The Amazing Race 8

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The Amazing Race: Family Edition
The Amazing Race: Family Edition logo
Season run 2005-09-27
– 2005-12-13
Filming dates 2005-07-07
– 2005-07-31
No. of episodes 11
Winning team Linz Family
Continents visited 1
Countries visited 4
Cities visited 50
Distance traveled 11,000 miles
(17,702 kilometres)
No. of legs 11
Season chronology
Previous The Amazing Race 7
Next The Amazing Race 9

The Amazing Race 8 (titled The Amazing Race: Family Edition) was the eighth installment of the popular reality television show, The Amazing Race. The Amazing Race 8 differed from previous installments of The Amazing Race in that instead of pairs of adults with a pre-existing relationship, this race featured families of four and allowed the participation of minors as young as 8. The Race returned to the original teams of two adults for The Amazing Race 9. In addition to also having easier challenges, the Race also placed less emphasis on international travel as numerous legs were contained within the continental United States, and all race locations were inside North America.

Contents

[edit] Contestants

Main article: The Amazing Race 8 contestants

[edit] Results

The following teams participated in the Race, with their relationships at the time of filming. Note that this table is not necessarily reflective of all content broadcasted on television due to inclusion or exclusion of some data. Placements are listed in finishing order:

Family Team Relationship Position (by leg) Roadblocks performed
1<> 2 3 4 5 6ƒ 7 8 9 101 112
Linz Siblings 9th 2nd 2nd 3rd 4th 2nd 3rd 2nd 1st> 2nd 1st Nick 5, Alex 4,
Tommy 2, Megan 3
Bransen Dad and Daughters 7th 6th 1st 1st 3rd 3rd 5th 4th 2nd 1st 2nd Walter 4, Elizabeth 5,
Lauren 3, Lindsay 2
Weaver Widow and Kids 3rd 1st 5th 5th 2nd 5th< 2nd 3rd 4th< 3rd 3rd Linda 2, Rebecca 3,
Rachel 2, Rolly 6
Godlewski Sisters 1st 3rd 4th 4th 6th 4th 1st 1st 3rd 4th Michelle 4, Sharon 5,
Christine 2, Tricia 1
Paolo Dad, Mom and Kids 6th 8th 6th 2nd 1stƒ 1st> 4th 5th Tony 1, Marion 1,
DJ 2, Brian 2
Gaghan Dad, Mom and Kids 2nd 7th 7th 6th 5th 6th Bill 2, Tammy 2,
Billy 1, Carissa 0
Schroeder Dad, Step-Mom and Kids 5th 4th 3rd 7th Mark 2, Char 0,
Stassi 1, Hunter 0
Aiello Father and Sons-in-law 8th 5th 8th Tony 0, Kevin 0,
Matt 1, David 2
Rogers Dad, Mom and Kids 4th 9th Denny 0, Renee 0,
Brittney 1, Brock 0
Black Dad, Mom and Kids 10th Reggie 0, Kim 0,
Kenneth 0, Austin 0

Note 1: Leg 10 was double-length, with two detours and two roadblocks, and shown over two episodes. Unlike Seasons 6 and 7, however, this was the first double-length leg that did not feature a Fast Forward.
Note 2: Leg 11 was also double-length, with two detours and two roadblocks, and shown over two hours.

  • Red means the team was eliminated.
  • An underlined Blue team's placement means the team was the last to arrive at a pit stop in a non-elimination leg of the race. They were forced to give up all their money and belongings, and did not receive any money at the beginning of the next leg.
  • Green ƒ team's placement means the team won the Fast Forward clue. A green-colored leg number indicates that the Fast Forward was available for that leg but not used.
  • A yellow > means that team chose to use the Yield; < indicates the team who received it; <> indicates a leg where the Yield was available but not used.

[edit] Episode title quotes

Episode titles are often taken from quotes made by the racers.

