The Amazing Race 20, Episode 6: “Like In Rome, Do Like You’re In Azerberjistan”

Previously on Have Fun Storming the Castle, eight teams traveled from Italy to Bavaria. Mark & Bopper yodeled. Vanessa & Ralph fought. Beards were styled. Gnomes were thrown across an ice rink. J.J. & Art won for the third leg in a row. Kerri & Stacy found Phil last and were eliminated, leaving us with seven teams.

Art & J.J. get to spend part of their rest period researching their prize trip. Then they leave at 8:48 to head to Baku, Azerbaijan. Phil tells us this is part of the former USSR. The clue sends the racers to the Temple Ateshgah, the Temple of Fire. Spooky! J.J. & Art know that any challenge could set them back, so they’re trying to remain humble. They also know Joey & Danny are right on their tails.

Joey & Danny are also wearing what J.J. & Art describe as ‘80s winter gear. It’s the neon orange glasses. They know they’re strong and could really do well in the race. Vanessa & Ralph are a little embarrassed by their behavior last week, and know that they could win something if they stopped screwing up.

Rachel B. & Dave are off. He tells her where Azerbaijan is, which probably makes him the only person on the race to know that information. Rachel R. & Brendon (Radon) depart next, making a stop at a travel agency to book tickets. Bopper & Mark leave next, and Mark thinks Azerbaijan is in Africa. Nary & Jamie seem to know where it really is, but then again, they’re probably good at geography. You know, since they’re teachers.

Art & J.J. reach the Munich Airport and attempt to “finagle” a good flight. Nice use of the word “finagle.” They can get a flight leaving at 6:20 p.m. that well get them to Baku a little after 4 a.m. Which means they’ll probably be hanging around Baku for at least three hours before they do anything. Joey & Danny run into Vanessa & Ralph at the airport, but Danny doesn’t want Joey to say hi to the other team. He tells Joey that saying hi will put them behind. The camera swoops behind them to show Vanessa standing there. “Hi,” she says brightly. That was awesome.

The 6:20 flight looks to be the earliest, and everyone gets seats. Once in Baku, Rachel B. & Dave move to the front of the pack, followed by Danny & Joey, then Nary & Jamie. Vanessa & Ralph are lagging. There is indeed a fire at the Temple of Fire, as well as musicians, dancers, and guys with swords. Dave & Rachel B. run around looking for a clue, but instead see a sign that says the temple opens at sunrise. They try to ask the dancers for the clue. The dancers respond by taking their hands and making them join their dance. That’s pretty cool.

There’s nothing to do until sunrise, so the racers enjoy the dancing and music. When the sun comes up, the door to the temple is unlocked and everyone files inside. The clue envelope in the temple holds a Fast Forward, in which one team can go to a hay market to unload and stack up 150 bales of hay in a specific formation. The note mentions that there are three trucks available, so three teams could compete at the same time, but only Rachel B. & Dave and Joey & Danny decide to try it. The other teams are sent to Occupational Training International for their next clue.

Joey & Danny and Dave & Rachel B. know they’re taking a risk trying the Fast Forward, but they think it’s worth it. Nary & Jamie know they’ll have to start over behind everyone else if they don’t get the Fast Forward, and that’s not worth it. Both Fast Forward-attempting teams arrive and race to be the first to complete the task. Each team sends one member to the top of a truck to throw down bales of hay while the other starts stacking them.

Meanwhile, the other teams are heading for the training center. The cab drivers are all driving fast. Mark’s stomach doesn’t like this. Mine wouldn’t either. He says it’s better than him and Bopper trying to navigate by themselves. Joey & Danny are working really well together, remaining optimistic, while Dave & Rachel B. are… not so much. He keeps throwing hay down when she’s not ready. Maybe they should switch places. Also, Dave tossing the hay directly onto the formation can’t help with the required dimensions.

Art & J.J., Mark & Bopper, Nary & Jamie, and Ralph & Vanessa converge on the training center, where Bopper & Mark are first to find the next clue. It’s a Roadblock telling them that “what goes up must come down.” One racer from each team needs to go underwater in an escape helicopter and take part in a disaster exercise. Bopper, J.J., and Jamie take the task. Radon arrive before Vanessa & Ralph find the clue, and Brendon and Vanessa accept the Roadblock.

Hay is still being tossed, and now Rachel B. & Dave are working together much better. It helps that since the formation is higher, making it closer to Dave, it’s easier to get everything together. They’re done before Danny & Joey and collect their instructions to go straight to the Pit Stop, Esplanade Eskada. Dave’s really proud of his wife, and she’s pleased with their teamwork. Not pleased: Joey & Danny, who are now behind everyone else.

Bopper, Jamie, and J.J. jump in a pool for their Roadblock. Mark lets Nary know that his partner has a crush on Jamie. He reminds her that Bopper helped them with the harp task a couple weeks ago; he told Bopper he “wanted to put [his] two cents in.” Nary just laughs. The Roadblockers are submerged, and I’m not afraid of water or anything, but I think this task would freak me out. The helicopter then turns over and the Roadblockers are upside-down. Yeah, I’d be freaking out.

An alarm sounds and the Roadblockers start trying to get out of the helicopter. J.J. has trouble getting the window open, but once he does, everyone gets out fine. They then climb into a safety raft, where their clues are waiting. They’re to go to a carpet shop next.