The Gaymazing Race
A limited podcast series on The Amazing Race from an LGBTQ point-of-view, hosted by authors, profs & professional queers Nicole J. Georges & Karen Tongson.
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Ep. 47: Girls Who Like Girls Who Like The Amazing Race (S36, E9)
05/13/2024
Ep. 47: Girls Who Like Girls Who Like The Amazing Race (S36, E9)
Once again, we were tantalized by the promise of a historic GALA (Gay and Lesbian Alliance) between Ricky & Cesar and Yvonne & Melissa, as the final five hit the Dominican Republic to water slide into natural grottoes, harvest cacao and play some D.R.-style “beisbol.” Sadly, Melissa is stumped by a rock-symbol challenge and Yvonne’s struggled to make a bottlecap fly with a broomstick.. With just a two-minute gap between 4th and last, our girls who like girls who like the Amazing Race ended up in our elimination station, where they give us the ins and outs of their own “Gaymazing Race.” Plus we finally learn their zodiac signs!
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Ep. 46: Fish Pots (S36, E8)
05/07/2024
Ep. 46: Fish Pots (S36, E8)
The Amazing Race gets busy in Barbados, Rihanna’s homeland. We admire their tiny jeeps and racquet sports skills, though the teams still struggle with navigation. There’s another tantalizing possibility of another all gay alliance at the fish pot detour. Leading up to it Team Walla Walla Mama & Son LOSE THEIR CREW, which sends them directly to our Elimination Station.
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Ep. 45: Sisterhood is Powerful in Montevideo (S36, E7)
04/29/2024
Ep. 45: Sisterhood is Powerful in Montevideo (S36, E7)
The Amazing Race teams head to Uruguay where Brokeback Fannypack is under the weather, and Sunny and Bizzy are looking forward to a “Girls night out, girls night in.” Parenting emerges as a leitmotif in this episode, and we see Walla Walla Momma and Son emerge from the pack to run their own race. Ricky and César and Yvo and Melissa–aka, THE GAYS–all take on a Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence-style Detour, and we are devastated (but also thrilled) to welcome our favorite Midwestern firefighter ladies, Sunny and Bizzy into our Elimination Station.
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Ep. 44: A Meaty 3Way (Alliance) Conquers Argentina (S36, E6)
04/22/2024
Ep. 44: A Meaty 3Way (Alliance) Conquers Argentina (S36, E6)
Friend of the pod Kat Spada from Feminist Frequency Radio sits in for Nicole this week, as The Amazing Race moves to Argentina for gaymazing challenges that involve recycling and meat puzzles. Can Ricky & César keep Shane and Juan, aka Brokeback Fannypack from overtaking their top position? The girls who like girls, Yvonne and Melissa, and the other girls who like wraparound sunglasses, Sunny and Bizzy, explore an alliance together as the other three boy/girl teams, Rod and “Chichi,” Walla Walla Momma and Son (Danny and Angie), and Team Anesthesia (Vinny and Amber) block them out of the of the meat puzzle detour.. This leaves our Sexy Grandparents Derek and Shelisa the odd on’s out, and they sadly have to join us in our elimination station.
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Ep. 43: I Lost My Nut! (S36, E5)
04/16/2024
Ep. 43: I Lost My Nut! (S36, E5)
Sorry for the delay in getting this episode out! Nicole recorded this mere hours before her own amazing race to a meditation retreat, and our production assistant Corky (Karen's cat) kept pausing the recording to give notes. He's very picky.
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Ep. 42: Mama Rat Took Baby Rat Skiing in Medellin (S36, E4)
04/08/2024
Ep. 42: Mama Rat Took Baby Rat Skiing in Medellin (S36, E4)
Ajuan Mance, an artist, illustrator and author of many books and comics series joins us on our own megaleg, as The Amazing Race continues in Colombia. A rebus puzzle nearly derails our favorite lady firefighters, Sunny and Bizzy, who at this point are showing more enthusiasm for each other than the girls who like girls who like hiking. Ricky and César continue their gay excellence, while Vinny exercises his Pinoy patience with Amber as she struggles with self confidence. Things get artsy and anguished to the very finish, and we (tearfully) welcome Team Double Dutch, Michelle and Sean to our Elimination Station.
