'The Amazing Race' ousts Eric Guiffreda and Daniel Guiffreda after Partner Swap and Double U-Turn

The Amazing Race eliminated Eric Guiffreda and Daniel Guiffreda after a Super Leg featuring a Partner-Swap twist and Double U-Turn during Wednesday night's two-hour episode on CBS.


The "Twin Brothers and Firefighters" became the sixth team eliminated from the around-the-world competition after arriving at the seventh leg's Pit Stop in Harare, Zimbabwe, in last place.

Eric and Daniel admitted their demise in the Race was singing and dancing, as not having rhythm led to having the blues.

The Amazing Race episode began with "Retired Professional Skiers and Friends" Kristi Leskinen and Jen Hudak departing the sixth Pit Stop in Prague, Czech Republic, in first place at 10:08AM.

The teams' first set of clues instructed them to fly over 5,000 miles across the African continent to Harare, Zimbabwe. Upon landing, the teams had to take a train from Harare to the small town of Marondera and then proceed to Imire Rhino & Wildlife Conservancy.


With only six teams left in the Race, Kristi and Jen noted there was going to be less and less room for error.

Eric and Daniel then departed Prague at 10:48AM, followed by "Dating Couple and Yale Debating Teammates" Henry Zhang and Evan Lynyak, whose time wasn't shown.

"Friends and IndyCar Drivers" Alex Rossi and Conor Daly took off in fourth place at 11:44AM.

They were then followed by "Dating Couple and Lifeguards" Lucas Bocanegra and Brittany Austin at 11:50AM, and "Dating Couple and former Big Brother Houseguests" Jessica Graf and Cody Nickson, whose departure time wasn't shown.

Jessica admitted that U-Turning Trevor Wadleigh and Chris Marchant in the previous leg was the best decision they had made in the Race thus far because it was a "do-or-die" situation.


Jessica and Cody also revealed they had been working with Kristi and Jen and Alex and Conor "the whole time." Cody called those two opposing teams "competitors," but then Alex and Conor were shown explaining that their "main relationship" was with Kristi and Jen.

The trip to Zimbabwe took about 30 hours of travel time, according to Kristi and Jen.

Once the teams arrived at the wildlife conservancy, their next clue read, "Early bird gets the worm," and they were required to build a safari tent as fast as possible and then settle in for the night.

The order in which they finished their tents would have a huge impact on the remainder of the leg.

All of the teams started seemingly within seconds of each other. Jessica didn't know what she was doing, but this challenge was right up Cody's alley as a former Marine.


Eric and Daniel also felt confident in their tent-pitching skills, but while they were working, they got the sense that the teams were no longer working together, as everyone was drawing into themselves. 

Cody and Jessica finished their tent in first place, and they were followed by Lucas and Brittany, Henry and Evan, Kristi and Jen, Eric and Daniel, and finally Alex and Conor.

The Amazing Race host Phil Keoghan then woke everyone up at 4AM and announced a twist. He declared there was going to be a "Partner Swap" until further notice, and Jessica could be heard moaning "no" the loudest.

Because they had completed their tent in first place, Jessica and Cody got the first pick, and Cody immediately shouted out Kristi and Jen. Cody thought the professional skiers were doing the best in the Race so far, and Jessica also loved both of the girls.

Cody then quickly noted that Jessica would team up with Kristi, and he would work with Jen.


Lucas and Brittany got to choose next, and they selected Alex and Conor. Brittany said it'd be nice to have more muscle on her side. Brittany teamed up with Alex, and Lucas opted to work with Conor.

As a result, Henry and Evan were paired with Eric and Daniel by default. Daniel would run the leg with Evan, and Henry teamed up with Eric.

The new, temporary teams were then instructed to work together on a raft and paddle their way to small islands, where they must search for two canteens containing their next clue.

Cody confessed the partner swap was his "worst nightmare" because he didn't want to do The Amazing Race without Jessica.

After receiving those canteens, the teams had to race a quarter of a mile across the lake to a lookout tower that rangers use to keep an eye out for poachers. There, they'd receive another clue.


Brittany proved to be an excellent paddler, and so she and Alex finished the task in first place. Behind them were Jessica and Kristi in second place, Cody and Jen in third, Lucas and Conor in fourth, Henry and Eric in fifth, and then Evan and Daniel in sixth place.

It then became time for the teams to complete one of two possible Detour tasks: "Rhino Track" or "Bush Whack.:

"Rhino Track" required the teams to help anti-poachers look for evidence of hunters. The pairs needed to find such evidence and tools by riding on horseback, and then once eight pieces were gathered, they had to recall where they found those items on the trail and place them correctly on a map to receive their next clue. 

"Bush Whack" required the teams to follow an off-road trail and drive through muddy bogs to replenish a ranger's supply station with water.

Jessica and Kristi picked "Bush Whack," but neither of them knew how to drive a stick shift, so they immediately switched Detours.

Cody and Jen, however, still wanted to do the "bush" task, and so they hoped Jessica and Kristi would be fine. Jen second-guessed herself, wondering if they should've collaborated with their teammates. Henry and Evan decided on a similar approach of doing opposite tasks with their new teammates.


Along with Jessica and Kristi, Daniel and Evan went searching for evidence of hunters. And the teams who headed into the mud, in addition to Cody and Jen, were Brittany and Alex, Lucas and Conor, and Henry and Eric.

Conor and Lucas' vehicle unfortunately stalled in the water, and then Henry's vehicle also got stuck in the same mud pit with Eric driving. Both teams were fighting to get out of the water at the same time, and Conor and Lucas managed to exit the mess first.

Jessica and Kristi had no problem finding the items of evidence, but they forgot the order in which they had discovered them. Once Evan and Daniel arrived at their own map nearby, Jessica and Kristi asked for help, but Evan rejected them.

