DC ExtraTime: The Life of DNA

Following is an excerpt from DCBLOG's WRAP covering Week 8 of The Challenge XXX, reposted in the interest of readers who don't want to scroll down. It has been updated to include new media since it was first posted back in September, and featuring a person still in the running on Dirty 30... for which posts covering this week's episode will commence later this evening.

BY DC CUEVA                     

■ @DC408Dxtr  @ TW / IG / YT

IG @Dario.Medrano

As the competitors had some R&R after Cory & Hunter's Presidio, we had a sight we haven't had up until this past week: us seeing Dario in the pool. Outside of competition, clubs and confessionals, he hasn't been on camera, and in those precious few seconds of screen time he got to reveal what those of you out there know by now: he and Challenge champion Ashley K. are dating after they fell in love after meeting each other on Invasion. Outside of what happened with him and Nicole earlier on, he's been taking the safe route in being mellow and taking no chance at causing drama and focus just on the game, unlike what we have seen from him early on.
   In case you missed it, last week we showed you the buzz surrounding the much hyped Money Fight between now 50-0 Floyd Mayweather and the UFC's Conor McGregor, which continued in at the crossroads of boxing and Team MTV after Kailah went to the Money Man's 40th birthday party and MTV original Syrus meeting Mike Tyson. In this latest case, Ashley was chosen by the fight's principal sponsor, Corona Beer, and Mayweather Promotions as one of the ring girls who stood inside the ropes in the pre-fight introductions and then held the round cards around the square during the undercard bouts before the main event on VMA Eve. And this came after the the two settled in Dario's Las Vegas digs, as they now reach almost a full year since they first met in Thailand.
   To coincide with his birthday this past Labor Day Weekend, Dario and Ashley -- or better yet, DNA -- went and bought a GoPro camera, which in turn enabled the couple to launch their own YouTube channel. There, they'll be taking fans into their world and all around the pleasure capital as they enjoy this time together. Below are the pair's first three vlogs which they posted over the course of this week, as they went hiking in the Vegas valley in its infamous summer heat, going shopping around town, and heading on a night out along Fremont Street in downtown including, of course, going gambling. There's even a familiar special guest who happened to run into the pair too.

And it's not only on YouTube where they have made this relationship public, but most especially on Instagram where the two have posted pictures them being together on a regular basis since they became official. And just recently, Dario decided to join a viral phenomenon that's swept the nation for the past couple years.
   Those of you who watch late night TV and The Late Late Show with James Corden on CBS after Stephen Colbert most definitely know about its most famous segment: Carpool Karaoke. There, James invites music's biggest stars to join him on a cruise around town and inviting them to sign along to their songs while driving… and when you're in Los Angeles as he is based there, you surely know the Southland's infamous rush hour traffic affords plenty of time to do some karaoke in the backseat while you're waiting on the freeways. It has racked up millions of YouTube views to the many stars who have joined him for his musical journeys, and Apple Music is airing a special dedicated series of Carpool Karaoke, including the late Chester Bennington, among others.

   Cadillac served as an official sponsor of the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards and, as such, had a presence inside The Forum, and they partnered with Late Late's production company Fulwell 73 to offer a Carpool Karaoke booth for attendees of the big show to take to the front wheel and do their own imitation of James and those who sit and be entertained. The result of Dario taking on that fun task is below, though it's safe to say he does need some work on that karaoke, which his fellow Season 2 castmate Nate has already mastered in his Instagram and SnapChat stories.

S/o @cadillac for the Karaoke attempt. I have some work to do here 😭😭 But the commercial looks great let's get this on air 😈😈

A post shared by D A R I O ⚡️ M E D R A N O (@dario.medrano) on Aug 29, 2017 at 4:06pm PDT

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Since this bit was posted back in early September, the DNA channel has added a few more videos to its collection, and we have embedded them below for you to check out, just as he's in the Redemption House awaiting one more chance to return to the main Dirty 30 house.
   The first two videos in this set discuss how the two got their way to MTV: him onto Season 2 of Are You The One? back in fall 2014, and her on Season 26 of Real World in 2011 when San Diego hosted that season and where she fell in love with Mr. Thor, Zach.

Then, Dario discussed what life is like in The Challenge house, such as the food that's provided there, the clothing he's brought to the four Challenges he's been on, and the normal procedures that go on in the intense environment of that house.

Lastly, both Dario and Ashley get to celebrate their birthdays within a month of each other just before summer comes to an end: her on August 2nd, and him on September 1st just around Labor Day weekend. For the back end of this birthday doubleheader, she got to treat him to a Birthday Surprise, and if you're still lucky to remember her original season and what the Go Big cast several years later, the activity and the place may be familiar to you.

- I AM DC