Athleticism and camaraderie. Two of the core tenets needed to become a successful Division 1 athlete, as Akbar and Sheri Cook can tell you firsthand. And unfortunately for the married educators, they were also two critical detriments to their time on The Amazing Race 33. They commonly found themselves a step behind the other teams, leading to spats over Sheri slowing the team down. And while they were always able to stave off elimination, their chances of surviving curdled like a finely-made cheese on the island of Corsica. As the creators of the inspiring “Lights On” program, Akbar and Sheri hoped they would shine bright in the race. Unfortunately, in the night skies of London, they discovered quickly it was more difficult than imagined. They fell behind due to Sheri’s slow speed, which prompted Akbar to try to motivate her to bring that D1 athlete back out, and caused some bickering between them. Though they found themselves behind most other teams, they still survived the night, giving them renewed confidence to take on the next leg. Aptly, Akbar and Sheri were eliminated in an episode airing on Groundhog’s Day. Because those overall themes of Leg 1 continued to happen throughout their time on the race. They would fall behind due to difficulties like self-driving or Sheri having to tackle her fear of heights on multiple occasions. They would bicker about it, especially when being told to speed up. But they would still finish outside of last place. Unfortunately, that all ended in France. It was Akbar’s turn to take on the Roadblock, and this time he was the one to struggle with the physical elements of the task. As a result, he got passed by several teams, and he and Sheri could not make up time, ultimately schooling the educators. Now out of the race, Akbar and Sheri talk with Parade.com about the physical difficulties that eventually eliminated them, their reaction to returning to the race, and how they feel their dynamic translated to the screen. You told Phil you knew you were eliminated last night when you hit the mat. Was there any chance you had on catching up after the Roadblock, like with the kayaks?Akbar Cook: We knew our chances were sunk. We knew we were the last ones. At that point, it was just try and finish with your start. We were so exhausted. The race has been so extreme this season. It wasn’t like previous rounds, where we were crying on the mat about being safe. We thought, “You know what, man? We lasted this many legs. We represented where we’re from and our biological kids and the kids that we service.” We left it all on the court. We were happy with the outcome.Sheri Cook: It was bittersweet. The last leg was a non-elimination. So the chances of that leg also being non-elimination were pretty slim to none. So we knew it was probably over. Akbar, let’s talk about your performance in this most recent Roadblock. What was going on that made you struggle on that canyoneering course to the point where two teams passed you?Akbar: Penn was back when I got to the Roadblock. And Penn gave me this look; he was shaking his head at me. Like, “I don’t think that you’re going to have a good outing in this.” Penn is 6'5" in way better shape than me; he’s not carrying that much weight. He just looked at me before I even went up the hill and was like, “Bro, that is going to kick your ass.” And I’m just like, “Oh my God.” And I knew Ryan was coming. Ryan was like Jason Vorhees! (Laughs.) I knew he was going to catch me in the woods at some point. And Arun was walking behind me, and Arun is in better shape. We knew we couldn’t beat anybody in a race. Maybe I could beat a girl if I had on the right sneakers, and she didn’t. Everybody was in such great shape that we weren’t beating anybody. So once Penn gave me that news, I was like, “Let me just do my thing.” And I get higher and higher. And it’s like, “Whoa, this thing is no joke.” And this was before we even started spelunking or anything. I was just telling myself, “Don’t stop moving.” You see on the show, I’m rolling down rocks. I’m like a pinball throwing myself forward. So by the time I got out there, I was so exhausted from that whole thing. And then psychologically, I thought, “I let my team down.” That was my psyche on it. It was my one chance to make up for the things that we had done. I wasn’t able to do it that night. So that was self-reflection I was thinking watching it last night. Sheri, the previous two legs you had to take on your fear of heights in the mountain walk and the bungee jump. What was that experience like to face your fears for the sake of the race?Sheri: I mean, I have a real fear of heights. So for me to even finish on the mountain. I was just so proud of myself. It was like, “Nevermind what anyone else or even Phil says.” I was just so proud to finish and complete that Roadblock because I was so scared. I was envisioning myself dangling from the side of the mountain, falling off the side, so I was really, really nervous. I was trying not to look down. And then what do you know, the next Roadblock is a bungee jump! (Laughs.) So now I don’t have to worry about dangling off the side; I’m going to have to jump off! That was terrifying. But I think I proved to myself that if I put my mind to it, I can do it; I can overcome my fears. Because