BWW Recap: Mamas vs. Papas on THE AMAZING RACE

We're only two more eliminations away from the season finale of THE AMAZING RACE, folks. I know, I know, it feels like we just started Season 26 yesterday! But the teams are all grown up now, and it's time to start whittling down the racers until we have our final three.

This week, teams will climb out of the canals of Amsterdam and head for Peru, where they'll hang out in mountains 10,000 feet above sea level. If you (like me) think running is difficult at a normal elevation, imagine how much more intense it is that high up, where the air is (annoyingly) much thinner. Good luck, teams. I have faith in you.

One thing to remember: Matt and Ashley survived last week's non-elimination leg, which means that they'll have to complete a Speed Bump at some point throughout this leg. I like them. I'm rooting for them. But I'm also rooting for Mike and Rochelle, who are also at the back of the pack, which means my chances at being disappointed tonight are fairly high. I hope I'm wrong.

Join me right here and on Twitter @CourtHenley tonight at 8 PM PST as I live recap the West Coast airing of THE AMAZING RACE! We'll see if my predictions (more like fears, really...) are right, and we'll get to watch Hayley play with a machete! Fun!

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8:07 : Baha, The Bickersons. Perfect name for Hayley and Blair. Too bad they're terrible and they're the ones getting the better flight.

Any bets on which team is going to be the one to not have their Fitbits charged when they need the information from them? Fingers crossed for The Bickersons.

Also, Laura and Tyler at the bar is hilarious. What a great way to spend your 30th birthday!

8:10 : How come all of the better, more deserving teams got on the later flights?! What about karma?!

"Are you the Master of Ceremonies?" he asks the man wearing a sash in Amazing Race colors standing in the middle of the live band playing outside at midnight. You tell me, Jelani, is he who you're looking for?

8:15 : Road Block time! Teams must harvest sugar cane - by hand. Judging by the previews, Hayley's in for some (literally) back-breaking labor. There's that karma!

8:21 : I can't believe Laura and Tyler. Did she really think that the Speed Bump box would be in a different spot than the clue they're looking for? Come on, people. Get in the game! It's crunch time!

"I'm not much of a manual laborer." Really, Hayley? I would've never guessed.

Wait: Matt and Ashley's Speed Bump is to write out, on a typewriter, a llama loan? I really want to hang out with the person who comes up with these challenges. I feel like we'd get along swimmingly.

8:25 : They have to track their Fitbit steps and calories. If I were on the Race, I'd be checking that thing constantly. Talk about motivation.

Oh, look! Matt and Ashley are done with their Speed Bump! Now they can head over to the fields and join Mike and Rochelle and Laura and Tyler.

They're starting to annoy me, but kudos to Jelani and Jenny for taking a moment to appreciate the natural beauty surrounding them.

8:28 : Alrighty, ladies and gents, this challenge is a little tricky. It involves math, so I'm not even going to take a stab at it. Just know that teams have to use their Fitbit information to figure out how many steps they'd have to take to burn off the calories contained in one glass of sugar cane juice. Then, they have to drink a glass of said juice, freshly squeezed from the canes of sugar they brought with them. I'd have a problem with this challenge on a good day. I have no idea how these people are going to do this on no sleep.

8:34 : Detour time! Mamas, which involves teams searching for ingredients for moonshine, or Papas, which requires teams to sort potatoes, bring them to a market, and then sort them again.

Otherwise known as Moonshine vs. Potatoes. The choice is clear.

Seriously, though, I really do think Mamas would be easier. Potatoes pose too much of a threat (they're round, and they will roll.)

8:40 : Wait, what?! The potato cart lady knocks down all the potatoes to the ground if you get it wrong?! That's horrible! And hilarious!

And just like that, we're already at Pit Stop time. But the teams have to get there on foot, so teams that are trailing (I'm lookin' at you, Matt and Ashley!) have a shot assuming teams get lost! (Which they absolutely will.)

8:42 : Holy heaven, Hayley and Blair, what are you doing coming in first place? You were supposed to get lost and lose and get eliminated! How dare you!?

Come on, Laura and Tyler. When life gives you potatoes, and your driver brings you to the wrong Detour, you make the best of it!

8:45 : Jelani and Jenny come in second place. This marks two Blind Date teams leading the pack, neither of which can be considered a "successful" blind date. There's no romance here, but there are plenty of BFFs, apparently.

Meanwhile, Matt and Ashley are making up time, but will it be enough? They're going to Mamas, so they may stand a chance at beating Laura and Tyler. I just wish Hayley and Blair were the team in last place...

Looks like these taxi drivers just really like potatoes. They keep bringing teams to Papas! I wonder if they get a cut of the potato profits...hmm...

HAHA that potato lady was NOT happy. Take that as a hint to not spit on the potatoes next time, Laura and Tyler.

8:54 : Oh hay, Mike and Rochelle are team number three! Good for them!

I'm not getting too hopeful for Matt and Ashley, though. They seem to have fallen in the same trap as almost every other team that was saved from a non-elimination leg this season. The Speed Bump holds them up, and they're not able to make a comeback.

Laura and Tyler seal their fate: they're team number four.

8:55 : And just like that, one of the best teams this season, Matt and Ashley, are eliminated.

I'm upset. Teams like Hayley and Blair and Jelani and Jenny don't deserve to be in the lead. They take things for granted, they bicker, and karma will catch up to them eventually. I'm confident.

We're getting close to the finale: who do you want to see eliminated next? Let us know in the comments below or tell me on Twitter @CourtHenley!

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