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Ep. 41: Gays on Top in Colombia (S36, E3)
04/01/2024
Ep. 41: Gays on Top in Colombia (S36, E3)
Ricky & César remain strong as they cruise through the first Colombian leg of The Amazing Race, which involves cooking platters of meats, salty abuelas, and squeezing coffee bean baskets between one’s knees. Whither the girls who like girls, Yvonne and Melissa, who get nary an edit in this ep, as the firefighter sheroes prove why they’re shaping up to be a perfect fan fic duo, babe, for this year’s cast. The Encino Man twins, aka Floribama Shore, aka Anthony and Bailey join us for a cute elimination station. Plus, more on Vinny’s Filipinoness and our confusion about why he doesn’t know what chicharron is.
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Ep. 40: Trust, But Verify in the Zona Romantica (S36, E2)
03/25/2024
Ep. 40: Trust, But Verify in the Zona Romantica (S36, E2)
Melissa, one of the girls who likes girls on The Amazing Race spawns the first lesbian catch phrase of the season. Nicole and KT take bets about whether or not she’s a Virgo or a Scorpio. This season continues to SERVE gaymazingness and intrigue, as Ricky and Cesar, and Yvonne and Melissa finish in the top 5. KT shares more insider gaycation info about Puerto Vallarta, and the bustling gay district of Zona Romantica, where this leg is run, and we say goodbye to our favorite Zaddy Chris and his dear daughter Mary in the Elimination Station.
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Ep. 39: Girls Who Like Girls Who Like the Amazing Race (S36, E1)
03/18/2024
Ep. 39: Girls Who Like Girls Who Like the Amazing Race (S36, E1)
We are BACK, and both Karen and Nicole have a lot of annoying Puerto Vallarta expertise to share, as they marvel at this season’s gaymazing cast. Which butch daddy are both hosts enamored with in between their distracted chatter about The Traitors US, UK, Australia and New Zealand? And what do they make of this season’s LGBTQ+ abundance? Maya and Rohan, siblings and Amazing Race superfans from birth join us in this week’s elimination station.
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Ep. 38: You’ve Gotta Flip the Top, Boys
12/16/2023
Ep. 38: You’ve Gotta Flip the Top, Boys
It’s a nailbiter of a finale for season 35 of The Amazing Race, as the top three teams scramble throughout Seattle without coffee. The “grunge” challenge leads to some challenging understanding of tops, while “glass” requires everyone learn how to blow. “Grab” becomes someone’s Carrie Bradshaw moment, and we talk to all three finalists in our last mega-sized elimination station of the season.
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Ep. 37: A Cold Plunge into Gaiety
12/08/2023
Ep. 37: A Cold Plunge into Gaiety
The Amazing Race teams arrive in Dublin for the penultimate leg, and despite everyone having to Riverdance at the Gaiety theater, Karen and Nicole think this is among the straightest episodes yet. Corey falls in love with his pretty dance instructor, the lady Swayze to his Baby, while John from Team BLERD is lithe and light in his (heeled) dancing shoes. Beardback Mountain duke it out with Steve and Anna Leigh, aka Team “Daddy/Daughter Dance” for the last spot in the finals. Despite some initial reservations, Nicole is ALL-IN on Steve conquering his cardio-challenges, while Karen pulls for Anna Leigh to remain the last woman standing in season 35. Sadly, none of this pans out and our hosts have to enter “right relation” with another team in the elimination station. Plus, we speculate whether or not the Irish pitstop greeter is a “non-practicing bisexual.”
