Jalapao Red Tribe :
1. Sandy Burgin, 53, bus driver from Louisville - This hyper, tattooed
grandmother knew she was perfect for Survivor, so she flew to Seattle to be the first to audition. "My willpower is phenomenal," she says. "On a
scale of one to 10, it's a 12."
2. Stephen Fishbach, 29, corporate consultant from New York City-
Call him a speechwriter, a spam master or a Muppet. (He thinks he looks like Kermit.) But don't call him "Fish." "That's my nickname at
home," he says. "I can't [use it] here because when I can't fish, I'm going to look like an idiot."
3. James Thomas Jr., 24, cattle rancher from Samson, Ala.- Warning: This
cowboy knows how to take down prey. "Deer, turkey, wild hog, coyote-everything you're allowed to hunt in Alabama I've hunted," he says.
"I'm a country boy."
4. Spencer Duhm, 19, college sophomore from Lakeland, Fla.- Survivor fan
Duhm has been studying the game since he was 11. That's why he plans to trust no one, saying, "You have to assume they're going to screw you
before you screw them over."
5. Sydney Wheeler, 24, model/interior designer from San Diego.- How
will she outlast the competition? "I plan to make alliances with the athletic guys," she say. "They are cute and they'll be good at the
challenges." And plan B? :If I've gotta flirt, I'm gonna flirt. Work with what you've got. Right?"
11. Carolina Eastwood, 26, bartender from Los Angeles - How did this
fire-spitting Panamanian-American prep for Survivor? "I got lasered from head to toe," she says. "Because I'm ethnic in the hairiest sense
of the word. And I did not want to scare people with my overgrown armpits."
12. Taj Johnson-George, 37, former member of the Grammy-nominated R&B
group SWV from Nashville- "There's a stigma that comes with being married to an NFL player," says the wife of former Tennessee Titan Eddie
George. "People think we're pampered. But I'm not. I'm a 5'9", 190-pound tomboy. I'm gonna tear 'em up when I get out
there."
13. Joe Dowdle, 26, commercial real-estate broker from
Austin- Dowdle's strategy? Persuade and evade. "If it works, I will have pulled off something miraculous. If not, I'll get pretty far anyway. I
told my mom before I left. "I'll see you out there."
Timbira Tribe Purple/Blue/Black
:
6. Jerry Sims, 49, U.S. Army sergeant from Rock Hill, S.C.- First
Sergeant Sims may have charmed his 100 soldier Army Reserves company "with a smile and a little manipulation," but things will be different on
Survivor. "I don't want to be the boss," he says. "The leader gets axed too early."
7. Candace Smith, 31, lawyer-turned-actress/event planner from Los
Angeles- Fertilized eggs? Insects? "I'll swallow it," says Smith. "Having to eat something [weird] for a chance to win a million dollars
is nothing to me. I grew up eating chitlins."
8. Tyson Apostol, 29, bike-shop manager from Lindon, Utah- Why do
Survivor? "Because I'd be good at it. May as well go and win," says the former pro cyclist, who rides 31 mph. "And $1 million in two
months isn't a bad paycheck." All he has to do now is perfect his strategy of "pushing people's buttons."
9. Sierra Reed, 23, model from Los Angeles- Not only did this beauty not
have to try out to get on Survivor ("I was at a taco stand when the recruiters came up to me," she says), she doesn't need the prize.
"Money comes and goes," says Reed, who turned down a Tommy Hilfiger campaign to do the show. "If I'd saved when I was just starting out,
I'd be a multimillionaire by now.
10. Erinn Lobdell, 26, hairstylist from Waukesha, Wis.- Lobdell says
she can get a stranger to trust her within five minutes. It's a gift she hopes will pay off. "I work at a nice salon, so if this works out for me,
I'll be the new owner when I get home."
14. Benjamin Wade, 37, soccer coach/part-time orchestra conductor from
Bolivar, Mo.- "I'm in this game because I want to change it," says Wade, who kayaked 6.132 miles from Baja, California, to Colombia-alone.
"it's become survival of the weakest. I want the strongest to survive. I want to team up with worthy opponents. May the best man or woman win."
15. Debra Beebe, 46, middle school principal from Auburn, Ala.-
"The potty thing is freaking me out," says the self-described adventure seeker, who left the comfort of her eight bedroom home to rough it.
"Digging a hole and going Big Bathroom in the middle of nowhere...having to wipe with your hands...Is my body going to shut down because I can't do
it?"
16. Brendan Synnot, 30, entrepreneur from NYC.- First he sold his
Bear Naked Granola business to Kellogg's as part of a $122 million dollar deal. Now Synnott's got to test his mettle. "I think it's healthy
to have everything taken from you and then have to rebuild" he says/ "That's good character building.
