the people on his team who are afraid of water, which includes David who, despite participating in previous Challenges that involved water, never learned how to swim. The object of the challenge is to tread water and the last person who is left will earn $10,000 for their team. Oh, yeah, like there's not gonna be a catch. Turns out the name of the challenge is Snake Soup and they will all be sharing the pool (58 degree water temp) with hundreds of snakes.
Only a few seconds into the competition, David and Coral both get out of the pool. Sarah stuck it out as long as she could and is about the sixth person out. Abe is disqualified because he misunderstands the rules and gathers the snakes near him and pushes them all aside. At 42 minutes in, Darrell looks at the side of the pool to see that most of his teammates are already out and he is disappointed at their performance. Almost an hour in to the mission, phase two requires each team member who is left to put their arms above their head. If their elbows hit the water, they're out. Elka is the last one in the water and wins $10,000 for her team. "Where did this girl come from?" says a confused Abe.
Now the teams must decide who will go to the Gauntlet. Road Rules chose to use their "scientific" anonymous number system. They will vote on the top three people they'd like to see in the gauntlet and then take the top three point receivers and vote on them again. Sarah receives the most votes; Roni (Northern Trail), the second most and LT is third. Sarah is shocked that so many people voted for her when she was sixth out of the pool and LT got out before her. She knows they based their decision on her previous Road Rules experience.
Real World talks about sending a stronger person versus their weakest player. They go around the room and say aloud who they would like to see go to the Gauntlet and why. David gets 10 votes and Matt is second with four. Not impressed with Matt, Tonya thinks that he's here to "save us." Some team members are worried that this open forum will cause some politics to flare because everyone is aware of exactly who voted for who.
Sarah is worried about going up against "The Hulk" (David) in the Gauntlet. David rolls the Gauntlet dice and they land on "dead man drop." Sarah says she's gotta suck it up and do this for her, not anyone else. They both must hang upside down by their feet, over water, and the first one to fall loses. Sarah calmly walks away with a win as David plunges into the water. Laterrian is proud of Sarah and says "she spoke very loudly by winning the Gauntlet despite the fact that she felt like she was betrayed by her team." Her former teammate Darrell was even surprised that she won.
Sarah explains her motivation. "I hate to admit it, but I couldn't have done it without my team. Their help, their previous experience, combined with my will to piss them off and prove them wrong has created such a wonderful vibe between us."
Matt seeks advice from David on how he can bond with the Real World team. David tells him he needs to start building relationships and be cautious about forcing his agenda on the rest of the group.
Coral is not pleased that one of their strongest players was sent to the Gauntlet and is hoping their strategy will change next time. As David says goodbye, everyone is one step closer to the $300,000 prize. Who will be left standing when the dust settles? Keep your enemies close and watch your back because The Gauntlet has begun and neither the strong, nor the weak are safe from being sacrificed. Hey, Road Rules. Hey, Real World. Atta-way!
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Episode 3
The Road Rules team celebrates their gauntlet win by cavorting in the Jacuzzi and by getting naked in the bubble bath. In the meantime, Elka and Montana have a serious talk about how they are not really into the challenge. Elka reminds Montana of the importance of making friends and appearing interested in the other peeps, because those bonds they make can essentially help them remain on the challenge. Elka says there's less incentive when you have a real job and this is not a main source of income and she's just not feeling the "gusto" that goes along with these challenges. Montana feels older than most of the other teammates, which she believes could be a disadvantage.
For their second mission, both teams have to solve the "Masquerade" mensa puzzle. They must reassemble the pieces of a giant puzzle so that there are 13 complete masquerade faces, nine being frowns and four being smiles. Two people are allowed to work on the puzzle at any one time. The teams strategize and then the competition starts. Theo and Abe begin the puzzle for Road Rules. Real World already claims they have the puzzle figured out and start with Coral and Tonya, while Rachel tells them how to arrange the pieces. Steve from Road Rules says his puzzle mastery goes back to when he was a wee child and he had no friends. Only the puzzles were his friends. His penchant for puzzles pays off because while Road Rules zips through the game, Tonya and Coral move in slow motion. Rachel suggests that Matt and her switch in order to complete the puzzle faster.
Alas, it's too late and Road Rules finishes first and banks $10,000. Each team has won one mission now. They have a half hour to decide who is going to the gauntlet. It's unclear why the Real World team has the bright idea of separating into gender groups to decide who should go, but the gals split off and when they can't decide, Coral suggests they vote between herself, Irulan and Montana because they were the first three out of the pool in the Snake Soup mission. The guys decide that Montana is their weakest link. The Miz splains it to the team, "We need someone that's gonna step up… Montana, we think you should go." Surprised by their brutal honesty, Montana is embarrassed that she is the second person to face the gauntlet. Montana sits with some of her teammates and discusses the hypocrisy of the decision to send her. She says it's hard to go into the gauntlet pumped up when your team thinks you are a big lame loser. She singles out Mike for blowing smoke up her ass. Mike, being the nice guy that is, apologizes for "putting smoke up her ass."
Road Rules uses their trusty point system again and decides their voting should be based on the previous mission. Sarah is shocked that some people are still giving her "threes," but Katie is confused as to why is voted to go to the gauntlet. She was not one of the first three people out of the pool yesterday. Former teammate Steve says he knows and loves Katie, but doesn't trust her in missions. Katie is pissed and feeling betrayed by her team and says she'd rather just go home now than go to the gauntlet. "If I lose, go Real World!" she cracks. Katie bitches to Adam about a familiar concept called: hypocrisy. Not one to hold back, a feisty Katie says she hates everyone on the team except Adam and she's "not down with the fake s-t" and doesn't want people coming up to her saying "Go Katie." Woo. Woo.
The girls roll "Ride 'em Cowboy" as their gauntlet challenge and both women have to ride the mechanical bull until one falls off. Luckily, Montana has some experience with this here mechanical bull thing and has even won one of them contests before. Needless to say, she is very confident going into this competition. Road Rules gives Katie a cheer as she tries to be mature about the situation. Soon after the bull begins to buck, Montana starts to fall off and uses both hands to keep herself up, which disqualifies her. Katie wins and her team runs to congratulate her. Love is all around. Due to consecutive losses in the gauntlet, the Real World team is down two players now. Montana says goodbye to her one friend, Elka, and Mike is rumored to have mumbled under his breath: "You are the weakest link, goodbye!" Ok, not really. But it's funny, right?
Tina warns Katie her that her vote is influenced by Katie's attitude and Katie can't just say whatever she wants to her teammates, but Katie defends her actions. Meanwhile, Sarah tells her team that they have to change the way they vote people off, otherwise they are going to end up hurting a lot of their teammates. She doesn't like this false comfort that is given to the people facing a vote-off. Veronica makes it plain and clear that they are going to keep sending their weakest players into the gauntlet because they don't want to sacrifice the strong. "Especially with their attitude, they're not making us like them, so we don't really feel attached to them," Veronica, like, says. Katie backs up Sarah and major drama ensues. Katie goes off on Veronica for playing the game "dirty." Roni and her teammates have to remove the urban cowgirl from the situation
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Episode 4
While Katie and Nathan discuss what their mission will be, Katie acknowledges that she is sure, no matter what happens, she's headed straight for the Gauntlet again. "My team hates me just as much as I hate them," she cracks. Although, she says she's going to try and remember it's a game and not take it so personally. After hearing Katie's side of the story, Trishelle says Road Rules is sabotaging their own team with their dishonesty.