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Ep. 36: Midsommar Daydreams and Lesbian Recycling
12/01/2023
Ep. 36: Midsommar Daydreams and Lesbian Recycling
Things get tense as the final 5 teams on The Amazing Race winnow down to 4 in Sweden’s Stockholm archipelago. Everyone skydives their way to Nordic bliss before the slimmest of margins separate all the teams. This week’s detour is decidedly a choice between a lesbian task–recycling–and a gay task: expediting a gourmet French menu. Nicole makes a case for reimagining team Beardback Mountain as “pansexual,” while Karen bonds with our elimination station guests, Todd and Ashlie who are also from the I.E. (Inland Empire)
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Ep. 35: Gorgeous Caves and Sacks of Shellfish
11/30/2023
Ep. 35: Gorgeous Caves and Sacks of Shellfish
After a long prelude in which Nicole and Karen discuss the new Todd Haynes film, May December, with some notes on which Amazing Race contestants they would cast in the lead roles, they get into how painfully straight the show has become. Slovenia feels very “Covid lockdown” season to our team, despite all the hype. Karen talks a little too much about caves, and Nicole thinks the greeters at the end of this leg are lesbian nuns. We are of course devastated that our brash fanfiction team is KNOCKED OUT (farewell Robbin and Chelsea), and we wonder if there’s any gaymazing hope left as we near the finish line.
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Ep. 34: Fisting Hay and Pansexual Beekepers
11/17/2023
Ep. 34: Fisting Hay and Pansexual Beekepers
The Amazing Race visits Llubjana, Slovenia for the first time ever in its history, and Karen tells us about how Llubjana became a gaycation destination in the late aughts and early-2010s. Nicole softens to Steve, the daddy of team Daddy/Daughter dance, especially after Anna Leigh makes him run up a long ski lift for an express pass that was already claimed. Despite the gayness of Llubjana, we were hard-pressed to find gaymazing content beyond the detour where the judges of both sides offered the slightest glimmer of queer potential. Morgan and Lena join us in the elimination station after a photo finish at the Dragon Bridge pit stop, and we get into the sad, contested history of cast members who were also gay, but had some other aspect of their “difference” determine their storyline.
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Ep. 33: “Yes! I wanted sausage so bad!” in Köln
11/10/2023
Ep. 33: “Yes! I wanted sausage so bad!” in Köln
The Amazing Racers take a 15 hour flight from Jaipur to Frankfurt where the season’s first self-driving leg awaits them. As they make their way along the Rhine, we find out who can’t find the right ferry. Are all the teams secretly laughing at the German word “Fährt”? Karen declares she would “slay in Köln,” one of her favorite cities in the world, and a place she knows well. Nicole feels like the wayward teams have captured her true TAR spirit. Plus, experience the Kölner carnival challenge that makes EVERYONE a little bit gay.
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Ep. 32: A U-Turn in India
11/06/2023
Ep. 32: A U-Turn in India
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Ep. 31: “We’ve got the man done.”
10/27/2023
Ep. 31: “We’ve got the man done.”
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Ep. 30: Guyliner, Tears and Octopusses with Kat Spada
10/20/2023
Ep. 30: Guyliner, Tears and Octopusses with Kat Spada
Kat Spada of Feminist Frequency Radio guest-hosts as Nicole takes the week off for a silent meditation retreat (gaymazing!). Kat comes in hot with new team nicknames like “ZZ and/or Top” (referring of course to team Beardback Mountain), as we give a thorough account of the mega part of the teams’ second leg through Vietnam. The matching challenge at the Hung King Temple broke our hearts, especially because it meant Jocelyn and Victor were waiting for us in the elimination station. Plus, some chatter up top about what it means to watch The Amazing Race with a “queer gaze.”
