Survivor Through the Eyes of the Mole Winner

Hello to all RNO readers! I’m so excited to be joining the RNO team and to be cutting my teeth with the show that I have loved since day one… SURVIVOR!! Since the opening strains of the theme music, I have been BEYOND hooked.

For those of you who don’t know who I am, my name is Mark Lambrecht and I am actually a veteran player of both reality and game shows. I appeared on and won the popular show Press Your Luck way back in 1986 and also appeared on and won The Weakest Link in 2001. Most recently, I appeared on ABC’s amazing reality show The Mole and was fortunate enough to walk away with the $420,000.00 prize.

Through everything, though, I am a true blue, dyed-in-the wool Survivor fan. I have applied more times than I can count, have seen almost every episode of every installment, and even had the opportunity to work with 14 past cast members and Mr. Probst on a charity function that I orchestrated here in Milwaukee for Ethan Zohn’s Grassroot Soccer organization back in 2006. I also actually employed the strategy that I had devised for Survivor when I appeared on The Weakest Link.

The plan was simple and complicated at the same time and along the lines of the onion alliance – and it worked to a tee. Elizabeth and I knocked off all competition flawlessly until just we and our two fake allies remained… and then they were gone. I then beat Elizabeth in the final round and took home $56,000.

I then considered using the same tactic during my game play on The Mole until I realized that not all games are Survivor, so I had to alter my strategy after a VERY short while.

What I hope to offer in my weekly column is a look into the show from the perspective of both a fan(atic) and a veteran player. I experienced the newness of winning a game on intelligence and very little strategy (Press Your Luck), the ease of totally having a game in hand from moment one (The Weakest Link) and the tooth and nail struggle of winning a game that I could have easily lost along the way (The Mole). With these credentials, I think I can somewhat look into the minds of what almost every cast member and certainly every winner has gone through. However, at the same time, that doesn’t stop me from screaming at my television and ranting to my family and friends about how “I can’t believe they did what they just did!”

But that’s the beauty of this game. It draws us in. We love the social, the strategic, the comedic, the tragic, the suspenseful, the infuriating, the athletic…. the GAME nature of this game.

The article may not always have a precise direction, just the opinions of one who is both an insider and an outsider at the same time. I am excited to see Survivor back in Brazil and with a cast that both Jeff Probst and the producers have said is one of the absolute best. I really do long for another Susan Hawk, another Rupert, another Fairplay, or another Big Tom. At the same time I am a huge fan of mad strategists like Brian Heidik, Yau-Man and the Babe Ruth of Survivor… Richard Hatch. So if this is truly one of the best casts ever, I’m excited.

Oh, and by the way… Erinn was a student in my World History class approximately ten years ago… so as long as there are no challenges regarding the history of Brazil, she’s my early pick to at least make the jury. And one thing I can share is that once these people get the chance to actually speak to one another – or anyone for that matter – the emotions flow and the real you just pours out. It should be fun to watch. All the best.

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out these other recent Survivor: Tocantins articles here on RealityNewsOnline:

Be sure to sign up for our e-mail update so you can stay informed about new articles on the site! Don’t forget to take a look at the rest of the site and buy reality show stuff at our Reality TV Store!

For more news about Survivor, be sure to check out SirLinksALot: Survivor: Gabon, Survivor Fever, and The Source: Reality TV Headlines!