By Andy Sloan

 

After 19 Days, a blood-soaked buff and a tribal blindside, Kelly Remington became the 7th castaway voted out of Survivor: Worlds Apart! She talks Blue Collars, mistakes and challenges!

 

Lets start at the beginning of this game. We didn't see a lot of you on screen, but come Lindsey's elimination, you and Mike were seen as the power couple. How and when did this alliance start?

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This began on Day 2. Mike and I were down by the water talking strategy and we just decided from that day on we we're going to form an alliance and not show the rest of the team how tight we were.

 

Was it your collective choice to get rid of Lindsey then?

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Yes that was my choice! I loved Lindsey during the game and after the game now we're very good friends, but during the game she was very controlling and Sierra and her were very tight. They became a power couple in our eyes, so we had to get rid of her. Then hopefully it'd be more laxed around camp because her and Rodney were obviously not having the best relationship. But yes, that was my decision to get rid of Lindsey and I think I made the right choice.

 

When you swap tribes, now your the only Blue Collar on the Nagarote tribe. What was your new strategy going into it?

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I tried to convince the No Collars how dysfunctional the Blue Collars were, so I let them know I had nothing to do with them. If we merged I wanted them to know that I would not go back. But in actuality once we merged I couldn't wait to get back to my Blues. I was just lying as much as I could to save my butt.

 

How well do you think this worked pre-merge. So lets say you lost the second immunity challenge with your new tribe, which we're definitely talking about later, did you feel confident enough with your new tribe that they'd keep you around?

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If we lost, I wasn't 100% confident. There were 4 Blue Collars on the other tribe and I was a fifth, so if we lost there was a good possibility I was going home. They said they were going to go for Shirin, but that's just what they were telling me. I definitely feel I could've been on the chopping block, so I was thankful they threw that challenge!

 

Going into the merge, Jenn seemed to catch on quickly that you weren't with them and Shirin also wanted you out. What happened? Why weren't you able to play both sides?

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Ahh, I got lazy. Bottom line is I got complacent and was happy to be back with my Blue Collars. I didn't think about an idol being played. I thought there was a new twist in Survivor 30 that there were actually no idols.

 

I was just happy to be back with Mike and my Blue Collar guys that I didn't give them the time or effort. I didn't go talk to them to make them feel like I was still with them because I didn't think I'd be on their radar. I wasn't a threat in the challenges.

 

Well then why was it you? They could've voted off anyone on the Blue Collar tribe. Why choose you?

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It was definitely personal. I lied to them and then they realized the Blue Collars were pretty tight and strong. They took it personal that I was with them and then flipped. They thought I was the strong strategic player out there, so they found me a threat and then got rid of me!

 

Who were you loyal to besides Mike? We saw Rodney create an ideal final 4 with you, him, Carolyn and Will, but we're you ever in on that?

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The second to Mike definitely would've been Rodney. Mike, Rodney, Carolyn were my numbers 1, 2 and 3. Rodney and I had an alliance out there as well. We discussed who we wanted to take out and say this is how the game is going to be played to take us to the final 4. I would've eventually told Mike what was going on, but he wasn't aware of that at this point.

 

Lets switch you and Mike for a second. You're on Escameca and just threw the challenge. Do you think it was a good idea to get rid of Joaquin?

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It definitely cost trust from Rodney. Rodney was pissed at Mike and it drove a wedge in the Blue Collars. Mike tried to patch it up, but it only did so much. When we merged Rodney came up to me and was like, "You're not going to believe what Mike did." It made him question the Blue Collars and us being able to stick together.

 

Okay Kelly, this is what I've been waiting to ask you. Lets talk about the challenges. In the reward challenge where you were blindfolded and smacked with the platform, what on earth was going through your mind?

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HAHA! That challenge was a nightmare from the beginning! We couldn't hear Sierra yelling! We picked the wrong person obviously to yell out commands. Lindsey and I were going under things when we should've been going over, we were running into everything and it was crazy and horrible. WE NEEDED THESE CHICKENS THOUGH.

 

Then obviously as the game continues, the platform falls on me and at that point I think I just ran into a tree! I was like oh my gosh, what did I just run into? We're still playing though! It's game on until Jeff actually yells stop. Then Lindsey asks, "Kelly what's going on?" and I respond, "I'm not really sure," until they're like Kelly take a knee.

 

I wasn't dizzy. I was just so focused on the game and didn't even realize until we stopped. Then I could see the blood on my white shirt. At first I thought it was sweat, but it was actually the blood coming down my face.

 

Haha, well it made for some good TV and props to you for continuing on in a blood soaked buff! You did great!

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Eh... Haha thank you!

 

The next challenge I want to touch on is the last immunity challenge in the swapped tribes. Kelly, what the hell happened there? That was not your shinning moment!

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Haha, no that was not my shinning moment. I'm going to blame it on my head injury.. No I'm kidding! I really didn't know Mike was trying to throw it. I couldn't hear him because he was trying to whisper so the other team couldn't hear what he was saying, but I was doing HORRIBLE. I was panicking, I knew we were 2-2 and that I was up against my best friend out there. I was like oh come on Mike I need to win this, not even realizing he was helping me.

 

I did awful! There is no explanation, I just need to own it. I should've done better because I'm a police officer and if Mike didn't throw it, there was a definite possibility that I'd be going home that night. I just gotta work on my memory skills.

 

How well do you think being a police officer helped in the game of Survivor?

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It helped tremendously. Just like Tony and Sarah when they played in Season 28. You can read people, judge them and be quiet or know when to interact or shut your mouth. You know you're working together as a team, but you do know when to separate yourself.

 

Rodney has that big personality and sometimes doesn't know when we can just sit back, analyze and think about things. What's the next move? Who's talking to who? Who's sleeping next to who?

 

It doesn't stop out there. Once you stop, which I did for a day, this is what happens and you're sent home. In police work, when you're on the road. You're always looking and analyzing. Something doesn't fit right, so you have to pull the car over and figure it out. It's the same with Survivor. You can't let your guard down for a minute or you're going home, and unfortunately that's what I did. I got complacent and unfortunately that's what sent me packing! It's very similar!

 

Unfortunately I only have so much time with you Kelly, so I just wanted to ask one more thing! Now that you're a Survivor star, what's life like at home?

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It's awesome! My friends, my family, my co-works, we all come together! It made us all so much closer. Everyone's getting together, we're all talking during the week, saying "I know you win the million. I know you go all the way. I love the way you're playing the game!"

It's all been really humbling! It's been a great experience and I'm very fortunate. There's not 1 regret. I had such a great experience!

 

Photo credit: CBS