Cards Pulled
Catch 3 Local Bugs
You must have all 3 bugs at the same time.
The bugs do not have to be local in origin, but you must have caught them in the state.
They must be different kinds of bugs. You may not, for example, catch 3 mosquitos.
Get One Team Member Intoxicated
You may get intoxicated at any bar in the state.
If there are no bars open, you may go to a restaurant.
If there are no restaurants or bars open, you may get drunk wherever you like.
If it is impossible to buy alcohol in the next hour, you may draw another card.
See the intoxication chart for reference.
Eat Spicy Food
Go to a local Indian restaurant and ask them for the hottest food they can serve you. Eat the entire thing.
While ordering, you must say, “I want the spiciest thing on the menu.”
If there is no Indian restaurant open within 20 miles, you may go to a Chinese, Thai, or Mexican restaurant.
If no such restaurants are open within 20 miles, you may draw another card.
Bowl A Strike
It must be in a bowling alley. You cannot use makeshift bowling pins.
If there is not an open bowling alley within 20 miles, you may pull another card.
Buy the Local Paper and Solve One of the Puzzles
The paper must be local to the town or the state.
If no local paper has any puzzles, then draw a new card.
Bury A Treasure
The treasure must be worth at least $50.
You must leave a conspicuous sign next to the treasure so that someone may find it.
The buried treasure must be completely covered.
The treasure must be at least 3 inches underground.
The treasure cannot be cash or a check.
You must preserve the treasure such that whoever digs it up can use/enjoy it. This may be as simple as putting it in a plastic bag.
Find a Statue and Recreate It
The statue must be at least 100 meters from the capitol building.
You may not use the internet to locate a statue.
You must hold the pose for at least 5 minutes.
The statue does not need to be human, but you still must do your best to recreate it with your bodies.
Eat the State Dish
You must eat at least one serving of the dish–a serving is up to your own reasonable interpretation.
See the state dish guide for reference.
Paint a Local Landscape
You must present your painting to the camera.
You must make a reasonable attempt to create a decent painting, using several colors and covering the majority of the canvas.
The painting must be on canvas or paper.
Get A Pedicure
Both members must get the pedicure. It must be both feet.
You must get your nails painted the state colors. If the state does not have official state colors, get a clear coat.
You may not ask the salon to be quick, or indicate in any way that you are under time pressure.
If there is no salon within 20 miles that offers pedicures and is currently open, you may draw another card.
Attend a Local Event
This means a gathering of multiple people at a scheduled event that is open to the public.
You must meaningfully participate in the event.
Paint Your Teammate's Face as the State Flag
Only one teammate must get their face painted.
This must cover their full face.
It must recognizably be the state flag.
You can use any paint, but you should probably use face paint. Makeup is also acceptable.
Go to a Museum
You must buy entry to and spend at least half an hour at a museum of your choice.
You must tell the camera five fun facts you learned.
The museum must be in the state.
If there is not an open museum within 20 miles, you may pull another card.
Busk Until You Earn One Dollar
You may have a sign, but you may not verbally ask people for money.
You must do some sort of performance to earn the money; you cannot just ask for it.
You may add any money earned to your budget.
Eat the State Dessert
You must eat at least one serving of the dish–a serving is up to your own reasonable interpretation.
See the state dessert guide for reference.
Claim the State Immediately, But...
In order to book your next flight, you must call the airline and not use the following words. If you say any of the words, you must apologize, hang up, and try again. You may not rehearse or write out what you are going to say ahead of time.
- Flight
- Fly
- Go
- Plane
- Time
- Yes
- No
- Arrive
- Depart
- Leaving
- Get
- Need
- Want
- Hello
- Hi
- (Any city name)
Bonus unpulled card:
Dance to the state song in the most majestic possible location.
