Kauai surfer Bethany Hamilton and husband Adam Dirks won the hearts of TV viewers as they competed this season in the globetrotting reality show "The Amazing Race," but fell just short of winning the whole thing Friday in the season finale.
The last episode followed the CBS show’s four surviving teams — the season started in September with 11 — as they flew from Manila to Los Angeles. As with every destination this season, they had to compete in challenges once they arrived in Los Angeles: jumping out of a building and swimming out to rescue a 200-pound dummy.
Hamilton, 24, and Dirks, 26, were in the lead through the rescue but slipped into last place during a memory challenge.
Hamilton lost her left arm in a shark attack in 2003 when she was 13. The film "Soul Surfer" was the inspirational tale of Hamilton’s recovery.
The winners were a pair of food scientists from Madison, Wis., who study sweets: Maya Warren and Amy DeJong. First prize was $1 million.
The competition covered more than 26,000 miles, and at nearly every stop Hamilton and Dirks made traveling look easy. On a show known for the sniping and arguments teams have among themselves, the Kauai couple gushed about love and teamwork at every turn.
Hamilton kept calling Dirks "Honey Buns."
But they were tough to beat as well. Before the finale, Hamilton and Dirks finished first three times and in the top three on eight occasions.
Hamilton was out surfing Friday and unavailable for comment. But Dirks said they were "stoked to get that far."
When they started the competition, which was held last summer, Hamilton and Dirks set small goals. They hoped to survive the first leg and see what happened next, Dirks said.
"From there we raced our best and used teamwork in everything we could," he said. "And things just went our way."
The couple were well aware of the show’s reputation for pushing participants to their breaking point. They got as far as they did by staying calm, Dirks said.
"We said we would never blow up at each other and get down on each other," he said. "Really, it was our teamwork and keeping cool and calm in stressful situations. And we came out still loving each other."
