NBC.com

Rat Transfer

It's scary enough watching a rat scurry in front of you in an alleyway but imagine the horror of transporting a couple of dozen dead rats using only your mouth. Fear Factor contestant Kim Gruber recalls what it was like to be a part of the rat race.

FEAR FACTOR: What was going through your mind when Joe Rogan revealed the dead rats?

KIM GRUBER: Honestly, the first night I was here in Los Angeles to be on the show, I had a dream and I woke up and, I swear to God, I heard a rat in my room. So, when I saw that, I was like, "Ohhhhhh!" And I just started laughing. I mean, what else am I supposed to do?

FEAR FACTOR: Are you afraid of rats?

KIM GRUBER: I don't like 'em. I don't think anybody necessarily likes them. But I'm not completely petrified of 'em.

FEAR FACTOR: What was going through your mind as you saw the first two contestants do the stunt?

KIM GRUBER: Um, that it was harder than it looks. You just have to have the right, I don't know. I don't want to say throwing ability, but the right way of doing it. And I just kind of picked up on that real quick.

FEAR FACTOR: What was it like to put your mouth on that first rat?

KIM GRUBER: My complete thought was just, "I can't believe I'm doing this." I couldn't hear anybody screaming, it's just like you blank out and just go and don't think about it. You know, I didn't really think about it, honestly, until after I was done. And I'm looking all over the floor and I see all these dead rats laying there.

FEAR FACTOR: This stunt was kind of unique for Fear Factor in that you had to go in a head-to-head race with another contestant. Did you realize that during the stunt you were neck and neck with Ericka?

KIM GRUBER: Um, I really didn't look at her. I just kept thinking that I gotta do it even better than whatever she's doing. I could hear Joe screaming that she was ahead of me. So I just kept thinking that I have to get ahead of her.

FEAR FACTOR: You seemed to pick up the pace and focus more. What pushed you into overdrive?

KIM GRUBER: I think I had to get the hang of it first. And then, once I did that, I just kept going. Once I got the hang of throwing the rats into the bucket, I just, I guess, went into a rhythm. And it just kept working for me.

FEAR FACTOR: Afterwards, did you have any fur in your teeth?

KIM GRUBER: Oh, yeah, I was picking fur out of my teeth for a good twenty minutes or so.