The Amazing Race (American TV series)

{{main|The Amazing Race#The Race|l1=Rules and structure of The Amazing Race}}

The Amazing Race is a reality television competition, typically involving eleven teams of two, in a race around the world. The race cycle is divided into a number of legs, normally twelve; each episode generally covers the events of one leg. Each leg ends with a Pit Stop, where teams are given a chance to rest and recover before starting the next leg twelve hours later. The first team to arrive at a Pit Stop is often awarded a prize such as a trip, while the last team is normally eliminated from the race. Some legs are non-elimination legs, where the last team to arrive may be penalized in the following leg. Some races have featured double-length legs, where the teams meet the host at what appears to be a Pit Stop, only to be told to continue to race. The final leg of each race is run by the last three remaining teams, and the first to arrive at the final destination wins the show's prize, {{US$|1 million|link=yes}}. The average length of each race is approximately 21 to 30 days.

{{imageframe|width=260|content=60px{{nbsp}}60px{{nbsp}}60px{{nbsp}}60px |caption=Teams follow clues given to them in marked envelopes, including (from left to right) Route Info, Detours, Roadblocks and Fast Forwards.|align=left}}

During each leg, teams follow clues from Route Markers boxes containing clue envelopes marked in the race's red, yellow, and white colors to determine their next destination. Travel between destinations includes commercial and chartered airplanes, boats, trains, taxis, buses, and rented vehicles provided by the show, or the teams may simply travel by foot. Teams are required to pay for all expenses while traveling from a small stipend (on the order of $100) given to them at the start of each leg. Any money left unspent can be used in future legs of the race. The only exception is air travel, where teams are given a credit card to purchase economy-class fares. Some teams have resorted to begging to replenish their funds.{{sfn|Perkins|2009|pp=6}}

Clues may directly identify locations, contain cryptic riddles such as "Travel to the westernmost point in continental Europe" that teams must figure out, or include physical elements, such as a country's flag, indicating their next destination. Clues may also describe a number of tasks that teams must complete before continuing to race. As such, teams are generally free and sometimes required to engage locals to help in any manner to decipher clues and complete tasks. Tasks are typically designed to highlight the local culture of the country they are in. Such tasks include:

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• Route Info: A general clue that may include a task to be completed by the team before they can receive their next clue.
• Detours: A choice of two tasks. Teams are free to choose either task or swap tasks if they find one option too difficult. There is generally one Detour present on each leg.
• Roadblocks: A task only one team member can complete. Teams must choose which member will complete the task based on a brief clue about the task before fully revealing the details of the task. Later editions of the program have limits on the number of Roadblocks one team member can perform and it is generally a requirement that both team members perform the same number of tasks. There is generally one Roadblock present on each leg.
• Fast Forwards: A task that only one team may complete, allowing that team to skip all remaining tasks and head directly for the next Pit Stop. Teams may only claim one Fast Forward during the entire season. Used in season 1-17, 20, 23, 25, 27, 29, & 37
• Yields: A station where a team can force another trailing team to wait a predetermined amount of time before continuing the race. Teams may only yield any other team once per race. The Yield was initially used from season 5 through 11, afterwards being supplanted by the U-Turn. However, the Yield was reintroduced in Season 32.
• Intersections: Tasks that require two teams to work together until otherwise instructed. While Intersected, teams may be required to perform Detours, Roadblocks (a two-person task using one person from each team), and Fast Forwards together. First introduced in Season 10.
• U-Turns: A station, located after a Detour, where a team can force another trailing team to return and complete the other Detour option they did not select. Teams may only U-Turn any other team once per race. In season 29, U-Turn stations were moved before the Detour, and the limitation on the number of U-Turns a team could use was lifted.
• Season 31 introduced the U-Turn Vote, where the teams voted for who they want to U-Turn. The two teams with the most votes were U-Turned. Season 35 was a private U-Turn vote - one team with the most votes was being U-Turned.
• Speed Bumps: A task that only the team that came in last on the previous non-elimination leg must complete before continuing on the race, usually consisting of a small, easy to complete task. First introduced in Season 12, and last seen on Season 32
• Switchbacks: A task that is based on an iconic task performed on an earlier season of the Race, typically at the same location that was previously used. Examples have been a Roadblock that held a team back for several hours, leading to their elimination, and a Fast Forward that presented a difficult choice, but the team that took it ultimately won the race. It was first introduced in Season 15 and used sporadically.

Teams are penalized for failing to complete these tasks as instructed or other rules of the race, generally thirty minutes plus any time gained for the infraction where they sit out (reference to timeout). Such penalties may be enforced while teams are racing when they arrive at the Pit Stop, or at the start of the next leg.

The events of the race are generally edited and shown in chronological order, cutting between the actions of each team as they progress. More recent seasons have been edited to show split-screen footage of simultaneous actions or two or more different teams in the style of 24.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20258483,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090213132507/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20258483,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 13, 2009 |title=The Amazing Race (2009) |first=Ken |last=Tucker |date=February 11, 2009 |access-date=September 25, 2012 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}} Footage from the race is interspersed with commentary from the individual teams or members recorded after each leg to give more insight on the events being shown. The show helps track racers' progress through a leg by providing frequent on-screen information identifying teams and their placement.

{{see also|List of The Amazing Race (American TV series) episodes}}

A total of 779 contestants have competed in the show's 37 seasons.

{{Series overview

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File:Elise Doganieri by Gage Skidmore.jpg]]

The original idea for The Amazing Race came from Elise Doganieri and Bertram van Munster. The two had previously met when Van Munster was producing programs such as Cops, and they continued to work together and eventually married. Around 2000, Van Munster was wrapping up production of his nature documentary series Wild Things, and he was looking for another concept. Doganieri, an advertising executive at that point, had come back from that year's MIPCOM, and she complained about the lack of good ideas from people working in television. Van Munster jokingly bet her on the spot to come up with an idea herself.{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/02/tv/cover-story-a-long-trip-with-someone-you-know.html |title=COVER STORY; A Long Trip, With Someone You Know |first=Warren |last=Berger |date=September 2, 2001 |access-date=May 18, 2016 |work=New York Times}} Though her by-then husband was only joking, Dogenieri declared him "on," and she recalled her previous experience backpacking across Europe and meeting and interacting with the various local residents, on which basis she offered the idea of several teams of players racing across the world, interspersed with local challenges that would test the team's resolve and relationships, and which teams would be eliminated along the way but not due to someone else doing something against that team.{{Cite web |url=https://variety.com/2014/tv/awards/amazing-race-brain-trust-reveals-some-tricks-to-the-trade-1201221416/ |title='Amazing Race' Brain Trust Reveals Some Tricks to the Trade |first=Andrew |last=Bloomenthal |date=June 18, 2014 |access-date=May 17, 2016 |work=Variety}} Van Munster was intrigued with the idea, and had already had experience with "reality" television with Cops, considered to be the predecessor of reality television during the 1990s.{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/entertainment/reality-run-race-spans-globe-article-1.928738 |title='Race' spans globe |first=Donna |last=Petrozzello |date=September 4, 2001 |access-date=January 3, 2011 |work=New York Daily News}} The two approached Jerry Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman with the idea, and the four refined it into the concept of The Amazing Race. Van Munster pitched the idea to Les Moonves of CBS shortly thereafter, who greenlit the show by June 2000.{{Cite web |url=https://variety.com/2014/tv/awards/amazing-race-producers-leave-a-lot-up-to-fate-1201221435/ |title='Amazing Race' Producers Leave a lot Up to Fate |work=Variety |first=Andrew |last=Bloomenthal |date=June 18, 2014 |access-date=May 17, 2016}} Initial scouting for locations for the first season started in August 2000. At least one casting call in New York City, at that point calling the show the "CBS Summer Global Adventure Series", took place in December 2000.{{cite news |title=CBS Seeks Great Racers |date=December 13, 2000 |work=New York Daily News |first=Donna |last=Petrozzello}} Filming took place between March and April 2001.

File:The Amazing Race 22 map.png (shown above), almost fully circumnavigate the globe, starting and ending in the United States and visiting three to six continents.]]

