Galileo's Cannonball

The Moat
One partner from each team was kneeling on a raft while holding "an ancient staff of King Tut". When Kirk said go, each player would pull himself across the moat by hooking his staff on the knotted rope above him. Once across, he climbed off the raft and onto the deck; this was his partner's signal to pull the raft back to his side and cross exactly as his partner had. When the second teammate reached the other side, it was his job to jump off the raft - with his staff - and run over to hit the gong.

The Steps of Knowledge
Perhaps the most brilliant Italian scientist and astronomer of all time was Galileo Galilei. He perfected the telescope and was one of the first people to use experiments to prove his discoveries. One day, he thought to himself, "If I drop two different-sized cannonballs from the same height, I bet they'll land at the same time." To test his idea, Galileo went to the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa. He climbed the steps of the Tower, and when he got to the top, he leaned out over the edge and dropped the cannonballs. They both landed at the same time, proving Galileo's theory and launching his career as a famous scientist, but that was not all. Legend has it that the cannonballs landed right smack dab on two cheese and pepperoni sandwiches, thereby proving his theory and inventing pizza. One of Galileo's cannonballs is in the Temple.

Drop the Ball (Peanut Shaft)
Inside the shaft were some "cannonballs". When Kirk said "go", one player from each team grabbed one of the cannonballs, carried it to the top of the shaft, and pushed it through the hole in the top. Then he climbed back down, grabbed the next ball, and so on. The first player that successfully pushed three cannonballs out the top of the shaft - or the player that pushed the most balls in one minute - won. "Jammin' Jon" pushed all three balls out in :39; Kevin had only pushed one.

Jupiter's Moons (Bungee Soap Ramp)
At the base of the ramp were some "moons". When Kirk said "go", one player from each team grabbed a moon from the bucket, climbed up the ramp, and placed the moon on "Jupiter". Then, she slid back down, grabbed the next moon, and tried it again. The player that got the most moons on Jupiter in one minute won. Beth beat Jennifer in this game, 1-0.

Building Telescopes (Pulley Pillar)
When Kirk said "go", one player from each team grabbed one of three pieces of a telescope, jumped up, placed it on and above the base, and jumped down. That allowed his partner to grab a piece of her (separate) telescope, jump up, and place it on her base. They alternated like that for a minute. The first team to complete both their three-piece telescopes - or the team furthest along when time was up - won. The Silver Snakes completed their telescopes with :29 remaining; Kevin and Beth only had four pieces of six assembled.

The Temple Run
This temple run was quite memorable for its exciting finale. Jennifer raced into the temple at the start and followed the bottom path until a temple guard seized her in The Throne Room. She then passed up to The Heart Room and raced left to The Shrine of the Silver Monkey, where a second temple guard took her out. 1:59 remained when Jon raced into The Cave of Sighs and followed his partner's footprints. He managed to pass through the Shrine and The Torch Room successfully, and he rode the elevator ever so slowly to The Mine Shaft. He grabbed the Cannonball with forty-four seconds to go, but he took a strange route getting back. With the seconds ticking down, Jon made it back to the Cave of Sighs, dropped the Cannonball, but recovered it in the last few seconds of the run. Desperately, he darted out of the temple and through the torches for the incredible two-second win and the trip to the Bahamas! Coincidentally, the team also won a telescope for their efforts.

Trivia

 * Despite being the first episode to The First Layout of the series, This episode is generally not considered the first episode of the show.
 * The small golden chest at the back of the Shrine of the Silver Monkey was the Treasure of Anne Bonny before it became an artifact and featured the half pendant in this episode.
 * This episode is also noted for the very long interview with the contestants immediately prior to the Temple Run, involving Kirk asking where the team thought the Temple Guards were.
 * This Episode produced the first victory of the series.