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EEL HELMET

Over the past five seasons of Fear Factor our contestants have been flung off buildings, dropped out of helicopters, covered with tarantulas and forced to eat just about every bug, worm and animal part imaginable. Carlos Smith helped to add to that esteemed list of horrors when he placed his head into our specially designed Fear Factor dive helmet, which we promptly filled with twenty gallons of ice cold salt water and five giant moray eels.

FEAR FACTOR: How were you feeling right before you went into the helmet?

CARLOS SMITH: I was really, really nervous. I was a little apprehensive about the fact that the eels might bite my face, even though my neck and eyes were protected. The sight of blood in the water would have totally freaked me out.

FEAR FACTOR: How did you feel when the water started to rise?

CARLOS SMITH: As soon as the water entered the fishbowl, I could feel how cold it was and that instantly took my breath away. But I realized that, if I was going to do this and not let the cold water or the breathing get to me, I'd just kinda spaced out my breathing evenly and didn't let it make me panic.

FEAR FACTOR: How did the eels feel when they were dumped in?

CARLOS SMITH: I felt that, as soon as the eels were gonna be dropped into the fishbowl, that they would probably just start going crazy. The eels felt really slippery and slimy. About halfway through the stunt, one passed right in front of me and opened its mouth and I could see how big it's teeth were. That kind of distracted me for about a second, but I kept focused. I could see what was going on. I could see Joe and the rest of the group kind of cheering me on and that helped to keep me focused.

FEAR FACTOR: What was your strategy for getting the helmet open?

CARLOS SMITH: I kept thinking to myself, "Make sure you turn the bolts in the right direction," 'cause the pressure could make me just completely mess up. "Turn them in the right direction and make sure that you lift the lever at the bottom in the right direction as well, so that it opens up. When I had all of the top bolts off the helmet I went ahead and opened the lever and continued trying to unscrew that last bolt, I was hoping that as soon as that last bolt popped off the helmet would open.