Prior to each of the Races, the production team plans out the locations and tasks that the racers will travel, working in conjunction with local representatives, each of whom Van Munster had initially had available for a different show. The staff also consults with ex-military or federal agents that are aware of political matters in foreign areas, who may advise on countries or regions to avoid.{{cite news |url=http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/tv/egypt_is_off_the_map_for_us_AXg1cl2mLa1PJTzTs30ZLJ |title='Egypt is off the map for us': Logan attack rumbles through primetime TV |work=New York Post |date=February 20, 2011 |access-date=February 21, 2011 |first=Michael |last=Shain}} Van Munster and others will then travel the proposed course to verify the locations and identify needs for filming for the show.{{cite web |url=http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/amazing-race.htm |title=Inside The Amazing Race |first=Gerri |last=Miller |access-date=December 9, 2010 |work=How Stuff Works |date=April 7, 2005}} The crew works with local government representatives to assure the safety of the racers while traveling through certain areas of the world. Despite pre-planning, the production crew may be faced with obstacles forcing them to change tasks or even locations. In one situation during planning of the second race, the Argentine bank system failed, creating political unrest, and a new country was selected. Similarly, after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 and the sexual assault of South African-American reporter Lara Logan who worked for CBS, the production staff considers Egypt to be "off the map right now." While filming had started on the 33rd season of the race in early February 2020, CBS temporarily stopped production and ordered all teams and staff back to the United States due to the COVID-19 pandemic out of caution, though stated that the virus had not been contracted by anyone on the show. At the time, three episodes of the season had been filmed and no new production start date for the series had yet been determined.{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/cbs-suspends-amazing-race-production-coronavirus-fears-1203519026/ |title=CBS Suspends 'The Amazing Race' Production Over Coronavirus Fears |first1=Eliane |last1=Low |first2=Jazz |last2=Tangcay |date=February 28, 2020 |access-date=February 28, 2020 |work=Variety}} In 2023, van Munster said that they would not be traveling to Russia, Mainland China, and certain parts of West Africa for the foreseeable future.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/features/the-amazing-race-season-35-challenges-clues-preview-1235727982/|title=Inside 'The Amazing Race' High-Wire Act and the Scramble Behind the Scenes Making TV's Most Ambitious Competition Show|work=Variety|last=Schneider|first=Michael|date=September 20, 2023|access-date=September 21, 2023}} It has been estimated, by Van Munster, that over 2,000 people worldwide are involved in the production of any one season of the Race.

Tasks are generally selected to represent the local flavor of the country or region they are in. They typically look for activities that are not often considered something a tourist would do but part of the way of life in a country, as this would generally be a new experience for all the racers. Production relies on their own experiences as well to develop tasks; Van Munster noted that a task in season 21 involving synchronized swimming was based on his own struggles as a teenager to learn how to do a similar routine, thus assuring that if he could do it, racers could do it as well.

A Race's route has to be approved by CBS before production can start on their scouting. The specific tasks, clues, and other Race elements like the sequence of non-elimination legs, are all set about a month before filming. The production can allow for some flexibility to minimize the difficulties of production. In the first season, one Pit Stop was located and extended to 72 hours instead of the normal 12 due to a sandstorm. Also in that season, two of the four final teams ended up about 24 hours behind the lead teams due to flight and hours-of-operation limitations, creating a production nightmare. In later seasons, production has improvised extended Pit Stops by a day or so to prevent teams from becoming too spread out. In the tenth season, Phil Keoghan, host of the Races, was detained by officials in Ukraine, where the ninth leg took place, and the local American ambassador, who happened to be a fan of the show, helped to free him.{{cite web |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/emmys-2012-the-amazing-race-creator-bertram-van-munster-369687 |title=Emmys 2012: The 'Amazing Race' Creator Feared Cancellation Until Their First Win |first=Michael |last=O'Connell |date=September 13, 2012 |access-date=September 13, 2012 |work=The Hollywood Reporter}} The 33rd season had started filming at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and production was forced to stop the race after 3 legs; after a year of additional planning and rerouting, the remaining legs were filmed but with a course through countries with low COVID-19 rates and using a charter jet for transport between countries to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on the cast and crew.{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2021/12/the-amazing-race-sets-season-33-cast-and-featurette-eps-talk-safety-protocols-1234886700/ |title='The Amazing Race' Unveils Season 33 Cast And Featurette – TCA |first=Matt |last=Grobar |date=December 10, 2021 | access-date = December 10, 2021 |work=Deadline Hollywood}}

The producers review previous seasons and make changes to new seasons as to keep the show fresh and unexpected; Littman stated that with as many season now filmed of the Race, many racers come to know what to expect and as producers, they need a way to shake things up, as "whenever you throw a wrench into [the Race], it completely throws them off." For example, while teams at Pit Stops during the first several seasons were allowed to mingle, the producers have since purposely kept teams apart during this time, as it serves to both keep teams unaware of the finishing order and the fate of an eliminated team, and prevents alliances from forming to keep the teams competitive. They also looked to change the format of the team structure, but found that their first such experiment with the season 8 "Family Edition" was poorly received by American audiences though had a strong reception from overseas broadcasts of that series.

Though The Amazing Race involves significant amounts of travel across the world for around a hundred people, Doganieri has published her own estimates that their production costs are in line with, if not less than, those of other reality television shows, which estimates she bases in part on the fact that most of the production staff have been with the show for a long period and work efficiently to help move the competition. The cost of the show has been subsidized by its sponsors, who provide trips and other prizes to teams that arrive first on certain legs, or have their products featured as a task. For example, the seventh through thirty-third seasons were sponsored by Travelocity, and typically one leg per season will involve a task that includes the Travelocity "Roaming Gnome;" trip prizes for first-place finishes on many legs are funded by Travelocity and the local hotel at the trip destination.{{cite news |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2011-02-15-gnomes15_ST_N.htm |title=Gnomes: Cute garden dwellers or little villains? |first=Susan |last=Wloszczyna |date=February 14, 2011 |access-date=February 14, 2011 |work=USA Today}} Ford Motor Company was also a major sponsor during nine seasons of the show, and typically teams will be given Ford vehicles to drive for various legs and as prizes for finishing first on a leg. In another example, a tea-themed leg in the 18th season was sponsored by Snapple Beverages, which had developed a new limited edition flavor specifically for the show.{{cite press release |url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/snapple-partners-with-cbs-on-the-amazing-race-118760274.html |title=Snapple Partners With CBS on "The Amazing Race" |date=March 28, 2011 |access-date=March 28, 2011 |publisher=Snapple}} Since the thirty-fourth season, Expedia has served as the primary sponsor of the show providing trip prizes for first-place finishes and with one leg per season featuring a local tourism-inspired task called an "Expedia Experience".{{cite web|url=https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2022/12/amazing-race-34-episode-11-how-am-i-going-to-survive-this-recap/|title=In Iceland, Amazing Race proffers penalties and product placement|work=reality blurred|author=Andy Dehnart|author-link=Andy Dehnart|date=December 1, 2022|access-date=March 13, 2025}} The Amazing Race has been considered to be a show that incorporates a large number of product placements as tracked by ACNeilsen, often being one of the top shows for product placement each year.{{cite press release |url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0709/S00583.htm |title=U.S. Advertising Spending Declines 0.5% In First Half 2007, Nielsen Reports |publisher=ACNeilsen |date=September 24, 2007 |access-date=March 28, 2011}}

File:PhilKeoghanSDCC4Feb2015.jpg, the host of The Amazing Race]]

The Amazing Race has been hosted by New Zealander Phil Keoghan since its 2001 debut. Keoghan initiates the start of the race, introduces each new area and describes each task for the viewers, and meets each team at the Pit Stops along with a local greeter informing the teams of their placement or their elimination followed by a short interview, as well as announcing the winners at the finish line. Keoghan was a television host in New Zealand prior to The Amazing Race, and had traveled the world and performed adventurous feats for these shows.{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/entertainment/cbs-picks-guide-run-race-article-1.906465 |title=CBS Picks Its Guide to Run the 'Race' |first=Donna |last=Petrozzello |date=March 1, 2001 |access-date=January 3, 2011 |work=New York Daily News}} His background led him to apply for the hosting duties of Survivor. Though Keoghan was on the shortlist, the producers of Survivor chose Jeff Probst, while Keoghan was found to be a better fit for The Amazing Race. Keoghan's performance as a host has been highlighted by his ability to arch his eyebrows to the arriving teams to increase suspense before revealing their position,{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-mar-28-et-amazing-phil28-story.html |title='Amazing Race's' Phil Keoghan sets out to bike the USA |work=Los Angeles Times |first=Martin |last=Miller |date=March 28, 2009 |access-date=December 13, 2010}} and racers and fans of the show often refer to the progressive elimination of teams as "Philimination".{{cite web |url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20421705,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110110033549/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20421705,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 10, 2011 |title=Father-Son Duo Closer After The Amazing Race |work=People |date=November 17, 2009 |access-date=December 13, 2010}} Keoghan signed an extended contract with CBS to continue hosting The Amazing Race for "several years", according to TV Guide, shortly after the conclusion of The Amazing Race 18. The contract will also allow Keoghan to develop ideas into shows for the network.{{cite web |url=https://www.tvguide.com/News/Phil-Keoghan-Deal-1032942.aspx |title=Exclusive: Phil Keoghan Signs New Deal, Sticks With The Amazing Race |work=TV Guide |first=Michael |last=Schinder |date=May 11, 2011 |access-date=May 11, 2011}}

File:TAR teams.jpg, married parents Kim & Chip of Season 5, brothers Gerard & Ken of Season 3, and dating couple Lori & David of Season 9.]]

Prior to each race, CBS and World Race Productions hold casting auditions around the country and accept submissions through postal mail. More recent seasons have included recruited contestants. According to casting director Lynne Spillman, they look to cast a diverse array of teams to appeal to a wide range of audience members. Spillman notes they put more value on contestants that are "great talkers" as well as racers, and see those that have deep knowledge of the Race as a plus over other factors like looks and strength. The casting process takes about four months to complete.{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-xpm-2012-sep-30-la-et-st-amazing-race-conversation-20120930-story.html |title=The Sunday Conversation: Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri of 'The Amazing Race' |first=Irene |last=Lacher |date=September 30, 2012 |access-date=May 18, 2016 |work=Los Angeles Times}} All teams are compensated for the time missed from their jobs, though the amount is undisclosed and confidential; one racer claimed that most people would lose money from their Amazing Race stipend compared to their typical salaries.{{cite news |url=https://www.avclub.com/article/whats-it-like-to-be-a-contestant-on-the-amazing-ra-106277 |title=What's it like to be a contestant on The Amazing Race |first=Marah |last=Eakin |newspaper=The A.V. Club |date=December 6, 2013 |access-date=December 6, 2013}}{{cite web |url=http://www.movieusenet.com/183045-post1.html |title='Bowling Moms' answer lingering questions about the race |date=August 19, 2005 |publisher=Movie Usenet |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927171858/http://www.movieusenet.com/183045-post1.html |archive-date=September 27, 2007}} While the producers prefer to use teams that have never been on the show before or celebrities, they are at times pressured by CBS to include known people.

{{see also|List of The Amazing Race (American TV series) contestants}}

Each member of the two-person teams is required to be adult American citizen with an existing relationship with their teammate; according to Keoghan, in contrast to other reality television shows that pit individuals against each other, "it's more interesting to see how an experience like [The Amazing Race] affects an existing relationship". Teams are primarily married and dating couples (regardless of sexual orientation), near and distant relatives, co-workers, and friends. Most teams that participate are average Americans, but The Amazing Race has included teams or team members with some celebrity status. This has included contestants from other reality TV shows, including Alison Irwin, Jordan Lloyd, Jeff Schroeder, Rachel Reilly, Brendon Villegas, Cody Nickson, Jessica Graf, Janelle Pierzina, Britney Haynes, Elissa Slater, Nicole Franzel, Victor Arroyo, Derek Xiao, and Claire Rehfuss from Big Brother; Rob Mariano, Amber Mariano (née Brkich), Ethan Zohn, Jenna Morasca, Keith Tollefson, Whitney Duncan, Rupert and Laura Boneham, Corinne Kaplan, Eliza Orlins, Chris Hammons, and Bret LaBelle from Survivor; The Fabulous Beekman Boys stars Josh Kilmer-Purcell and Brent Ridge; and Caro Viehweg and Ray Gantt from Love Island. Several professional athletes have also participated, including the Harlem Globetrotters Herbert "Flight Time" Lang and Nathaniel "Big Easy" Lofton; former NFL players Ken Greene, Marcus Pollard, Chester Pitts, Ephraim Salaam, DeAngelo Williams, and Gary Barnidge; professional bull and bronco rider Cord McCoy; professional snowboarders Andy Finch, Tommy Czeschin, and Amy Purdy; Ironman Triathlon competitor Sarah Reinertsen; Major League Soccer goalkeeper Andrew Weber; professional hockey players Bates Battaglia and Anthony Battaglia; professional surfer and survivor of a shark attack Bethany Hamilton, former NBA All-Star Shawn Marion and Cedric Ceballos, IndyCar racers Alexander Rossi and Conor Daly, and professional skiers & X-Games champions Kristi Leskinen and Jen Hudak. Numerous beauty pageant participants and winners have raced on the show, including Nicole O'Brian, Christie Lee Woods, Dustin-Leigh Konzelman, Kandice Pelletier, Ericka Dunlap, Caitlin Upton, Mallory Ervin, Stephanie Murray Smith, Brook Roberts, and Amy Diaz. Other celebrities include father and son screenwriters and actors Mike and Mel White, professional poker players Maria Ho and Tiffany Michelle, former prisoner of war from the Iraq war Ron Young, professional sailor Zac Sunderland, YouTube stars Kevin "KevJumba" Wu, Meghan Camarena, and Joey Graceffa. The show's 28th season was primarily made up of social media celebrities and their partners, friends, or relatives as a means to capture a younger audience demographic. The show's 29th season featured 22 strangers who met for the first time at the starting line. Three special seasons of The Amazing Race have featured returning teams or racers, and the 31st season featured 11 teams, each representing 3 different reality shows: Big Brother, The Amazing Race, and Survivor.

Racers have found fame in part due to their appearance on The Amazing Race. Chip Arndt, who had raced with his civil partner Reichen Lehmkuhl, has become an activist for lesbian and gay community. Blake Mycoskie, based on his experiences traveling to Argentina after the show, later founded TOMS Shoes with the concept to donate one pair of shoes to poor children in countries like Argentina for each one sold.{{cite news |url=https://www.thestar.com/living/fashion/article/901552--saving-the-world-one-wedge-at-a-time |title=Saving the world, one wedge at a time |date=December 6, 2010 |access-date=December 10, 2010 |work=Toronto Star |first=Michael |last=Warren}} Dating goth couple Kent "Kynt" Kaliber and Vyxsin Fiala became models for the Hot Topic chain of punk/rock culture clothing stores after their appearance on the show.{{cite news |url=https://www.thestar.com/article/428279 |title=Amazing Race Goths are daredevils at heart |date=May 22, 2000 |access-date=December 10, 2010 |work=Toronto Star |first=Rita |last=Zekas}} Jet and Cord McCoy used their celebrity status from their appearances to run for separate positions in the 56th Oklahoma Legislature.{{Cite web |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/entertainment/articles/2016-06-12/cowboy-brothers-ride-amazing-race-fame-run-for-office |title=Cowboy brothers ride 'Amazing Race' fame, run for office |date=June 12, 2016 |access-date=June 17, 2016 |agency=Associated Press}}

Through the 17th season of the Race, the show used standard-definition television cameras despite the move of most other primetime shows, including reality television shows like Survivor, to high-definition television (HD) cameras prior to 2010. Worldrace Productions cited the cost and fragility of HD equipment as a barrier to its use for the Race. While other scripted or reality shows that film in one location have the ability to replace equipment quickly from a nearby facility, the mobile nature of the Race made the prospect of using HD difficult. The 18th season of the Race, filmed in late 2010, was the first to be filmed in HD.{{cite news |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/blogs/live-feed/amazing-race-getting-hd-upgrade-34512 |title=Amazing Race Getting HD Upgrade |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=November 2, 2010 |access-date=November 2, 2010 |first=James |last=Hibberd}} The production team uses Sony XDCAMs, allowing the filming to be transferred directly to digital format and couriered to the editors.{{cite news |url=http://articles.philly.com/2011-02-15/entertainment/28536177_1_hd-race-host-phil-keoghan-unfinished-business |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726010659/http://articles.philly.com/2011-02-15/entertainment/28536177_1_hd-race-host-phil-keoghan-unfinished-business |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 26, 2011 |title=Ellen Gray: Ex-'Race' contestants get another run – in HD |first=Ellen |last=Grey |date=February 15, 2011 |access-date=February 15, 2011 |work=Philadelphia Daily News}}

Prior to the filming of the race, selected teams are given a list of countries – including additional countries that are not planned for the race – for which they will need to apply for visas.{{cite web |url=http://www.tarflies.com/article.php?_f=detail&id=29#pr6 |title=How is the whole visa situation handled? |access-date=January 15, 2007 |author=Lingo |date=February 11, 2005 |publisher=The Amazing Race FAQ: Casting and Pre-Race Activities. TARflies Times |archive-date=September 14, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914124715/http://www.tarflies.com/article.php?_f=detail&id=29#pr6 |url-status=dead}} Teams prepare backpacks for clothing, hygiene, and other personal items; the racers are given a list of items that are forbidden from taking. Electronics like laptops, cell phones, and GPS devices are banned from the race, and racers are asked to avoid clothing with brand logos.{{sfn|Perkins|2009|pp=13}}Note: although one account suggested that cell phones could be borrowed in certain instances once the trip is underway. Travelers can not bring maps ahead of time, although they can buy maps during the competition if they choose.{{sfn|Perkins|2009|pp=13}} A few days before the race, teams are sequestered at a hotel for a final review of the rules, before they are finally taken to the race starting line.{{cite web |url=http://www.hofmag.com/content/view/323/62/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005000131/http://www.hofmag.com/content/view/323/62/ |archive-date=October 5, 2008 |title=The Day I...Won The Amazing Race |first1=Alex |last1=Boylan |last2=Bernstein |first2=Ryan |publisher=Hall of Fame Network |access-date=July 3, 2008}} Several takes of the start of the Race are recorded for production of the show and to go over any final rules clarifications with the racers, before the Race is officially started.{{cite web |url=https://www.tvguide.com/news/amazing-race-25-start-line-1087630/ |title=8 Amazing Secrets From The Amazing Race Start Line |first=Joyce |last=Eng |date=September 25, 2014 |access-date=May 17, 2016 |work=TV Guide}}

Once the Race starts, each team is accompanied by a two-person audio/video crew that films and records the team, alongside body mics worn by the racers.{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2018/artisans/production/reality-tv-amazing-race-deadliest-catch-sound-1202869872/ |title='Amazing Race,' 'Deadliest Catch' Audio Teams Detail Challenges in Capturing Sound |first=Tim |last=Gray |date=July 11, 2018 |access-date=July 12, 2018 |work=Variety}} Unless otherwise indicated, the crew must be able to accompany the team through all travels; for example, teams must be able to acquire four tickets on a single flight or otherwise cannot take that flight. Four tickets are usually purchased off-camera using a credit card supplied by World Race Productions.{{sfn|Perkins|2009|pp=12}} The crews rotate between teams at Pit Stops to avoid any possible favoritism that may develop between a team and its crew, and to avoid giving the appearance of collusion.{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/2010/scene/awards/great-shots-from-rough-spots-1118021948/ |title=Great shots from rough spots |first=Thomas |last=McLean |date=July 20, 2010 |access-date=July 22, 2010 |work=Variety}} At Pit Stops, a team of captains accurately record arrival times, amounts of money teams have remaining, and other factors to make sure that racers have properly completed each leg, assuring that the Race is run in a fair manner. The production team will remind players about critical local rules and laws they must follow to avoid any legal conflicts, but otherwise try to avoid giving too many instructions to players; Littman stated they chose not to interfere too much as "that's when you get the best material. They're wild cards." van Munster stated: "...when Phil yells 'Go,' it's 'Action' until three weeks later when we say 'Cut.'"

