Challenge Trail Blazer
Location: Challenge Beach
Each team is given a "Fire Cart," which contains four lit torches and a fire caldron in the center. They must pull or push the cart through difficult terrain while lighting a series of fire towers along the way. The first tribe to successfully light their towers, cross the finish line, and ignite the final bonfire wins.
Winning Tribe Gets: Immunity
Winning Tribe: Samburu
The Vote:
Diane: Clarence, Ethan, Kim J, Lex, Kelly, Jessie
Clarence: Diane, Clarence
My comments:
Coming Soon
What CBS had to say about the episode:
SURVIVOR AFRICA has arrived, and Diane Ogden, a 42-year-old United States Postal Carrier from Lincoln, Nebraska, became the first person voted out of the Boran tribe. Diane, who struggled during and after the extremely physical Immunity Challenge, was persuaded by her fellow tribe member Clarence Black to eat a can of beans while the others were away from camp gathering water. Walking away from tribal council with an extinguished torch, Diane defined her experience, "I have no regrets. I am actually glad; it was a lot tougher than I thought it would be."
SURVIVOR AFRICA's premise is simple: Stranded and left to fend for themselves in one of the most life-threatening places on earth, sixteen average Americans must learn to adapt and survive not only the harsh environment, but more importantly, each other. Every three days the Survivors must gather to vote out one of their own. In the end, the Ultimate Survivor wins one million dollars.
It started with a grueling seven-hour journey along the unpaved, desolate terrain of Kenya. Animals were abundant as the sixteen-seat Over Lander transport vehicle rumbled closer to its final destination in the heart of the bush. As the vehicle came to a stop and the armed Esacri soldier ordered the Survivors down off the truck, the Survivors realized they were in for the adventure of a lifetime. Separated into two competing tribes, Samburu and Boran--named after the local tribes that inhabit the land--the Survivors alertly made their way to the supply area. Frantically, both teams sprang into action, assessing what supplies were necessities and what creature comforts were available to take with them to the camps.
The Hike to Camp
Left with the painstaking first task of transporting supplies to their new camps, the Survivors split off and headed for what will be their new home for the next thirty-nine days. Cumbersome clay water jugs, heavy cornmeal containers, canned food, and thick rope were only a few of the items the Survivors hauled. Growing impatient and frustrated by his slow-paced Samburu tribe members, Frank Garrison, the 43-year-old ex-army officer and telephone technician, barked, "We are not at the mall sitting outside with a latte or something! Let's just keep moving along." The difficulties were evident early on for the Boran tribe too, as they dumped out precious supplies of water to lessen the heavy load. Adding to the already strenuous hike, Diane, who took the role of map reader, steered them in the wrong direction. This caused the first sign of friction with her newly formed tribe members. Exhausted after a four-hour hike, the tribes finally reached their abandoned villages and quickly realized that much work needed to be done before nightfall.
Protecting their New Home
Securing the perimeter of the Boma (the thorny acacia tree branches designed to keep out predators) was the most important task to complete first. Frank showed his militant might as he barked orders at the younger tribe members. This rubbed Kim Powers, the 29-year-old freelance marketer from Pennsylvania, the wrong way as she added, "I am not military. I don't need it in my life and everything doesn't need to be a rule or single file. It's just not me." Brandon Quinton, the 25-year-old bartender from Dallas, Texas, reassured her as they continued to collect the acacia branches, saying, "Just keep smiling; that's what I'm doing."
Fire and Water
Realizing that they were low on water, the Samburu tribe followed their map and hiked to find the water hole. Upon arrival, and visibly disturbed by her findings, Lindsey Richter, the single 27-year-old former advertising executive from Portland, Oregon, gave her analysis of the water hole, explaining that "the water is disgusting, it's sick. You get water mixed with crud, it's only two inches deep." The murky water wasn't the only problem the tribes faced, as Kim Powers reminded her tribe that "the water is contaminated and must be boiled over a fire for at least five minutes before we can drink it. The problem is, we don't have fire." Losing sunlight and facing the looming danger of wild animals, the thirsty tribe made relentless attempts to make fire. Rolling a stick between their hands, they tried to cause enough friction to ignite the tinder placed on the ground. As night fell, the Samburu Tribe did not succeed.
