My Virgin Mobile Elimination

Episode Four was a tough leg for all of us.  Right after we waited late into the wee hours for Brett and Kinar to arrive at the previous pit stop, my host crew had to race off to Rotorua to prepare for the arrival of the eight remaining teams.  We didn't get any sleep at all and went straight to work.  I was having a difficult time remembering my lines, and we were wondering how much more demanding this race could get.   Fortunately, our Maori greeter was totally cool so he kept our spirits up as we all froze and waited for the teams to trickle on into the pit stop.

Here's my soundman Martin and cameraman Yves cracking a joke about how bad the natural springs smell because they smell verynatural...like rotten eggs.

This episode was pretty special for me because it was the first time I had to "drive out" to eliminate a team.  I like to call it a mobile elimination.  I bet you're wondering how Sophie and Aurelia got this far in the race with their unique chemistry, huh?  But then again, I don't think anyone was too surprised when they were the next team to be eliminated because they were having a lot of communication problems...and then some.  The look was priceless on their face when they saw me pop out from the shadows as they were psyching themselves up to spend the night in their car before the water sledging challenge.  Actually, I think deep down inside they might have been relieved to see me eliminate them because it would've been one bone-chilling night in the middle of nowhere.

I'm really excited about the next episode because language once again proves to be a factor, and it's always fun watching teams try to negotiate their way around a place where they can't really (or at all) communicate.

On another note, I just love this great cover of Li Lin and Jonas on this month's Today's Parents in Singapore:

It's truly amazing how fast children grow up, and it really makes you not take any day--or moment--for granted.  Jonas says "Whatzup!" to his Godpa (He knows who he is )!!

Talking about frigid, windy conditions, I'm flying back to Beijing tonight to shoot the MV (music video) for the Pepsi TV commercial I did so I'll catch up with you from China!  Now it's time to be cooler than I usually like to be once again!