The Amazing Race 1

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The Amazing Race 1
The Amazing Race logo
Season run 2001-09-05 – 2001-12-12
Filming dates –
No. of episodes 13
Winning team Rob & Brennan
Continents visited 4
Countries visited 9
Cities visited 24
Distance traveled (miles) 35,000
Number of legs 13
Season chronology
The Amazing Race 2

The Amazing Race (now referred to as The Amazing Race 1) was the first installment of the reality television show, The Amazing Race. It premiered on September 5, 2001 and ended on December 12, 2001 on US television.

Season 1 was not particularly a ratings success, since it premiered a week before the September 11 attacks. Immediately following 9/11, interest in foreign travel waned and viewership fell correspondingly. The show was further hindered by the lack of media coverage and promotion as networks focused on news stories and more patriotic programming. The show did just well enough to earn a second season, which aired the following spring.

The long anticipated Season 1 DVD was released on September 27, 2005, also the premiere date for Season 8.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Contents

[edit] Results

The following teams participated in the Race, with their relationships at the time of filming. Placements are listed in finishing order:

Team Relationship Position (by leg) Roadblocks performed1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Rob & Brennan Lawyers / Best Friends 1st 3rd 3rd 6th 4th 3rd 3rd 3rd 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st Rob 5, Brennan 7
Frank & Margarita Separated Parents 3rd 4th 2nd 5th 5th 1st3 1st 2nd 2nd 2nd 1st 2nd 2nd Frank 8, Margarita 3
Bill & Joe Life Partners ("Team Guido") 2nd 2nd 4th 1st 2nd 2nd3 2nd 4th 4th 4th 3rd 3rd 3rd5 Bill 4, Joe 6
Drew & Kevin Fraternity Brothers 9th 5th 1st 2nd 1st 4th 4th 1st 3rd 3rd 4th Drew 4, Kevin 5
Nancy & Emily Mother & Daughter 10th 7th2 8th 3rd 3rd 5th 5th 5th 5th4 Nancy 2, Emily 6
Lenny & Karyn Dating 4th 9th 7th 7th 6th 6th 6th Lenny 2, Karyn 4
Paul & Amie Engaged 8th 6th2 6th 4th6 7th Paul 2, Amie 1
Dave & Margaretta Grandparents 7th 8th2 5th 8th Dave 3, Margaretta 0
Pat & Brenda Working Moms 5th 1st 9th Pat 1, Brenda 0
Kim & Leslie Teachers / Roommates 6th 10th Kim 1, Leslie 0
Matt & Ana Married 11th Matt 0, Ana 0
  • Red means the team was eliminated.
  • Blue means the team was the last to arrive at a pit stop in a non-elimination leg of the race.
  • Green means the team won the Fast Forward clue.
  • Note 1: Although the DVD shows some teams completing the unaired roadblock in Leg 1, not all teams are shown, therefore it cannot be told who completed said roadblock.
  • Note 2: Dave & Margaretta arrived 6th, but were penalized one hour for improperly completing the Roadblock. Because of this unintentional violation, they were penalized one hour and dropped to 8th.
  • Note 3: Frank & Margarita and Joe & Bill were the first two teams to arrive, but they misread the clue and received a 30 minute penalty. The penalty did not affect either of the teams placement.
  • Note 4: Nancy & Emily arrived 4th, but had skipped the detour and therefore received a 24-hour penalty.
  • Note 5: Although Joe and Bill were in third place at the end of the episode, they did not finish the race. They received a clue in Alaska telling them the race was over and that Rob and Brennan won.
  • Note 6: Paul and Amie originally arrived in fifth place, but due to a production difficulty, they were given a time credit, which pushed them up to fourth place.

[edit] Trivia

Kevin and Drew in Beijing, China
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Kevin and Drew in Beijing, China

[edit] General

  • The introduction of each episode featured Phil's voice giving a brief synopsis of the show with theme music in the background and the presentation of the teams. Future seasons would then simply have the theme music with the presentation of the teams. However, Phil's synopsis was absent in one episode.
  • Unlike in later seasons, Season 1 did not show running placements of teams on screen during each leg of the race, showing only the names and team identifier. Team placements were only shown when they checked in at the Pit Stop at the end of each leg.
  • Route marker flags were yellow and white in Season 1. In future installments, the flags changed colours to red and yellow so that teams could spot them more easily.
  • Season 1 took 39 days to film, as opposed to the average four weeks in other seasons.
  • Joe and Bill got the name 'Team Guido' from their pet toy fox terrier, Guido. They were also the only team this season to have a nickname displayed on the screen along with their names and their team identifier.

