by Gina Scarpa

There are still five teams remaining on The Amazing Race, after Bopper and Mark were saved yet again by a non-elimination leg. They'll kick off tonight three hours behind the pack and as if that's not bad enough, Mark is suffering from heat stroke. Teams start off by visiting a temple, where Brendon and Rachel encounter a Fast Forward and head to another temple, where they're asked to shave their head. Flashback to season 7's Uchenna and Joyce - one of the best teams ever!

Rachel immediately bursts into tears. If you're not going to do it, you need to get the hell out of there. Don't cry about your extensions, don't ask Brendon what you should do, just go. And that's exactly what they do. No Fast Forward for them. She literally said, "I need hair to be pretty."

At a local shop, teams face a Road Block where one team member must use the husks of coconut to spin and spool rope. Ralph finishes first, and he and Vanessa head to Fort Kochi on foot. On the way, she trips and falls, twisting her ankle. She's a trooper, though, and gets right back up to continue on. I bet she would've shaved her head...

It's time for a Detour at Fort Kochi and the choices are Pachyderm or Pack A Box. In Pachyderm, teams decorate an elephant and then transport manure to a nearby truck. Well, I was on board until that second part. In Pack A Box, teams must pack ten boxes of ginger and deliver them to a shipping manager. Everyone wisely chooses the elephants over the ginger, with the exception of Art and JJ.

Hours behind, Mark and Bopper finally get going and face their Speed Bump right away. They must paint a tiger on the stomach of a dancer, which is pretty weird but not as weird as that oil bath a few weeks back.

Dave and Rachel are the first to complete the Detour and head for the pit stop, located at Cheena Vala Fishing Nets. Brendon and Rachel finish next, with Vanessa and Ralph not too far behind them. Art and JJ have only filled four boxes back at the Detour at this point and are in serious trouble if Mark and Bopper check on the Fast Forward. 

Teams arrive in the following order: Dave and Rachel (who win $10,000 each), Brendon and Rachel, and Vanessa and Ralph.  Rachel and Vanessa finally have it out on the mat and apologize, but it's clear that they won't be friends anytime soon.  Mark and Bopper go for the Fast Forward (and Bopper looks like Bryan Cranston in Breaking Bad), but Art and JJ reach the mat in time to finish in fourth.  We say goodbye to the team from Kentucky and they will definitely be missed.  I know I'm not the only one that wanted to see them make it to the end.

The Amazing Race airs Sundays at 8/7c on CBS.

(Image courtesy of CBS)

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