The Amazing Race Wiki
Register
Advertisement
The Amazing Race title screen.
For other uses of 'The Amazing Race', see The Amazing Race (disambiguation).

The Amazing Race is a reality television game show in which teams of two race around the world in competition with other teams. Contestants strive to arrive first at the end of each leg of the race to avoid the possibility of elimination. Teams are progressively eliminated until three teams are left; at that point, the team who arrives first in the final leg is awarded a large cash grand prize. Created by Elise Doganieri and Bertram van Munster, the original series has aired in the United States since 2001 and has earned seven Primetime Emmy Awards, including seven consecutive "Outstanding Reality-Competition Program" awards.

Contestants travel to and within multiple countries in a variety of transportation modes including planes, taxis, rental cars, trains and boats. The clues in each leg point the teams to the next destination or direct them to perform a task, either together or by a single member. Each task showcases the geographic region or indigenous culture and customs it is held in. If a team is in last place at the end of a leg of the race, they may be forced to stop competing or have a significant disadvantage in the following leg.

The Race[]

Contestants[]

TAR18cast2

The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business contestants.

For a list of all contestants, see Category:Teams.

In all seasons, with the exception of the "Family Edition" of Season 8, all teams are composed of two people with a preexisting relationship. Common relationships include married, dating, siblings, co-workers, parent-child, and friends.

Legs[]

Each leg of the race is comprised of teams departing the Pit Stop (or Starting Line) and traveling to a new destination or locale (indicated by a yellow and either white or red marker). Once there, the teams will perform tasks, typically at least one Roadblock and one Detour, and receive clues to their next destination upon completion of each task.

Money[]

16x7 Money

Carol & Brandy count their money at the beginning of Leg 7 on Season 16.

Main article: Money

At the beginning of most legs, teams receive an equal amount of cash to purchase transportation, food, and other necessary items along the race. This money is usually given in U.S. Dollars regardless of the current location of the race. All teams also carry a credit card used to purchase economy airline tickets. This card may not be used in any other situation.

If a team spends all of their money or has it taken away in a non-elimination legs, they may try to get more money in any way that doesn't violate the local laws. This includes borrowing money from other teams, begging from locals or selling their possessions.

Clues[]

Clues
Main article: Clues

Throughout the race, clues indicate tasks that teams must complete, directions where teams must go or other pertinent information that guide teams along the race. Most are retrieved out of Clue Boxes.

Pit Stops[]

Pit Stop 14x9

Mark & Michael are eliminated at a Pit Stop in China in Season 14.

Main article: Pit Stop

Pit Stops are the final destination in each leg of the race. Each Pit Stop is a mandatory rest period which allows teams to eat, sleep, and mingle with each other. Teams have been greeted at every Pit Stop by Phil and a local of that country (typically dressed in the local costume), except in Season 1, when a local greeted them and Phil was only present to greet the last place team and inform them if they had been eliminated or saved by a non-elimination leg.

Elimination[]

Main article: Elimination
Main article: Non-Elimination Leg
EliminationStation

The last team to arrive at the Pit Stop is eliminated, barring any penalties, or unless that leg of the race is one of the predetermined non-elimination legs. In some legs, the first team to arrive wins a prize such as a vacation or cruise, which they receive after that particular season has aired on TV. The eliminations themselves have now earned the name "Philimination" in the Amazing Race fan community, a portmanteau of the host's name and the word "elimination".

Superlegs[]

Main article: Superleg

Season 6 introduced the first double-length "superleg" shown over two episodes. The televised episode ended with a 'To Be Continued' message instead of a Pit Stop. The second half of the leg featured a second Detour and second Roadblock. Seasons 7, 8, 9 and 14 each had a superleg with teams meeting Keoghan on the usual Pit Stop mat at the midpoint, only to have him hand them the next clue instead of checking them in.

In Season 10, the superleg did not involve meeting Keoghan, but rather teams were informed to "KEEP RACING!!!" in their next route marker. In addition, the 2-hour finale of Season 8 took place over a superleg similar to Season 6's.

No-Rest Legs[]

Main article: No-Rest Leg

Season 18 introduced the concept of a no-rest leg. These function identically to that of a normal leg, however the host informs the teams they are starting the next leg of the race immediately. Typically these legs are non-elimination, and the last team to arrive is not penalized with the version's typical penalty. However, some international versions have had no-rest legs where teams are eliminated. These have replaced Superlegs in the American version, but have been used with superlegs in a few of the international versions.

