Real World/Road Rules Challenge: Fresh Meat, Episode 3 - Hanging On and Hooking Up

Leaving all the political backstabbing and nastiness behind, we jump in on a lovely morning in the Aussie countryside, as Derrick and Diem walk down a shady country lane. Derrick tells her that she’s the only one in the competition he trusts. He asks her if there’s anything that scares her, and she tells him that she had surgery four weeks ago to remove a cyst on her ovary, but instead they took her ovary, her appendix and some lymph nodes; she has ovarian cancer. She tells Derrick that she started low dose chemotherapy right before leaving for the Challenge, and when she returns home she’ll start high-dose treatment. “I want to do this because I have another big battle after this,” she tells him. “I want to do this now because I’m not sure when I’ll be able to do anything really physical again,” she interviews tearfully. As they continue their walk, Diem reassures Derrick that she’s strong and she’ll work really hard. Derrick interviews that this is way beyond the Challenge - he doesn’t want to let Diem down. “I’m gonna give her everything,” he tells us. Coming from the guy who survived more Gauntlets than anyone else last time out, this means a lot. (Okay, we’re officially rooting for this team now!)

Back in MTV land, the T-Mobile tones signal that another clue has arrived. “Trust and support go hand in hand,” Evan tells everyone with great drama. Jesse, perhaps not quite understanding the situation, interviews that he and Johanna have to prove themselves or else they’ll be sent into Exile, since Johanna is one of the remaining Austinites. (No, Jesse, you have to win, or else you’ll be sent in! Proving yourself has nothing to do with it.) Coral tells us that the plan is still the elimination of the Austinites; she and Evan will use their right to select the order today to attempt to manipulate the situation to their advantage.

With the sound of didgeridoos in the background, TJ welcomes everyone to “the Spit,” located on the Gold Coast of Queensland, Australia. Today’s challenge is called “Hang On” – one member of each team will hang upside down from a frame that will be raised out of the water to a height of 20 feet. They’ll have to hold their teammate by their hands as long as possible. Time starts as soon as the bottom teammate’s toes clear the water; time stops when they let go. The winner is exempt from tomorrow’s Exile and gets to choose the first of the two teams to go in.

Coral and Evan, winners of the last challenge (and the one before that), get to choose the order of play today. Wes tells us that he must win, or else he’ll continue to be targeted. Evan and Coral choose the order, and Evan explains to us that he has paired Wes and Casey with a weak team - Melinda and Ryan. He thinks that when Melinda drops quickly, Wes will be more likely to let go sooner.

Ryan and Wes lever their legs into metal rigging that is then swung out over the water where the girls bob, waiting for their partners. (Added to everything else, their hands will be wet – that’s tough!) Before the girls are ten feet above the water, it looks as if Melinda’s hands are slipping and neither team has the double hand grasp you would think most secure. Much to everyone’s surprise, Casey falls in almost immediately! Ryan hangs onto Melinda as long as he can. One of the two men (I can’t tell who) says he did what he could, but his partner’s hands were too small even to reach around his wrists.

After his turn, Wes is sitting and attempting to chill when Evan approaches and starts to ask about the challenge. “Did you have to get your arms wet when you went down?” he asks Wes. The editors treat us to the sound of crickets as Wes stares at him for a moment, then responds, “Why don’t I just get some paper and a pen and write out all the ways to help you beat me?” More crickets.

Next up, Johanna and Jesse pair with Darrell and Aviv. Johanna drops before the crane gets to the top. Darrell and Aviv hang on longer, but we don’t know how long. Tonya and Johnnie go up with Katie and Eric. It looks like the girls are holding their hands up out of the water in an attempt to keep them dry. Johnnie tells us they’re trying a different method; he’s going to use both of his hands to hold on to one of Tonya’s. He tells us this, but as they rise out of the water one-handed, Tonya reaches her other arm up and grabs onto him. Almost immediately, Katie drops (no surprise there), but it looks like Tonya and Johnnie hang on a bit longer. Again, the editing gives away nothing.

Tina and Kenny take the ride next to Shane and Linette. Shane tells us that Linette has “man hands and little bird arms,” so he thinks they’re in good shape. Tina falls right away, but Shane and Linette hang on for a long time. TJ says they may have just grabbed the lead when Linette loses her grip and takes the plunge.

Evan (who I like less and less as we get to know him) tells us that everyone is around 40 seconds and the contest will come down to heart and whoever has the guts to hang on for an extra three to four seconds. Darrell chats with Derrick, telling him that the dry hands aren’t so important as grabbing on as tight as possible and just holding on. He warns him it will hurt, but he thinks Derrick can go for a minute. Derrick and Diem are up with Theo and Chanda. Both teams are using a new approach – using both hands, but grasped together, not separately. Both teams make it to the top, and then we see Diem drop. Chanda apparently hangs on much longer, and Tina tells us she thinks they won.

Evan and Coral, the last team, is up. Evan, doing nothing to dissuade me from my growing dislike, tells us that they simply won’t drop. “They’re gonna have to ask me to let go.” Okay, sport, if you say so. They use the same grip as the last pairs did, but Coral falls pretty quickly. As they return to shore, Evan asks Coral if they got it. “Not at all,” she replies.