Walter's Survivor page

I'm a big fan of the show Survivor produced by CBS. It combines the best elements of a game show, soap opera, nature documentary, and swimsuit contest. ;-) This page lists some of my creations and acquisitions in this area:

• Survivor maze #1: "This next challenge will prove harder than the rest. You'll be rats in the maze for this little test. Just keep your wits, and you'll make it with ease. The prize is the idol, and that's much better than cheese." In the TV show Survivor II on CBS, the immunity challenge in episode 5 was a race through a Maze. There were two identical Mazes built side by side, where the two tribes had to enter, find each of the checkpoints within their Maze in order, and then exit. The Maze measured 13 by 17 passages, and contained 22 dead ends and 5 passage loops. They say it took 46 tons of lumber, three miles of burlap, and two weeks to build. A game which allows one to try to solve this Maze comes with the program Daedalus, where a screenshot from this game can be seen here. A slightly modified version of this game was used by the Survivor Spades online league for one of their challenges.
• Survivor maze #2: In Survivor IV, the immunity challenge in episode 6 was another race through a Maze. This time there was just one Maze, which both tribes were inside at the same time, where they had to find each of their checkpoints within the Maze in order, returning to the center after each one. The Maze was symmetric, in five rings, and contained 14 dead ends and 3 passage loops. A game which allows one to try to solve this Maze comes with the program Daedalus, where a screenshot from this game can be seen here. A modified version of this was used by the Survivor Spades 2 online league for another one of their challenges.

• Survivor maze #3: In Survivor VI, the immunity challenge for the final four was again a race through a Maze. The final contestants had to race through the Maze blindfolded, finding four checkpoints represented by the four elements, returning to the center when done. Each quadrant of the Maze was symmetric, where the whole thing contained 40 dead ends and 12 passage loops. A game which allows one to try to solve this Maze comes with the program Daedalus, where a screenshot from this game can be seen here.

• Survivor Maze #4: In Survivor VIII, the immunity challenge for the final four again was yet another race through a Maze. The final contestants had to race through the Maze with minor obstacle courses in certain passages, finding eight checkpoints in the eight points of the star shaped Maze, returning to the center when done. A game which allows one to try to solve this Maze comes with the program Daedalus, where a screenshot from this game can be seen here.

• Survivor Maze #5: In Survivor IX, the immunity challenge for the final four this time was a race through a vertical Maze, which was like a 2D Maze flipped on edge. The final contestants had to navigate the Maze, climbing up and down ladders to change their elevation, and find ten different checkpoints within the Maze in any order, returning outside after each. A game which allows one to try to solve this Maze comes with the program Daedalus, where a screenshot from this game can be seen here.

• Survivor Maze #6: In Survivor XI, the immunity challenge for the final four was a race through a bird shaped Maze. The final contestants had to race through the Maze, finding six different checkpoints within the Maze in any other, going across a pool of water and then up a Maya pyramid in the middle after each. A game which allows one to try to solve this Maze comes with the program Daedalus, where a screenshot from this game can be seen here.

• Survivor Maze #7: In Survivor XIV, the immunity challenge for the final five was a race through several Mazes. The final contestants had to race through five Mazes in sequence while blindfolded, finding a checkpoint within each that yields the key to the next area. A game which allows one to try to solve this Maze comes with the program Daedalus, where a screenshot from this game can be seen here.

• Survivor game info: I've put together a spoiler/strategy guide for Survivor: The Interactive Game, containing a list of all Survivors and custom Survivors and their statistics, information about all character statistics, and a list of all challenges and tips on winning them.
• Personality test #1: Which "Survivor: Africa" contestant has a personality most similar to your own? Take this 20 question test I put together and find out. :-) Taking my own test, I got the friendly yet strategic Teresa.
• Personality test #2: Which "Survivor: Thailand" contestant has a personality most similar to your own? Take this 20 question test and find out. Taking my own test, I got the sweet yet athletic Tanya, who might have gotten far if she hadn't gotten sick.
• Personality test #3: Which "Survivor: Amazon" contestant has a personality most similar to your own? Take another 20 question test and find out. I get the hard working yet weird Matthew, who finished 2nd place.
• Personality test #4: Which "Survivor: Pearl Islands" contestant has a personality most similar to your own? Yet another 20 question test to find out. I get fellow geek Ryan S, voted out early unfortunately.
• Neleh maze: My favorite Survivor contestant from Survivor IV is Neleh Dennis. Given her positive attitude I decided Neleh is an acronym for (N)ice (E)nthusiastic (L)oving (E)xquisite (H)elpful. :-) On a message board thread where fans were singing her praises, I created and posted this Maze.

KimP's torch

Kim Powers is probably my favorite contestant of all time. To me KimP is an acronym for (K)ind, (I)ntelligent, (M)oral, and (P)hysically fit. :-) I had the honor of owning the torch she carried with her during her 33 days in Africa. After Survivor III was broadcast, many props from the show, including each of the 16 contestant's torches, were auctioned on eBay by the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. I won KimP's torch, and although I later resold it to another Survivor fan, pictures I took of it can be seen below:

• Entire torch: Here's Kim P's torch, all 6 feet, 8 inches of it. The staff is a natural piece of wood, where you can see slight bends in it.
• Top half: A closer look at the top half. By the way, the balance point of the torch, when holding it in one hand, is at the "E" in "POWERS!". There's a small curve between the "E" and the "R", which makes a natural place to carry it. Looking closely at Kim in the episodes, that was where she was most often holding it.
• Torch lettering: A closer look at the lettering. Note even for a non-Survivor fan, this torch is pretty neat, as "POWERS!" can be taken to mean the word instead of just the last name.
• Lettering close-up: A close look at some letters. Her letters are white surrounded by pink. Notice some of the paint has flaked off. I'm still impressed at the condition, given that Kim was carrying it around in Africa for 33 days.
• Name tag: A close look at the small piece of metal that says Kim P. The letters are raised on this side, but not depressed on the back side.
• Tip of torch: Here's what's in the funnel at the top. It still has a strong burnt smell to it. I could make a joke here about "looking down Kim P's top", but that's Big Tom's area. ;-)
• Bottom half: A closer look at the bottom of the staff. Notice the split in the wood near the top of the picture, another testament to the harsh conditions these torches were put through.
• Initialed section: This section of the staff is directly behind the "!" in "POWERS!". The staff is painted black, but after 33 days a lot of it wore off. Notice the "KP" that seems to have been scratched into the paint with a knife. It looks like Kim added her initials at some point.

KellyG's signed gourd

Kelly Goldsmith, considered to have the highest IQ of any Survivor contestant of all time, is another of my Survivor favorites. Kelly's acronym is (K)nowledgeable, (E)legant, (L)ively, (L)oyal, (Y)outhful. :-) I would have won Kelly's torch, however I waited too long before submitting my bid. As part of the Survivor III memorabilia auction, each contestant autographed a gourd. Most just signed their name, however Kelly really decorated hers resulting in a real work of art! I won the auction for this gourd, which can be seen below:

• Top view: Here's Kelly's gourd, measuring 11.5 inches from tip to base. Note these are really just half gourds, so they can lie flat without rolling.
• Side view: "Live it up!" were Kelly's last words when getting her torch extinguished. "It wasn't me!" was because Kelly was falsely accused of being a "snake" and casting a vote against a tribemate, and was martyred and voted out because of it. :-( "Loser Eight" is because Kelly was the eighth person voted out.

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