Art & JJ

Art Velez and John James "JJ" Carrell are a team of Border Patrol Agents on the 20th season of The Amazing Race.

Art

 * Age: 43
 * Hometown: Temecula, Calif.
 * Connection to your teammate: Friend/Co-worker
 * Current occupation: Border Patrol Agent
 * Describe what you do: I tell others what to do, how to do it, and I prevent illegal immigrants from entering the country.
 * How will these skills help you win The Race? I have the ability to adapt, adjust, overcome and make split second command decisions.
 * Three words to describe you: Funny, hilarious and good looking.
 * Favorite hobbies: Shooting guns in competition, golfing and smoking/cooking meats.
 * What famous person reminds you of yourself? Ben Affleck
 * What famous person reminds you of your teammate? David "The Hoff" Hasselhoff
 * What is the accomplishment you are most proud of?  My incredible son and my marriage.
 * What scares you most about traveling? Getting arrested in a foreign country.
 * What excites you most about traveling? Experiencing different cultures.
 * Biggest challenge you and your teammate will face on The Race together: My partner needs to understand and learn that not everyone in the world is stupid.
 * Pet peeve about your teammate: His botox shots, plucked eyebrows and those loafers.
 * What country and place would you most like to visit and why? Spoke highly of New Zealand and they were wonderful people.
 * What do you hope to accomplish by running The Race (other than winning one million bucks)? I want to see my partner cry on national television because I am his boss and he is a wuss.

JJ

 * Age: 42
 * Hometown: Carlsbad, Calif.
 * Connection to your teammate: Friend/Co-worker
 * Current occupation: Border Patrol Agent
 * Describe what you do: I supervise an anti-smuggling group of 20 agents in the United States Border Patrol.
 * How will these skills help you win The Race? I have to make quick and decisive decisions.  I also have to think clearly and make sound decisions under extreme pressure.
 * Three words to describe you: Honest, funny and solid.
 * Favorite hobbies: Going to the beach, reading and working out.
 * What famous person reminds you of yourself? Goose in "Top Gun."
 * What famous person reminds you of your teammate? The Tasmanian Devil.
 * What is the accomplishment you are most proud of? Adopting my son.
 * What scares you most about traveling? Getting sick.
 * What excites you most about traveling? Experiencing other people and cultures.
 * Biggest challenge you and your teammate will face on The Race together: We always yell at each other.  We need a smooth communication pattern.
 * Pet peeve about your teammate: His stupid gold chain that holds his badge.
 * What country and place would you most like to visit and why? New Zealand, because I want to experience the people and the culture.
 * What do you hope to accomplish by running The Race (other than winning one million bucks)? A better working relationship and better communication.

Race History
Notes: Leg 12 had two Roadblocks and no Detour. The team member who sat out the first Roadblock was required to perform the second one.

Post-Race

 * Gave half of their ten thousand dollars that they won on leg 5 to Bopper & Mark (for Bopper to pay the medical bills of his daughter who has a respiratory problem), who had come in last, but turns out to be a non-elimination leg.
 * Art & JJ appeared on  for a The Amazing Race special that aired on May 25, 2016. But they weren't selected to be on the Contestant's Row.

Trivia

 * One of 56 teams to never check in last at a pit stop and the finish line in their career.

Interviews

 * Susan Gonzales at Yakkity Yaks (05/09/2012): "The Amazing Race: The Yak Chats with 2nd Place Winners Art and JJ!"
 * Elimination Interviews at CBS.com (05/08/2012): "Elimination Interview: Art & JJ"
 * Daniel Fienberg at Hitfix.com (05/10/2012): "The second place border agents discuss their Race journey"
 * Catriona Wightman at Digital Spy (05/08/2012): "It just wasn't our day"
 * Gina Scarpa at Reality Wanted (05/08/2012): "The Amazing Race 20: Exclusive Interview with Art Velez and JJ Carrell"
 * Reg Seeton at The Deadbolt (05/08/2012): "Reliving The Amazing Race with Art Velez and J.J. Carrell"
 * Elizabeth Kwiatkowski at Reality TV World (05/09/2012): "Exclusive: Art Velez and J.J. Carrell talk 'The Amazing Race" [Parts 1 & 2]
 * Joyce Eng at TV Guide Online (05/08/2012): "We Don't Care If People Think We're Jerks"