Evan said she wanted to try the map on her own first, and she ended up placing the objects correctly on her first attempt. It took Jessica and Kristi a total of 10 attempts to get it right.

Jessica was frustrated because she said Evan never acted like a team player.

Cody and Jen finished the Detour task in first place, and then they were followed by Brittany and Alex, Evan and Daniel, Henry and Eric, and finally Jessica and Kristi.


Next, the teams headed to the Pit Stop at Savannah Plains Overlook.

Cody and Jen stepped on the Pit Stop mat in first place, but they were not allowed to check-in until their original partners arrived.

Brittany and Alex arrived second, and then Lucas and Conor arrived in third place, so both teams were able to check-in. At this point, Phil just handed the two teams another clue and instructed them to continue racing.

Evan and Daniel made it to the Pit Stop in fourth place, followed by Eric and Henry in fifth. This allowed both teams to check-in as well.

Jessica and Kristi were the last team to arrive at the Pit Stop, but their frustrated partners just congratulated them on a job well done.

Thanks to there being no elimination, all of the teams took off to The Khan Fabrics and Haberdashery in Harare, which is a city home to 1.5 million people.


Most teams seemed to have a target on "Yale" at this point.

Since the drive to The Khan Fabrics was very long, the teams were able to catch up to one another. Waiting for the teams at this location was a Double U-Turn board.

Lucas and Brittany arrived at the board first and chose to U-Turn Big Brother, meaning Cody and Jessica. Alex and Conor got to the board only seconds behind Lucas and Brittany, and so it became a two-team effort in deciding they should also pick Henry and Evan for the other U-Turn.

It was a tough decision, but Lucas, Brittany, Alex and Conor determined it was important to knock out strong teams at this stage in the game and they hoped there would be no hard feelings.

Brittany also believed Jessica and Cody would have done the same thing had they been in their shoes. 

Kristi and Jen got to the Double U-Turn board in third place, and then Jessica and Cody arrived, realizing they had been target to do both of the Detour tasks.


Jessica and Cody assumed the U-Turn was personal because it wasn't necessary for them to survive, and then Jessica flat out told the cameras, "I don't like her," referring to Brittany.

Henry and Evan viewed the board in fifth place and didn't seem shocked they had been U-Turned. Eric and Daniel then arrived in sixth place.

The two Detour options were "Handle with Care" or "Just Get It There."

"Handle with Care" required the teams to head to the mail room inside of a giant shopping mall, pick out seven packages, and deliver them through a confusing maze of corridors and suspension walkways to businesses in exchange for their outgoing mail. Once the mail was delivered, they'd receive their next clue.

"Just Get It" required the teams to dress in blue uniforms and deliver two tires to a nearby delivery truck just like the locals do, by rolling them. The catch? The teams had to roll the tires about half a mile in the heat through a bustling market to receive their next clue.

Jessica and Cody decided their initial task should be the mail one, while Henry and Evan got started on the tires.


Eric and Daniel chose to do "Handle," while everyone else opted to try the "Just Get It" task. Brittany and Lucas were shown working together with Kristi and Jen at one point.

As for Alex and Conor, they loaded their two tires into the wrong truck. Meanwhile, Jessica and Cody exhausted themselves running around the mall lost and confused with their giant packages.

But both of the teams who had been U-Turned got a little help. Eric and Daniel gave Henry and Evan a tip at the mall on their way out, while Alex and Conor -- who had also finished the tires task -- told Jessica and Cody exactly where to transport the tires.

The order in which the teams completed the Detour was Kristi and Jen, Lucas and Brittany, Alex and Conor, Eric and Daniel, Henry and Evan, and finally Jessica and Cody.

Henry and Evan acknowledged they had made a couple of mistakes, and Jessica and Cody also knew they were in trouble and fighting to avoid last place.

The teams then learned they must make their way by car to Harare Gardens and search for their next clue.


Kristi and Jen arrived at the gardens first, and on their heels were Lucas and Brittany, Alex and Conor, Eric and Daniel, Henry and Evan, and Cody and Jessica.

The teams' next set of clues instructed them to learn the words to a popular song in the native language and perform it in front of an audience.

While teams performed -- and failed -- other teams practiced. And before viewers knew it, all the teams had caught up to one another and were at this difficult task.

Alex, Conor, Kristi, and Lucas especially struggled with the song, and Eric and Daniel thought it was terrible too. The teams not only had to nail pronunciation, but they also had to dance while singing and stay on pace.

Henry and Evan had no issue with pronunciation, and Jessica seemed to find the task to be a breeze. Cody, however, became a little stubborn after delivering an unsuccessful performance twice. Jessica asked Cody to practice, but he refused.

Lucas and Brittany finally finished the task on their fifth attempt, and Kristi and Jen headed out in second place after six performances.


Alex and Conor surprised themselves with a successful vocal on their third attempt, and then Henry and Evan advanced on their second try. Cody and Jessica left the task in fifth place after singing three times, and then Eric and Daniel finally headed to the Pit Stop in sixth place after three attempts.

The Pit Stop for this leg was located at First Street Pedestrian Mall.

Lucas and Brittany finished the leg in first place and won a trip for two to Saint Lucia. Kristi and Jen were right behind them.

Alex and Conor claimed third, and then Henry and Evan stepped on the Pit Stop mat in fourth place. Despite also getting U-Turned, Cody and Jessica survived the leg in fifth place. Jessica called her partner a "cyborg," but Cody acknowledged he made mistakes and his girlfriend was there to correct them.

The results of the Super Leg left Eric and Daniel in sixth -- and last -- place, and the guys were therefore sent packing with big smiles on their faces.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski