Posted on 05/06/2015 by Elizabeth in Naked And Afraid and Cast Interviews
By Ashley Thompson
Alyssa from the Mayan Sacrifice episode of Naked And Afraid was kind enough to answer a few questions for us. She gives us some insight into the casting process, her experience and what it's like after the challenge.
RW: How were you cast?
Alyssa: Funny story, I hadn't heard of the tv show. I mean, when I first
applied not a lot of people knew about it. My mom and sister saw a commercial
for it and said, "Apply! You like being outside... this show is
outside." So I applied and I think it was kind of a joke, the application
I sent in, and it just kind of took over from there. Interview after interview,
it was like a week long process. And then they flew me out to LA.
RW: So you weren't that familiar with it?
Alyssa: I hadn't seen any of the episodes until I got to LA. I was like, 'maybe
I should see what this show actually is'. ::laughs::
RW: Did you do anything special to stand out?
Alyssa: I must have had to do something but I can't pinpoint exactly what it
was. I'm not the most outgoing person, I'm actually pretty shy. So maybe me
being shy worked for me.
RW: How far in advance did you know your location?
Alyssa: I think it was like 10 days. Not far.
RW: Since you only had 10 days, what did you do to prepare?
Alyssa: When I got to LA I made the decision to prepare there. But I didn't
know the location so I couldn't specifically prepare. I just tried every way to
make fire and really practiced my bow drill. I just tried a bunch of skills and
gained a bunch of weight.
RW: Were you able to prepare your skin for the intense sun?
Alyssa: I did go outside more wearing tanning sunscreen. I also used this stuff
on my feet to make them tough. I don't think I could've gotten over the coral
if I hadn't used it. It's for humans and dogs. I actually use it on my dog and
she does great with it.
RW: Given your experience and what you do/where you go with at-risk youths,
which is harder? The Dessert or the Yucatan?
Alyssa: That's a tough question. They both have their different challenges. Survival-wise
I think the dessert would be harder because there's not a lot water. If we
hadn't had those cenotes we wouldn't have even gotten water, we would have been
screwed. We were very lucky to have coconuts and water. If we were in the
dessert... that would have been tough.
RW: Did you ever consider drinking your own urine for hydration?
Alyssa: ::laughing:: No. I don't think I ever really thought about drinking my
own urine. I'm sure we would've gotten to that point. He would have said,
"C'mon let's drink that urine!" and I would have been like,
"Alright let's do this!" ::laughing::
RW: What were you most afraid of after you found out your location, before
you arrived?
Alyssa: I think most people think they'll be most afraid of the animals. But
the only thing I could think of was the present moment and leaving everyone, my
boyfriend and my dog. It would be really challenging to be away for 21 days and
them not knowing if I was ok or if I was sick. But I think leaving was the
hardest part, knowing I was going to have to say 'goodbye' for a bit.
RW: Once you were there for a few days, what were your fears?
Alyssa: Oh my gosh, the hardest thing was the sun. Tee most terrifying was
knowing there was the crocodile where we bathed. I don't like crocodiles, I
don't want to bathe with them.
RW: Knowing all of your experience, were you disappointed in learning your
PSR score after watching the episode?
Alyssa: No, I didn't really worry too much about that. The people that made
those probably don't really know me. Whatever they say. It just a number to me.
But I was thankful for what they think of me! It was very nice and generous.
RW: When in the challenge did clothing become a priority?
Alyssa: It was actually hourly. There was times of the day when I worried about
clothing because I was going out or I was so sick of everyone being clothed and
me being naked. But unless you really invest your time in making clothes...
they're just going to come off. You're just constantly moving so your clothes
are really scratchy or they hold you back. You don't even worry about clothes
after that.
RW: Is that why you didn't make shoes to hike to your water source or for
extraction?
Alyssa: We actually did make some shoes. They weren't the best shoes out there.
To be honest it didn't really hurt my feet that bad. I had food and fire and
other things on my mind.
RW: Speaking of food, since it was so hot during the day did you do most of
your scavenging/hunting before the sun came up?
Alyssa: That's exactly what we did. We would wake up before the sun came up...
we were awake all night because of the mosquitoes we really didn't sleep at
all. Which we could have used to our advantage a lot more. But you're hopeful
at nighttime that you'll get some sleep. You don't really tackle too many
project. We couldn't get too much accomplished during the day. I was so
exhausted in the hot sun.
RW: The fire didn't actually keep the bugs away, then?
Alyssa: No, it didn't. It actually invited them more. Basically what it comes
down to is your shit out of luck when it comes to bugs. You just have to accept
them.
RW: What was worse, the bug bites or the sand?
Alyssa: The bug bites! The sand made it better a little bit, it would scratch
your bug bites when you'd move around a little bit ::laughs::.
RW: Most people are concerned about the being naked together, but what was
hygiene like?
Alyssa: Actually there was a horribly good clip of me where I took the charcoal
we used for our filter. Every five days or so I would brush my teeth and get
the stuff out. I would feel so good after!
RW: We see you hunting at night for crabs, but normally the camera crews
leave at night. Why did they stay that particular night?
Alyssa: We told them. I was like, "We're going crab hunting tonight, you
might want to stick around." They got a few giggles in.
RW: Would you do all this again?
Alyssa: Absolutely! They ask us that once we're extracted and we're sitting
there like, "Hell no!" ::laughs::. But most people four days later
their ready to do it again.
RW: When do you get to shower and put clothes back on after extraction?
Alyssa: When you get back to the closest town. For us we were like two hours
away. Once we got back... actually I had to wait a little bit. I got back to my
hotel room and I was trying to Skype with my boyfriend and I heard a knock at
my door and my mom had come to surprise me.
RW: Was she like, "I love you honey! Get in the shower."?
Alyssa: I was like, "I'm so glad you're here! I have to get in the
shower." ::laughs::
RW: If you got to do it again what would you do differently?
Alyssa: I wouldn't do too much differently. IT would be different every where
you go. I could try to do the same things but it wouldn't come close to working
the next time. I would try to do more things I think. I would probably be just
as exhausted, though. It's easy to sit back on the couch and say, "You
should do this... you should do that..." but in reality you would take it
moment by moment.
RW: Is there something that was edited out that you wish would have been
shown?
Alyssa: I mean... of course all of the cool things we made. We made a coconut
ladder because I couldn't climb the tree. All the trips to the cenotes. One
night Luke and I were trying to sleep and the mosquitoes were bothering us so
we tried burying ourselves. ::laughing:: He was neck deep in sand I put the bag
over his head and he looked terrifying like I had kidnapped him. We had some
good times. There's so much footage.
RW: Do you have any plans to visit the Yucatan again as a tourist?
Alyssa: I would love to. I still know some people down there that were helping
out that said they could get be back out there to the site so...
RW: We saw a little clip of you back home really enjoying ice cream after
the challenge. What's your favorite flavor?
Alyssa: This summer it's mint chocolate chip.
RW: Because you didn't get to brush your teeth with anything but charcoal
for 3 weeks?
Alyssa: ::laughing:: Exactly!
Photo credit: Discovery
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