America is doomed.

That's the obvious conclusion now that Mark & Bopper have been eliminated from "The Amazing Race."

Two salt-of-the-earth guys, united in friendship with no regard to the artificial barriers of race, they happily and graciously experienced the world without a note of arrogance.

They were the best of what we can be, what we strive to be.

The Race should have done anything it could to ensure their victory. Bunch up the teams at the airport. Make the next few detour tasks specific to Clay County, Kentucky. Knee cap that whiny girl from Big Brother.

The Ride (8pm, Showtime) - A documentary following "Amazing Race" host Phil Keoghan on a grueling 40-day bike ride across America to raise $1 million for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Keoghan's adventure included a trip to the hospital, extreme exhaustion, drastic weight loss and a dangerous crash in Ohio.

My Cat From Hell (8pm, Animal Planet) - In the second season finale: an attack cat has a couple fearing for the safety of their two-year-old son, and two sphynx cats fight for control of their owners' house. There's a marathon of Season 2 episodes starting today at 3. Animal Plane recently announced the show will back for Season 3.

The Firm (9pm, NBC) - NBC has moved this struggling drama to Saturday nights, which is not a good sign ("Awake" will air in the old spot on Thursdays starting March 1). So if you're a fan, watch it while you still can. In tonight's episode, two brothers become codefendants in a case that forces Mitch to coax one to betray the other. Meanwhile, Tammy works on a cryptic clue in the Sarah Holt case.

Pit Boss (9pm, Animal Planet) - Two back-to-back new episodes for tonight's season finale. In the first episode, Shorty learns his secret memoir will be published so he must prepare his sister for the book's surprises about their family. In the 10 p.m. episode, Shorty agrees to be "roasted" at a fundraiser for rescue charities.

Saturday Night Live (11:29pm, NBC) - Maya Rudolph hosts and the music guest is Sleigh Bells.  So, there's basically no way Rudolph can do her excellent Whitney Houston impersonation now, right?

Also, the TechJunkie blog has info on three shows airing on the National Geographic Channel today about illegal street racing and auto theft.

Has it been 17 seasons already?

The Race came back last night, starting in a verdant field in Massachusetts. The 11 teams arrived by lobster boat; as usual they'll be tough to distinguish for awhile. But here's a quick intro:

Home shopping hosts: They seem perky enough and think their sales ability, aka manipulation skills, will be helpful.

3 dating couples: This could get confusing. One guy in one of the couples says he wants to propose. Another couple is covered with tattoos. The third,  at this point, I dunno.