The production crew, including Keoghan, Doganieri, and van Munster, all typically travel to the next destination of the race ahead of the teams. In planning the race, the production team develops what Doganieri calls a Fast/Slow document, outlining what they believe is the fastest and slowest times that a team may take to complete all tasks on a leg based on test runs, from which they use to plan their travel ahead of the teams. According to Doganieri, this Fast/Slow document has been about 98% accurate through all seasons through 2014. Productions work with local agents, representatives, and film crews to prepare for the tasks before the racers arrive, and are in coordination with the audio/video crews to track racers during a leg. For example, to prevent clue boxes from being interfered with by locals, they are covered with garbage bags and monitored by production staff, and only when teams are about five minutes out are the bags removed. At times, the production team has been only minutes ahead of teams before they check into the Pit Stop, forcing production to restage the teams' arrival there once they are ready. Since the 25th season, Keoghan has been featured filming explanations for tasks as racers ran about behind him.

Most eliminated teams are sent to a resort destination informally dubbed "Sequesterville", where they will wait until the end of the race to be flown into the final destination city so they can be present at the Finish Line.{{cite web |url=http://www.tarflies.com/article.php?_f=detail&id=29#et1 |title=Where do the eliminated contestants go? I've heard of a place called "Sequesterville." |access-date=January 15, 2007 |author=Lingo |date=February 11, 2005 |publisher=The Amazing Race FAQ: Eliminated Teams. TARflies Times |archive-date=September 14, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914124715/http://www.tarflies.com/article.php?_f=detail&id=29#et1 |url-status=dead}} In later seasons, short web videos hosted by CBS titled "Elimination Station" show the events at this location as new teams arrive and the events that occur during the teams' stay. Other teams, generally the last few eliminated before the final three, are used as "decoy teams", and run the race's final leg ahead of the actual final teams, in hopes of confusing possible spoilers about the race's outcome from locals. Keoghan has also recorded his own videos during the show's filming, used to show what happens behind the scenes to viewers.{{cite news |url=https://www.stltoday.com/entertainment/television/gail-pennington/article_2fd325d1-9c98-5755-9d6e-fa0dd0d8b80f.html |title='Amazing Race' 18 goes high and wide |work=St. Louis Today |date=February 20, 2011 |access-date=May 13, 2012 |first=Gail |last=Pennington}}

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Most routes in The Amazing Race circumnavigate the globe, starting from one American city (since season 12, the starting line has typically been located in or near Los Angeles{{efn|name=LA Start|Exceptions are typically seasons that visit California during the Finale}}) and ending in another American city. There are several exceptions:

• In three seasons, The Amazing Race began and ended in the same city: Season one (New York City), season six (Chicago), and season nine (Denver); only in Season nine was the Starting Line and Finish Line in the same place: Red Rocks Amphitheater.
• Season seven crossed through Argentina, South Africa, and India before returning westward to the U.S. via Europe and the Caribbean.
• Season eight (also known as Family Edition) stayed entirely within North and Central America.{{cite web |author=Andy Dehnart |author-link=Andy Dehnart |date=July 28, 2005 |title=Rumor suggests "softened," North America-contained Amazing Race 8 may get "canned" |url=https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2005/07/the-amazing-race-8-kid_problems/ |access-date=December 7, 2022 |work=reality blurred}}
• Season twenty-eight and season thirty-three began in the contestants' homes – scattered across the United States – via video message from Phil Keoghan. Teams were instructed to travel to season twenty-eight's first destination city, Mexico City and season thirty-three's first destination city, London.{{cite web|url=http://www.avclub.com/article/amazing-race-casting-social-media-stars-seasons-ra-228281|title=The Amazing Race is casting social media stars for this season's race|first=William|last=Hughes|date=November 11, 2015|access-date=December 6, 2022|work=The A.V. Club}}{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/PhilKeoghanOfficial/videos/vb.182810645084635/1072699659429058/?type=2&theater|title=Phil Keoghan's Facebook|date=November 15, 2015|access-date=December 6, 2022|publisher=Facebook}}
• Three seasons produced between 2020 and 2022 were all impacted by special protocols regarding travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, they did not circumnavigate the globe:
• Season thirty-three was held entirely in Europe, with two separate filming periods. The first 3 legs held in London and Glasgow, both in the United Kingdom, filmed in February 2020 as normal held before the race was suspended due to the emergence of COVID-19. Following a 19-month suspension, the race was restarted, with another seven legs filmed in September 2021 across Europe. The contestants and production crew traveled on a charter plane between these legs. The initially planned route would have involved circumnavigation of the globe on an eastward route from the United Kingdom, continuing to Sweden, Austria, Italy, Nepal (first time), Vietnam, Thailand, Australia and South America before due to return to the United States.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/the-amazing-race-season-33-covid-restart-phil-keoghan-1235130165/|title=Inside the Herculean Effort to Resume 'The Amazing Race' After Its 18-Month COVID Shutdown (EXCLUSIVE)|work=Variety|last=Schneider|first=Michael|date=December 9, 2021|access-date=December 6, 2022}}
• Season thirty-four began in Munich, Germany, and traveled within Continental Europe, Jordan and Iceland before concluding in Nashville. The season also used charter plane travel between legs.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/this-week-on-sunday-morning-september-18-2022/|title=This week on "Sunday Morning" (September 18)|work=CBS News|date=September 15, 2022|access-date=September 17, 2022}}
• Season thirty-six (which was filmed before Season thirty-five) began in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico,{{cite web|url=https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2022/10/amazing-race-35-filming-locations/|title=Amazing Race 35 is now filming, starting in a country it hasn't visited since TAR28|work=reality blurred|author=Andy Dehnart|author-link=Andy Dehnart|date=October 26, 2022|access-date=October 26, 2022}} and travelled across South America and the Caribbean before concluding in Philadelphia. The season also used charter plane travel between legs.{{cite web|url=https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/the-amazing-race-spoilers-reveal-season-35-locations-europe-isnt-route.html/|title='The Amazing Race' Spoilers Reveal the Season 35 Locations — and Europe Isn't on the Route|work=Showbiz Cheat Sheet|last=Litte|first=Sarah|date=November 16, 2022|access-date=November 17, 2022}}{{cite web |last=Bloom |first=Mike |date=December 21, 2022 |title=Everything We Know About 'The Amazing Race' Season 35 (Including When It Filmed) |url=https://parade.com/tv/amazing-race-season-35 |access-date=December 24, 2022 |work=Parade}}

As of Season 37, The Amazing Race has visited 97 countries.{{efn|name=Route}} The most visited country in the original American series is China, with 22 Pit Stops in 10 different cities among 15 seasons, followed by France, with 20 Pit Stops among 14 seasons.{{CN|date=April 2025}}

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As of Season 36, The Amazing Race has visited 26 states and 1 federal district. The following list of visits by the show to each U.S. state, overseas territories are not included.{{efn|name=Route}} The most visited state in the original American series is California in 29 seasons, followed by Hawaii and New York.{{efn|name=USA3}}

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{{Col-2}}

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The first season of The Amazing Race visited four continents in total (three if excluding the United States). Season two extended the racecourse to South America and Oceania, and season three was the first time having route markers in North America outside the United States. The Amazing Race has yet to visit Antarctica.

