''Beg, Borrow & Deal'' is a
reality television show that aired on
ESPN with a first season hosted by
Rich Eisen in 2002 and a second season hosted by
Summer Sanders
Summer Elisabeth Sanders (born October 13, 1972) is an American sports commentator, reporter, television personality, actress, former competition swimmer and Olympic champion from 1992.
Early life
Sanders was born in Roseville, California, a ...
in 2003.
Premise
The show, which was originally called "Beg, Borrow and B.S.", featured two teams of four pitted against each other. The object of the game was to get from one point in the United States to another, while completing sports-related tasks from a list given to them at the start of the game. However, the contestants were only allowed the clothes on their backs and their drivers' licenses; they could never handle any form of money. This forced the players to "beg, borrow, and deal" for meals, transportation, and nightly lodging.
[ Further restrictions included:
* Contestants could only use someone's help for 12 hours (such as transportation or housing aid)
* Anything provided to the contestants had to be used or disposed of in 12 hours (such as food)
* Contestants had to rest for at least six hours per 24 hours
* Only one sports task could be completed per state
* Only five tasks could be completed per time zone
The sports-related tasks were scored from 1 to 3 points, with 10 points needed to complete the game. The first team to reach the designated finish line having completed 10 points' worth of tasks won the game and tickets to four major championship events of the following year.
]
Airing
The network aired two seasons of seven episodes each. One aired in late 2002, and the second aired in mid-2003. In the UK the show was aired on ABC1. In the rest of Europe, episodes were broadcast on the North American Sports Network
ESPN America was a British-based European sports network, focusing on professional and collegiate sports of the United States and Canada. Originally launched on 5 December 2002 as NASN (the ''North American Sports Network''), ESPN America broadca ...
in 2005 and in Canada on GameTV beginning in 2007.
In 2002, ESPN reran the first season in a marathon
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...
the day after Thanksgiving.
The second season suffered from poor ratings, and was pulled from its original prime time slot. Remaining episodes were exhausted in a midnight time slot, and the show was cancelled soon after.
The Mandt Brothers were also executive producers of Former ESPN show ''Jim Rome Is Burning
''Jim Rome Is Burning'' (originally titled ''Rome Is Burning'' and often abbreviated as ''JRIB'') is a sports conversation and opinion show hosted by Jim Rome. Debuting on May 6, 2003, as ''Rome Is Burning'', it was originally a weekly show in pri ...
''.
References
External links
''Beg, Borrow & Deal'' at ESPN.com
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beg, Borrow and Deal
ESPN game shows
2000s American game shows
2000s American reality television series
2002 American television series debuts
2003 American television series endings