An Amazing Race U-turn just appeared on the April 24 episode of the show. To be more specific, the producers used a double U-turn, which upped the ante for the 10 teams still in the race.
During the second episode of the season, the team of Rachel Reilly and Elissa Slater came across the first U-turn early in the episode. It put them in a difficult and envious position to affect how the rest of that leg in the race would play out.
Decisions, decisions… #AmazingRace pic.twitter.com/xaNB5aKVck
— The Amazing Race (@AmazingRaceCBS) April 25, 2019
What does a U-turn mean on The Amazing Race?
An Amazing Race U-turn pops up when contestants are about to hit a Detour on the show. The Detour is a choice of two challenges, where the racers get to decide which one they would be the strongest at.
The U-turn then comes into play, as the first team to arrive at the Detour can force a team after them to make a U-turn and complete both challenges. It is a huge advantage to the people who get to the U-turn first.
Rachel and Elissa got to the U-turn first and they decided to force Rebecca “Becca” Droz and Floyd Pierce to complete both tasks. Since it was a double U-turn, it meant that another team could also use the power of the U-turn.
When Becca and Floyd got to the U-turn, they decided that it would be important to force another team to also complete both challenges. Becca and Floyd used it on Tyler Oakley and Korey Kuhl, which wasn’t good news for the team when they came across the Detour.
Or not… ? #AmazingRace pic.twitter.com/6m8ptOgEct
— The Amazing Race (@AmazingRaceCBS) April 25, 2019
Sometimes an Amazing Race U-turn can put a team at such a disadvantage that they aren’t able to finish the two challenges in time to keep up with the rest of the teams. It’s a way for a strong team to eliminate some competition, but there have been seasons when some teams refused to use it against the other racers. It can lead to some bad blood between teams.
The Amazing Race airs Wednesday nights at 9/8c on CBS.