Nathan and Mike go mountain biking with Trishelle, who is a newbie at the sport. While going downhill, she presses the front brake too hard and flips over the bike, landing on her head. She is taken to the emergency room and is badly bruised and cut, but she's gonna be OK. A lot of Real World and Road Rules team members come to visit her and offer their support. The Miz stays to tend to her wounds and Trishelle is appreciative of his thoughtfulness.
The teams find out their next challenge takes place the next morning and Trishelle says she is not going to let her bumps and bruises affect her ability to compete in a mission. The mission is called Mud Bath (or Musical Chairs, Mud Bath Style, renamed by resident poet, Theo). And the ultimate challenge is to outlast the competition. The players must secure a ball from inside the mud pit and bring it to the safe zone. The catch is that there will always be three less balls than there are players, meaning three people will be eliminated each round. They are allowed to steal balls from other players without making intentional physical contact. Real World is already at a disadvantage with only 12 players, to Road Rules 14. Unfortunately, the on-site EMT suggests that Trishelle sit out of the mission so she doesn't re-open her cuts, so now the Real World is down three people.
In Round One, Katie, Coral and Cara are eliminated. Katie worries this performance will insure a repeat gauntlet appearance. Abe, Elka and Norman are out in the second round with, Abe, once again, being disqualified for tackling another player. In the next round, Irulan shows how tough she can be when she steals a ball from Tonya, Veronica and Rachel. Over the course of the game, no one is safe from scratches or bruises. The last people left in the game are Matt from Real World, Laterrian, Darrell and Dave, all from Road Rules. Matt comes up empty handed, while Road Rules walks away with the last three balls and the 10Gs.
Everyone returns to the house nursing their bruises and showing off their battle scars, including Tonya who has torn her meniscus and is sporting a knee brace. Needless to say, the Real World team morale is pretty low. Irulan and Coral say that the two of them and even Alton are "down" to go into the Gauntlet. Matt points out that it's easy to volunteer for the Gauntlet when you know you aren't going to go. Irulan thinks it's "pathetic" that no one else besides her and Coral and Alton will "step up," so Irulan instructs her team to choose between her and Coral. Nathan speaks up about his concern for how Tonya will be able to perform since she seems to have a very serious injury. Former Gauntlet volunteer Irulan jumps on the Tonya-has-a-bum-knee-bandwagon and wonders out loud why Tonya would "ever want to compete" after what she knows about her knee injury. Matt calls the heated discussion a battle of "politics, personality, and ego" and worries that it is not helping morale. Irulan and Coral still vote for themselves, but it's Tonya who ends up being thrown to the Gauntlet.
In the Road Rules meeting, Katie apologizes for being previously rude to her team members and insists that she does want to stay in Telluride. Tina isn't sure that the rest of her team believes what Katie is saying, though. It's Steve, Abe and Katie who get the most votes and in the final vote, Steve is chosen to go into the Gauntlet. Good news for Steve, he and Tonya have to fetch puzzle pieces from the water and then assemble them on dry land. Steve, a self-proclaimed puzzle freak, is confident about the "Perfect Fit" challenge. Steve wins and is happy to go back and prove wrong every single person who voted for him, he says. Tonya goes home feeling bitter because she feels she was betrayed by her teammates, especially since she did so well in the first two missions. All is fair in love and war, especially when it involves $300,000.
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Episode 5
Looks like Katie, who swallowed a bitter pill two episodes ago, may be spitting out some of her team's secrets and strategies to the Real World team and it's getting back to camp Road Rules. The Roadies confront her at the team meeting and Katie says that even though she likes the Real Worlders better, she's, like, not stupid. She doesn't want Real World to win. Duh. Tina tells Katie she needs to be honest with them. Cara speaks up and says that she heard Katie telling some Real World team members about their top secret super-complicated "3,2,1" voting system. Katie attempts to defend herself by saying she did tell Irulan and Alton they have a point system, but that's it. Katie claims she doesn't understand how the tricky point system even works. The Read World team jokes about how many people on their team are injured. "We've never had this many "bruises, scrapes, scabs and stitches, since, like, seventh grade," Norm says. Team morale is weak and Elka says it's tough to have a positive attitude when things are not going well. Elka also worries that her team doesn't have a strategy.
They all learn that a good ol' fashioned ice cream eating contest will be the challenge de jour. Dave is so excited at the prospect of eating mounds of ice cream that he has to high five Alton. Hu-RAH. And the catch that you've all been waiting for … they cannot use utensils. Their hands will be tied behind their back. The must stick their entire face into a large dish of ice cream and start eating. Four players can eat at one time. If you puke, you you're benched. Matt worries that they have three less people (stomachs) on their team and this could affect their intestinal performance. The Road Rules team strategy is to send up two guys and two girls and then rotate. Soon after they begin, Theo worries that his team is losing time on this method. Spit and snot are all over the place. Rachel is completely grossed out by the germs that are flying around. Tina says she thought the mission would be so fun, but it turned out to be the "grossest thing she has ever partaken in."
It's neck in neck as both teams attempt to lick the bowl clean. Road Rules is victorious, which brings their winnings to $30,000, while Real World walks away licking their wounds. They now have three losses in a row. At the meeting, Nathan says he doesn't feel comfortable sending another guy to the gauntlet. Irulan is upset that they haven't come up with a system for sending people to the gauntlet and Coral & Irulan don't like the idea of continuing to send girls home. Coral reminds everyone that Elka earned $10,000 for their team. Elka is upset that she could be the next one on the gauntlet chopping block after Matt votes for her because of her knee injury. Rachel decides to step up and throw herself into the gauntlet and vows to do her best. Her team appreciates her spunk.
At the Road Rules meeting, Katie, Abe and Tina receive the top three votes, with Katie garnering the most. The team hopes the votes Abe receives serve as a wake up call so he will stop getting disqualified. Katie goes into the gauntlet and tells her team that if she wins this, "seriously, back off for a while." Katie rolls hangman and she and Rachel must hang onto the trapeze bars over the water. Rachel is confident about beating Katie and Nathan helps pump her up by reminding her that Katie's an Oompah Loompa. Katie fights to hang on, but her hands quickly slip off the bars. Rachel is excited to bring some much-needed hope and joy to the Real World team.
Katie bitches to Real World buddy Trishelle about the events of the day. Katie tells her team to have fun, kick some ass and stop sending the same people to the gauntlet! The Road Rules team feels that they are a little more united now that Katie is gone. The teams go out clubbing and everyone is having fun while Elka sulks about how Matt wanted to vote her into the gauntlet. Coral's got her back and warns: "He is going down."
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Episode 6
Johnny introduces both teams to the next challenge called "Holy Canoe." They must paddle their sinking canoe up and down a course, while extracting water from the boat. They have to start with the canoes already filled halfway up with water. Adam on Road Rules gives his teammates some tips from his previous canoeing experience, while Matt from Real World recalls his Boy Scout merit badge he got in canoeing. Non-swimmer Coral offers up her own brand of advice, um, warning, "If this boat turns over, I'm gonna be the mother----- that's freaking the f-k out."
Apparently Mike has told Coral he'd never vote her off, but at the same time, he is fully aware that she is their weakest link in this mission. She's already cryin' a river before they even get in the lake. "Everyone needs to pull their own weight," he says.
Scout Leader Matt is yelling out orders from the front of his boat, but due to the wind, no one in the back of the boat can hear his commands, and they start to veer off course. Road Rules is totally tight and rowing like a machine. When Road Rules reaches the turning point, they see that the Real World is very far behind and heading for the river bank. Real World maneuvers the course without any direction and there is much dissention inside the canoe. Nathan was embarrassed by their performance and this loss puts Real World's losing streak at four. Matt complains that there is a huge lack of communication and the Real World begins to argue. Nathan tells Coral that her aggravation affects the whole team and sometimes her harsh attacks affect others and team morale. Nathan thinks it is important for her to hear this from her teammates. Mike knows Coral has not been pulling her weight in missions and wonders how many times he should let that person slide until he starts voting them off.
Tina, Roni, Veronica and Sarah all get votes and, surprisingly, Tina is chosen to appear the gauntlet. "I have no clue how this vote ended up on me." But she has a very positive reaction and is okay with it being her "time." She is ready to step up. Veronica admits that if Tina has to go home, it's going to be a harsh blow to the team. Rachel notes that Tina, nor Veronica have ever gotten last place in any of the missions and she thinks the voting is "ridiculous." Rachel and Veronica wonder why Tina was targeted. Rachel says the secret ballot gives everyone more of an opportunity to vote off someone who doesn't deserve to go home.
Back at the Real World town hall meeting, Matt encourages Mike to tell Coral that she is not a positive influence on the team. Apparently Matt also got a Boy Scout badge in "how to make others to your dirty work." Everyone is sooo afraid of Coral, they don't want to speak up. Mike wonders if he should vote off his friend, or keep watching his team fall apart.
Mike tells his team he will always finish a mission no matter how far behind his team is and he only wants the people in the same mind set on his team. He makes it clear that he doesn't want quitters. Theo tells Coral he is voting for her because, quite frankly, he hasn't been that impressed. A few people vote for Matt saying he's a strong player and has the best chance to win the gauntlet. Trishelle says Matt has kicked ass consistently and she doesn't want to lose him as a teammate, so she votes for Coral. Rachel takes it further and says it's "B.S. to send Matt and not someone else." When it comes to Mike, he wonders if they have officially decided to vote for a strong player or their weakest link and then finally votes Coral. "I love you to death, but in the past three missions, you have been our weak link." Mike gets emotional and Coral gets up and walks out and a huge fight ensues about who's right and who's not. Mike gets teary when he talks about how he and Coral won the Battle of the Seasons together and he knows she can be a strong competitor despite what's happened here. Coral gets upset when she talks to Alton and Irulan about how Mike is her friend and she can't believe he just voted for her. Mike feels pressure from other people on the team to vote in a way that's "right."
Coral thought that they were better friends than this and complains that Mike didn't even have the decency to come to her before the vote and tell her what he was going to do. Coral sees their friendship as being more important than the "game." She is okay with going to the gauntlet, but she wants to let everyone know that she's been caught off guard by Mike's vote, that's all. Mike knows it was the right decision for the game, but wonders if when all is said and done, this was the right decision for "life."
Tina rolls Deadman's Drop and says she's ready to kick some Real World butt. Coral says she just doesn't want to go home. During the competition, Coral begins looking over at Tina and sends some freaky voodoo vibes her way. Finally Tina starts to shake and eventually fall. Mike says the Coral he saw in the gauntlet is the Coral he remembers from Battle of the Seasons. Roni says that it doesn't feel right to have Tina leaving.
In a post-gauntlet discussion, Rachel talks about how people got together and decided to target Tina. Veronica talks to Abe about whether he'd be more inclined to vote off a guy or a girl. Veronica thinks the guys are scared to sacrifice another guy in the gauntlet. Dave keeps it real, "the girls are probably all going to be off before the guys go." Welcome to Battle of the Dudes.
Tina says she's learned a lot and she loves her team. She reminds everyone that "what goes around, comes around." Coral is still pissed that Mike didn't give her a heads up, but now she's definitely on her toes and watching her back
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Episode 7
Matt doesn't participate in any reindeer drinking games because that's not who he is and he is not about to sacrifice who he is just to win some cash. "All I want to be is a good Christian," he says. He walks outside to pray and notes that every dime he wins is going to charity. Coral says, at first, Matt's religious tendencies were a little joke amongst friends, but now she feels that Matt thinks he's above everyone else and that is exactly the kind of behavior that will get his ass sent straight to the Gauntlet. Coral and Elka cackle about how their arch nemesis could be going home soon. Meanwhile, Sarah says it feels damn good to change other people's minds about her and prove that she's a good competitor. Cara agrees that Sarah has a lot to offer the team and thinks everyone should give her a break.
Darrell gets word that they will be picked up at 9 a.m. for their next mission. At the challenge site, they learn the event is called the Heavy-Weight Hustle. Johnny explains they must traverse an uphill obstacle course. Not only do they have the opportunity to walk away with $10,000 for the bank, they will also win an MP3 player. Whoever is the first guy to the top, can utilize the water wall, a water cannon which can be used "shoot" the other team. The catch this time is that they all must wear fat suits during the mission. Cue the montage of everyone goofing around in their fat suits before the mission starts.
The teams discuss strategy and Matt from Real World and Steve from Road Rules emerge as leaders. Adam notes that Steve really needs to step up this mission because he's been getting a lot of gauntlet votes. Elka is still unable to compete due to her injured knee, but Trishelle notes that Rachel has the same injury and she's not sitting out. A banged and bruised Trishelle suspects people are using their injury to their advantage so that they won't get voted to the gauntlet.
The competition starts and lots of people are struggling and stumbling right off the bat. Early on, Coral lands on her knee and is in a lot of pain as she goes through the course. A lot of people get stuck on the slippery hill. Road Rules has each member crawling over a line of team members, but Veronica says "this s-t is just not working." Once Theo gets to the top and starts spraying water, it becomes harder for Road Rules. Nathan says that instead of winging this mission, the strategy they developed looks like it is actually working. That being said, Real World walks across the finish line first.
The teams return to the cabin to discuss who will go to the gauntlet and, besides death and taxes, Sarah says the one thing she can always count on is the ever-present struggle to keep her ass on the team. Steve said it doesn't make sense to send Sarah because she has consistently performed well, but alas Sarah is voted to the gauntlet and hopes that "lightening strikes twice." Back at the Real World meeting, Matt asks the hard-hitting questions like what would it "mean" for the team if he was gone. Alton says Matt has been nothing but a shining star, but Coral is more concerned about his attitude and ego.
Not to her face, Mike notes that Coral is a very intimidating person. "If you vote for her, you better well believe that she's gonna vote right back at you and then get everyone on her side," he says. "She has that power." Even though Elka forgives Matt (but doesn't forget) for voting for her, she still votes for him, saying they don't have a lot of girls left and they need to start sending guys home. Mike disagrees and feels Matt is one of the strong players, but realizes that other people won't stop voting for Matt until he goes to the gauntlet and comes back. Theo did not agree with everyone voting for Matt and even adds that he can never knock anyone for their belief in God.
In the gauntlet, Matt rolls Dead Man's Drop, the same challenge Sarah defeated David in a few weeks ago. Sarah laughs that the gauntlet is beginning to feel like her second home. She just "hangs around and kicks people off, no big deal." Irulan is aware that Sarah doesn't want a lot of noise or people cheering for her when she's doing the challenge, so Irulan decides to play dirty and come over to the Road Rules side of the pool and start cheering for Matt to distract Sarah. Veronica "lightly" moves her hand down and tells her to go cheer on her own side and Irulan flips out. But her distraction tactic doesn't work because Matt begins to slip and eventually falls. Darrell sums up where each team is at: Road Rules has $40,000 and Real World has $20,000; Real World has 10 people to Road Rules' 12.
Matt tells Sarah's team that if they ever want to win the gauntlet, just send her cuz she's a fighter. Sarah gives him a hug and soon after, Road Rules is up in Real World's face fighting about the incident with Irulan and Veronica. Sarah tells Real World they should go comfort their teammate Matt and adds that this kind of crap makes her wish she's headed home.
Trishelle is sad that Matt is going because she has been really impressed by who he is as a person. Matt was the first person to give Sarah a hug after the gauntlet challenge, rather than her own team. Sarah says that if everybody on both teams was like Matt, this would be a very different game. Before he leaves, Matt says he thinks that Road Rules is going to walk all over Real World if they don't get their act together. Matt signs off by saying it's time to go back and keep saving the world.
Sarah calls her boyfriend and talks about how she's feeling a huge lack of support combined with a large dose of pettiness. In the meantime, Mike talks to Trishelle about how Matt should not have gone home and seems to imply that Coral and Elka should have. Mike says this game needs to stop being a popularity contest.
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Episode 8
Looking very cozy, Mike and Trishelle lie on the hammock together and talk. Later in confessional, Mike admits that the more he looks at, um, talks to Trishelle the more he likes her. He thinks they have the beginning of a "cool little relationship." Cut to Mike and Trishelle kissing in a night club, just to make things official. Ace reporter Norman says their "fling" is not even gossip anymore, especially since now he's hearing that the duo is officially boyfriend-girlfriend.
The Real World team talks about developing a new strategy for the Gauntlet, while Nathan worries that other people think that Mike won't vote for Trishelle to go into the Gauntlet because they are an item. Irulan jokes that Trishelle and Mike will make perfect All-American children.
The following day, they get down to business and Johnny welcomes everyone to the "Sink My Ship" mission. The objective of the challenge is to sink their opponent's boat, while not being sunk themselves. Surprisingly, there is no "catch" to this challenge. They don't have to maneuver their raft with their hands tied behind their back or anything crazy like that. However, to make things more interesting, today also begins Phase Two, where they will start identifying individuals who give the best performance after each event. Those team members will be awarded the FreshLook EyeSaver, which saves them from being sacrificed to the Gauntlet for that round.
Each person gets a little raft and they must pull the ball attached to their opponent's rafts, which will deflate that raft. After the first round, there are three Real World team members left and Road Rules has eight. Norman is the only one left at the end of the second heat, with five Road Rulers left. Norm fights the good fight, but his raft sinks and Road Rules wins again. Norm receives the FreshLook EyeSaver and Dave from Road Rules also receives one for his stellar performance.
Cara learns that her team is voting her into the Gauntlet and she even casts a vote for herself, but so does her boyfriend Dave who claims, "I'm only doing it because that's the way the team decided to do it." Dave says he starts missing Cara immediately and doesn't know what to do or say. Cara says she is needing support from a bumbling Dave and she is just not getting it. Cara tells Dave that if she sees him shrugging his shoulders if she loses, she will break up with him. She wants him to openly display his sadness for her defeat. Seriously, that's what she requested.
In the Real World camp, Mike says they need to start voting people into the Gauntlet based on their performance in missions. Coral reminds everyone they are allowed to have their own vote and just because Mike votes one way, does not mean they all have to follow. Mike votes Elka and others vote for Trishelle, but it's Elka who is headed for the Gauntlet. Pissed, Elka is convinced that Mike's "little boyfriend-girlfriend" game is affecting his mind and the way he's voting. Shocked her teammates hat the guts to vote her to the gauntlet, Elka really believes she is an asset to her team. Cara rolls "Knock Your Block Off." Always in Elka's corner, Coral thinks Elka will win just so she can give a big "F-you" to the people who voted her off.
The two women must use tubes to knock each other off a block they are standing on, which is suspended over the pool. After five minutes of jousting they are exhausted and still don't have a winner. Finally Elka falls into the water and Cara is victorious. Real World has now lost five players and Road Rules has only lost two. Still pissed, Elka says the only person she has been able to count on has been Coral. Taking the high road, Trishelle comes over to tell her that she thought she did really well, but Elka gives a look of disgust to Coral after Trishelle leaves.
Dave and Cara cuddle on the bed and Dave admits that he didn't know what Cara wanted from him when she was upset, but he did really want to help her. Dave says Cara is good at forgiving him and they are in a really good place in their relationship right now.
Not one to let sleeping dogs lie, Elka asks Mike why he voted for her. Mike says that he didn't see Trishelle cry after she got hurt in her biking accident and he has been impressed by how motivated she was to compete after getting hurt. Elka, on the other hand, hasn't shown that same drive. Elka says Mike's "excuse" is a cop out and thinks she is, or "was" the most physically strong girl on her team. Mike says he also voted for Elka because, although she started out strong, she lost some steam and she hasn't bonded with her teammates as much as she should. Trishelle, The Miz's biggest fan, thinks Elka should just shut up, go home, and stop trying to pick fights that make her Mikey-Wikey feel bad.
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Episode 9
Mike talks to Coral about how Road Rules is killing them. Coral has a feeling that her time in the Gauntlet is coming up again and she hopes she can win. She is fully aware that Mike wants to win and apparently that's more important to him than their friendship. Coral quizzes Mike as to why he voted for Elka over Trishelle. He explains that he thought Elka was a weaker player. Coral doesn't buy it and thinks that Mike and Trishelle have formed a "hybrid person" and she is "sickened" by their relationship. Mike says he is going for the weakest people and if Coral messes up in the next mission, she is darn sure to get another gauntlet vote again from "The Miz".
Looking like Maverick, Johnny explains that the next mission is called Red Baron and the objective of the challenge is to shoot down your opponent's plane in the shortest amount of time possible. All the guys are psyched about donning flight suits and flying planes. The one player from each team who shoots down their opponent in the shortest amount of time will win the FreshLook EyeSaver, making them exempt from a gauntlet run. They all receive instruction about how to fly the plane and how the dogfight will work. The Real World is desperate for a win today. Road Rules has to have three people sit out for this mission because Real World is now short three players. Cara volunteers but asks not to be penalized for it. Sarah and Darrell will also sit out.
While they are choosing the order that everyone will fly, Latterrian is ranting and raving about who knows what. Adam knows Latterrian is aware that he must step up this mission and that's probably why the tension is causing him to cop a 'tude. Come gauntlet time, his bad attitude could affect him, though. First up in the air, Abe dogfights with Alton and his boyhood dream comes true as he sends Alton's plane spinning. Theo battles Trishelle and jokes that she's used to "getting at it, but not used to getting at it up there and I will take you down, holler." After getting hit by Theo, Trishelle admits that on the last two missions, she didn't give her 110% and she's disappointed in herself. Adam takes out Theo from Real World and Road Rules looks they are going to shut out the struggling Real World team.