[edit] In-Race

  • Host Phil Keoghan greeted only the last team to check in at each pit stop. In future seasons, Phil greeted all teams at the end of each leg.
  • Clue boxes tended to represent the culture of the local pitstop. For example, the clue boxes in Zambia were a bamboo cylinder.
  • Although the race is planned so that the final three teams will all reach the finish line, Bill and Joe were so far behind that they could not catch up and did not finish the race.
  • On Leg 5 Paul and Amie were lost in the Sahara desert after trying numerous routes, getting half of their car stuck in a ditch, and Amie vomiting excessively. Paul quit, but his partner didn't and found the desert oasis pit stop by luck, unknowingly skipping the roadblock and route marker. They were not told to go back and complete the Roadblock, because they arrived in last place.
  • At the end of Leg 5, teams were relocated to Gabès because of a sandstorm at the desert pitstop. Therefore, Leg 6 began in Gabès.
  • An airport strike in Rome delayed Leg 6.
  • During Leg 13, when Joe and Bill were still completing leg 12, Team Guido was required to have villagers bounce one teammate upwards by the use of an Alaskan tapestry. According to the DVD commentary, the tapestry broke under the weight so a trampoline had to be used instead. This created a noticeable and odd scene where you never see Team Guido and the villagers in the same shot. In the final shot, the trampoline is clearly visible behind the villagers.
  • The pilot who flew Rob and Brennan and Frank and Margarita to Seattle in Leg 13 later contacted Rob and Brennan.
  • In every single leg this season, the detour always came before the roadblock.

[edit] Post-Race

  • After the race, Emily and Brennan broke up with their respective partners and started dating.
  • Kevin and Drew made an appearance in Season 8, handing out clues from a hot dog stand in New York City.
  • After the race, Frank and Margarita reconciled.
  • After the race, Lenny and Karyn broke up.

[edit] Race locations

[edit] Leg 1 (United States → Zambia)

Frank and Margarita at Livingstone Airport
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Frank and Margarita at Livingstone Airport
Route map
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Route map

In the first Fast Forward of the race, teams had to hike down a steep slope to Boiling Pot. Rob and Brennan were first to arrive, so they received it. The Detour for this leg was Air or Land. In Air, teams had to take a zipline and then bunjee jump down the side of the gorge. In Land, teams had to take a long hike down the mountains. All eleven teams chose Air. The Roadblock, which was unaired (but available on the DVD set), was to eat an ostrich egg.

[edit] Leg 2 (Zambia → France)

The Detour of this leg was a photo safari. In Near, teams went to a nearby jungle to photograph three hard to find animals. In Far, teams had to go to Botswana to photograph only one elephant. The Roadblock on this leg was to climb up part of the Eiffel Tower and look for a route marker on the Arc de Triomphe with a telescope. The Fast Forward, won by Pat and Brenda, was to whitewater raft with Bundu Adventures.

[edit] Leg 3 (France)

The first challenge on this leg was the Detour Tough Climb or Easy Walk. In Tough Climb, the teams had to climb up the tower of Notre Dame de Paris and ring a bell. In Easy Walk, teams had to find the Foucault pendulum in the Panthéon. The only catch was there were two Foucault pendulums at two different places, which the teams didn't know. In the Roadblock, one member of each team had to walk through the sewers of Paris. The Fast Forward, won by Kevin and Drew, was to pick the right tea in Mariage Frères.

[edit] Leg 4 (France → Tunisia)

In Tunis, Paul enjoys a full body massage during a Detour
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In Tunis, Paul enjoys a full body massage during a Detour

The detour on this leg was Full Body Brew or Full Body Massage. In Full Body Brew, teams had to find a coffee shop in Bab Bhar marketplace, without a map. In Full Body Massage, teams, with the help of a map, had to find a massage area and sit through a 15 minute massage. The roadblock took place at the Amphitheater of Thysdrus. The person performing the roadblock had to navigate the amphitheater to find the pit of death. Then, they had to take a sword from the pit and bring it to the pit stop. The unused fast forward told teams to go fishing for it on board the ‘Kinsa’ in the port of Sidi Bou Said.[1]

[edit] Leg 5 (Tunisia)

In Tataouine, Tunisia, teams had a detour: Puzzling or Listening. In Puzzling, teams had to take part in a confusing Tunisian dice game. In Listening, teams had to locate a Star Wars set and get a walkie talkie. Using their walkie talkie, they had to find the other one on the set. The roadblock was to ride a camel led by the non-Roadblocking partner in the Sahara Desert.

