Pack your bags, because The Amazing Race is back! Every week, Parade’s Mike Bloom will bring you interviews with the team most recently eliminated from the race.

This season of The Amazing Race saw the former racers generally dominate the other CBS reality stars from Survivor and Big Brother. But there was one big exception to the rule: Nicole Franzel and Victor Arroyo. The young couple entered the race with some wins under their belts, having snagged both first place and America’s Favorite Player on Big Brother 18. And though they never actually won any legs during their trip around the world, their success was prominent, vaulting over difficulties as easily as a Dutchman. Unfortunately, they hit the water right before making it to the other side, the last team eliminated after making quite a splash.

Related: The Winners of The Amazing Race Share Their Tips for Taking on the Stresses of the Race—and Life

From the start, the Big Brother couple was a small fish in a big pond, with the Amazing Race teams leaving the others in their dust. But of all the non-racers, Nicole and Victor proved most adaptable to the rigors of the race, finishing a solid second place in three of the first four legs. While they were becoming more accustomed to being Amazing Race affiliates, their Big Brother lineage got them into an alliance with Rachel Reilly and Elissa Slater. But the partnership flared up and burnt out during a dramatic train ride through Switzerland, with the couple accusing the sisters of manipulating them with U-Turn rumors. They had hit their low moment in the highs of the Swiss Alps, finishing in last place and having a war of words on the mat. But a surprise non-elimination gave them their second win, and they never looked back, evading airport drama and a U-Turn to make it to the penultimate leg.

Victor and Nicole were just one London trip away from a shot at one million dollars. But their obstacles came not only in the arduous tasks to follow, but cooperation from the teams around them. Victor saw firsthand Korey Kuhl and Christie Woods reveal themselves as allies during a World War II-themed Roadblock, icing him out of any collaboration. But his independent success got them to the Detour in second place ahead of the close-knit teams. Unfortunately, their lack of skill with a skull left them up a creek with too many paddles, causing them to switch Detours. And though they tried to make up for the deficit with their shopping skills in Camden Market, it was closing time for the now-engaged couple.

After the race, Nicole and Victor talk with Parade about what led to their downfall, their involvement in the U-Turn drama, and what about their dynamic made them such a threat in the game.

You ran around the world a year ago, and suffice it to say a lot has changed in your lives since then, including getting engaged. What has the experience been like watching all of this back?

Nicole Franzel: Watching it back from almost a year ago was weird to relive. But at the same time, we have changed so much since then. We were just dating on the show, and now we’re engaged. Victor has short hair now, and he had super-long Tarzan hair then. It does seem like yesterday, though. We felt the emotion and got teary-eyed during the finale. We just wanted to be able to row the boat! (Laughs.)

Victor Arroyo: It’s a little bittersweet for sure. It was nice to see all the places we went to and relive that experience. But watching the finale was tough.

Your relationship grew outside of your time on Big Brother. How did it feel to be able to show that to fans who might not have known about the two of you being together?

Nicole: I was super excited when they called us. We were on vacation in Florida with my family. I didn’t get worried about showcasing us. I know I’ve had a “showmance” or two in the past. But it’s not something where I was like, “Oh my God, I don’t want to think about this.” With Victor and I, it was a yearlong friendship that led to a relationship. Doing The Amazing Race would be a way to test that relationship and see if we can hold onto that.

Let’s get into this penultimate leg that ultimately eliminates you. Victor, you witnessed Korey and Christie working together on the Roadblock to box you out. What was that experience like?

Victor: That was the first time I felt like that. It was shocking because up to that point, pretty much every team would help each other unless it was dire circumstances. So to hear them talking before you walk in the room, then they stop as soon as they see you, was strange. And you ask them questions, and they’re standoffish and don’t want to help. It sucked. I was like, “I’m going to need to really pull this one out by myself, and I don’t know how I’m going to do this when they’re working together and waiting for me to leave the room so they can compare notes.” I just stuck through it and did the best I could, and it worked out.

What led you to switch Detours from skull rowing to taxi memorization?