{{notelist|refs=

{{efn|name=Route|This count only includes international countries or U.S. states that fielded actual route markers, challenges or finish mats. Airport stopovers and mandatory layovers are not counted or listed.{{sfn|Perkins|2009|p=57}}}}

{{efn|name=USA|Including the unincorporated organized territories and the Commonwealth of:

• Puerto Rico (7)
• Guam (11), which is located in Oceania
• United States Virgin Islands (25)}}

{{efn|name=USA2|See United States section for details regarding visits to each state.}}

{{efn|name=Finish|Includes 36 Finish Lines.}}

{{efn|name=France|In addition to metropolitan France, this list includes overseas country of French Polynesia (22), which is in Oceania.}}

{{efn|name=UK|As of season 33, the show has visited all four of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom:

• England (all 8 above listed seasons)
• Scotland (3, 22, 25, 33)
• Northern Ireland (22)
• Wales (24)}}

{{efn|name=Russia|Russia is officially counted as in Europe, as revealed in Season 13 when Phil summarized that season had visited 5 continents, with Russia being the only European country. This list includes the region of Siberia (14), which is part of the Asian continent.}}

{{efn|name=Turkey|Turkey is officially counted as in Europe, the list includes traveled east of the Bosphorus Strait (all 2 seasons), which is part of the Asian continent.}}

{{efn|name=China|In addition to mainland China, this list includes the Special Administrative Regions of:

• Hong Kong (2, 11, 17, 27, 30, 37)
• Macau (11, 27)}}

{{efn|name=TranscontinentalStates|Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia are geographically located in both Europe and Asia, but they are officially counted as in Asia.}}

{{efn|name=USA3|Does not include minor visits as virtual Starting Line locations.}}

{{efn|name=Finish2|Includes 8 Finish Lines.}}

{{efn|name=Finish3|Includes 2 Finish Lines.}}

{{efn|name=Finish4|Includes 1 Finish Line.}}

{{efn|name=Finish5|Includes 5 Finish Lines.}}

{{efn|name=NorthAmericaCounts|Excluding the U.S. states, the total count of visits in North America is 10 overall (3, 5, 7, 8, 19, 25, 28, 29, 32, & 36), including Central America, the Caribbean, and the U.S. insular area within the continent.}}

{{efn|name=Oceania|Referring as the Continent of Australia and Pacific Islands. The list does not include Hawaii, which counts as North America under U.S. state, proven by Phil counting "Four continents" at Season 3's Finish Line.}}

}}

Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of The Amazing Race on CBS.

;Notes

{{notelist-lr|2}}

During its first four seasons, even with extensive critical praise, the show garnered low Nielsen ratings, facing cancellation a number of times. The premiere of the show aired six days before the September 11 attacks, leaving the fate of the show in doubt. Producer van Munster stated that "Once we saw our billboards covered in dust from the 9/11 tragedy, we knew we had a problem".{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/16/arts/television/16race.html |title=An Audience Finally Catches Up to 'The Amazing Race' |newspaper=New York Times |first=Joe |last=Rhodes |date=November 4, 2006 |access-date=April 22, 2009}} Low viewership of the show was also attributed to it being lost among all other reality television shows at the time and unable to garner similar numbers as Survivor. The Amazing Race premiered against a similarly themed reality show, Lost on NBC (unrelated to the ABC series of the same name), Lost featured teams of two stranded in a remote area of the world and forced to find their way back to the United States.{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/entertainment/cbs-wins-nbc-lost-article-1.933777 |title=CBS Wins, NBC 'Lost' |first=Richard |last=Huff |work=New York Daily News |date=September 7, 2001 |access-date=December 22, 2010}} A vice president of programming at CBS considered The Amazing Race to be "a show that was always on the bubble" of being canceled.

The show was considered to be saved due to several factors: the show was well received by critics, winning the Emmy for Outstanding Reality-Competition Programming in 2003 and 2004; consistent viewership numbers, and feedback from the large number of fans representing the young target demographic, including Sarah Jessica Parker, who had called in directly to CBS President Les Moonves asking to save the show.{{cite news |first=Maureen |last=Ryan |newspaper=The Chicago Tribune |date=November 16, 2004 |title=With help from fans, hit CBS show rolls on}}{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/nydn-features/race-gaining-article-1.660747 |title='Race' Is Gaining |first=Donna |last=Petrozzello |date=May 25, 2003 |access-date=January 3, 2011 |work=New York Daily News}} The fifth season of the series, which aired from July to September 2004, had very high viewership numbers for that time of the year, averaging 10.7 million with a finale of nearly 13 million, doubling the viewership in the 18-to-34 demographic and won its time slot for every episode. The improved ratings are credited to the particular teams selected for that season. As a result, CBS began airing the sixth season during the "high-profile heart" of the November 2004 sweeps. The New York Times{{'}}s Kate Aurthur suggests that ratings increases for the fifth, sixth, and seven season were a direct result of the show having racers that were portrayed as "villain" characters (specifically, Colin from season 5, Jonathan from season 6, and Rob and Amber from season 7) that created more tension between teams than previous seasons, and gave viewers teams to root for or against.{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/26/arts/television/on-tv-reality-loves-a-villain.html |title=On TV, Reality Loves A Villain |first=Kate |last=Aurthur |date=April 26, 2005 |access-date=May 18, 2016 |work=New York Times}}

A temporary setback struck The Amazing Race after a Family Edition that aired in the fall of 2005 was not received warmly by viewers, which resulted in lowered viewership.{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/nydn-features/places-article-1.588255 |title=Oh, the places they'll go |first=Marisa |last=Guthrie |date=February 26, 2006 |access-date=January 3, 2011 |work=New York Daily News}} The change in format, with teams of four and allowing for young children to race alongside their parents, hampered the travel ability of the show.{{cite news |url=http://marquee.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/21/everyone%E2%80%99s-a-critic-stop-changing-my-shows-format/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110624124048/http://marquee.blogs.cnn.com/2011/06/21/everyone%E2%80%99s-a-critic-stop-changing-my-shows-format/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 24, 2011 |title=Everyone's a Critic: Stop changing my show's format |date=June 21, 2011 |access-date=June 21, 2011 |publisher=CNN |first=Jordan |last=Bienstock}} Keoghan, though pleased they had tried something different with the show, attributed the poor response to the Family Edition due to too many people to follow and lack of exotic locations.{{cite web |url=http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/arts/story.html?id=cc7f9816-d929-4bbf-9e53-a05cdfa8b1bc&k=13576 |title=Amazing Race is back on course |work=Ottawa Citizen |date=February 28, 2006 |access-date=January 3, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517031419/http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/arts/story.html?id=cc7f9816-d929-4bbf-9e53-a05cdfa8b1bc&k=13576 |archive-date=May 17, 2012}} This spilled over to Season 9 where it experienced dismaying ratings of only an average of 9.1 million viewers per episode, a drop from 13 million just 2 seasons ago in Season 7. The timeslot changing for Season 9 was also attributed to the drop in ratings.

From the tenth season to the twenty-fourth season, the show was moved to Sunday nights, as a result, The Amazing Race has seen further increases in its numbers. It is believed that part of this increase is due to "sports overruns" (football, basketball, or golf) that resulted from games played earlier on Sunday pushing the airtime for The Amazing Race back by some amount on the East Coast along with other CBS programming.{{cite magazine |url=https://variety.com/2007/scene/markets-festivals/amazing-race-still-running-1117977397/ |title='Amazing Race' still running |magazine=Variety |first=Josef |last=Adalian |date=December 9, 2007 |access-date=December 10, 2007}}{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/23/arts/television/23arts-HOOPSLIFTCBS_BRF.html |title=Hoops Lift CBS |first=Benjamin |last=Toff |date=March 22, 2010 |access-date=March 22, 2010 |work=New York Times}} In the Sunday timeslot, The Amazing Race follows 60 Minutes, Variety states that, while both shows have different target demographics, the crossover audience between the shows is very high based on the average household income of its viewers, and is part of the Race{{'}}s success.{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/2010/tv/news/upscale-auds-still-watch-nbc-1118028383/ |title=Upscale auds still watch NBC |first=Nick |last=Kissell |date=December 4, 2010 |access-date=December 4, 2010 |work=Variety}} In the 2010 season, another reality television show, Undercover Boss, was scheduled following The Amazing Race, the overall impact of these three shows have helped CBS to regain viewership on Sunday nights.{{cite web |url=https://www.vulture.com/2010/12/cbs_report_card.html |title=Your 2010 Network Report Cards: How'd CBS Do This Year? |first=Josef |last=Adalain |date=December 27, 2010 |access-date=December 28, 2010 |work=New York}} According to Variety, the average age of Amazing Race viewers that watch the show live in 2009 was 51.9 years, while for those that time-shifted the show, the average age was 39.2 years.{{cite magazine |url=https://variety.com/2009/scene/markets-festivals/tv-audiences-are-growing-older-1118007846/ |title=TV audiences are growing older |first=Michael |last=Schneider |magazine=Variety |date=August 27, 2009 |access-date=August 28, 2009}} In a 2010 survey by Experian Simmons, The Amazing Race was found to be the second-highest show proportion of viewers that identify themselves as Republicans, following Glenn Beck.{{cite news |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/reign-wing-primetime-43440 |title=The Reign of Right-Wing Primetime |date=November 10, 2010 |access-date=December 4, 2010 |first=James |last=Hibbard |work=The Hollywood Reporter}} The season 16 finale, however, was the lowest-rated finale since season 4.{{cite web |url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2010/05/10/tv-ratings-abc-wins-another-slow-sunday-amazing-race-lowest-finale-ever-celebrity-apprentice-up/50897/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101113194143/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2010/05/10/tv-ratings-abc-wins-another-slow-sunday-amazing-race-lowest-finale-ever-celebrity-apprentice-up/50897 |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 13, 2010 |title=TV Ratings ABC Wins Another Slow Sunday; Amazing Race Lowest Finale Ever; Celebrity Apprentice Up |date=May 10, 2010 |work=TV by the Numbers |last=Gorman |first=Bill |access-date=May 10, 2010}}