The Real Worlders are looking low and need to start winning some dogfights. Nathan turns things around when he beats Rachel (Road Rules) and finally racks up a win for his team. Rachel (Back to New York) hates flying, but sucks it up for the mission and kicks Steve's ass despite her fears. Real World has two wins and is on a roll. Coral worries that if she doesn't perform well, she will be in danger of attending the gauntlet, but she succeeds in shooting down Latterrian's plane. Mike takes down Dave in his dogfight. And Veronica takes down Irulan, which ties up the score at four. Norm and Roni will dogfight and the winner team's will be declared victorious. Roni kicks Norms booty and brings back a win for the Road Rules team. Dave and Nathan receive immunity from the gauntlet in the form of the FreshLook EyeSaver.
In the gauntlet meeting, Trishelle says she is sick of all the dishonesty and cites Coral as a consistently the weak player, but decides to vote herself to the gauntlet because she knows she has screwed up too. Mike says Trishelle has the heart and drive to do well in the gauntlet. Irulan votes for herself and most of the other votes go to Trishelle. But Mike votes for Irulan because he says he was going to vote for whoever didn't win from the Coral, Trishelle and Irulan trio. Coral is once again shocked because any time anyone else has volunteered for the gauntlet, Mike has welcomed that. While she knows she didn't perform well today, Irulan feels like Mike doesn't want Trishelle to go home and his vote was a cop-out.
Minutes before the Road Rules voting takes place, Latterrian apologizes for his bad attitude earlier in the day as a last-ditch effort to save himself from the gauntlet. Steve is voted into the gauntlet and he rolls Perfect Fit, which he has already competed in and come out victorious. Steve, the self-proclaimed puzzle master is confident about winning again. Trishelle says she is good at a lot of things people don't know about. (Insert hair toss). Much to everyone surprise, Trishelle wins and Steve is sent packing. Steve says he is not looking forwarding to telling his grandkids that "Las Vegas Trishelle" whooped his ass. (Here's a tip Steve: Don't say "ass" in front of your grandkids).
Post-gauntlet, Irulan talks to Norm about how she's willing to go to the gauntlet for the right reasons and she believes Mike is not being honest. Alton says a lot of people look up to Mike as a team leader, but they are going to begin questioning his motives if he continues to refuse to vote for Trishelle.
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Episode 10
While Mike and Trishelle spend some quality time fly fishing, The Miz tells his gal-pal that he couldn't find a girlfriend in LA cuz everyone is too fake, but Trishelle is beautiful from the inside out and he's really impressed by her. Trishelle is super-happy to have Mike in her life right now too.
Johnny welcomes both teams to Inferno, where they have to climb up a spinning ladder, rescue a stuffed cat, while water is being sprayed on them from a nearby fire house. They will be disqualified if they don't step on every run of the ladder and if they drop their cat, they will be assigned the longest time, plus a two minute penalty. The team with the shortest average time will win the competition, so that means it is very important for individuals to do well.
Norm and Darrell take the ladder first and Norm beats the Campus Crawler by about 10 seconds. Abram beats Irulan in just 42 seconds. Coral loses to Road Rules Rachel. Mike beats Dave and Roni beats Trishelle by a lot. Always the cheerleader, Mike tells Trishelle she did a "good job," while Coral shakes her head.
Alton and Laterrian go head to head and both come in under a minute, but Johnny has to inform Laterrian that he skipped two rungs. This screw up could mean the difference between a win and a loss for the Road Rules team. Bouncing back, Theo clocks in with an impressive 36 seconds. The last Road Ruler to face the Inferno, Sarah knows that her time could determine whether her team wins or loses. She struggles as Nathan breezes by her. Abram comforts her as Real World picks up their check. Theo and Alton receive the FreshLook EyeSaver.
In the Road Rules meeting, Sarah apologizes to her team for dropping the cat, knowing full well she could be headed for that pesky gauntlet again. In addition to Sarah, Laterrian and Veronica's names come up again. Cara is upset that Sarah is chosen to face the gauntlet again. Sarah admits that she performed poorly, but she thinks it is unfair that she has gone gauntleting three times. Adam basically calls her the weakest player on the team to her face and Cara calls him on his pre-gauntlet insensitivity. Sarah says in confessional that her motivation for winning the gauntlet this time around is to shut Adam the hell up.
Still steamed from the heated discussion, Adam tells Darrell that he saw Sarah panic and give up during "Inferno" and he doesn't want someone like that on his team. Darrell calmly says he just wants Sarah going into the gauntlet feeling confident, man. Adam's like, dude, what am I supposed to do? And Dave is like, dude, bite your tongue! Theo gives Sarah some encouragement and tells her he hopes she wins.
Meanwhile, Real World is having problems of their own. They continue argue about what the fair way to vote is and then just decide to vote and see what happens. Mike votes for Coral and so does Trishelle and the rest of the votes go to Trishelle again. Post-vote, a gaggle of Real Worlders gather to complain about their fearless leader Mike and as soon as he and Trishelle show up, everyone clams up. In case that didn't send a clear enough message, Coral asks Mike why he feels like Trishelle is performing better than her. Coral says she thinks his heart is getting in the way and Mike admits that after learning that everyone else voted for Trishelle, maybe he voted wrong.
Sarah and Trishelle are set to face-off in Perfect Fit, which Trishelle just won to send Steve packing. Sarah says all she is thinking is that she doesn't want to lose a puzzle to Trishelle. After getting the puzzle pieces onto the turf, Sarah struggles to get out of the pool, while Trishelle has already started on the puzzle. But Sarah completes it first and her team rushes to hug her. Mike is sad that his girl has got to go, but he gives her a big hug and tries to comfort her. Sarah calls herself a barnacle and says her team can do whatever they want; she's not going anywhere. Knowing he needs to repair some strained relationships, Mike sits down with his team and apologizes to them and to Coral for not voting fairly. He explains that when you hang around with someone for so long, you only see them as strong and it's hard to see them as weak and that's what happened with Trishelle. Coral says she accepts Mike's apology and while she didn't expect him to do it, she's glad he did. She's just not going to make a big deal out of it and throw him a parade or anything.
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Episode 11
Theo (Road Rules) says that everybody tends to sugar coat everything too much when it comes to sending people to the gauntlet. "The truth hurts and it is what it is," he says. Sarah wonders if he is going to send her back to the gauntlet again. "Yes I am," Theo laughs. Theo admits that it's a fact and there is a chance she could go to the gauntlet again. Although she's on an emotional rollercoaster, right now, Sarah is proud to consider herself queen of the gauntlet.
Today the teams will be competing in "Rolling on a River," which will test endurance and agility. The last player standing on the log suspended over the pool, will win the $10,000 for their team. The last person standing from each team will win the FreshLook EyeSaver. The competition starts and four Road Rulers (Laterrian, Dave, Darrell and Sarah) fall right off the bat. Sarah says when Laterrian slipped, his flailing arms knocked her off the log with him.
Rachel is the first Real Worlder to fall and soon there are only three Road Rulers left and four Real Worlders. After a few more falls, it's down to only Roni and Mike. Roni says she's not the least bit tired and Mike revels in the pressure of the entire competition being on his back, but he is pissed that he can't break Roni out of the zone she's in. Although Roni begins to look nervous, but Mike falls and Road Rules wins. Veronica explains that Roni is a quiet person and it's nice to see her shine. Roni says winning makes her feel like she deserves to be on the team. Road Rules now has $70,000 banked while Real World only has $30,000.
