Lindsay Dolashewich

Lindsay Dolashewich is a contestant from Survivor 42.

Lindsay's social capital allowed her to become an enduring member of the Taku Four, while her acquisition of the Advantage Amulet gained her admission into the Advantage Alliance that ruled the early merge. Hotly competitive, Lindsay emerged as a foil to Jonathan Young in several individual challenges and became fixated on taking him out to better her odds of winning the final few Immunity Challenges. This tunnel vision kickstarted her downfall when she chose not to play her amulet for her primary ally Omar Zaheer, causing her to be left on the outs at the final five, where she failed to win the critical Immunity Challenge. Despite her valiant efforts to scramble for safety, Lindsay was taken out for being the strongest jury threat remaining.

Profile[]

Retrieved from CBS.com

Age: 31
Hometown: Morganville, NJ
Current Residence: Asbury Park, NJ
Occupation: Dietitian
Favorite Hobbies: Co-ed flag football in the sand at Bar A by the shore. Interior decorating for the holidays. Any high intensity or adrenaline activity – snowboarding, paintballing, skydiving, wake surfing, etc.
3 Words to Describe You: Loud! Growing up, my friends' parents always described me as "the loud friend." Talkative – all of my report cards every year [said] "talkative" or "distracts others." Intense personality – I'm a good person, but I definitely do not mesh with everyone.
Pet Peeves: I hate wasted time. Anything that just eats away time drives me nuts. I have too much pent-up energy that I need to do something. I hate slow and quiet talkers. Spit it out and speak up! This is why New Jersey is my homeland and the only place people understand me. We are all cut from the same cloth.
What is the accomplishment you are most proud of? Becoming a dietitian and starting my own business. I never thought I would be in this position and be taking on this role. I surprised myself with what I am capable of, and I have more motivation than ever. I clearly can do much more than I thought, and now I want to see how far I can push myself. I run my own business, I conducted my first real interview and just hired a woman who could be my mom. I am literally now a BOSS! I gathered an accountant, payroll team, billing company, logo person, etc. My family is just as shocked as I am with what I managed to accomplish in such a short time frame. And we have been so successful! We have tripled our revenue in our second year and have been recognized nationally. My entire personality screams Survivor. Now with this momentum under my belt, nothing is going to stop me. Watch out tribe!
What is something we would never know from looking at you? I played tackle football. It was difficult being on a team where nobody wanted me there, including my coaches. My teammates would literally hit me harder than everyone else because I was a girl. I'm not going to lie, it hurt a lot. But that wasn't going to stop me from playing and hitting harder back.
Who is your hero and why? I would have to say my younger sister. She graduated college to work in environmental law. She is super passionate about saving the environment and making the world safer for people. She is going to do great things. She is incredibly charming. She has this way about her that everyone immediately loves her. But she is also a very strong person. Not physically, but mentally. She does not back down from anyone or get intimidated. Even though she is my younger sister, I really look up to her. She has such great morals and is truly so caring and compassionate for others and always puts others first. She is awesome! She is just as big of a goofball as me.
Which past Survivor will you play the game most like? Lauren Beck. She is very self-aware, and I feel like she does a great job of assessing everyone else's strengths and weaknesses, which helps her have a very good handle on the social game and how to outwit the best out of everyone. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how physically good you are at things. The social game dictates if you get voted out. This quality is the most important in my eyes.
Why do you believe you can be the Sole Survivor? I can definitely outwit everyone since I am very familiar with dealing with different types of people and have always had a strategic mind. I can read people very well and am very good at persuading others. Plus, let's be real, people are stupid. And when people are hungry, they forget how to stay composed. Once you see the cracks, it gets easier to outwit. I can outplay everyone because I am very competitive and athletic so I should be one of the top competitors in challenges. I'm an animal. I can outlast everyone because I have grit. I have always been able to endure difficult and uncomfortable situations when needed if I know there is a bigger outcome on the other side waiting for me. I don't break easily. I have too much determination to ever think to quit. I will be the final Survivor!^[2]

Survivor[]

During the opening Reward Challenge, Lindsay encountered an opportunity to earn the Advantage Amulet alongside Drea Wheeler of Ika and Hai Giang of Vati. The trio agreed to accept the amulet and covered themselves in mud and fake blood as an alibi. Lindsay quickly formed a strong alliance at Taku, initially consisting of Omar Zaheer and Jonathan Young. The alliance would later absorb Maryanne Oketch to become the Taku Four, although Lindsay was initially distrusting of Maryanne due to her vocal and unpredictable nature. Despite losing two members by Day 5, the Taku Four were able to avoid the remaining pre-merge Tribal Councils to enter the merge as the most unified tribe.