that was definitely one of the fears that I had going into The Amazing Race. Just watching past episodes, you know there’s going to be something that has to do with height. You hope and pray that there won’t be something that’s so crazy. But I was just trying to hype myself up on the drive there. So I mean, I think I overcame my fears. I wouldn’t say that I conquered it completely. But I don’t think I would be as afraid if I had to bungee jump again. I know it wasn’t talked about on the show, but you both did a lot with your program during the hiatus before the season picked back up. So when you get the call to go back onto the race, how did you transition away from that and back into race mode, especially knowing the mistakes you made in the first three legs?Akbar: So we weren’t able to watch ourselves back at the time. But we knew what we did. We argue and we bicker. We’re yin and yang. We both knew when the other person had enough. So that’s when she pulls out the “shut up.” She said it so much should put that on a shirt right now! (Laughs.) But we are fans of the race. So we strategized. People don’t realize that we knew I was never going to be able to bungee jump. I am 6'7" and 265 on a good day. It’s never happened where they’re going to let you pass height and weight restrictions. So she knew she would have to jump if it happened. And we worked on some of the stuff that we knew we didn’t do the first time, like driving. If the race kept going, we probably would have been out soon because I couldn’t drive. I took three lessons in manual driving. And the break was the best thing that happened because I came out like Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Laughs.) And now we’re racing with all of these automatics! I was pissed. But you’ve got to understand that Sheri is a different fan of the race. She was way more of a fan than me, and I’ve watched over 25 seasons. So we did strategize. But the nineteen months hurt because of the way our lives were set up. I don’t want to make excuses, but it wasn’t like we were training for nineteen months straight. We had to take off and get four to six weeks to get back in shape. And I think that hurt us because those three or four weeks we had weren’t enough to do the things that we wanted to do. We worked out more, but the race was so extreme. The one thing I can say we did was prepare psychologically and by doing our homework, not so much physically. Speaking of that physicality, your race had a lot of Akbar trying to “bring the athlete” out of Sheri by motivating her to go faster. Sheri, what was your reaction to those motivational techniques?Sheri: The thing that I kept saying to him was his tone, the way he was saying things. It wasn’t that I was against him saying things and motivating me. But it was a tone that he was using. We’re running miles and miles; I’m already tired, and I’m trying to speak at the same time. I don’t need the condescending tone and “you can do this, and you can do that.” I welcomed his push. But it was just the way that he was saying things. At the moment, sometimes you don’t want to hear it that way. So I think he could have been a little bit more, “Come on, Sher, you can do it.” He says that’s not him. But he needed to work on it. So I think half of the time I said, “Shut up,” and we were bickering back and forth, it was because of the way that he was saying things, not the thing he was saying it. There are things that get me pumped up and get me motivated, but just not in that way. Akbar, what has been your reaction to the reception of you and Sheri online, especially in those moments where you’re trying to motivate her?Akbar: We weren’t going to go to the race and become this fake couple. That’s not what we are. We’ve been together 23 years. And I’m in agreement with her with the tone. The tone could have been better. But I’m an ultimate competitor. I’ve won and coached on every level, from robotics to little boys basketball to high school to state championships. Sheri did it too! When we play cards or Monopoly, we act the same way. Like, “Why do you want to buy a house like that?” That’s who we are. As she said, it never was the message. No one can look into my messages and say I was trying to beat up o my wife. I’m like, “Listen; you are a superhero. To my family, to the kids that you service, and our own kids.” Harvey Dent says, “You either die a hero or live long enough to become a villain.” I’d rather become the villain to let anybody see her not at her strongest. I made her a superhero. People don’t realize what we’re going through at home. She is a teacher of second graders; I want you to think about this. The teacher of second-graders in a pandemic; they’ve been together since kindergarten. They look at her as a superhero. They’re looking for any way to quit. I don’t want them to watch us on there, and we’re out first leg because we were jogging. So it was like, if she didn’t see what was at stake, I want her to know. And again, I apologize for how it came out. But I would never change the message. And she did that! She’s more of a superhero now to America because of it. So I’m the villain. And she’s Wonder Woman. Next, check out our interview with Michael Norwood and Moe Badger, who were re-eliminated in Leg 4.