  1. Go, Mommy, Go! We Can Beat Them! - Billy Gaghan
  2. How Do We Know We Aren't Going to Get Shot? - Carissa Gaghan
  3. I Don't Kiss I Make Out
  4. Think Like An Office Chair -Rachel Weaver
  5. We're Getting Out of the Country, Girls - Tommy Linz
  6. I'm Sick of Doing Stuff I Can't Do - Linda Weaver
  7. You Look Ridiculous - Phil Keoghan
  8. How's That Face Feel? - Megan Linz
  9. Don't Talk To Me Like I Was An Animal Or Something - Christine Godlewski
  10. The Family Christmas Card - Wally Bransen
  11. 25 Days, 50 Cities, And More Than 600 Consecutive Hours Together as a Family - Phil Keoghan

[edit] Notable race events

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

[edit] General

  • Route Markers were colored yellow, white, & black, similar to the yellow & white Route Markers of Season 1 (and in contrast to the yellow & red of all other seasons).
  • The show said there were only two Yields, but there was another Yield on Leg 1 that didn't make it to air since it was not used.
  • As with Season 7, the winners of the race were revealed in an online betting scandal well before the airing of the final episode. [2]
  • In Australia, the 9th Season was shown before this season in early 2006. This series was premiered on Thursday the 9th of November at 9:30pm on the Seven Network.
  • According to Wally Bransen, an 11th Family (Flanders) were supposed to be on the race but were axed the last minute. The cause for this remains unknown.[citation needed]

[edit] Pre-Race

[edit] In-Race

  • For this race, the supplied credit card covers not only airfare, but also gasoline. Previously, gasoline had to be purchased with the supplied cash. The rule change was made necessary by the fact that most of the transportation takes place in cars rather than airplanes.
  • The limits on individual Roadblock attempts, found in seasons 6 and 7, did not apply to this season. Furthermore, some roadblocks in this edition required the participation of two team members. Also, for the first time since season 5, a mid-race leg (4) was aired without a Roadblock.
  • Kevin and Drew from Season 1 appeared in the first leg of the race handing out clues for teams in New York at a hot dog stand.
  • In Leg 1, Renee Rogers fell at the starting line and suffered a concussion. The Rogers family didn't realize the severity of the injury until they had gone to a hospital after being eliminated from the race. [3]
  • In Leg 4, The Paolo family, after finishing a task involving ConferenceBikes called "partybike", rode on their vehicle and saw a thunderstorm associated with the remnants of Hurricane Dennis outside Talladega Superspeedway.
  • At the end of Leg 4, the Schroeder family was eliminated in New Orleans, their hometown. One month after the end of the race, their home was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina (see below).
  • In Leg 6, at Poás Volcano, the clue envelope appeared to contain Fast Forward instructions; however, this was not mentioned or described, perhaps because no team took advantage, or because plans for the task fell through. The Fast Forward in Leg 5 was introduced as the only one in the race when the show was televised. An online source [4] claims that the task was simply not used, and all references were excised.
  • According to an interview with Wally Bransen on RFFRadio, Hurricane Emily forced producers to cancel a leg in Belize. Teams had an extra day off in Costa Rica after Leg 6. (See External links)
  • A camera error occurred in Leg 9 (not shown) causing the Godlewski Family's car battery to fail, moving them into last place at the time. Another error, exactly the same as the one in Leg 9, occurred in Leg 10 (also not shown) affecting the Linz Family, also causing them to move into last place at the time.
  • Linda Weaver wore a t-shirt with the name "Chris" on it for many legs of the race. Contrary to popular belief, Chris was not the name of her late husband, but her fiancé.[1]
  • In an RFF Radio podcast interview with Wally Bransen, he said that the Linzs beat them to the finish mat by one or two minutes in the final leg therefore making it the third closest finish ever. The Weavers finished in third place a "hour or two" later.
  • Linda Weaver reluctantly participated in two challenges directly related to racing. One was a go-kart race in Arizona, and the other involved traveling around Talladega Superspeedway in a bicycle. Weaver's husband, Roy, was killed in an accident when he was run over by a race car at Daytona International Speedway in 2004.
  • The Weavers were the first team in TAR history to be Yielded twice in the same race (out of three possible times in the race; the 3rd Yield was not used here). Although they finished last in the leg after being yielded the second time, they were saved by a non-elimination situation.