Although season 18 averaged over 10 million viewers and finished in top 40 most watched shows of the 2010–2011 television season, the ratings dropped and the season 18 finale was the second-lowest-rated Sunday night finale.{{cite web |url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/05/09/tv-ratings-sunday-finales-of-brothers-the-amazing-race-down/91886/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110512041026/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/05/09/tv-ratings-sunday-finales-of-brothers-the-amazing-race-down/91886/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 12, 2011 |title=TV Ratings Sunday: Finales Of 'Brothers & Sisters,' 'CSI:Miami' Up, 'The Amazing Race' Hits Low |work=TV by the Numbers |first=Bill |last=Gorman |date=May 9, 2011 |access-date=June 27, 2011}} The season 21 finale was down 31% from the season 19 finale on December 11, 2011. It tied as the show's lowest rated finale ever.{{cite web |url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/12/10/tv-ratings-sunday-the-amazing-race-finale-family-guy-christmas-with-holly-not-so-festive/160913/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121213021743/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/12/10/tv-ratings-sunday-the-amazing-race-finale-family-guy-christmas-with-holly-not-so-festive/160913/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 13, 2012 |title=TV Ratings Sunday: 'The Amazing Race' Finale, 'Family Guy' & 'The Mentalist' Down, 'The Simpsons', & 'Bob's Burgers' Up, Christmas With Holly' Not So Festive |work=TV by the Numbers |first=Sara |last=Bibel |date=December 10, 2012 |access-date=January 31, 2013}}{{cite magazine |url=http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/12/10/amazing-race-finale-ratings/ |title='Amazing Race' shocker finale ratings disappoint |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |first=James |last=Hibberd |date=December 10, 2012 |access-date=January 31, 2013}} Ratings also dropped during the season 24 finale, which was down 33% from the season 15 finale on May 18, 2014. As a result of decreasing ratings, starting with the twenty-fifth season, the show moved to Fridays at 8:00 p.m., where it had its lowest viewership ever in this series.{{cite magazine |url=http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/05/14/cbs-fall-schedule-revealed/ |title=CBS fall schedule revealed: 'CSI' to Sundays; '2.5 Men' ends run |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |first=Lynette |last=Rice |date=May 14, 2014 |access-date=May 14, 2014}} Ratings for the show since the move to Friday have remained steady, with seasons premieres maintaining around 6 million viewers and only small drops over the course of a given season.{{cite web |url=https://recode.net/2016/03/19/behind-the-scenes-of-the-amazing-race-and-its-social-media-star-season/ |title=Behind the Scenes of 'The Amazing Race' and Its Social-Media-Star Season |first=Eric |last=Johnson |date=March 19, 2016 |access-date=March 27, 2016 |work=Re/code}} With the show's age, some of its current fans were not born when the show had first aired in 2001, and the production team used a concept like season 28, aired in 2016, where the use of YouTube and other Internet celebrities was intended to help bridge the gap between long-time and new fans.

Starting around season 29, CBS has only ordered one series of the show per broadcast year, keeping the show as a mid-season replacement to fill it for any failing shows on the network's schedule, or otherwise broadcasting towards the latter part of the season.{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/tv/2019/05/15/cbs-fall-2019-20-primetime-schedule/ |title=See CBS' fall 2019–2020 prime-time schedule |first=Lynette |last=Rice |date=May 15, 2019 |access-date=May 16, 2019 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}} This has led the show to have various time slots depending on the situation. The 30th season of the show was moved by CBS to a Wednesday night slot, and resulted in an improvement in viewership from previous seasons. van Munster and Doganieri credit this new timeslot to help boost ratings, as it is more amenable for family viewing than previous timeslots.{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2018/tv/podcasts/remote-controlled-amazing-race-producers-1202830097/ |title=Remote Controlled: 'Amazing Race' Bosses on Why 'Anybody' Can Win |first=Debra |last=Birnbaum |date=June 6, 2018 |access-date=June 13, 2018 |work=Variety}} Similarly, when season 31, which featured former contestants from Race, Survivor and Big Brother, premiered after Survivor: Edge of Extinction in the Wednesday night slot, the show saw a ratings boost.{{cite web |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/amazing-race-has-solid-debut-tv-ratings-wednesday-april-17-2019-1202976 |title=TV Ratings: 'Amazing Race' Premiere, 'Survivor' Carry CBS to Victory |first=Rick |last=Porter |date=April 18, 2019 |access-date=May 16, 2019 |work=The Hollywood Reporter}}

The success of The Amazing Race has led other networks to attempt to develop reality shows in a similar vein; CBS Vice President for alternative programming Jennifer Bresnan stated that many of these shows pose themselves as "The Amazing Race mixed with 'X'" to try to vary the format.{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2012/tv/awards/race-to-mimic-success-of-amazing-never-ends-1118055392/ |title=Race to mimic success of 'Amazing' never ends |first=Shawna |last=Malcom |date=June 18, 2012 |access-date=June 18, 2012 |work=Variety}} Such shows include Treasure Hunters (NBC, 2006), Expedition Impossible (ABC, 2011), Around the World in 80 Plates (Bravo, 2012) and The Pack (Amazon, 2020).{{cite news |last1=White |first1=Peter |title=Amazon Races Off With Dog Competition Format 'The Pack' Hosted By Olympic Gold Medalist Lindsey Vonn |url=https://deadline.com/2020/08/amazon-dog-competition-the-pack-lindsey-vonn-1203006167/ |access-date=November 8, 2020 |website=Deadline |date=August 6, 2020}} The Great Escape (TNT, 2012) brought van Munster and Doganieri to help with production, and was considered by critics as a "lite" version of The Amazing Race.{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-xpm-2012-jun-23-la-et-great-escape-20120623-story.html |title=Review: 'The Great Escape' is like 'The Amazing Race' lite |first=Mary |last=McNamara |date=June 23, 2012 |access-date=July 17, 2012 |work=Los Angeles Times}}

The United States version of The Amazing Race is rebroadcast in several countries around the world. Airings in both Canada and Australia are very popular. The Canadian showing on CTV is commonly one of the top ten most watched shows each week, according to BBM Canada,{{cite web |url=http://www.bbm.ca/en/national_archive.html |title=Top Program Reports |publisher=BBM Canada |access-date=February 13, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080208065913/http://www.bbm.ca/en/national_archive.html |archive-date=February 8, 2008}} Australian broadcasts of the episodes on the Seven Network often fall into the top 20 programs for the week.{{cite web |url=http://www.oztam.com.au/documents%5C2006%5CE_20060226.pdf |title=Top 20 Programs – Ranking Report (E) |access-date=February 13, 2008 |date=March 4, 2006 |publisher=OzTAM |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071028220203/http://www.oztam.com.au/documents/2006/E_20060226.pdf |archive-date=October 28, 2007}}{{cite web |url=http://www.oztam.com.au/documents%5C2007%5CE_20070107.pdf |title=Top 20 Programs – Ranking Report (E) |access-date=February 13, 2008 |date=January 13, 2007 |publisher=OzTAM |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071212192943/http://www.oztam.com.au/documents/2007/E_20070107.pdf |archive-date=December 12, 2007}} Episodes of The Amazing Race also air in several other countries shortly after the American broadcast, including Israel, Latin America, China, Vietnam and the Philippines.

{{main|The Amazing Race#International versions}}

AXN Asia broadcasts The Amazing Race across southeast Asia. The popularity of the show through the service led to CBS allowing for the option of creating international versions of the show in October 2005. The Amazing Race Asia was one of the first versions created, following essentially the same format as the United States version.

Other international versions of the show have been produced out of Latin America, Europe, Israel, Australia, and Canada.

Part of the show's success is considered to be the relatively simple formula of following several teams on a race around the world. Because of this, viewers can live "vicariously through the people on the screen", according to Andy Dehnart of the RealityBlurred.com website. The show is often considered to be "travel porn", offering locations that most people would never get to see in their lifetimes.{{cite news |url=http://travel.usatoday.com/destinations/dispatches/post/2011/02/amazing-race-travel-teams-cbs-new-season-/143769/1 |title='Amazing Race' teams return for another round-the-world adventure |first=Laura |last=Bly |work=USA Today |date=February 20, 2011 |access-date=February 20, 2011}}{{cite news |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/647876081.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=May+28,+2003&author=Doug+Cudmore&pub=Toronto+Star&desc=Trains,+planes+and+travel+porn+;+The+Amazing+Race+back+for+third+season+Competing+pairs+just+go+and+go+and+go&pqatl=google |title=Trains, planes and travel porn; The Amazing Race back for third season Competing pairs just go and go and go |first=Doug |last=Cudmore |date=May 28, 2003 |access-date=February 20, 2011 |newspaper=Toronto Sun |archive-date=June 29, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629014446/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/647876081.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=May+28,+2003&author=Doug+Cudmore&pub=Toronto+Star&desc=Trains,+planes+and+travel+porn+;+The+Amazing+Race+back+for+third+season+Competing+pairs+just+go+and+go+and+go&pqatl=google |url-status=dead }} Keoghan offers that:

{{blockquote|"[The Amazing Race] exposes particular Americans to a world they don't see in primetime TV. Most of what they see is a war here, a person killed there, a natural disaster over here. We present a world that seems inviting, with people who are warm and helpful, not this big scary place that if you get in a plane you're going to be killed by traveling to some foreign land."}} The show is also considered to be successful in that it does not rely on the typical tropes of reality television, where players are trying to avoid becoming too much of a target to be voted off by their fellow contestants; in The Amazing Race, a team's success is primarily based on their own performance.{{cite web |url=http://www.today.com/id/5296597/site/todayshow/ns/today-entertainment/t/amazing-race-runs-its-own-merit |title='The Amazing Race' runs on its own merit |publisher=MSN |first=Tara |last=Ariano |date=July 2, 2004 |access-date=December 13, 2010 |archive-date=January 19, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119202637/http://www.today.com/id/5296597/site/todayshow/ns/today-entertainment/t/amazing-race-runs-its-own-merit |url-status=dead }} At the same time, the reality show setting can bring out unbecoming behavior, often leading to the stereotypical idea of ugly American tourists.