The gauntlet meetings commence and in camp Real World, most of the votes are thrown towards Rachel due to her last two poor performances, but a few votes are given to Theo. Coral thinks that it's time for a guy to go to the gauntlet because eventually the women will come into play and they are already down to three women on their team. Rachel voted for herself and it turns out that she will fight for her right to stay on the team. In the Road Rules camp, it appears that Laterrian will be headed to the gauntlet, but when the final votes are tallied, Sarah gets 23 overall points, Veronica has 22 and Laterrian gets 21. Sarah can't believe it, especially since she was accidentally knocked into the pool. Veronica asks her what happened and Sarah says it's not her job to incriminate the people who made her fall. Sarah stays in the room, after the meeting, to talk to Laterrian and he says he would volunteer himself to go to the gauntlet if she wants. He explains he wants to go into the gauntlet, but he knows that could mean he's going home and he needs the money he could potentially win for college. Laterrian doesn't want to argue about how Sarah fell into the pool, he thinks they both fell and no one was to blame. When they leave the room, Sarah is still headed for the gauntlet and she is upset that Laterrian didn't step up to be the bigger person in this situation.
The rest of the Road Rules team continues to talk about the vote after it's over and they wonder how Laterrian got so many votes in the first round and then received last place in the final vote. Cara flips out and says there are other people who deserve to go to the gauntlet besides Sarah.
Rachel can't believe that she will be facing Sarah because they both have become good friends while in Colorado. It's a lose-lose situation, in her eyes. In confessional, Sarah says what Road Rules doesn't realize is that once they get rid of her, there will be someone else who they will target.
Sarah rolls Ride 'Em Cowboy and does not feel confident in this challenge. The competition starts and after Rachel gets knocked off the faux bull, Sarah is victorious again. She and Rachel are both crying when they hug after the competition. Rachel says their new friendship means more to her than the prize money. Coral gives Sarah a hug and says she thinks that it's totally crappy they she has to continue to defend her right to stay on the Road Rules team.
Coral talks to Adam about how she disapproves of how his team has treated Sarah. She explains that a vote to the gauntlet is basically telling a team member that they can do without them and both teams have to do a better job of proving that they want these people facing the gauntlet on their team.
Rachel says she'd rather have Sarah beat her than anyone else. Sarah says she relates to Rachel the best and without her, her time in Telluride won't be the same; she's sorry to see her go. After pressure from numerous people, the Road Rules team decides to be nice and they give Sarah a cake that thanks her for saving their butts four times at the gauntlet. Sarah is all smiles and appreciates it, but she admits that the sudden showering of appreciation is a bit too tardy.
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Episode 12
The Real Worlders have a little powwow and come to the realization that it's high time they even the playing field. Nathan thinks the winds are a changin' and it's time for his down (but not) out team to ace a mission. Meanwhile, annoyingly arrogant Adam talks to Theo and Dave about how the only way to win the challenge is to vote off all the girls.
Veronica and Coral discuss their thoughts about how the guys are turning this challenge into a sexist game. To get ready for the next mission, men and women from Road Rules and Real World hit the gym. As Theo from Real World pumps some iron, he notes he's gotta step it up this time, otherwise he'll be headed to the gauntlet.
Johnny welcomes both teams to the Turntable challenge, where they will have to sit on a spinning platform for as long as they can. The player who stays on the longest will win this challenge for their team. Adam has no qualms about calling himself the strongest player on his team and is confident in his ability to do well at this mission. But once the challenge begins Darrell is quickly knocked off and Adam is next to dismount, while Nathan is the first Real World team member eliminated. Adam eats some crow while he cheers on the rest of his team. Cara notes that this mission isn't only about how strong you are, but mental focus and coordination are also taken into consideration. Soon, four Real World members and seven Road Rulers are left and the majority of people who have flown off the record are the dudes. When Sarah gets thrown off she is happy to see that she held on for longer than some of her other teammates. Soon it is down to Theo and Veronica and they have been on the turntable for just over nine minutes. Finally, Theo is thrown off and Veronica wins one for her team.
Road Rules has now banked a whopping $80,000, compared to Real World's paltry $30,000. Road Rules Theo says it is becoming more and more obvious that everyone on their team has something great to offer.
Back at the cabin, Real World has a difficult time deciding who to vote off. Alton says he hasn't done well in the last two missions and decides to sacrifice himself to the gauntlet because he thinks he can do well. Irulan admits it is difficult seeing her baby Alton headed to the gauntlet and she doesn't want to be one of the people who sends him there.
Cara is pleased that the guys are finally getting a reality check and realizing that maybe the women on the team can contribute. Before they even execute their goofy number voting game, Laterrian decides to vote himself into the gauntlet and Sarah sarcastically thanks her team for giving her a day off. Laterrian says by going into the gauntlet, he can hopefully prove to himself that he's worthy of being on the team.
Alton rolls Pole Climbing and is psyched because he has a "history" of pole climbing. Not quite sure what that "history" is, but we'll play along. As for Laterrian, well, he doesn't have a "history" of climbing poles, but he is one buff dude and should be able to do practically anything.
The first player to reach the top of the pole will pull their opponents release string and the other person will drop into the pool. Alton gets about halfway up the pole, while Laterrian is still struggling to get out of the water. Adam expected bigger things from a strong guy like Laterrian. LT is bummed, not because he lost the money, but because he feels like he let his entire team down.
Veronica feels like today's mission has forced the guys to look to the girls for wins. Even "The Miz" admits that there may be some upcoming mission where girls would be better suited to win.
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Episode 13
Mike admits to Road Rules Theo that sometimes he has no idea who to send to the gauntlet from his team. Theo just listens, but, secretly, he knows that the Real World is in turmoil. On the other hand, Mike can't believe how many times Sarah has gone to the gauntlet and Theo calls Sarah a good luck charm.
Meanwhile, Abe schmoozes Rachel and Veronica with a little extra attention in the form of a massage. Veronica thinks that, like, Abe has a lot to, like, offer. But she doesn't want him to be her boyfriend. Ew.
The two teams learn from Jonny that they will have to jump from a 20 foot platform onto a rope which will be dangling from a helicopter. Not to be confused with an O-Town song, this harrowing mission is called "All or Nothing." Abe is first up and he is pumped, but when he jumps off the platform, he doesn't get a good grip on the rope and falls into the water and is disqualified. Real World team leader Mike goes next and can't quite climb high enough. Members of Road Rules and Real World are disqualified one after another until Theo grabs the rope and makes it into the red zone. The other Theo (Road Rules) makes it to the red zone as well. When Sarah gets on the rope, she gives up, which is exactly what Darrell expects her to do. Nathan is the next Real Worlder to make it to the red and when super-climber Alton scores a winning time, Real World knows they have this mission in the bag. Always astute, Veronica calls this mission the "most difficult, challenging mission ever invented." After everyone is put out of their misery, it is Theo and Alton who take home the FreshLook EyeSaver.
In the Real World gauntlet discussion, Theo tells Mike that everyone looks up to him and if he can't complete a mission, then they wonder how they can complete it. So Mike votes for himself and he is headed for the gauntlet. Irulan admits that their team will be really bummed if he ends up getting sent home.
