Bonnie Lambertson of Easton smelled trouble when her neighbors Meredith and Gretchen Smith, contestants on The Amazing Race, said they had to leave Tuesday for a funeral in Virginia.
That was an interesting coincidence, having to leave town on the same day that the CBS reality show airs.
And, indeed, the Smiths, a retired couple in their 60s who were racing younger, faster teams around the world, were eliminated from the pre-taped show Tuesday night.
"They called last night to tell us that `It was our funeral we went to,'" Lambertson said. "We told them everybody's just excited they went this far."
Gretchen's 36-year-old son, Chris Meadows, said he found out his parents were eliminated the same way everybody else did - by watching it on TV.
"My mother asked me right after the show ended if I was disappointed," said Meadows, who talked to them by phone while they were in New York to appear on CBS' The Early Show yesterday. "I told them no ... I'm really so proud of them for making it as far as they did. They held their composure and played well as a team."
Gretchen Smith told her son the boat-dragging challenge beat them in the end.
"She said the boats were so physically demanding, and they were heavy," Meadows said.
Three remaining teams compete in next week's season finale.
