Amazing Race's Adam and Bethany: "We Knew Things Weren't Going Our Way"

If there was one mistake Adam and Bethany made on The Amazing Race finale, it might have been not strategizing about the Roadblocks. "When we got to the last challenge, it said whoever didn't do the first [Roadblock] had to do the second one and I read what it was, my heart dropped," Bethany tells TVGuide.com. "Adam is so much better at the memory stuff than I am." The surfers ended up in third place, but completing the race they did was a victory in and of itself -- and not just because Bethany has one arm. Find out why below.

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You guys were so mellow that you seemed OK with third, even though first would obviously be better.
Bethany: [Laughs] I think going into it, we were like, "Let's not come in last." But we knew we had the ability to get to the finals and possibly win. You take it one leg at a time. I think not getting ahead of ourselves helped us. Overall, it was incredible. Third place isn't so bad.

It's better than the seventh place Phil predicted for you.
Bethany: [Laughs] Glad that didn't come true!

Did it take you much longer to figure out the combo after Misti and Jim left?
Adam: I think we were 30 minutes behind Jim and Misti. We were standing there and we knew things weren't going our way. The other teams left. Our hearts sank for a little bit. From watching all the other seasons, we just knew that the main thing was that we were not at each other's necks. We're not going to be fighting and be disappointed with one another over a challenge.

Did you fight at all? You were so calm when you dropped the glasses in Malta right before you were done. Most couples would be at each other's throats.
Bethany: We really didn't fight at all. I think we knew it would be really stressful and there would be situations where they would make us want to fight. But we kept in mind that it's just a race. We didn't want the race to come between us. It actually made us more lovey-dovey than we are. [Laughs] We definitely are proud of how we handled it from start to finish. We supported each other the same we do in real life.

Bethany, you said Adam was good with memorizing things. Do you regret not doing the opposite Roadblocks?
Bethany: Oh, yeah. ... I was like, "Oh my gosh! The whole race is coming down to me!" I don't think we were really strategizing when we got to the first Roadblock. It just kind of like, "Final leg. You go for it." It didn't even cross my mind that there might be another Roadblock and one of us might have to do the other one because you never know what twists they have. I think Adam would've been better at the last one, but I'm just stoked I completed the challenge. I was so tired and it was middle-of-the-day heat, and every container looked the same. It was crazy.
Adam: It was really hard, just knowing what they had to do, running around and memorizing [the numbers] without notes. But I knew Bethany wouldn't give up and she got it done. Who knows if I would've done better.

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I loved when you almost committed "race suicide" by going for the Fast Forward with Kym and Alli already there. That could've gone terribly for you, but it went perfectly.
Adam: We knew it was a huge gamble. You don't usually see a lot of teams go for the Fast Forward, especially one that's in last place, but we just sort of looked at the possible situations in front of us. There was a Double U-Turn and we were in last with Jim and Misti. They could've just U-Turned both of us.

Were you afraid you were going to be U-Turned? Obviously, Amy and Maya U-Turned you, which was moot since you already finished, but the original plan was for you all to U-Turn Kym and Alli.
Bethany: Yeah. Being behind in the back, I wasn't underestimating them at that point. They're going to do what's best for them.
Adam: If we got U-Turned, there was a good chance we were going to be out. It was a strategy. It was race in last the whole leg or try the quickest way to try to avoid elimination. It could have not worked out for us, but I think we had to try, especially when we found out it was at a wave house.

How confident were you that you could get it done before Kym and Alli?
Bethany: We really weren't that confident. We just got into a taxi and we hadn't decided at that point. After we asked where the two locations were and as we started talking more, we warmed ourselves up to the idea of doing the Fast Forward. We were like, "It's at a wave house. We really should go try it." We knew out of the other teams, the cyclists would be there because they're aggressive and risk-takers. I had ridden one of those wave house things before, so I knew how hard it was, so I wasn't sure if they would've been able to do it by the time we got there. But I also didn't know how Adam would do.
Adam: Yeah, it took me a little while to get the hang of it. It's not like surfing at all. The board is small and the water is coming at you differently. You're not really riding as much as keeping your balance.

Did you have any strategy of how you were going to divide up the Roadblocks since you since you didn't really know what the task entailed unless you saw other teams doing it?
Adam: Like the very first one, that was clear I would be able to dig quicker to find the treasure. When it came to physical tasks like that where there you need a psychical advantage, I did it. But also, like with memorizing the menu items, that was more up my alley as well. When it came to Beth, we knew she could do a good amount of Roadblocks. We both know she's more than capable and I think everyone eventually saw that. Fortunately we were also in a season that had fewer Roadblocks. But the rappelling and walking across [a canyon] on that bridge ... I knew she could do it.

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I don't know if it was the show downplaying it or you, Bethany, but I liked how you having one arm didn't come up too much during the season. Usually when racers have a condition, they drive the point home, but with you, it was like, "Just watch her kick ass."
Bethany: [Laughs] It wasn't something I consciously did. It's just how I live life anyway.
Adam: Just live life without the limitation of that. We're happy people got to see that. She's tough. She can do all those challenges -- riding the bike with me, the puzzle with her feet. She was insane. She did awesome.
Bethany: Riding a bike and carrying Adam and the cake was the worst! [Laughs]

What are you up to now?
Adam: Right now, we're actually on our way to go surfing.
Bethany: Surprise!

The Amazing Race returns Wednesday, Feb. 25 at 9:30/8:30c with a special 90-minute episode before moving to its regular timeslot Friday, Feb. 27 at 8/7c on CBS.

Check out our behind-the-scenes footage from the Season 25 start line.

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