Nicole: When we got to the boats, we were in second. We were feeling really good. When we got in the boats, we realized they were pretty rocky. But it was rocky for Tyler and Korey too. Victor wasn’t doing half bad when I was trying not to row. And every time it felt like we were getting a little better. I think we invested about two hours rowing. I said a couple of times, “Maybe we should switch” to see if he would bite. But at the same time, we didn’t know where the other Detour was, and we could get lost going there. Plus we knew the Detours were supposed to be equal in length of time, so we could switch and get stuck at that one too. When we left, Colin and Christie were really struggling. They hadn’t even made it as far as we did, so we thought they would just do what we did for two hours. That’s what went through our heads when we switched. We knew switching was a huge risk, but we felt like we had to do it. And obviously, we wish we would have done it sooner!

You get surprised with this task at the pit stop of shopping at Camden Market. Considering how far Colin and Christie were ahead by the time you started, did you have any hope that you would survive?

Victor: I didn’t have any good feelings that we were going to be able to catch up. I thought that was pretty much it for us. Trying to find stuff after all the other teams had taken things was ten times harder. You’re looking for one trunk instead of four trunks. Every little thing made it so hard, and that market was so big. We knew we were in last place, and seeing them having everything assembled made it seem almost impossible.

You came into the season without any racing experience. At what point in time did you feel you went from a Big Brother team to an Amazing Race team?

Nicole: When we survived our first U-Turn. After that, I was like, “Yeah, we’re definitely an Amazing Race team. Bring it on.”

That being said, the others certainly still viewed as a Big Brother team. How much were you underestimated because of that, and how did that contribute to your success?

Nicole: I feel no matter what game I’m playing, I’m always thinking, “Please let me be underestimated.” It’s so easy to overlook some teams. I definitely think we were underestimated. They should have voted for us during the U-Turn vote since we already had a Speed Bump. We had three second-place finishes at that point; it would have been an easy choice. But they were picking Colin and Christie or the Reilly sisters for some reason. The social game we played that saved us several times. When we beat Team Fun in the Netherlands, then they got a little scared of us. When we saw our face on the U-Turn board, we thought there was no way we would make it through, because we were never U-Turned before. But teams underestimated us, and that always works in your favor.

Speaking of U-Turns, let’s talk about the drama that unfolded with the Reilly sisters in Switzerland. What’s your perspective on what happened on that train?

Victor: We didn’t really have a relationship with the Reilly sisters. There was a scene that I dreaded watching where they made a Big Brother alliance, which I didn’t want to be a part of. Up to that point, Nicole and I were doing very well and getting along with all the teams. But if someone brings an alliance to you, you say, “Yes!” Up to that point, we hadn’t worked with them at all. But we had conversations with Team Fun and the Afghanimals. So to hear this information and to have it change a couple of times when I ask for details, it didn’t give me confidence. Watching it back, they were telling the truth. But I couldn’t rate the quality of the information I was getting at the time. At the end of the day, us confronting Team Fun saved us in the U-Turn vote. To our credit, bringing this to light made Team Fun want to lie and say, “Oh, we didn’t have these conversations! And to prove it, we won’t vote for you.”

Nicole: They actually told us that.

Victor: Yeah, we talked to them afterwards. Had we not had that confrontation, we might have been out in Switzerland.

Nicole, what ultimately led you to try to target them with your vote?

Nicole: People thought I was voting emotionally. But I was voting more strategically than anything. In the race, you don’t want ever to cause any problems with anyone. But if I do have problems, it changes who I am. I’m a very emotionally sensitive person. If I know someone doesn’t like me, I feel bad; I don’t just brush it off. Vic’s like, “It’s fine, we’re fine,” and I’m like, “No, it’s not!” I wanted to vote for them because I thought getting rid of them would give me more confidence. I wouldn’t have a team staring me down when I’m trying to do a task.

You also received quite the unwanted birthday gift when the Afghanimals U-Turned you in the Netherlands. Did that change the way you viewed them?

Nicole: My views didn’t really change on them. I knew they were a little upset when we voted for them at the U-Turn vote. Afterward, I was actually thankful they did it. I was like, “Wow, we’re not too bad!” I’m really close with Leo and Jamal, and I was able to laugh about it with them right after that leg.

You held your own alongside the dominant Amazing Race teams, despite this being your first season. Is there anything you credit to that racing success?

Victor: One thing is our competitive edge. We’re both very competitive in any games we play. But we also have a great balance. She makes me pay more attention to detail. And I encourage her not to worry and that we can power through things. No task was too difficult for us to do. We also had a lot of confidence in each other, comfort to push each other through each task. Having said that, we’re both competition people. That what I’m known for and Nicole did very well in competitions on Big Brother. And that was it! (Laughs.)