The Amazing Race "Married Surfers" team of Bethany Hamilton and Adam Dirks finished the CBS reality competition's 25th season in third place during the finale episode.
 
"Food Scientists" Amy DeJong and Maya Warren won The Amazing Race's $1 million grand prize when they crossed the twelfth and final leg's finish line at Point Vicente Lighthouse in Los Angeles, CA, in first place. This marks the third time in The Amazing Race history an all-female team has won the Race.

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"Married Dentists" Misti Raman and Jim Raman finished in second place, while "Dating Pro Wrestlers" Brooke Adams and Robbie E. Strauss were eliminated halfway through the final leg and therefore landed in fourth place.

In an exclusive interview with Reality TV World, Bethany and Adam talked about their The Amazing Race experience. Below is the concluding portion. Click here to read the first half.

Reality TV World: How do you think Misti and Jim avoided being a huge target throughout the season especially since they had that "Save" advantage that could've been flushed out and they had won so many legs?

Adam Dirks: Oh that's the only thing though that was protecting them, their "Save." The minute that "Save" was gone, or if they didn't even have it, I think people would've targeted them right away.

Bethany Hamilton: Yeah, I think too, also, you didn't really want to get on their bad side. Because if you were on their bad side, I could see them really being like, "Oh, let's get rid of them!" You know?

So, even if we did, say, target them just to get rid of their "Save," then you're like automatically targeted by them once their "Save" is gone. I would rather be on their good side than not, because they obviously did great in the Race and they're strong Racers.

Adam Dirks: One thing that I think should've been done is when they handed "The Save" to [Phil Keoghan] in Copenhagen, I think "The Save" should've been burned right there. It shouldn't have been handed back.

Bethany Hamilton: Yeah, I thought that was like a really [bad] rule by the Race makers. It was! Come on, like, they should have to chance getting rid of their "Save" whether they know or not if they're eliminated or not. I feel like if you give up "The Save," you give it up. You shouldn't keep it.

Reality TV World: Looking back on the season, what do you think of "The Save" twist in general? It just seemed kind of pointless, but obviously that's just kind of the way it played out for Misti and Jim. Do you think the Express Pass is enough?

Adam Dirks: I don't know. "The Save," as we saw with Misti and Jim, it kind of put them in an untouchable place. They just couldn't be touched because they had that immunity pretty much from being eliminated.

Like Bethany said, even if we tried to get them to burn that "Save" on a U-Turn, then you have the strategy of being on their bad side, and it's not worth that because they would be able to pull some strings and get everyone else on their side. But anyways, yeah, I don't think it's kind of worth it just because it creates too much immunity towards a team.

Reality TV World: How long did that final memory task take you, Bethany? And what was the most challenging part of it? Do you feel like the pressure got to you a little bit at all?

Bethany Hamilton: Yeah, I don't know. I felt like I was in those containers forever. I never want to hang out with containers again. (Laughs)

Adam Dirks: (Laughs)

Reality TV World: What are your thoughts on how the final leg was set up? It seemed like a little bit of a disappointment that all the teams ended up at that final task together. It was a little bit of a downer that the teams weren't scattered a bit more.

Bethany Hamilton: Yeah, when we were watching the final leg, like, there was never really a way to really get ahead unless teams did really bad with directions, like the wrestlers for example. But I think that's, like, the Race. It just always kind of brings everyone back together. So, it kind of came down to that final task and whoever succeeded in that, Bravo for them! They won the Race!

Reality TV World: How do you feel about next season's format with all of those dating couples some of whom knew each other already and had been dating for a while -- and others were just meeting for the first time at the beginning of the first leg. Do you think the couples who were dating prior to the show have an advantage?

Adam Dirks: I think there's definitely going to be some big dynamics and some entertaining situations on there, but yeah, I definitely think that the couples who have been dating will have an advantage. In the last all-stars season, you saw the Kentucky guy [Mark Jackson] and the Southern girl [Mallory Ervin] get together, and you could just see how they bumped heads.

If then you're with a stranger and you're bumping heads on the Race, you're at a complete disadvantage, because you need that team work. You need to be able to work together efficiently. So, I think strangers are going to have a tough time.

Reality TV World: How were you cast on The Amazing Race? How did you end up on the show?

Bethany Hamilton: After we got married, I remember I mentioned to Adam, "Hey, let's do The Amazing Race!" (Laughs) Because I had been wanting to do it for a few years and then, yeah, we just made our cast video and went for it.

Reality TV World: So that was the first time you ever applied, Bethany?

Bethany Hamilton: I had actually applied with one of my best friends a couple of years before, and at that point we didn't get cast. So, yeah, once it said Adam and I, it was like the best team you could ask for. Yeah, it was fun to be able to take on that together and we created some fun memories.

Click here to read the first half of Adam and Bethany's exclusive interview with Reality TV World.


About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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