In camp Road Rules, Adam notes that Sarah belongs in the gauntlet because that's where she's doing the most for herself and the team. There is a tie between Sarah and Abe and because Theo holds the EyeSaver, he must cast the deciding vote, but his vote will remain secret until they all arrive at the gauntlet. Theo has a tight relationship with Sarah and also knows that Abe is a strong player, so what will he do?
When Road Rules learns that "The Miz" will be competing in the gauntlet, they collectively gasp. Abe learns he will be competing against Mike and Sarah is shocked. Theo says he is sick of seeing sacrificial lambs in the gauntlet. The two guys will be competing in Knock Your Block Off. It doesn't take Mike long to knock Mini-Miz into the water. Mike says he loved the rush of being in that gauntlet; he just never wants to have to do it again. Sarah tells Abe that she's sorry and Abe says that she won her gauntlet challenges and she deserves to be there. Veronica begins to cry when she learns Abe is going home, while team Real World is feeling really strong and motivated after this win.
Veronica talks to Rachel about how she voted for Abe to go to the gauntlet because she thought a majority of the team would vote for Sarah and she didn't want to feel guilty for sending Sarah again. She's feeling bad about the decision she made.
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Episode 14
Theo and Adam discuss Sarah and Theo wonders how they can help Sarah turn some of her gauntlet energy into energy for the missions. Always a sweetheart, Adam notes that Sarah has been disqualified two or three times and if it was up to him, he would have sent her into the gauntlet every single time since day one.
Sarah wonders how many times she will have to go into the gauntlet before someone realizes it's just not fair. She doesn't want to give up because that's what she thinks her team wants.
Today, the teams will be competing in a challenge called Vertical Sweep. They must repel down the side of a steep cliff, collecting flags as they go down. It's a 100 foot drop and some of the team members are nervous. Jonny informs them that a DQ will result in a 2 minute penalty along with the worst score of the day. The lowest average score will win $10,000 for their team and a nifty audio jukebox. The teams do an obligatory cheer. Woo hoo! Yeah! Cool!
Darrell goes first and he has a tough time because of his fear of heights. He is able to make it down the side of the mountain will all of the flags in hand. Nathan goes next and spanks the cliff. Roni does really well as Adam and her team cheers her on.
Before her turn, Sarah says she is trying not to over think the challenge. She does really well and Adam is her biggest cheerleader back on the ground. But as she nears the ground she struggles and begins hitting her back against the cliff. Roni strongly instructs her not to give up, but Sarah hits the ground and is disqualified because she missed one flag. On the Real World side, Irulan and Coral finish, but their times are the worst on their team. Cara is also disqualified and she hopes this doesn't mean she is going to the gauntlet. Everyone else successfully completes the repel and Real World wins the big check and the audio jukebox. Woo hoo! Yeah! Cool! Real World's total is now at $50,000, while Road Rules holds strong at $80,000. Adam and Alton receive the FreshLook EyeSaver, which will save their asses from the gauntlet.
At the Real World meeting, Irulan says she feels like today is her day to go. Alton speaks up and says he doesn't want his honey bunch to go because he thinks some other people deserve to go. She eventually convinces Alton and the rest of her team that today is her day to face the gauntlet.
In a desperate plea to save her ass Sarah tells her team that if she goes into the gauntlet and rolls Dead Man's Drop, she won't do well because she hurt her back today. Theo says he saw Cara laugh when she hit the ground and was disqualified and he didn't appreciate that. After all is said and done, it doesn't take Road Rules long to vote Sarah back into her home away from home, the gauntlet.
Murphy's Law has Sarah rolling Dead Man's Drop and she is upset that they have to do this mission in the rain. Before going into competition, Sarah says it's really hard for her not to take what's been happening personally, especially when some of her teammates really want to see her fail. Sarah worries that Irulan is lighter than her and this could work in Irulan's favor. Thirty minutes go by and they are both still hanging upside down. Irulan keeps giving Sarah the evil eye, but Sarah refuses to look back and remains in her zone. Meanwhile, Adam does not understand how both girls could hang upside down for so long. Sarah says this entire competition is about personal redemption for her. Soon Irulan starts to falter and although she desperately tries to hang on, she drops into the water. Sarah's teammates jump into the cold water and Theo starts yelling for Irulan to go home. This pisses Alton off big time and just as a fight is about to break out, Nathan holds Alton back. Sarah doesn't appreciate that her team thinks it's cool to rag on Irulan after Sarah just beat her in the gauntlet. Adam tells Sarah she did a really good job, but left out the part where he will vote her into the gauntlet again without even thinking twice about it. Nathan knows there is some shadiness going down and says it's false to cheer for someone who they've voted into the gauntlet five times.
Back at the lodge, Road Rules Theo tells everyone tomorrow is "you cannot vote for Sarah day." Sarah says she has never been in a position where she has been in control of anybody. But here she has sent five people home and has taken this Challenge experience away five people and she hasn't quite processed how she feels about it all.
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Episode 15
Norman notes that there is still a lot of tension in the RR/RW house. For starters, Coral does not appreciate that Road Rulers booed Irulan when she was sent packing. Darrell makes it clear that he didn't participate in the booing. Theo keeps it real by saying Irulan has been a poor sport the entire competition, which is why he went off on her when she lost to Sarah. This incites a huge argument between both teams.
Later, Theo tells Sarah that he knows Veronica has been looking at the vote cards to see who is voting for her. Sarah notes that most people don't like Veronica because she is so manipulative. It's coming down to the final gauntlet and whoever is sent home after this challenge won't win a drop of money. Coral know that if she doesn't do well in this mission, she is headed back to the gauntlet, but she claims she would rather burn her eyes out with cigarettes before she goes back there.
Theo continues to talk about Veronica and tells Adam that he doesn't think the vibe Veronica gives off is positive for the whole team. Theo cracks that Veronica is willing to shower with the whole team in order to not get voted off. Adam agrees that her attitude and bossiness are probably going to get her voted into the gauntlet.
Both teams arrive to learn they will be playing the Dukes of Saturn. They will be climbing form one Saturn Ion to another Saturn Ion, both of which happen to be suspended 100 feet in the air, with a ladder connecting them.
The team that completes the mission in the best average time will win. Even the mighty Miz's knees are a knockin' when he sees what must be done on this harrowing mission. Nathan says Real World is pumped because they have two wins in a row and are gunning for their third. Veronica is well aware that she has to nab the EyeSaver in order to be saved from today's gauntlet. Nathan is the first to complete the mission. Dave does well and Sarah finishes with a respectable time of 48 seconds. Cara worries her time is not good enough, but she doesn't know she just completed the course in a mere 33 seconds. Road Rules seems to be in the lead. Expert climber, Alton crawls across the later like a little monkey and scores a time of 19 seconds, which is the best time of the day so far. Coral also does extremely well with a 25 second score. Veronica clocks in at 28 seconds and when all is said and done, neither team knows which team will win. Jonny announces that Real World has won the money. FreshLook EyeSavers go to Alton and (surprise!) Veronica, who can't believe she gets to stick around for the final mission and a shot at the money pot. Meanwhile, Theo is not pleased that Veronica will be staying in Telluride for the final mission. For a moment, Road Rules and Real World put their differences aside and congratulate each other after the challenge.