Latter seasons of the Race have been more critically panned. One factor is the predictability of the show, with little variety in the construction of specific legs and foregone outcomes of which team would be eliminated. The media site The A.V. Club, which had covered the Race for several seasons, opted to end its Race recaps mid-Season 21, with editor Scott Von Doviak stating that the show "has become so stale and predictable".{{cite news |url=https://www.avclub.com/the-amazing-race-funky-monkey-1798174717 |title=Funky Monkey |newspaper=The A.V. Club |first=Scott |last=Von Doviak |date=October 22, 2012 |access-date=October 22, 2012}} Though Denhert was a supporter of the show in its earlier seasons, he has criticized latter seasons for becoming too predictable, as "failed to grow and evolve, it seems stale". Denhert does acknowledge that budget cuts for all CBS programming, including the Race, are likely causes for simple tasks and lackluster legs;{{cite web |url=http://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/archives/the_amazing_race_17/2010_May_11_suggestions |title=How The Amazing Race should fix itself |date=May 10, 2010 |access-date=October 22, 2012 |first=Andy |last=Denhert |publisher=Reality Blurred}} Keoghan does state that the reduced budgets has made the timetable for filming "really brutal", but also considers that the difficulty of filming also reflects on the difficulty of the Race for the teams as well.{{cite web |url=http://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/archives/the_amazing_race_17/2010_Oct_31_phil_interview |title=Phil Keoghan responds to criticism that The Amazing Race is no longer really amazing |date=October 31, 2010 |access-date=October 22, 2012 |first=Andy |last=Denhert |publisher=Reality Blurred}} Denhert further points to the lack of time given for the viewer to learn about the individuals on each team, and instead has added elements like the U-Turn and the Yield to create inter-team drama.

The show is known for a dedicated fan base that keeps in touch with the show's producers and contestants.{{cite news |url=http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2005/10/an_interview_wi.html |title=An interview with Phil Keoghan of "The Amazing Race" |date=October 6, 2005 |access-date=January 3, 2011 |first=Maureen |last=Ryan |work=Chicago Tribune |archive-date=April 19, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110419160111/http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2005/10/an_interview_wi.html |url-status=dead }} While a race is being run and filmed, fans of the show watch for news or spotting of the racers and attempt to track their progress in real time, enhanced by recent social media tools, leading production to figure out ways to masquerade their presence in any city such as through the use of decoy teams.{{cite news |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/TV--Radio/Racing-up-the-ratings/2005/05/04/1115092506666.html |title=Racing up the ratings |work=The Age |date=May 5, 2005 |access-date=December 13, 2010 |location=Melbourne}}{{cite web |url=http://news.cnet.com/8301-13772_3-20033456-52.html |title=How online tools spoil reality show secrets |first=Daniel |last=Terdiman |date=February 22, 2011 |access-date=February 22, 2011 |publisher=CNet}} Despite this, fans readily track the Race as it is being run across the globe. In the 19th season, one contestant had lost her passport at a gas station while getting directions to Los Angeles International Airport. Though spotted by their A/V crew, they could not intervene, but instead alerted production, who prepared for an early elimination of the team at LAX. A bystander found the passport, and after he posted about it on Twitter, he was directed by a fan tracking the Race's progress to take the passport to the airport, returning it before the scheduled flight and keeping the team in the race.{{cite news |url=http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/26/twitters-amazing-race-assist/?scp=1&sq=amazing%20race&st=cse |title=Twitter's 'Amazing Race' Assist |first=Brian |last=Stelter |date=September 26, 2011 |access-date=September 26, 2011 |work=New York Times}} Subsequent seasons have had publicly attended live starts such as starting in Times Square for season 25, and frequent use of live social media updates by the racers by permission of production during season 28.

Coinciding with the broadcast finale for each season through about the 22nd season, fans from the website Television Without Pity arranged for a "TARCon" event in New York City along with the season's teams and other former racers.{{cite web |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/09/14/ign-interview-the-amazing-races-phil-keoghan |title=IGN Interview: The Amazing Race's Phil Keoghan |date=September 14, 2006 |access-date=December 3, 2010 |website=IGN |first=Eric |last=Goldman}}

The Amazing Race won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program for the first seven years after the creation of the award in 2003, and ten of the twelve years since its creation, against other, more popular reality TV shows such as Survivor, Dancing with the Stars, and American Idol. Its streak was ended in 2010 when Top Chef won the Emmy for this category.{{cite magazine |last=Wang |first=Cynthia |url=http://www.people.com/people/package/article/0,,20304925_20417343,00.html |title=How Top Chef Beat Amazing Race for the Emmy |magazine=People |date=August 31, 2010 |access-date=November 14, 2011}} Host Phil Keoghan revealed in an interview that the show's loss that year made him and the producers realize that they will have to try harder to win the Emmy again.{{cite web |url=https://www.goldderby.com/article/2011/amazing-race-host-phil-keoghan-revved-up-for-emmy-races-video/ |title='Amazing Race' host Phil Keoghan revved up for Emmy races |publisher=Goldderby.com |date=August 13, 2011 |access-date=November 14, 2011}} In 2011, the show won in the category again for the eighth time.{{cite web |last=Stransky |first=Tanner |url=http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/09/18/amazing-race-emmy/ |title='Amazing Race' reclaims reality competition Emmy |publisher=Entertainment Weekly |date=September 18, 2011 |access-date=November 14, 2011}} After its seventh consecutive win, some in the media, including Survivor host Jeff Probst suggested that The Amazing Race willingly drop out from the competition in future years, similar to Candice Bergen declining any further nominations after her fifth Emmy win for her role in Murphy Brown. van Munster has stated that it is "not likely" he will pull the show from future Emmy awards, considering that it reflects on his and his crew's hard work and high standards.{{cite magazine |url=http://popwatch.ew.com/2009/09/25/the-amazing-race-should-it-stop-being-so-darn-emmy-winning/ |title='The Amazing Race 15': Should it stop being so darn Emmy-winning? |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=September 25, 2009 |access-date=September 28, 2009 |first=Lynette |last=Rice}} The show has also been nominated and won several times for technical production (Creative Arts) Emmy awards, for Cinematography and Picture Editing for Non-Fiction programs, whereas it has only been nominated for Sound Mixing and Sound Editing for Non-Fiction programs. The show has been nominated in the same five categories for three years consecutively, a trend which continued with the 2007 Primetime Emmy Awards.{{cite web |url=https://www.emmys.com/shows/amazing-race |title=Awards & Nominations |publisher=Academy of Television Arts & Sciences|access-date=July 13, 2021}}

The production staff of The Amazing Race has been nominated each year since 2004 for the Producers Guild of America's Golden Laurel award for Television Producer of a Non-Fiction Program, and won this award in 2005.

Bertram van Munster has been nominated six times for the Directors Guild of America Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Reality Programs award for The Amazing Race each year between 2005 and 2010, and winning the award in 2007.{{cite web |url=http://www.dga.org/News/PressReleases/2008/0126-Joel-Ethan-Coen-Win-DGA-Feature-Film-Award-Other-Winners-of-2007-DGA-Awards-Announced.aspx |title=Joel & Ethan Coen Win DGA Feature Film Award Other Winners of 2007 DGA Awards Announced (January 26, 2008) |date=January 26, 2008 |access-date=January 28, 2008 |publisher=Directors Guild of America}}{{cite web |url=http://www.dga.org/News/Guild-News/2009/February/Dramatic-Series-Night-Comedy-Series-Musical-Variety-Reality.aspx |publisher=Directors Guild of America |work=DGA Monthly |date=January 9, 2009 |access-date=January 8, 2010 |title=Dramatic Series Night, Comedy Series, Musical Variety, Reality Programs, Daytime Serials, Commercials, Children's Programs Nominees Announced}}{{cite news |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/directors-guild-reveals-tv-nominations-19295 |title=Directors Guild reveals TV nominations |first=Nellie |last=Andreeva |date=January 8, 2010 |access-date=January 8, 2010 |work=The Hollywood Reporter}}{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/2011/scene/awards/dga-announces-tv-nominations-1118030075/ |title=DGA announces TV nominations |first=Dave |last=McNary |date=January 11, 2011 |access-date=January 11, 2011 |work=Variety}}

Due to its favorable portrayal of gay couples, The Amazing Race has been nominated in 2004 and 2006 for, but not won, the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Reality Program.[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0285335/awards Awards for "The Amazing Race"] on the Internet Movie Database. It has received a similar nomination for 2009,{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/2010/film/awards/glaad-honors-men-precious-1118013702/ |title=GLAAD honors 'Men,' 'Precious' |work=Variety |first=Lisa |last=Engelbrektson |date=January 12, 2010 |access-date=January 15, 2010}} and won in 2012.{{Cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2013/03/16/glaad-media-awards-honor-ratner-smash-and-amazing-race/1991585/ |title=GLAAD awards Ratner, 'Smash' and 'Amazing Race' |first=Maria |last=Puente |date=March 16, 2013 |access-date=March 17, 2013 |work=USA Today}}

Seasons 1 and 7 were released in stores, while other seasons have been released exclusively on Amazon.com through its CreateSpace manufacture on demand program. Only region 1 is available. Select seasons have also been released on Blu-ray.

