Challenge champ Kendal Sheppard is back in the limelight participating in her first Challenge since winning the Inferno back in 2004. What the Road Rules alum had to say about episode 2 of The Challenge: All Stars, including her epic elimination win, and the argument that went down between Katie and Trishelle.
The hype is real when it comes to The Challenge: All Stars. Only 2 episodes have aired, and fans cannot get enough of seeing their favorite OG cast members back on their TV screens.
During the second episode, Another player left the game, after getting eliminated, but not before some drama went down in the house.
Kendal Sheppard talked with Benny Adams on “Challenge Reality News” about everything that happened on episode 2, and what it was like going back to compete once again.
One of the big moments during this episode was the Daily Challenge itself, where each person had to answer a number of trivia questions while standing on a platform above water. if you got a certain number of questions wrong the platform would break causing them to plummet into the water.
Some eyebrows were raised when Kendal decided to hop over her platform that was meant to break after answering her question wrong. Something that she says was just a simple mistake caused by her nerves.
“I’m always nervous and anxious that I’m going to screw up the rules. The big thing people are saying is I was scared, and of course I was scared. I was scared to get the question wrong, I was scared to be the first one out, and this was the first time I was meeting T.J., I don’t have experience with him, I haven’t done a challenge with him, I just felt there was a lot of pressure, and my brain just frizzed out.” said Kendal.
Credit Instagram @kendalsheppard
This week was a female elimination week. Trishelle was the first to fall, which automatically put her into elimination, while Aneesa claimed victory by winning the Daily Challenge.
During deliberation, all eyes were on Kendal, as she was voted to go into elimination against Triishelle.
“There was no conversation when it came to choosing who would go into elimination, it was already decided. At that point it didn’t matter what I said… I see now why Ace was so upset in the first deliberation… But what else are you supposed to do, no one wants to go into elimination.” said Kendal
After the deliberation, Trishelle was not too happy that she did not find out from Katie that she was going into elimination against Kendal. Later that night an argument broke out between the two. Kendal said she was not there during the intense moments, but does know that both women are hurt by the situation.
“Trishelle and I had a conversation the next day, and I know from that, she was really hurt about the fight. I don’t know all the details, but from what I’ve been told it wasn’t just about Katie getting food, there was a lot more to it” explained Kendal. “It’s stressful when you’re going into elimination. I don’t want to speak for other people, but I don’t think Trishelle was listened to when it came to her choice of who she wanted to go against in elimination. I talked to Katie as well, and she was also upset. I think they were both really upset, and both really hurt” explained Kendal.
During the elimination, we saw a Challenge classic called “Knot So Fast”. Both Trishelle and Kendal gave it their all, but in the end Kendal won, sending Trishelle home. This makes Kendal the first woman ever to win an elimination on The Challenge: All Stars.
“Going into it, I didn’t know what it was. It sounded frightening, the rope was heavy, and there was a lot of endurance. There were a couple of times where I thought I couldn’t do this. In the end, I had to really dig deep and picture my kids, and I also pictured if I got sent home, what does that look like? In the final moments, that’s when everything started playing out in my head, and I just had to keep going” explained Kendal on what it was like going into the elimination.
The Inferno champ even gave a nod to her elimination win back in 2004.
“So many people online would say that Kendal won that elimination on the Inferno when she was carrying bricks. Who cares? Now everyone has seen me do something more physical, and something that does take mental strength” explained Kendal.
The Challenge All Stars has finished filming, but the question remains, If there is a season 2 will Kendal be willing to go back and compete again?
“All Stars I would do, it was so fun, it felt like being a kid again. All of these games were prepped for us just so we could compete. That’s amazing, I would pay money to do those things. I think I would be a fool to not want to have those experiences, and test myself again. The drama and the politics is hard, but I think if things worked out right I would do it” said Kendal.
When it comes to coming back to participate in a full season on MTV, chances are slim, due to the amount of time away she would be from her family.
“I just couldn’t do it. It was so hard on my kids to be gone for 2 weeks, in fact, my middle child said don’t ever leave us for that long. If they want me to come in halfway through as a mercenary I would do that” explained Kendal.
Many fans thought they would never see Kendal again on The Challenge after she won the Inferno. The Road Rules alum says this experience has been nothing but amazing.
“The social part of the game was a lot harder for me that’s for sure. I was very excited to see some people like Tek. as soon as I saw him I was fangirling all over the place. I think all of us were in disbelief that we were doing this so many years after thinking we were done. It was an amazing group of people. Every single person had something unique to bring” said Kendal. “You just never know where life is going to take you, and that’s what I find so cool about this experience. To have us go back into our normal lives and be normal people, and all of a sudden we’re thrown back in the limelight it’s kind of wild and makes you think that just because you turn 40 doesn’t mean you can’t do stuff.”
Outside of The Challenge Kendal is a busy woman. Not only is the Road Rules alum a mom, but she is also a hospice nurse who has helped care for many people. Kendal is also working on something top secret that she can’t wait to reveal.
Credit Instagram @kendalsheppard
“There’s something that we’re working on, I’m so close to having something to show, so just keep your eyes opened. I think people are going to be excited” said Kendal.
You can catch the full interview with Benny Adams and Kendal Sheppard below, and make sure you check out The Challenge: All Stars every Thursday on Paramount+
