 Remaining teams (in order of Dogleg 6 finish):
The Amanxing Race 2: Going to the Dogs La luna, la bella luna rises on an evening in Roma, and the Amanxing Racers are enjoying some Italian food at the Circus Maximus PET STOP. Keo and June are eating garlic bread, Heidi chows down on some manicotti with the rest of the dogs, and Douglas bites off a small portion for Pierre. Army Mule eats linguini and oatmeal cookies. Navy Goat eats the cans from the canned tomatoes that featured in the chicken marsala that Depot is sharing with Sanford and Banjo. Bella, Bella sleeps. She does wake up in time for she and Douglas to leave the Pet Stop first. Their clue reads: "You've been to Switzerland, you've been to Italy. Time to think about that while riding the ferris wheel in the Prater in Vienna."
The Racers leave one by one for the Rome airport, but all seven teams end up on the same flight to Vienna. Bella sleeps again despite the incessant barking of Pierre. Keo and June are the first pair out of the plane and into a cab to the park. They spot the ferris wheel right away.
The next clue tells them to ride around the wheel once, and upon disembarking they should look for the small striped kitten. Chimps, who live in the tops of trees, have no fear of heights, and the father-daughter pair enjoy their ride around the wheel. Army and Navy share their car, and as they leave the ferris wheel, they see a scared Pierre being reassured by Hercules and Maxx that the wheel is safe. Keo and June find the kitten before Army and Navy do, and is instructed to go to the Vienna Woods and look for the next clue. The two pairs are neck in neck as they head off for the woods. Meanwhile, Bella and Douglas have jumped onto the ferris wheel as the two dog pairs plus one get off. The chimps are still ahead of the hoof gang as they arrive in the Vienna Woods and find that the clue box is located next to an impromptu outdoor stage, set up so that the Vienna Phil-harmonic can serenade the Racers with classical music associated with Vienna.
The sight of two apes running on their hind legs causes some giggles in the trumpet section. The orchestra plays a Mozart piece for the chimps and Schubert's Military March for Army and Navy.
Keo wants to stay and listen to music, but June catches him and takes him over to the clue box, in which the next clue reads: "I hope you're Hungary. Take one of two cruises on the Beautiful Blue Danube to Budapest and proceed to Castle Hill, your PET STOP for this leg of the Amanxing Race. While Keo and June and Army and Navy sign up for the first boat, the German shepherds listen to Beethoven and the golden retrievers and Pierre hear some Strauss, specifically "Die Fledermaus." ("The Bat.") They both make the first boat as well.
Heidi and Depot, who is beginning to slow down a little due to his advanced age, arrive to the sound of Brahms. Bella and Douglas enjoy Haydn's Surprise Symphony, but the Phil-harmonic makes a terrible error in judgment when Sanford and Banjo arrive. They play a Mahler piece with blaring French Horns. The foxes, thinking they are the targets of hunters, run off terrified into the woods, each in a different direction. The friendly bassists, trombone players and percussionists try to look for the foxes, but when the second Danube boat leaves, they are not on it.
The first boat arrives in Budapest and Keo and June, who have led this entire leg, scramble to the top of Castle Hill where they are met by who other than the son of Dracula, Bela Lugosi Jr., and a Puli dog. No, they're not from Jamaica. Army and Navy are next, followed by the police dogs, who find it very interesting to be in Eastern Europe. Bella and Douglas, who is very excited to see someone else famous for biting, and Heidi and Depot, all arrive.
Sanford and Banjo, the Massachusetts red foxes, were finally convinced that there's no fox hunt, but by the time they arrived in Hungary, it was the end for them. But wait - there are four more arrivals at the Pet Stop. A Spanish family. Eliades Goizueta, his wife Hilda, and their children Ferdinand and Luisa, have finally returned from their vacation and are here to pick up Pierre, who makes a beeline for his children when he arrives with the retrievers. Taffy is noticeably upset, and goes off by herself.
Mr. Goizueta comes over to the retriever. "Taffy, I want to thank you for being so kind to little Pierre. I'm so glad we have him back, and so are Ferdinand and Luisa. He reminds me of the dog we had when I was a little boy. His name was Manuel and I used to take him for walks down by the seaside, where I would go fishing, before we lost everything" His voice trails off. "I know it's hard to lose someone you love, but I promise, you will see Pierre again some day. He wants to come visit all of you. Maybe we will meet at Crufts or Westminster. Do you understand?" Somehow, Taffy does.
Finally, it's time for the Goizuetas to take Pierre back to Spain. The puppy runs over to each racer and hugs him or her, staying longest with Heidi and Taffy. Koko hugs Pierre and says "Koko love little white dog. Koko sad." For the Racers, it's too hard to say goodbye. Next... on Dogleg 8 of the Amanxing Race: The fur is flying... and so are the kites. Will the teams air their differences? Which duo will finish by a nose? DOGLEGS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Written by Becky Banfield The Amanxing Race was inspired by CBS Television's The Amazing Race. |