The Amazing Race was also added to Pluto TV, ViacomCBS's free Internet television service, as a standalone channel on September 1, 2020.{{cite web |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/watch-survivor-the-amazing-race-and-more-for-free-on-pluto/ |title=Watch Survivor, The Amazing Race and more for free on Pluto TV |first=Dave |last=Johnson |date=September 1, 2020 |access-date=September 1, 2020 |work=CNET}}

The fifth and seventh seasons of The Amazing Race were added to Netflix in November 2022.{{cite web |author=Andy Dehnart |author-link=Andy Dehnart |date=November 4, 2022 |title=Two early Amazing Race seasons—and Charla & Mirna!—are now on Netflix |url=https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2022/11/amazing-race-netflix-seasons/ |access-date=November 23, 2022 |work=reality blurred}} They would later be removed in 2023, being replaced by the seventeenth and thirty-first seasons until its removal in 2024.

All seasons are available to stream on Paramount+ and Amazon Prime Video.

File:Amazing Race Slot Machine, June 2010.jpg

Two board games have been made based on The Amazing Race: a DVD Board Game{{cite web |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazing-race-8212-in-a-box/ |title='Amazing Race' — In A Box |publisher=CBS News |date=February 11, 2009 |first=Polly |last=Leider |access-date=November 14, 2011}} and a traditional board game. A video game for the Wii home game console has been also been produced as well as an iOS version. Both versions were developed by Ludia and published by Ubisoft.{{cite news |author=Kate Stanhope |title=Survivor, Amazing Race and Criminal Minds to Become Video Games |url=https://www.tvguide.com/News/Survivor-Race-Games-1011542.aspx |work=TVGuide.com |access-date=November 14, 2011}}

In 2010, International Game Technology (IGT) developed a progressive slot machine game based on The Amazing Race and was installed in casinos across the United States.{{cite news |title=IGT Slots |url=https://www.gamblingsites.net/casino/igt-slots/ |work=GamblingSites.net |access-date=July 1, 2019}} Phil Keoghan featured prominently in the game and served as host of various bonus rounds, inspired by travel and destinations seen on the show, during play. The slot machines were phased out of casinos a couple of years later.

Two books have been written by fans of the show; the first is written by Adam-Troy Castro, titled "My Ox Is Broken!": Detours, Roadblocks, Fast Forwards and Other Great Moments from TV's The Amazing Race", which features an introduction from Season 8 racers Billy and Carissa Gaghan.{{Cite book |title=My Ox Is Broken!: Roadblocks, Detours, Fast Forwards and Other Great Moments from Tv's 'the Amazing Race' |date=August 11, 2006 |publisher=Amazon.com |isbn=978-1932100914}} The second book is "Circumnavigating the Globe: Amazing Race 10 to 14 and Amazing Race Asia 1 to 3" written by Arthur E. Perkins Jr.{{Cite book |title=Circumnavigating the Globe: Amazing Race 10 to 14 and Amazing Race Asia 1 to 3 |date=November 2009 |publisher=Amazon.com |isbn=978-1449011192|last=Perkins|first=Arthur E. Jr.}}

File:Tar-sesamestreet.png{{'}}s 38th season as previewed on NBC's Today Show, is played by Elmo and hosted by "Amazing Al", the muppet version of Phil Keoghan.]]

• The format of The Amazing Race has led to much smaller scale events for local cities and towns, having teams race through the area with clues and tasks.
• Countries and cities that are featured on the show often see the exposure as a boon. A member of the Icelandic Tourist Board noted that after their country shown as one of the locations in The Amazing Race 6, their website saw an increase in information requests, and they worked to develop a "Trace the Race" travel package to allow visitors to see the same locations shown on the show.{{cite news |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/travel/news/2008-09-25-amazing-race-route_N.htm |title='Amazing Race' fans tag along for worldwide ride |first=Laura |last=Bly |newspaper=USA Today |date=September 25, 2008 |access-date=September 26, 2008}}
• "Competitours" was created by Steve Belkin to create 8 to 14-days European tours in the style of The Amazing Race; the tourists are only given instructions each night on where they will be traveling next with a Race-like task to do the next day (such as encouraging locals to dance with them at a tourist location), to be demonstrated by recording themselves with a video camera.{{cite news |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/2009/02/22/a-mini-amazing-race-for-the-ordinary-folks/ |title=A mini 'Amazing Race' for the ordinary folks |first=Joel |last=Noel |date=February 22, 2009 |access-date=March 16, 2009 |newspaper=Baltimore Sun}}
• The Amazing Race has inspired popular culture, with notable references to it in shows and films such as Glee, Robot Chicken,{{cite episode |title=Atta Toy |episode-link=Atta Toy |series=Robot Chicken |airdate=May 22, 2005 |season=1 |number=13}} Mad TV (in which Charla & Mirna of Season 5 participated),{{cite episode |title=Episode #1001 |series=MadTV |airdate=September 14, 2004 |season=10 |number=1}} 30 Rock,{{cite episode |title=Somebody to Love and |series=30 Rock |airdate=November 15, 2007 |season=2 |number=27}} American Dad (in which host Phil Keoghan guest starred in the episode),{{cite tweet |user=PhilKeoghan |author=Phil Keoghan |number=891410015722000384 |date=July 29, 2017 |title=.@AmazingRaceCBS fans this Monday Animated #Philiminator hosts the #BitchinRace #browsie #ReadYourClue…}} The Simpsons (in the episode "Heartbreak Hotel", where Marge Simpson is shown to be a super-fan of a competition show The Amazing Place),{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/marge-and-homer-go-virginia-woolf-when-the-simpsons-doe-1829587834 |title=Marge and Homer go Virginia Woolf when The Simpsons does reality TV |first=Dennis |last=Perkins |date=October 8, 2018 |access-date=October 8, 2018 |work=The A.V. Club}} The Lovebirds (which concluded with the protagonists competing on The Amazing Race with a cameo voiceover from Phil Keoghan),{{cite web |url=https://www.looper.com/211793/the-ending-of-the-lovebirds-explained/ |title=The ending of The Lovebirds explained |work=Looper |last=Starner |first=Nina |date=May 22, 2020|access-date=May 23, 2020}} iCarly (which referenced the infamous watermelon misfire from Season 17),{{cite web |url=https://collider.com/miranda-cosgrove-icarly-season-2-interview-josh-peck-despicable-me/ |title=Miranda Cosgrove on 'iCarly' Season 2, Reuniting with Josh Peck, and the 'Despicable Me' Franchise |work=Collider |last=Radish |first=Christina |date=April 7, 2022|access-date=May 13, 2022}} Better Call Saul (in the episode "Waterworks"),{{cite web |url=https://tvline.com/2022/08/08/better-call-saul-recap-season-6-episode-12-gene-kim-jesse-marion/ |title=Better Call Saul Recap: Making Amends, or Just Making Things Worse? |work=TVLine |last=Nemetz |first=Dave |date=August 8, 2022|access-date=August 9, 2022}} and even Sesame Street.{{cite episode |title=August 10, 2007 show |series=Today Show |airdate=August 10, 2007}}{{cite episode |title=Episode 4154 |series=Sesame Street |airdate=September 28, 2007}} and The Office (American TV series). The Canadian cartoon/reality show Total Drama Presents: The Ridonculous Race is a direct parody of The Amazing Race. Additionally, an episode titled "The Amazing Model Race" of the twelfth cycle of America's Next Top Model, featured a race-themed challenge.{{cite news |last=Gillette |first=Amelie |url=https://www.avclub.com/americas-next-top-model-the-amazing-model-race-1798206103 |title=America's Next Top Model: "The Amazing Model Race" |newspaper=The A.V. Club |date=April 22, 2009 |access-date=November 14, 2011}}
• Edutainment YouTuber Sam Denby, co-creator of YouTube/Nebula game show Jet Lag: The Game, cites The Amazing Race as a substantial inspiration for his show, although he has stated that his show differs in that it incorporates travel into the gameplay more directly, and that due to being shot vlog-style by the players themselves (rather than with TV film crews), it is able to more accurately capture the spontaneity real-life travel experience.{{Cite magazine |last=Anderson |first=Pearse |title=This Travel Game Takes Connect Four to the Extreme |language=en-US |magazine=Wired |url=https://www.wired.com/story/worlds-largest-connect-four-game-jet-lag-wendover-denby-interview/ |date=June 29, 2022 |access-date=April 30, 2023 |issn=1059-1028}}

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;General

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;Specific

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• {{official website|http://www.cbs.com/shows/amazing_race/}}
• {{IMDb title|0285335|The Amazing Race}}

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