Aubrey, Jacq want more action and adventure

If actress Aubrey Miles and model Jacqueline Yu could turn back the clock, there are certain things that this duo would have done differently during their short-lived stint in the first-ever The Amazing Race Asia (TARA).

"I could have been more patient [in dealing with the challenges]," Aubrey, 26, told The Freeman Entertainment in a recent interview. The presence of the good-looking bestfriends on the AXN show quickly generated varied reactions - some were nasty, while some proved to be encouraging as they pulled off some funny moments onscreen.

In televisionwithoutpity.com, one of the many forums dedicated to the show, one wrote: "I am liking the Filipino actress/model team. I know they are cast as the 'hot girl team using their looks' but I think that might be exaggerated in editing - they seem like good racers and not snobby."

And from the looks of it, the youngest team amongst the 10 teams looked all primed up for the adventure and action that it entailed. Jacq, 23, said that part of their preparation for the race was working out everyday and devouring country maps since the race would be bringing them to countries in Asia and the Pacific Rim.

However, in the third leg wherein the racers found themselves in Indonesia, the duo quit a Roadblock, which required a team member - it was Aubrey - to dig in a marked area of a beach for a small wooden surfboard token hidden up to 40 cm beneath the sand.

Their failure to complete the Roadblock, which was equivalent to a four-hour penalty, plus the fact that they were the last to arrive at the pit stop, made Aubrey-Jacq the second to be eliminated in the Asian edition of the widely popular American reality TV game show. The first to go was another Filipino team, the husband-and-wife tandem of Ernie and Jeena Lopez.

Commenting on their elimination, another TARA follower posted on axn.com: "While I think that Aubrey and Jacqueline are great eye candies, I felt like they were just there for the free travel opportunity. They didn't seem to be real competitive and didn't hustle too much. Jacqueline looked like she just wanted to play around, which I guess is fine, at least they seem to have fun... But it's ok to see them leave."

Other fans of the show reacted in forums that the duo was only concerned in looking good for the cameras, as they were often captured on cam putting on make-up, not to mention, were many times seen horsing around.

Still, the two debunked speculations and observations that they didn't come up with their best and that they were just a couple of "kikays" who were just there for the exposure.

"We were told we had to look good and presentable on TV, and it wasn't like we're always re-touching our make-up. Even if we wanted to do it secretly and requested the two cameramen not to shoot it, they still would. That's the image they wanted," said Aubrey.

She also said that there were a lot of scenes that didn't make it to the TV, including the real cause of delay of their arrival at the pit stop in the third leg of the race. "Inikot-ikot kami ng taxi driver, masasabi ko na parang naloko kami."

"We did our best, and it wasn't like we didn't care about the prize... saying din yung five-million pesos," Jacq added. "But we had lots of fun; it was an unforgettable experience."

The maiden season's champion, the all-female team from Malaysia - Zabrina and Joe Jer - actually had nice things to say about them in their blog, amazing-spaces.spaces.live.com:"It was sad to see the girls go - especially since Joe Jer and I got along so well with them. Aubrey and Jacq are awesome and hilarious!"

Aubrey, who's part of ABS-CBN's upcoming fantasy-series Ronin, said that she has always been a fan of The Amazing Race, and she'd grab any opportunity to be part of any other reality TV game show, again, that would involve adventure races, physical and mental challenges, plus traveling like her other favorites, Survivor and Fear Factor.

When told she could also have partnered with real-life and equally buff beau Troy Montero (a relationship which she describes as getting healthier by the day), she countered that perky Jacq is more up with her appetite for action.

The actress said that since the TARA experience, which ended last February 1, they've been both getting inquiries to guest in other countries.

The duo was in Cebu to grace the recent inauguration of the new Caltex mega-station at the Cebu North Road in Labogon, Mandaue City by Chevron Philippines. The CMA North Star is a Caltex mega-station that carries the full-line of Caltex petroleum products, Xpress lube and service bays and the Caltex Starmart convenience store, plus is anchored by a fast-food chain restaurant, McDonald's.

Caltex also was a sponsor in the recently-concluded Asian edition of The Amazing Race. - NMT