[edit] Post-Race

  • After the Linz family were named the official winners, it was revealed that the Bransen and Weaver Families would compete in the "Final Amazing Challenge". The two families would race back and forth between the last roadblock of the race (a map of North and Central America) and a set of 12 clueboxes, each of which contained an icon, representing something the families did on the race. The object of the challenge was to race (as a family) out to the clueboxes, get the icons one at a time, and then place them on the appropriate place on the map. Whichever team finished this challenge first would win a brand new GMC Yukon XL, the same vehicle that had been used on the race. The Bransen family won the challenge and the vehicle.
  • The Schroeder family evacuated their New Orleans home due to Hurricane Katrina and stayed with the Rogers family in Shreveport, Louisiana for a short period of time. Denny Rogers even supplied a truck to help the Schroeders evacuate the flood-ravaged area. The Schroeder home was seriously damaged and was being rebuilt at the time of the show's airing.[2]
  • Production staff visited a Moab, Utah diner during the shooting of Leg 9. They inadvertently left behind papers including the full text of that leg's clues; see External links below.
  • Billy and Carissa Gaghan wrote introductions for "My Ox is Broken", a book about the Amazing Race.[3]

[edit] Prizes

Individual prizes were awarded to the first family to complete each leg.

[edit] Race summary

Air travel destination    Detour    Roadblock    Fast Forward    Yield    Pit Stop
Route map
Route map

[edit] Leg 1 (New York → New Jersey → Pennsylvania)

The first Detour of the race was Build it or Buggy It. In Build It, teams needed to use the materials provided to build a miniature, working watermill. Buggy It required teams to transport a traditional Amish buggy along a 1.5-mile course with two members riding in it.

Additional Tasks

  • At the Eastern Mountain Sports, Teams had to pick up camping gear.
  • At the Washington Crossing State Park, Teams had to choose a rowboat to cross the Delaware River into New Jersey, retrieve a 13-star flag, and row the boat back to the Pennsylvania shore to observe a flag folding ceremony.
  • At the Fairmont Park, Teams had to pitch tents to receive a departure time.

[edit] Leg 2 (Pennsylvania → Virginia)

The Roadblock required a racer to whisper a code phrase ("The sky is blue") to spies walking in the area around the Tidal Basin. Of the fifty spies, ten would reply with another phrase ("The sea is green"). Once the racer had found one of the ten spies, they would receive their next clue. The Detour choices, Heat of the Battle and Heat of the Night, were both part of a full scale American Civil War reenactment. In Heat of the Battle, teams had to transport five injured people to a tent. Heat of the Night told racers to take a keg of kerosene to a table. Once there, they had to fill 20 lanterns with the kerosene and light them. After completing the Detour, the teams had to grab a Civil War flag and take it to the nearby pit stop.

Additional Task

  • At the Haines Shoe House, Teams had to search the giant shoe for their next clue.

[edit] Leg 3 (Virginia → South Carolina → Alabama)

The Detour choices for this leg were Forrest Gump or Muddy Waters. In Forrest Gump, teams had to de-head 200 pounds of shrimp. In Muddy Waters, teams had to drive through a 3X4 SUV obstacle course which was filled with mud. In the course, if they got stuck, they would have to wait to be towed out. Once towed out, they would have to restart the course. In the Roadblock, two racers from each team rode a centrifuge at 3.2g.

[edit] Leg 4 (Alabama → Mississippi → Louisiana)

Teams completed a lap at the Talladega Superspeedway on a partybike
Teams completed a lap at the Talladega Superspeedway on a partybike

In the Roadblock, teams had to climb to the top of the Worlds Largest Office Chair. It is a similar to unaired Roadblock in leg 10 of season three. The Detour was Work or Play. In Work, Teams used a two-person handsaw to cut four slices off a log 12 inches in diameter. In Play, Teams made their way to a riverboat where they played 21 against a professional dealer. To win a round, the hand of each team member needed to total more than the dealer’s hand. Once the Teams won three rounds, they would earn their clue.

