“I Just Wasn't Going to Quit”: An Interview with Survivor’s Bobby Jon

Bobby Jon was a hard worker on a tribe that saw several people effectively give up and quit. How did he feel about that? What did he think of the experience overall? RealityNewsOnline asked him these and other questions in this interview.

RealityNewsOnline: Hello, Bobby Jon, and thanks for taking the time to answer these questions from RealityNewsOnline! To begin, I know there is one question that has been on the minds of many viewers for weeks now – why did we see so little in the way of politics on Ulong? Considering the number of votes you had, there was surprisingly little discussion of alliances.

Bobby Jon: Basically, that's just not my style. I know that sounds strange and probably is strange, but I told myself that hard work and desire would either get me to the end, or send me home. And for me it sent me home on day 21. I know it's Survivor and you're supposed to scheme and lie, but that's not how I do business.

RNO: So then what was your game plan coming into Survivor?

Bobby Jon: Again it was hard work and desire. I've always "rolled the dice" in everything I've ever been apart of. That's just the way I am. And I wasn't going to change that. However, I did think I would get farther than what I did. But it wasn't in the cards for me, I guess, David.

RNO: What do you think led to Ulong’s losing streak?

Bobby Jon: You know, David, we can go back to the schoolyard pick, we can go back to Jeff hurting his ankle, Ashley quitting, voting out our strongest athlete the first tribal council, the twist with Angie going home, etc. We can go back to a lot of things, but the bottom line is at the end of the day we didn't get it done.

RNO: Do you think things would have turned out differently for Ulong if Jolanda had not been voted out first?

Bobby Jon: I can't read the future but when you lose constantly you definitely have to evaluate the situation. To me, Jolanda was an asset who was seen as a threat to everyone else. I could tell that she was going to be a target right after she got immunity. And of course she was. Again I don't know what would have happened, but she was in the Olympics for crying out loud, what do you think would have happened?

RNO: Why did you choose to go with Stephenie rather than Ibrehem in the Ulong final two, especially given that you said you had an understanding with Ibrehem from the beginning?

Bobby Jon: Ibrehem and I did have an understanding in the beginning. But sometimes you have to separate friendships from reality. You just have to. And I felt like that Stephenie was the better one to go with based on performance. She and I obviously weren't as close, but I was still trying to play the game too and I felt at the time, I could have gotten farther with her.

RNO: Until Probst specifically told you, what did you and Stephenie think would happen if you lost that last immunity challenge?

Bobby Jon: David, we had no idea... none. We assumed some scenarios, but we didn't have a clue.

RNO: Throughout the game you were a hard worker and dedicated in challenges, how discouraging was it to have several quitters on your team?

Bobby Jon: It was discouraging, but I knew no matter what I wasn't going to quit, and I didn't care if I had to crawl on my hands and knees to challenges, I just wasn't going to quit. It's not in my blood to quit. I mean morale was low, people were quitting, and it sucked. But quitting is the easiest thing you can ever do in your life, it's easy to quit, but it's hard to keep going when you're back is against the wall and keeping your chin up. For me the game is over and I don't fault anyone for anything, and I don't go back and play "what ifs" but at the time, David, yes, it was hard at times to keep going.

RNO: What one thing would you go back and change if you could?

Bobby Jon: I would not have voted for Ibrehem. If I know what I know now... but again everything happens for a reason, I'm a firm believer in that.

RNO: You mentioned that you were going to come home and change some things in your life – can you expand on that and tell us how it’s going?

Bobby Jon: You know David, everybody and anybody deals with demons and skeletons in the closet. I've definitely dealt with mine. And I'm just so appreciative of this experience because it was God sent, and I really got to work out my nuts and bolts and I know all my tribe did was lose and etc., and I know I was only out there for 21 days but for me I got my money's worth. I tell you, it was just such a humbling experience and so therapeutic for me. I mean, just to wake up in the morning and sit on the beach with no cameras or anything and watch the sun come up and just to see the world come alive right before your very eyes, things like that, being able to catch a crab and know how thankful you are of that crab, that's what I got out of it, and I wouldn't change anything. My experience in Palau was good to me.

RNO: Is there anything else you’d like to tell our readers about yourself or your time on the show?

Bobby Jon: Just that I had a good time in Palau and I want to thank my family and the people of Troy, Alabama, for being a great place to grow up and live and for making me the man that I am today. I couldn't have survived one day if I wasn't surrounded by good people growing up, and I'm very thankful for that.

RNO: Thanks again, Bobby Jon!

Bobby Jon: Thanks for having me, David!

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out these other Survivor: Palau Episode 8 articles:

David Bloomberg is the Editor of RealityNewsOnline and can be reached at RNO@pobox.com.

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