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Ep. 29: Side-eye Pups, Smokin’ Hot Vinyl and the Queens of Rice
10/13/2023
Ep. 29: Side-eye Pups, Smokin’ Hot Vinyl and the Queens of Rice
Nicole and Karen ‘s powers of projection are more powerful than ever as they comb through the details of TAR’s leg 3 in Vietnam for the subtlest of queer content. How are our fanfic Gaymazing teams (the tatted-up GenX moms, and “Beardback Mountain”) faring against the ACTUAL gays competing this season, Joe and Ian? How hot does it get in the vinyl challenge? And who can roll the rice right to slide into the pit-stop first? This, and disturbing new sound effects on this week’s TGR!
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Ep. 27 + 28: Welcome to A Gaymazing Mega-Leg
10/09/2023
Ep. 27 + 28: Welcome to A Gaymazing Mega-Leg
Nicole and Karen are back to give you all their spicy, gaymazing commentary on not one, but the first TWO episodes of season 35 of The Amazing Race. What teams have each of them cathected onto for their gay fan-fiction? Who are their favorites otherwise? Is this season’s gay team evil enough? Plus interviews with the eliminated contestants.
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Ep. 26: “Shortest, Oldest, Most Femalest,” vs. The Most Bisexualest Winner of The Amazing Race
12/12/2022
Ep. 26: “Shortest, Oldest, Most Femalest,” vs. The Most Bisexualest Winner of The Amazing Race
It’s the Amazing Race Season 34 finale, and Nicole and Karen not only interview the top 3 teams, but they also bring back Aastha and Nina, the lesbian team woefully eliminated at the very start of the race, for a S34 post-mortem. Will Derek and Claire have it out with our hosts for not only erasing Claire’s bisexuality, but also rooting against them most of the time? What will Emily and Molly reveal about the extent of Emily’s injuries? And what makes Michelle, of Luis and Michelle, so fearless about heights? All this and so much more on our grand finale.
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Ep. 25 - David with the Good Hair and Lesbian Carabiners in Iceland
12/05/2022
Ep. 25 - David with the Good Hair and Lesbian Carabiners in Iceland
There’s a schism in this week’s gay scores doled out by Karen and Nicole, as Karen thinks “all of Iceland is lesbionic,” while Nicole is a little more skeptical as we confront three out of four “straight-facing couples” in the final four. David with the Good Hair touches us with his bravery as he confronts his difficulties swimming this week. We digress into educational riffs about spectrums of racialized masculinity, plus there are several important reveals in our Elimination Station with David and Aubrey, our favorite straight-couple team on The Amazing Race!
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Ep. 24: Bend Over for Castanets
12/01/2022
Ep. 24: Bend Over for Castanets
Despite the prevailing heterosexuality (and one lone bisexual) amongst our remaining contestants, episode 10 of The Amazing Race offers the most gaymazing detours yet, from dressing a flamenco dancer, to a challenge dubbed “Bend Over Backwards,” testing how much a brick arch can, in Phil’s words, “take a load.” Marcus of Michael and Marcus joins us in our elimination station to break down exactly how far behind they were from other teams. Plus, digressions on vegan gravy, the queerness of aesthetics, and other gaymazing topics.
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Ep. 23: Bisexual Veganism in Malaga
11/21/2022
Ep. 23: Bisexual Veganism in Malaga
The Amazing Race serves up another Mega Leg, so we have no elimination station this week: just teams racing around Malaga, Spain recreating art, riding bicycles, and pumping up paddleboards. We get into some of the racers’ squeamishness while undertaking a sardine-grilling challenge, and Nicole makes her case for why our hypothetical team might want to choose the other side of the detour. Karen sees Derek’s homage to Salt Bae and is not amused.