[edit] Leg 6 (Tunisia → Italy)

In Rome, teams encountered a Detour, Foot or Hoof. Foot required teams to find a large statue of a foot, and their next clue. In Hoof teams were given a picture of a hoof and had to match up the hoof to a hoof on a statue. At the bottom of the horse statue, there were taxis, so teams would pick up speed. The Roadblock was to drive a small car to find the pit stop, Sant' Agata Bolognese, using a map in Italian.

[edit] Leg 7 (Italy → India)

The Detour of this leg was Glide or Ride. In Glide, teams took a glider ride with a professional glider, first come, first serve. In Ride, teams had to ride bikes with a map to the clue box. The Fast Forward was to find Castello Estense and ride a boat in the moat to find a clue on the wall. It was won by Frank and Margarita. The Roadblock was to hire a rickshaw and find a shopkeeper in Red Fort Market.

[edit] Leg 8 (India)

The Detour of this leg was Elephant or Rowboat. In Elephant, teams had to find a holy man by riding an elephant to his location. In Rowboat, teams had to find a holy man using the boat to get to his location. The Roadblock was to find a jar of clues in Karni Mata Temple, a temple of rats, with only socks on. The unused fast forward had teams traveling to Jantar Mantar to climb 22 or 33 steps. [2]

[edit] Leg 9 (India → Thailand)

At the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, teams compete to win the Fast Forward
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At the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, teams compete to win the Fast Forward

In Thailand, the Detour was Public or Private. In Public teams had to go to a local bus station for a bus leaving every 15 minutes, going to their next location. In Private, teams had to find a van within a specified perimeter of Bangkok, with a license plate as their only clue. The Fast Forward was to go to the Temple of the Reclining Buddah and find the bowl with the correct number of coins to participate in the ritual correctly, it was won by Joe and Bill. The Roadblock was to walk through a pit of tigers.

[edit] Leg 10 (Thailand)

The Detour on this leg was Hike or Climb. In Hike, teams had to go on a long hike to find their next clue. In Climb, teams had to climb King's Rock Climb Wall, and then rappel into a boat. The Roadblock was to paddle a kayak with the team and their luggage to a nearby cave with scuba gear and their next clue. The clue said to use the scuba gear to dive for their next clue.

[edit] Leg 11 (Thailand → People's Republic of China)

In China, teams encountered the Detour Volley or Rally. In Volley teams had to score five points in a ping-pong game against an expert ping-pong player. In Rally, teams took three common forms of transportation of China to get to their next clue. The Roadblock was to eat the food bought at the Beijing Food Market, including chicken feet, beetle larvae, and squid.

[edit] Leg 12 (People's Republic of China → United States)

The Detour of this leg was Flat or Steep. In Flat, teams took a flat route of the Great Wall of China to find their clue. In Steep teams took a steeper, but shorter, route. The roadblock, in Alaska, USA, was to climb Matanuska Glacier.

[edit] Leg 13 (United States)

The Detour on this leg was Dog Power or Horsepower. In Dog Power, teams mushed sled dogs to their next clue. In Horsepower, teams had to take a much longer route with a snowmobile. The last challenge of the race was a Roadblock. In this Roadblock, teams had to strip down to underwear or a bathing suit and completely submerge into the frigid waters of Fish Lake, an Alaskan tradition.

[edit] References

  • The Amazing Race: The First Season. CBS. DVD. Paramount, 2005.

[edit] External links

The Amazing Race
Season 1 • Season 2 • Season 3 • Season 4 • Season 5 • Season 6
Season 7 • Family Edition • Season 9 • Season 10 • All-Stars • Season 12
International versions
The Amazing Race Asia
Season 1		 The Amazing Race Central Europe
Host and creators
Phil Keoghan • Bertram van Munster • Elise Doganieri
Related articles
Statistics and trivia • Broadcasters • Notable contestants
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