Now that Veronica holds the EyeSaver, the Road Rules team will have to reevaluate who they want to send home. Wise not to trust her ungrateful teammates, Sarah doesn't fully believe that today will be her "day off" from the gauntlet. Cara defends her performances and says she feels she has done a little bit better than Sarah and doesn't want to go to the gauntlet. Basically it looks like Dave, Cara and Darrell are all candidates, but it is Dave's schmoopy, Cara, who ultimately gets voted in.
Real World has no clue what to do in their meeting. Theo says he thinks it's between himself and Coral, but he feels he's been stepping it up for the last few missions. The votes are tied, so Alton, the winner of the FreshLook EyeSaver, must break it.
Tune in next week to find out who will face Cara in the gauntlet
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Episode 16
Alton is faced with a very difficult decision. He voted for Coral in the initial round of voting and now must cast the tie-breaking vote. He hates being in this position and finally decides to send Theo to the gauntlet because he doesn't want to take away the opportunity for Coral to win $150,000, even though he knows she is their weakest player. Theo knows he got the shaft, but he goes with the decision and hopes to come back from the gauntlet victorious.
Theo and Cara face off in Ride 'Em Cowboy in the gauntlet. Neither is excited about doing an urban cowboy because they have no idea what to expect from the wily mechanical bull. Cara is superbly balanced during the challenge (while her boyfriend looks like he's about to pop a gasket from nervousness), but Theo struggles to hold on and eventually is thrown off. Theo isn't bummed, though, and says he is going home with pride and dignity. Nathan thinks Theo was probably the best competitor they have lost in the gauntlet and the Real World is crossing their fingers that it will turn out to be beneficial for them to have less people going into the final challenge. Theo talks to his Road Rules team about how they really have to suck it up for the final mission. Sarah knows she has been sent to the gauntlet so many times because the teammates don't trust that she'll make it through the final mission. Adam says Road Rules is lucky Sarah and Cara have sent Real Worlders home, but he's not sure Road Rules is lucky that those two have returned to the Road Rules team. You pickin' up what he's puttin' down?
The teams learn the final challenge they will be competing is called Gold Rush and it is worth an eye-popping $150,000. The entire team must cross the finish line in order to win. Don't forget that saying about how you're only as good as your weakest link. Stay tuned because this turns out to be a very key element in the final mission. Each team will go through a mountain course that has seven obstacles. Every time they overcome an obstacle, they will receive a gold puzzle piece. At the end of the race, the must put the puzzle together and then cross the finish line.
If a player gets hurt, they can decide to leave them and be penalized for 10 minutes or they can carry them to the finish line. Rachel notices that the girls are not happy about the four mile course. Theo says he can see in Sarah's eyes that she is the only one who isn't sure she can complete this. Mike believes Sarah, Cara and Veronica will probably hurt the Road Rulers' chances of winning.
The challenge starts and after running for a mere 200 yards, Coral starts walking. Darrell tries to get as far ahead as he can to psyche out the other team. Adam carries Sarah piggy back and Mike carries Coral on his back. Road Rules is the first team to the first check point. Darrell tells Sarah to catch her breath because she is going to finish this by herself. Real World catches up to Road Rules just as they are finishing climbing the wall. But Coral can't take another step and lies flat out on the ground saying she can't see and she feels like she is going to pass out. Mike could care less that his best friend looks like she is about to die and is pissed that she is saying she can't do it at such an early stage in the challenge course. Her entire team is trying to motivate her, but it's not helping. Mike calls this situation a nightmare come true. Not wanting to finish without her, Mike puts Coral on his back and the Real World team is off and running again.
Meanwhile Darrell doesn't care if his teammates are tired or if their booty itches, he wants them all to push hard. Their hard work pays off and Road Rules is the first to the Cash Crawl obstacle and they finish it 2:04 ahead of Real World.
Adam holds Sarah's hand and pulls her up the hill they are climbing and they make it to the Gold Digger obstacle. As Real World slowly approaches the next obstacle, Mike fumes about the fact that Coral is struggling. Looking back, Nathan thinks that Coral should have been in the last gauntlet and everyone is having woulda, coulda, shoulda thoughts. Coral begs her team to leave her and take the 10 minute penalty, but they refuse.
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Episode 17
The Real World and Road Rules are in the middle of their final challenge. Coral pleads with her team to just leave her and take the 10 minute penalty, but Mike angrily insists that she get up and continue on. Coral says she blacked out and whatever is going on with her is beyond her control. At Mike's command, she gets up and Mike and Alton help her walk, but Norman decides that they should take the 10 minute penalty and Coral is left in the forest. Both teams are now at the Gold Dig and the Road Rules team is very tired. The Real World team knows they have a lot of time to make up, so they try to hustle. Meanwhile, Coral receives oxygen, but still has difficulty breathing. She says she can't see out of one eye and her toes are becoming numb. When Coral receives medical attention, she mentions she is allergic to spiders. She is then taken to the hospital.
Even though the two teams are neck-in-neck, but Real World still has a 10 minute deficit. At the Goldie-Locks mission, Road Rules have difficulty opening the lock box, while Read World figures out the code quickly and sets off for the next challenge. Road Rules is afraid they are now going to lose the mission. Real World arrives at the final aspect of the mission where they must put the puzzle together, Real World knows this is where they can make up the 10 minutes.
Road Rules finally breaks the code and arrives at the puzzle and Theo notes that "The Miz" beat him two years ago in Cabo San Lucas on the puzzle and now it's his turn to return the favor, so to speak. But Mike is confident his team can still pull out a win. Both teams struggle with the puzzle, but it's Road Rules who finishes first and crosses the finish line and they can't believe it. Mike's stomach drops when he sees the Road Rules team celebrating. Adam says this win feels very, very special, while Mike notes that this is one of the hardest missions he's ever had. Sarah cannot believe that she won and Rachel says Sarah really pulled through for her team. Sarah says she never pushed herself so hard in her entire life and she wanted to give up so many times, but she's glad she didn't. Meanwhile, the intensity of the mission begins to take its toll on the Real World boys, as they begin bicker and argue about whether or not Coral should have been on the team for the final mission. Mike feels like Coral quit on the entire team and since apparently he can't think for himself, he believes he was manipulated into believing that she should stay on the team.
At the emergency center, Coral learns she had a severe allergic reaction to a spider bite and she wants her team to know that she didn't quit and the fact that her team wasn't at the hospital to see what happened will really affect how they view the situation. The older, wiser Real Worlder Norman says his friendship with Coral is more important than money and a car.
Jonny presents the check to the Road Rules team and they learn they have won $230,000 and Saturn Ions. Theo says he is going to give some of his money to his mom and help his brother get a car. Sarah says now that she has some extra cash, she can get a job that she actually wants and stop settling so much. Sarah didn't even think she was going to make it past week two, but she kept fighting and she is proud to say she won a challenge.
Mike says he's come away with this challenge with a bunch of prizes and a girlfriend, so life's not that bad for "The Miz." Nathan finally admits that money is, er, isn't everything and he mostly just psyched that he got to do some really cool stuff on this trip. Nostalgia takes over and everyone reminisces about the great memories they formed in Telluride. But one question does remain… will Mike and Corals friendship survive this traumatic final mission?
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*Information and Pictures provided by MTV.com