Lindsay was initially immune from the vote following the Day 12 Immunity Challenge and then was included in the majority alliance. This alliance kept Lindsay safe even after the Hourglass twist reversed the challenge result and revoked her immunity; at Tribal Council, she only received a stray vote from Rocksroy Bailey. During the Double Elimination, Lindsay grew frustrated with Jonathan's gameplay as his poorly considered plan to flush Drea's Hidden Immunity Idol put their ally Maryanne in jeopardy. Following an emotional Tribal Council on Day 17, Jonathan's individual immunity and Drea and Maryanne's idol plays left Lindsay and Tori Meehan as the only eligible targets in their group of five. Lindsay had alliances with the immune trio, meaning Tori had no choice but to use the Shot in the Dark. Tori's scroll read "not safe", sending her to the jury and sparing Lindsay.

Lindsay proved to be a force in individual challenges, winning a Reward Challenge on Day 18 and her first Immunity Necklace the next day. The family video reward solidified her connections with Omar and Mike Turner. These challenge performances, particularly against perennial powerhouse Jonathan, drew attention and respect from the rest of the tribe. When the Do or Die twist surprised the tribe during the Day 21 challenge, feeling the pressure to take out Jonathan to increase her odds of winning the last few challenges, Lindsay opted to participate despite the risk. To Lindsay and Jonathan's surprise, the other five players in the final seven opted out. This meant a head-to-head showdown that resulted in Jonathan winning immunity and Lindsay's status in the game being cast into limbo. Noting how close their battles had been, Jonathan feigned allegiance to Lindsay but hoped that she would be eliminated by the twist. Omar meanwhile needed Lindsay to stay so they could pull off a blindside against Drea. At Tribal Council, Lindsay stuck with her initial choice despite Jeff Probst offering her a chance to switch, and it proved to be the right decision.

Following Drea's exit, Lindsay and Omar felt great about their position in the game and planned to split up Jonathan and Mike at the next vote. Furthermore, Lindsay was the last amulet holder in the game, granting her an idol that had to be played at the next vote. Unbeknownst to her, Jonathan plotted against them as well. Lindsay won the Day 23 Immunity Challenge and, while she considered playing her amulet idol for Omar, she feared it would go back into circulation if it was played. Believing that Maryanne and Romeo Escobar were on their side, they targeted Jonathan. This left Lindsay blindsided when Maryanne used her Extra Vote to take Omar out of the game instead. Left with no option but to win the next challenge, Lindsay succeeded in earning an advantage the following morning, but she was defeated when Mike completed his puzzle first. Lindsay pleaded to Mike to play his idol on her, citing a promise he had made, though this conflicted with the promise he had made to Maryanne. Both Mike and Maryanne expressed how much they liked Lindsay and wanted to save her, but feeling it was not the best option for their games, they decided not to. Despite putting up a valiant final fight at Tribal Council, Lindsay was unanimously voted out 4-1 on Day 24.

At the Final Tribal Council, Lindsay looked for Mike and Maryanne to own their gameplay. More satisfied with Maryanne's answers, Lindsay contributed to her 7-1-0 victory.

Post-Survivor[]

• On April 8, 2024, Lindsay attended her castmate Maryanne Oketch's wedding.

Trivia[]

• As revealed in the Survivor 42 Aftershow, Lindsay was originally slated to appear on Survivor 41, but tested positive for COVID-19 and was removed from the cast. She was replaced by Tiffany Seely.
  • Several Survivor 41 contestants have claimed that Lindsay was originally assigned to the Ua tribe.^[3][4]
• Lindsay is the second woman, after Kim Spradlin-Wolfe, to allow her Hidden Immunity Idol to expire unused. She would be followed by Maryanne Oketch.

References[]

Survivor 42 Castaways
Chanelle Vati	Daniel Vati	Drea Ika	Hai Vati	Jackson Taku	Jenny Vati	Jonathan Taku	Lindsay Taku	Lydia Vati
Marya Taku	Maryanne Taku	Mike Vati	Omar Taku	Rocksroy Ika	Romeo Ika	Swati Ika	Tori Ika	Zach Ika