The Struggle for Water Continues
Dehydrated from the rigors of the previous day, Jessie Camacho, the attractive 27-year-old Deputy Sheriff from Orlando, Florida, became overwhelmed and threw up what little fluids she had retained. Needing water, the Boran tribe made their first visit to the water hole as well. After a comical adventure involving goat farmer Tom Buchanan splashing around the water hole impersonating an elephant, they returned with the much-needed water, only to find themselves in the same situation as their counterparts: no fire. Lex Van Den Berghe, the tattooed marketing manager from Santa Cruz, California, explained the situation: "If you don't boil your water out here, you end up with what they call amoebic dysentery, which basically will have you puking and crapping your guts out." Using the same technique as the Samburu Tribe, Boran also failed in their attempt to make fire.
Over at Samburu, using her ingenuity, Kim Powers searched the medical kit and found a telescope that was originally provided for keeping an eye out for dangerous wildlife. Unscrewing the lens and handing it to Silas Gaither, the muscular 23-year-old bartender from Germantown, Tennessee, she appealed, "Silas, there must be something you can do with this." Evidently there was, because he used the lens as a magnifying glass, sparking the twigs and igniting them into flames. Dancing in celebration, the Samburu tribe was finally able to boil the much-needed water and gain back their energy for the upcoming challenge.
Immunity
The Boran tribe's inability to make fire added to the importance of the first Immunity Challenge, since the winning tribe would receive fire in the form of waterproof matches. Along with the matches, winning meant that the tribe would be safe from having to go to Tribal Council.
The contestants arrived at Challenge Beach to meet host Jeff Probst, who explained the rules of the challenge: The tribes must drag a heavy fire caldron cart over rough terrain while lighting a series of torches along the way. The first team to successfully light all of the torches and cross the finish line wins.
The two tribes were neck-and-neck throughout most of the contest. As the Boran tribe tired and lost their momentum, the Samburu tribe powered forward and took the lead. As they raced to the finish line, Samburu would prove to be too strong, crossing the line first and winning Immunity. As Boran finished the race, a beleaguered and dehydrated Diane Ogden collapsed from exhaustion. Picking her up off the ground, the disappointed Boran tribe headed back to their camp, desperate for water and realizing that the Tribal Council vote was just around the corner.
The Bean Fight
Later, still worn out from the day's challenge, Diane and Clarence Black, the 24-year-old high school basketball coach from Detroit, Michigan, relaxed as the rest of the Boran tribe hiked to gather water. After Tom returned from collecting water, Diane informed him that Clarence had opened a can of beans and shared it with her while everyone was away from camp. Because there are only small rations of food for the entire tribe, Tom became furious about what Diane had revealed. He confronted Clarence, saying, "Diane told me you opened a can of food while we were gone; you better fess up." Tom's words were the catalyst for what eventually transpired, as his fellow tribe members berated Clarence for his decision. Defending his position, Clarence added, "I got her [Diane] something to eat and we split it while you were gone, just so she could feel better. It ain't no big deal." Tom fired back, "It's a big deal to me and to the rest of us, it's a big deal. You don't eat without all of us!" In addition, Clarence admitted that he had eaten some of the food. Guilt-ridden and back on his heels, Clarence was compelled by Tom to apologize over and over again for his error in judgment. Lex fervently added, "This issue is cut and dry; we are pissed off and the trust has been broken. Right now, we are all wondering if we can leave anyone alone." Diane then denied the claim that she had asked for the beans, which caused Clarence's stock to drop even further in the minds of his tribe members.
The Vote
After a Tribal Council in which Clarence again apologized for his decision, Diane Ogden was sent packing as the first person voted out of the tribe (6-2). Both Diane and Tom voted for Clarence. Said Tom, however, "I can forgive, but I don't forget."
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