Bill & Cathi

William "Bill" Alden and Catherine "Cathi" Alden are a team of Grandparents on The Amazing Race 19.

They fell behind by four hours in the first leg while looking for the giant sign clue, only to be saved by a rare first leg non-elimination. They would quickly improve, showing adeptness at both physical and mental tasks, mostly running near the front of the pack despite their age, and becoming fan favorites as a result. They fell behind doing the body building challenge in Belgium, and were never able to catch up, finally getting eliminated in 5th.

Profile

Retrieved from CBS.com^[1]

Bill

Age: 63
Hometown: Albany, Ore.
Connection to your teammate: Married
Current occupation: I'm a retired teacher. I'm currently a farmer/rancher.
Describe what you do: I raise crops/animals, golf, travel, fix things, golf, build things in the shop, golf, exercise and did I mention golf?
How will these skills help you win The Race? I'll kick butt in a golf challenge.
Three words to describe you: Procrastinator, tidy and worrisome.
Favorite hobbies: Building things, gardening and biking.
What famous person reminds you of yourself? Daniel Boone
What famous person reminds you of your teammate? Margaret Thatcher
What is the accomplishment you are most proud of? Cathi and my three children.
What scares you most about traveling? Not taking enough pictures.
What excites you most about traveling? The sights, cultures, people, lifestyles, etc.
Biggest challenge you and your teammate will face on The Race together: Sometimes her feelings get hurt when I suggest that she's not correct. We need to have a way to defuse this.
Pet peeve about your teammate: She throws my things away without asking!
What country and place would you most like to visit and why? I'd like to go to the Amazon or Brazil and see the rainforest.
What do you hope to accomplish by running The Race (other then winning one million bucks)? I hope to gain excellent memories, new friends and have a fantastic time with my wife.

Cathi

Age: 62 Hometown: Albany, Ore.
Connection to your teammate: Married
Current occupation: College instructor/retired high school principal
Describe what you do: I teach online courses for Oregon State University.
How will these skills help you win The Race? I'm computer savvy, a good communicator and can work well with younger people.
Three words to describe you: Energetic, organized and witty. Favorite hobbies: Cycling, gardening and traveling.
What famous person reminds you of yourself? Sally Field
What famous person reminds you of your teammate? MacGyver
What is the accomplishment you are most proud of? Having great relationships with Bill and my three children.
What scares you most about traveling? Losing my way while driving.
What excites you most about traveling? I love the interactions with the people – seeing the similarities and differences.
Biggest challenge you and your teammate will face on the Race together: We are both bossy so we will need to make fast decisions and respect them.
Pet peeve about your teammate: He is an angry driver at times and that really irritates me.
What country and place would you most like to visit and why? Russia, because it has stark contrasts to the U.S. and other places I've been.
What do you hope to accomplish by running the Race (other then winning one million bucks)? I hope to gain wonderful memories and traveling opportunities, as well as a strengthened relationship.

The Amazing Race 19

Despite an embarrassing first leg of the race (Checking in last place 4 hours after the second last team), Bill and Cathi were spared elimination on the first leg. Even though being set with a speed bump during the second leg, the team pulled through, surviving the double elimination of the same leg and finishing 7th place.

Although failing to win any legs, Bill and Cathi were a resilient team, making it all the way to the 10th leg, finishing 5th place overall.

Race History

Bill & Cathi's Race History
Episode	Leg	Destination(s)	Detour Choice (underlined)	Roadblock Performer	Placement	Notes
1	1	United States → Taiwan	No Detour	Cathi	11 of 11
2	2	Taiwan → Indonesia	Shake Your Money Maker / Be a Ticket Taker	Bill	7 of 11	^[1]
3	3	Indonesia	Rice Field / Grass Fed	Bill	7 of 9
4	4	Indonesia → Thailand	Coral Reconstruction / Beach Preparation	Bill	7 of 8
5	5	Thailand	No Detour	Cathi	2 of 8	^[2]
5	5	Thailand	No Detour	Bill	2 of 8	^[2]
6	6	Thailand → Malawi	All Sewn Up / Not Grown Up	Bill	6 of 7	^[3]
7	7	Malawi	Dugout / Lugout	Cathi	3 of 7
8	8	Malawi → Denmark	All Hopped Up / All Churned Out	Cathi	2 of 6⊃⋐
9	9	Denmark → Germany → Belgium	Bodybuilder Posedown / Unknown	Cathi	5 of 5	^[4] ^[5]
10	10	Belgium	Water / Waffle	Bill	5 of 5
				Average	5.50
Legend: The team finished in first place The team finished in last place and was eliminated from the race The team finished in last place in a non-elimination leg The team that won The Amazing Race The team that crossed the Finish Line second The team that crossed the Finish Line third ϵ The team used the Express Pass somewhere during the leg ⊂ The team used the U-Turn ⊃ Recipient of the U-Turn ⋐ The team that used the second slot of the "Double U-Turn" ⋑ Recipient of a second U-Turn due to the "Double U-Turn" twist H This team was penalized with a "Hazard"
Notes: 1: Bill & Cathi were the 3rd team to arrive, but were forced to return to the 'Aisyiyah Orphanage, as they failed to donate all of their money to the orphanage, before they could check in. This dropped them to 7th place. 2: Leg 5 had two Roadblocks and no Detour. The team member who sat out the first Roadblock was required to perform the second one. 3: Bill & Cathi initially arrived 3rd, but did not pay the truck driver who helped them to the Pit Stop. They were required to turn back and pay their driver, ultimately dropping them to 6th. 4: Leg 9 contained a Detour, however since all teams chose the same task, it was edited to be a miscellaneous task on air. It is unknown what the other side of the Detour was. 5: There was no mandatory rest period between Legs 9 and 10, as all teams were ordered to continue racing. Bill & Cathi did not have to face a Speed Bump during Leg 10, despite coming in last during Leg 9.

Post-Race

On June 10, 2016, Bill passed away at the age of 69 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.^[2]^[3]

Trivia

Bill & Cathi are the first team to be eliminated in Belgium.
Oldest age average of a team to finish the race in 5th place, with an average of 62.5 years.
Bill is the first male U.S. contestant to have passed away.

External links

Interviews

Joyce Eng at TV Guide Online (11/28/2011): "We Were Too Cautious on the Road"
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski at Reality TV World (11/28/2011): "Exclusive - Cathi Alden and Bill Alden talk about The Amazing Race"
Gina Scarpa at Reality Wanted (11/29/2011): "The Amazing Race 19: Exclusive Interview with Bill and Cathi Alden"
Digital Spy (11/29/2011): "There was nothing we wouldn't do"
Daniel Fienberg at Hitfix.com (11/30/2011): "From near-elimination to 5th place, the 'older' Racers share secrets"
Rob Owen at Oregon Live (12/03/2011): "End of an 'Amazing' journey"