Additional Tasks

  • At the Talladega Superspeedway, teams had to make a lap around the Superspeedway on a partybike.
  • Upon the arrival of Mobile Homes, Teams had to search the mobile homes for a departure time. The teams would have to "rough it" in the mobile home where they found their time.

[edit] Leg 5 (Louisiana, USA → Panama)

In the Fast Forward, team members had to jump in tandem off a 140 foot drop. The Detour was Rhythm or Coos. Rhythm required teams to deliver four musical instruments to a local club. Coos required racers to use binoculars and search within the rainforest canopy for wooden replicas of five local bird species. They have to circle the correct bird species on the provided bird identification card. When all five were circled, they present the card to the ranger who would confirm their choices. The Roadblock for this leg of the race required one team member to hit one baseball pitched by a local little leaguer.

[edit] Leg 6 (Panama → Costa Rica)

In the Roadblock, one person from each team searched for a red bean among 800 pounds of coffee beans. The Detour was Relic or Ripe. In Relic, teams had to recover four Mayan relics. In Ripe, teams had to harvest 15 bushels of bananas.

[edit] Leg 7 (Costa Rica → Arizona, USA)

The Detour on this leg was Brush or Barrel. In Brush, teams painted two cartwheels with the same design as the sample they were given. In Barrel, teams loaded and transported sugar cane to a plantation warehouse, where they would find a hidden clue among dozens of rum barrels. The Roadblock had one person from each team compete in a 50 lap Superkart race.

Additional Task

  • At the start of the leg, One team member had to swim to a buoy that had their clue attached to it.

[edit] Leg 8 (Arizona)

In the Roadblock, one team member had to perform a 360 degree loop in an airplane. The Detour choices were Bearing or Bailing. In Bearing, teams had to locate three locations on three different islands, using a compass bearing. In Bailing, teams had to bail water from a submerged boat and carry it onshore.

[edit] Leg 9 (Arizona → Utah)

The rooftop of the Salt Lake City Public Library was the ninth Pit Stop of the Race
The rooftop of the Salt Lake City Public Library was the ninth Pit Stop of the Race

The Detour on this leg of the race was Drop Down or Ride Down. In Drop Down, teams completed a two-stage rappel 270-feet down into Bull Canyon. In Ride Down, Teams selected bikes and rode a six-mile course down into Bull Canyon. The Roadblock featured a ski jump challenge, where racers had to perform a trick going down a 60 foot ramp.

Additional Tasks

  • At the Elephant Butte, Two team members had to fly by helicopter to Elephant Butte to retrieve their clue.
  • At the Park, Teams had to find Bart the Bear, who had their next clue in his mouth.

[edit] Leg 10 (Utah → Wyoming → Montana)

On the first half of the leg, the Detour was Spike It or Steam It. In Spike It, teams used old-time materials and tools to complete a 20-foot section of railway track. In Steam It, teams used buckets to fill the tender of an old-time steam locomotive with 400 pounds of coal. The first Roadblock of the leg featured two team members riding horses to corral six cattle from a holding pen.

On the second half of the leg, the Detour was Pioneer Spirit or Native Tradition. Pioneer Spirit had teams attach wheels to a covered wagon, hook up a team of horses, and drive along a quarter mile course. Native Tradition had racers build a teepee with traditional tools. The second roadblock of the leg featured two team members riding a golf cart while searching for colored balls on the back nine of a golf course. They searched for balls that matched the color of the flag of the cart they picked.

Additional Tasks

  • At the High School park, Teams had to help inflate and then ride a hot air balloon.
  • At the Rendezvous Beach, Teams had to get to Garden City as quick as possible, because they would receive departure times 15 minutes apart.
  • Upon the arrival of Yellowstone National Park, Teams had to watch Old Faithful erupt.
  • Upon the entering of Irma Hotel, Teams had to dress in period clothing, then take a picture with Buffalo Bill.