Travel Map
Ben and Adam's Capitol Rankings
- Salt Lake City, Utah: 7/7
"It's pretty pretty. It's pretty majestic." -Ben - Salem, Oregon: 6/7
"Sort of dystopian, but I sort of dig it" -Adam
"It's kind of scary" -Ben - Denver, Colorado: 5.3/7
"It's quite nice" -Adam
"That [5.3/7] seems about right to me" -Ben - Cheyenne, Wyoming: 5/7
“It’s got a big weird gold dome over it, but I’m pretty into it” -Adam
“It’s quite cool” -Ben - Helena, Montana: 4/7
“Kind of underwhelming, a little drab” -Ben
“A little drab” -Adam - Phoenix, Arizona: 2/7
“It’s pretty bleak looking, this is not a very fun state capitol building” -Ben
“I’m not very impressed” -Adam
Episode-by-episode synopsis
Episode 1:
Sam and Brian flew to San Francisco, California, intending to claim California and then Nevada. Ben and Adam flew to Denver, Colorado, then drove up to Cheyenne and claimed Wyoming by catching bugs. Then they drove back down to Denver and claimed Colorado by getting Ben drunk.
Sam and Brian claimed California by eating spicy food, then drove to Carson City and claimed Nevada by bowling a strike. They stated that it would be really bad if Ben and Adam claimed Arizona.
Ben and Adam flew to Arizona.
Episode 2:
Ben and Adam bought a local paper for their challenge, but waited until the next morning to complete the challenge and claim it. They waited so that Sam and Brian hopefully got on a flight to Arizona, not knowing where Ben and Adam were, and then B/A would claim Arizona while S/B were in the air.
While B/A were doing this, Sam and Brian gambled their budget and got a little more cash, then got on a plane to Phoenix, hoping to claim Arizona and New Mexico.
Ben and Adam claimed Arizona by solving the crossword puzzle.
Sam and Brian, in Phoenix and now blocked off from their plan, analyzed Ben and Adam’s video and realized they were in the same airport as them, at a Southwest gate. They checked outgoing flights and figured out B/A were going to Portland.
Ben and Adam arrived in Portland, planning to block Sam and Brian. They took an Uber to Salem while Sam and Brian boarded a flight to Boise, Idaho.
Ben and Adam claimed Oregon by burying a treasure (Adam’s laptop charger).
Sam and Brian claimed Idaho by recreating the pose of a statue.
Ben and Adam discussed flying to a very strategic location, not revealing where.
Sam and Brian scoured departing flights, deducing the small flight Ben and Adam were most likely taking: a flight to Butte, Montana, connecting through Salt Lake City. They bought tickets for the same flight from Salt Lake to Butte.
Ben and Adam indeed took that flight.
Sam and Brian boarded the same plane, shocking Ben and Adam.
Episode 3:
The flight all 4 players were on turned around mid-flight due to bad weather, landing back in Salt Lake City and being delayed until the next morning. Both teams took advantage of this by arriving to the capitol building right after the rest period ended, attempting to claim Utah.
They cycled through many cards until finding some they might be able to complete. Ben and Adam completed their busking challenge before Sam and Brian could eat the state dessert, meaning Ben and Adam claimed Utah by busking for one dollar. Now, whichever team claimed Montana would have 4 states in a line and immediately win.
Both teams boarded their flight to Butte. Sam and Brian got a slight head start driving out of the airport, which turned into a long head start when Ben and Adam’s rental car broke down and they had to wait for a new one.
Ben and Adam finally arrived at Helena, seeing Sam and Brian already there. Sam revealed that he and Brian had already claimed Montana by drawing a “claim the state immediately” card.
Sam and Brian had connected 4 states: California, Nevada, Idaho, and Montana, so they had won the game.
Season 1
Connect 4 Across America
Air date:
May 25, 2022 - Jun 8, 2022
Teams:
Sam and Brian
Ben and Adam
Concept:
Two teams compete to connect 4 US states with a vertical or horizontal line by traveling to its capitol and claiming it via completing a challenge.
Episodes:
3
Winner(s):
Sam and Brian
