early show episode 1

Jim Lynch's Early Show Interview
Survivor: Guatemala Episode 1 Boot

Video:

Transcript from SurvivorFever.net 9.16.05

Harry Smith:  Last night on the premiere of Survivor: Guatemala a grueling 11 mile trek through the thick unforgiving jungle took its toll on the men of Nakum.  In the end it was the retired fireman, Jim Lynch, who became the first cast-off, sacrificed to the Mayan Gods at Tribal Council.  

<clip from Episode 1>

Harry:  Jim, we hardly got a chance to get to know you last night.   The people that watched last night saw that in the big challenge they did this whole thing where you had to go out with a boat and then bring the boat up.  How did you hurt your arm?

Jim:  When we initially put the boat in the water, I snatched it up maybe a tenth of a second before everyone else and it just tore that bicep.

Harry:  You literally tore the muscle.

Jim:  Yeah tore the muscle lose, you can see the big hole.  I tried to continue as best I could but I'm still operating at fifty percent.  Just a nasty break is all

Harry:  You never had a shot.

Jim:  Didn't have a chance.

Harry:  How many  years as a firefighter?

Jim:  Thirty years.

Harry:  Former Marine.  Look as fit as can be.  You look like you were ready to play.

Jim:  I was ready. 

Harry:  Every year they figure out a way to try to up the ante a little bit.  How stunned were you when the first thing off the bat they say "11 miles in the jungle race?"  This thing actually goes through the night.   What was that like out there?

Jim:  I couldn't believe, first of all, we thought, maybe we can navigate a little bit by the stars.  The canopy of that jungle was so thick, you couldn't even see the stars.  I've never been through anything like it.   Couple with that the humidity and the heat, 90-95% humidity, 120 degrees and then the mud and it rains...for a little kicker.  

Harry:  All of the guys in your tribe looked spent. They were all ralphing their guts out.  You guys got beat up out there.

Jim:  That's the most compelling question for me.  Why were Nakum's guys the ones that went down, what was up with that?  These are in-shape guys.  Fit guys.

Harry:  You get this surprise right at the beginning of the game with Stephenie and Bobby Jon, what'd you think about that?

Jim:  I thought, "wait a minute, we're going to throw two more people in the mix going for this million bucks?"  Some of the kids were going, "oh, ohhhhh, this is wonderful."  I'm going, "this aint great, come on, two more folks going for my million bucks". 

Harry:  So are you feeling allright now?

Jim:  I'm trying to rehab it, but it's really slow.  The older we get the tougher it is it rehab those things.

Harry:  Now, you had a nurse out there with you.

Jim:  Actually she's a nurse practitioner which is a little higher up.

Harry:  That's just below a doc.

Jim:  If you don't have those things to work with, you can pour all the water you want on somebody's head.  If you don't have the IVs, you're not going to do anything.

Harry:  Allright Jim.

Jim:  Thanks so much.

Harry:  You take care.