Steph and Ben Tisdell were eliminated after arriving last at The Amazing Race Australia mat for the second time, having been spared during their first last-place finish on a non-elimination leg.
Every season of The Amazing Race Australia features a handful of non-elimination legs, but contestants are never told in advance which stages will send them home and which won’t. In Episode 2, Steph and Ben were the last team to cross the finish line, and host Beau Ryan told them that their spot in the race was saved because it was a pre-determined non-elimination leg.
Steph told Chattr that she fully expected to be sent home then.
“It was awful because I didn’t want to let Ben down. For me, that was the big thing; he stepped up constantly,” she said.
While non-elim legs often draw strong opinions from social media users, with some believing that they are used to save favourites, Steph said they have a huge psychological benefit for the racers.
“I don’t know how people feel watching it, but I think the non-elimination rounds, as contestants, are so amazing because it puts you back in the mindset, it’s all about that psychology of really recommitting to the race.
“It is really tiring, the long days, and it’s on the back of travelling a lot, and there’s just so much more that you can’t really think of because of how tired you are. So, those non-elimination rounds are always this: ‘Oh, my God, I actually do really want to be here.'”
Steph added that her and Ben’s pre-determined non-elimination round on episode two gave her an extra oomph to work harder to stay in the race.
Steph on the one quality that makes a great Amazing Race contestant
Though Steph and her brother Ben may have bowed out of The Amazing Race Australia fairly early, she believes there’s one quality that makes a great racer.
“I think what makes somebody really good at it is being able to stay present,” she explained.
“Aesha and Scott are just having the best time of their lives, right? And, Leni and Fev [Brendan], you can just see they are just bonding so much, and he’s just excited all the time.
“That’s what I loved watching as well. It was just everyone’s enthusiasm, she added. “You just go, they’re just having a good time, and it makes all the difference, because it makes you want to work harder.”
The Amazing Race Australia airs on Sundays at 7pm and Mondays at 7:30pm on Channel 10 and 10Play.
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