Mega Legs[]

Main article: Megaleg

The Amazing Race 32 introduced the concept of a mega leg. introduced the first double-length "superleg" shown over two episodes. The televised episode ended with a 'To Be Continued' message instead of a Pit Stop. The second half of the leg featured a second Detour, second Roadblock and double the distance.

Surprise-Elimination Legs[]

Season 10 introduced the first surprise elimination, when the last team to arrive at a checkpoint midway through the first leg was eliminated on the spot. At the end of the leg, there was a normal elimination at the mat, making it the first time two teams were eliminated in the same leg.

Season 15 made the second surprise elimination, where the last team remaining at the opening task of the Race was eliminated. However at the end of the leg, no one was eliminated at the Pit Stop as it was a non-elimination leg.

Final Leg[]

Main article: Finish Line
TAR17Winners

Nat & Kat cross the finish line in Greystone Mansion on Season 17.

Three teams compete in the last leg of the race. This first part of the leg includes intermediate destination(s) where the teams must travel to complete a series of tasks (Alaska, United States Seasons 1, 2, and 9; Hawaii, United States, Seasons 3, 4, 6 and 11; Calgary, Canada, Season 5; Puerto Rico, United States, Season 7; Montreal and Toronto, Canada, Season 8; Paris, France, Season 10). The second part of the leg has teams traveling to a final destination, usually located in a major U.S. city. Remaining teams must complete one or more tasks before receiving the clue directing them to the Finish Line. At the finish line, host Phil Keoghan and all the eliminated teams wait for the remaining teams to arrive.

The first team to reach the finish line wins the race and the top cash prize, which varies depending on the version of the show. All other teams win lesser amounts of money on a sliding scale based on their finishing order.[1]

Ideally, all three remaining teams arrive at the finish line within a reasonable amount of time. On occasion, the third place team has fallen so far behind the other two teams that they cannot finish the race in a timely manner. In this case, after the other two teams finish, they are informed that the race is over at their next Route Marker (Joe and Bill, Season 1; David and Jeff, Season 4).

Rules and Penalties[]

Main article: Rules and Penalties

All teams must abide by the rules set at the beginning of the race. Failure to do so can result in time penalties, which can negatively affect finishing position in that leg of the race. While the complete set of official rules has not been released to the public, certain rules have been revealed during the various editions of the race. See Rules and Penalties for a complete list.

Statistics[]

In Season 21, Double Your Money reward was earned by the team that came in first in the first leg of the race.  Below are that statistics on possible disadvantages of coming in first on the first leg.

  • Before the introduction of the Double Your Money reward, only 6 of the 20 winners were also the first place team on the first leg.  This is now 7/33 as of the conclusion of the 33rd season.
  • The other fourteen first leg's winners either made it to the finale (6/20, now 12/33) or were eliminated before the finale (8/20, now 14/33).
  • However, the first place teams does do well on average.  The first place teams average a fourth place finish.

The average placing for winners is 3.00 and Rachel & Dave are the only team in the US version who have won the race with average placing below 2, having won the race with an average placing of 1.83.

Production[]

For an overview of the production of the American series, see The Amazing Race (US)#Production

The production of The Amazing Race is a challenge due to its premise being a race around the world. Among the difficult duties that producers face, scoping out locations, designing tasks, selecting teams, and planning logistics for the entire course are the most important to accomplish in pre-production. During the Race, the camera crews need to keep up with the movement of the teams and the host. And when the footage for the entire season has been filmed and edited, team members and crew are responsible for not leaking any spoilers that may hint at locations, events, or outcomes of the Race.

Through its efforts, the American version has received many accolades, including Primetime Emmy Awards and nominations in categories for audio and video production and editing.

For an overview of Emmy nominations and awards and other accolades of the American series, see The Amazing Race (US)#Awards.

External Links[]

The Amazing Race Season Index
United States 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10 · 11 · 12 · 13 · 14 · 15 · 16 · 17 · 18 · 19 · 20 · 21 · 22 · 23 · 24 · 25 · 26 · 27 · 28 · 29 · 30 · 31 · 32 · 33 · 34 · 35
Asia 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5
Australia 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7
Brazil 1
Canada 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9
Central Europe Cancelled
China 1 · 2 · 3 · 4
China Rush 1 · 2 · 3
Finland 1
France 1
Israel 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8
Latin America 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6
Norway 1 · 2
Philippines 1 · 2
Ukraine 1
Vietnam 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6
Advertisement