People who like survival shows are in for a treat as Discovery is coming out with an all-new competition series called Survive The Raft this week. The host of this group survival series will be none other than the American Football player Nate Boyer.
This Discovery show is based on the Acali experiment, which involved sending a group of diverse people on a raft for many days. It was an experiment conducted by Mexican anthropologist Santiago Genovès back in 1973. He had a small raft built and invited people from all races and religions to live together and see if they would be able to get along without any issues.
The experiment didn’t exactly go as he planned, as no one would be violent even if their resources were taken away. This is exactly what we’ll be seeing in Survive the Raft, except this time, it’s going to be a full-on competition instead of an experiment.
This intriguing series will document the way these different people behave when they have the power to remove someone from the team.
Each week, the contestants would have to go through all sorts of challenges that would add money to the prize pot. This pot can later be divided between those that manage to stay until the end of the game. It’s up to these contestants to decide if they’ll be staying together until the end or betray their teammates by exchanging them for someone else.
Survive The Raft: The Contestants
A total of nine contestants will be boarding the Acali II (named after the original raft), where they’ll be staying on board for a total of 21 days. The list of contestants includes:
- CJ Duffie, 29, a Marine Biologist
- Elliot Capella, 30, Military/Bodybuilder
- Jonathan Dade, 38, a Rabbi
- Lashanna Lintamo, 36, a Metal welder
- Maddie Witt, 25, an Archer
- Merissa Underwood, 29, an Animal Rights activist
- Russell Ellis, 38, an Interrogator
- Summer Homayed, 27, a Chef
- Tara Colucci, 36
To see such a diverse cast is always interesting, as we’ll never know what kind of drama and issues will arise from the group. Most of these Acali II members have good knowledge about the sea, fishing, and basic survival. However, what they need on the show is strategic planning and determination, as they can’t predict whether their teammates will betray them or not.
Being a Marine biologist, CJ is no stranger to the ocean and can maintain his patience even when the surroundings are looking dangerous. With more than 20 years of experience, Duffie will be the guide of the group. Elliot, who’s both brawns and brains can fix anything even without knowing about it.
Lashanna is well-versed in sustainable living, so being out in the ocean and Island is going to be a piece of cake for her. Maddie, a strong woman from Tennessee, has spent most of her life kayaking and gaining deep-sea fishing experience.
Russell’s from North Carolina, and being an interrogator, he is going to be the one to watch out for as there’s no deceiving him with flimsy schemes.
Summer is a mom to 5 kids, so managing a group is an easy task for her. As she’s a trained Chef, Homayed is hoping to win the hearts of the rest of the contestants through her delicious cooking. Tara is a warrior, as she’s made a living for herself even after losing her mom at the age of 12. Her determination and passion for winning is what brings her to this Discovery series.
Survive The Raft Episode 1: Release Date
The new survival reality show will be premiering on July 30th, 2023. New episodes of Survive The Raft will be aired on Sundays, with each episode having a runtime of 60 minutes.
Survive The Raft Episode 1: Spoilers
The first episode will be an introduction about the nine contestants, and we’ll see them board the Acali II raft for the first time. Host Nate Boyer will also be joining the crew and interviewing them before they start competing in the challenges.
Survive The Raft Episode 1: Where To Watch?
This Raft survival series will be available to watch on Discovery Channel, and new episodes will be coming out at 9:00 pm ET/PT for viewers from the US. On-demand streaming of Survive The Raft is possible through Discovery Plus, although in limited locations unless a VPN is used. The timing of the release of episodes in other places will be as follows:
- Canada: 9:00 pm, Sunday, July 30th, 2023.
- Australia: 11:00 am, Monday, July 31st, 2023.
- India: 6:30 am, Monday, July 31st, 2023.
- Philippines: 9:00 am, Monday, July 31st, 2023.
- Germany: 3:00 am, Monday, July 31st, 2023.
- Singapore: 9:00 am, Monday, July 31st, 2023.
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