Pump it up

Finally caught the first two eps of Pumped, Speed Channel's ambush quizzer and obvious knockoff of Cash Cab. In fact, the knockoff is so blatant that at the top of the show host Greg Fitzsimmons tells us there are a quarter-million gas stations in the country, but only this one pays out money. Ben Bailey, you've been paraphrased.

Just because a show is a knockoff doesn't mean it's bad. I honestly enjoyed Pumped. The pace is sprightly and the questions are more down to earth than the academic subjects tested on the august Discovery Channel. Cars and car racing naturally get a workout, along with other sports and pop culture in general. You can guess Speed Channel's demographics real easy from the quiz topics.

Fitzsimmons is a shorter and snarkier version of Bailey. But he never gets really nasty with the contestants who are ambushed at the gas station, and he manages some funny lines. Pumped also goes easier on contestants by starting with true-false and multiple-choice questions. And the format ensures that just about everybody walks away with at least a little cash, unlike many hapless players on Cash Cab.

One funny note: the episodes were taped before the conclusion of this year's World Series. So the Cardinals now have eleven Series victories, not ten as the show stated. The contestants still won, though. Too bad my hometown Rangers didn't.