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Ep. 22: The Lorde Gayeth, and the Lorde Taketh Away
11/14/2022
Ep. 22: The Lorde Gayeth, and the Lorde Taketh Away
The Amazing Race teams head due south from Domme to Toulouse, and Karen and Nicole are tantalized by the Road Block which involves running drills with an entire French women’s rugby team. BUT FIRST, our hosts atone for their bisexual erasure of one of the remaining contestants. Even amidst this gay plentitude, deprivation looms on the horizon as our last officially GAYmazing team, the co-ed cheerleaders Quinton and Mattie, find themselves in our Elimination Station. PLUS: why French horns evoke homo-panic memories, and the poetic local who looks like Karen’s grad school ex.
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Ep. 21: Women w/ Tractors & Border Collies in the South of France
11/08/2022
Ep. 21: Women w/ Tractors & Border Collies in the South of France
Nicole and Karen get into a discussion about reclaiming pejoratives like “dyke” and “queer” while recapping The Amazing Race’s return to Europe and the Dordogne region in the South of France. Is the lady-Knight at the genealogy challenge actually Nicole’s “lesbian” doctor in L.A.? Are the short-haired women who used their tractor to rescue the team who drove into the ditch family? Plus, we welcome Glenda and Lumumba into our Elimination Station with a most heavy heart.
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Ep. 20: Flirt Dances and Quarantine w/ Will and Abby (S34, E6)
10/31/2022
Ep. 20: Flirt Dances and Quarantine w/ Will and Abby (S34, E6)
The Amazing Race manages another first during its visit to the Kingdom of Jordan: the first team ever to be eliminated for testing positive for Covid is cut from the race within this episode’s opening minutes. Is it just us, or are we starting to see Quentin and Mattie (our official Gaymazing team) beginning to make strides in the competition, including limber stretches to grab tinfulls of nails? We also speculate on whether or not we’d run into gender trouble if a same-sex team elected to do the “flirt dance” during the detour. Plus, we pump Will and Abby for all the info on TAR’s Covid policies and protocols.
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Ep. 19: Context Clues and Queer Truths with Linton and Sharik (S34, E5)
10/24/2022
Ep. 19: Context Clues and Queer Truths with Linton and Sharik (S34, E5)
The Amazing Race makes its first visit ever to the Kingdom of Jordan, and Karen and Nicole are excited to welcome camel caravans and cute puppies into the show’s environments.. Despite some Gaymazing references to Lawrence of Arabia and the like, this episode scores low on our Gaymazing-meter until we have a chance to meet with Linton & Sharik in our Elimination Station, and hear about Sharik’s queer-of-color storyline that didn’t make its way into the main edit. Listen in for a truly moving visit with the father-daughter team, and our fan-fiction explorations of gay storylines we’d like to see in this season’s TAR.
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Ep. 18: Chiseled Bods and Charcuterie (S34, E4)
10/17/2022
Ep. 18: Chiseled Bods and Charcuterie (S34, E4)
The first MEGA-LEG reaches its conclusion this week in Florence, Italy, or as Quinton reminds us, “Firenze in Italian.” Nicole beams in from NYC where she just accepted an Edward R. Murrow award for her other pod series Relative Fiction–HOORAY!--and Karen does her best to up episode 4’s Gaymazing score with a couple of gay flourishes, and a mini-rant about exposing kids to straightness. Plus, we “ask for a friend” if teams would be penalized for eating a pinch of mortadella from the charcuterie boards they have to collect from Florence’s bubonic plague windows, and we welcome motivational speakers Rich and Dom to our Elimination Station, after their third anniversary together ends with an L on TAR.
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Ep. 17: The Head of The Cheese ft. Katy Davidson (S34, E3)
10/10/2022
Ep. 17: The Head of The Cheese ft. Katy Davidson (S34, E3)
Leg 3 kicks off the first MEGA LEG of Season 34 - but almost certainly won't be the last. This to-be-continued episode has everything from lectures, wheels of cheese, socket wrenches, and of course, driving (or failing to drive) stick shift. Since there was no elimination station, Karen and Nicole are joined by a Gaymazing-Amazing-Race Superfan, Katy Davidson!
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