[edit] Leg 11 (Montana, USA → Quebec, Canada → Ontario → New York, USA)

The American Pavillion during the Expo 67 was visited in the race
The American Pavillion during the Expo 67 was visited in the race

The Detour on the first half of the leg, Slide It or Roll It featured curling and log-rolling challenges, respectively. The Roadblock required a racer to successfully complete a flying trapeze maneuver known as a catch. The Detour of second half of the leg was Ship or Shoe. In Ship, teams sailed across Toronto Harbour and one racer climbed the 100-foot mast of the Kajama to retrieve a nautical flag. In Shoe, teams searched through 100 pairs of shoes that were on people walking around to match the pair they had chosen. The final Roadblock of the Race required one person to complete a giant jigsaw puzzle of North America.

In a special challenge, after the race ended, titled "The Final Amazing Challenge," the second and third place teams competed for a new GMC Yukon. Using the maps they completed, all team members ran out to twelve clueboxes, one cluebox at a time. In the clueboxes were miniature cutouts of things they had done on the race. They then ran back to the map and placed the cutout on the state or country they had done the thing in. They than ran back out and continued the same pattern. Once done, teams asked Phil if they were right. If they were right, they won. The Bransens won the challenge. This post-race challenge was shown only at CBS.com.

Additional Tasks

  • At the Olympic Stadium, Teams had to ride on a golf cart to Parc Olympique and enter it through the one door large enough for them to drive through. Once there, teams had to search through 56,000 stadium seats for one of three departure times, five minutes apart.
  • At the CN Tower, Teams had to search through the city streets from the highest window on the tower for a route marker.
  • At the Jet Boat Tours, Teams had to make their way by jet boat to a buoy in the Niagara Gorge. Teams were instructed by the clue to take their same boat to Lewiston, New York, their final destination city.

[edit] Criticisms and reactions

Fans, critics, and racers were lukewarm over the format changes implemented in this edition of The Amazing Race. The main issues were the lack of international travel and watered down challenges tailored to families. The expanded cast also made it more difficult to develop individual story lines. Entertainment Weekly commented that "Half the fun of The Amazing Race has always been watching the inter and intra-couple bickering that goes with being chronologically late and lost in a foreign land. Seeing parents yell at their children in exotic New Jersey? Not so fun".[4] USA Today shared similar opinions, adding that "the idea of being trapped in the back seat for a forced cross-country family drive comes closer to a nightmare relived than a dream come true."[5] Racers were also disappointed that they did not have a chance to travel to more exotic locations; in one episode Marion Paolo commented "Why are we going to Phoenix, Arizona for? I want to go to New Zealand!", a statement that also summed up the general opinion of the season.

In hindsight, the production team has admitted that the concept of a Family Edition "looked good on paper" but failed in execution, since child racers limited foreign travel for that season.[6] Creators Bert Van Munster and Jonathan Littman doubt that the family format will be revived in the future.

[edit] References

  1. ^ [1][dead link]
  2. ^ A Family Beyond The 'Race'. Retrieved on October 5, 2005.
  3. ^ Amazon.com - "My Ox is Broken!". Retrieved on September, 2006.
  4. ^ What's wrong with The Amazing Race?. Retrieved on October 14, 2005.
  5. ^ 'Amazing Race' is not family friendly. Retrieved on October 25, 2005.
  6. ^ Amazing Race 10 Teams Announced. Retrieved on July 15, 2006.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
The Amazing Race
The Amazing Race (US)
Personnel: Phil Keoghan · Bertram van Munster · Elise Doganieri
Seasons: 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · Family Edition · 9 · 10 · All-Stars · 12 · 13 · 14
See also: List of contestants
The Amazing Race Asia
Personnel: Allan Wu
Seasons: 1 · 2 · 3
See also: List of contestants
Other versions