The 22nd season of the Amazing Race will premiere on Sunday, February 17 at 8pm ET (that’s today!), with the episode, “Business in Front; Party in the Back,” which I assume refers either to an airline flight or is some kind of awesome sexual euphemism. In an interview, executive producer Bertram van Munster says of this season, “Now we have more than 10 years of experience doing this, and we’ve got a phenomenal route laid out, with great challenges. It’s going to be so crazy. It’s guaranteed not to bore you. Crazy things will happen.” (The interview contains some minor plot and location spoilers revealed by van Munster, so don’t click if you don’t like spoilers.) With that kind of guarantee, how can we go wrong?
The cast consists of eleven teams: four male/male teams (two sets of brothers, one father/son, and one pair of friends), three female/female teams (all friends), and four mixed couples (two married, one dating, and one set of friends). And with that intro, let’s do another another preseason
Taxi Assessment:
Stuck in the Desert and Officially Detained - or, Philiminated with extreme prejudice.
No one yet, but Phil is waiting!
Flat Tire - or, not likely to get anywhere soon.
No one yet
Stopping for Gas - or, not broken-down, exactly, but not a good sign.
Chuck and Wynona (Married Alabamans) This couple just doesn’t seem like they have a lot of experience to draw on. Chuck hunts a lot (and I mean a lot), so there’s that, but it appears Wynona does nothing but put her face on in the morning, and then help other women put their faces on. They’re also, at 46 and 49, two of the three oldest competitors on the Race this season. Not that 46 is old, really, not at all…but competing against a raft of 20-somethings over a month will take a little stamina, and I’m not sure Wynona is up to it. On the plus side, Chuck’s really excited about the Race, and plans on reading and re-reading the clues, but this is sort of the bare minimum of competence, and I’m not seeing much more than that out of this couple.
Joey and Meghan (YouTube hosts) - Speaking of bare minimum of competence, Joey and Meghan’s relevant experience seems to be confined to making and uploading videos onto YouTube. I admit I’m not that imaginative of a guy, but I really can’t think of any experience that’s less relevant for participating in a Race-around-the-world than making semi-pro vids. The two are excited about competing and traveling all over the world, so you can check the “enthusiasm” box, but unless there is a sudden glut of anime and video games challenges on the Race this season, that’s about the only box you can check. And as the very youngest team, I suspect they’re not hiding a vast pool of additional experience. That’s not necessarily a huge minus: last season’s Trey and Lexi started from “pretty sheltered lives” (Trey’s words), learned from some more experienced travelers, and generally did pretty well. Joey and Meghan, though? I think they’ll be out of the Race before we learn much more about them.
Max and Katie (Perky newlyweds) - Max and Katie are similar to the traditional TAR young-couple-trying-to-define-their-relationship, except they’re already married. But married for only a month, and that after a long-distance relationship, so it turns out they actually know less about each other than most couples. That’s a little ominous, but then you add in the fact that, on paper at least, Max appears to be a huge tool. Here’s a quote from his bio: “(Biggest challenge you and your teammate will face on The Race together): Katie needs to make decision when asked to and listen to me when I know I’m right.” What a pleasant person. Katie’s a former NFL cheerleader, and has doctorate of pharmacy (which she seems to think is overly intimidating, but she’s fresh-minted enough that I’ll give her a pass on that), and if this team goes anywhere it looks like she’ll have to carry it. Prediction: drama-filled crash and burn.
“Rapido! Por Favor?” - or, making meaningless ineffectual comments from the back seat, but in no immediate danger.
John and Jessica (Dating surfer couple) - They both are excited about traveling, so that’s a good sign. And they’re into adventure sports - rock climbing and sky diving. Jessica speaks Spanish and runs marathons. They’re also the only actual “dating couple” on the show this season (the other young couples are either “newlyweds” or “just friends”), so they’ll have to shoulder 21 previous seasons of expectations about dating couples exploring their rlationship. To that end, John seems a little more… self-absorbed, shall we say, than most, and unduly proud of whatever it is that he’s accomplished. Hopefully he can take a break from contemplating his own awesomeness and get down to Racing. I would expect this team to either be very good or very awful. I’m not sure, so I’m ranking them in the middle.
Caroline and Jen - (Blonde bandmembers) Caroline and Jen were both in a band that toured for years. I assume that touring was mostly in the US, but if it wasn’t they may have some considerable travel experience. Even if it was, some familiarity with being on the move and missing sleep will be an advantage. I’m not quite sure what else they bring to the table, but the team seems to have no obvious Achilles heel, either.
Matthew and Daniel (South Carolinan firefighter friends) - They admit to not being too cultured and to arguing a lot, and not much else. They’ve never traveled out of the country, but they’re excited to do so, so here’s another team with minimum qualifications. However, they are firefighters, so they can do the physical stuff. They’ve also been training in unspecified, but apparently serious, ways for the Race challenges, so they might be more prepared than they seem. However, they also admit that, while they have the phisical stuff down pat, it’s the “mental” stuff where they’ll have problems. On the one hand, three cheers for objective self-analysis, but on the other hand, there’s a lot of thinking that goes on in the Race, and “mental” stuff is a pretty broad category, so…
Anthony and Bates (Hockey brothers) - Anthony and Bates are both pro hockey players, so they should be familiar with traveling and taking part in a grueling schedule of events. Anthony (I think) has even played a lot in European leagues, so he might have a leg up if (when) the Race gets to Europe. They’re both very type-A headstrong athletes, though, so I can see that being a problem.
In the Passing Lane - or, ahead of the pack, but not quite comfortably.
Pamela and Winnie (Asian women) - OK, this is my preseason favorite team. Some select slyly hilarious quotes from their bio: Pam: “When we’re both irritated we get snappy and talk over each other. Occasionally it turns into hand to hand combat. I usually win.” Pam: “[Winnie] doesn’t like to share her food. She acts like she’ll never eat again if I take a few bites. I may starve to death on the Race if she doesn’t learn to share.” Winnie: “(What is the accomplishment you are most proud of?) Being able to stay friends with crazy Pam for 10 years and not have physically harmed her.” Winnie: “[Pam] starts too many fights with big people. She really is disillusioned about her size.” I am tentatively amused, and I hope Pamela and Winnie live up to my expectations. They’ve also travelled a lot, and they’re both bilingual.
Mona and Beth (Brunette derby girls) - The biggest negative in Mona and Beth’s bio is that they both have trouble admitting when they need help. On the minus side, asking for help with directions can easily be the diffence between elimination and not. On the plus side, that’s a very overcome-able weakness. Overall, though, I’ve got a good feeling about this team. I admit I have a soft spot for roller derby girls, so maybe that’s it, but the intangible thing here is these are people who’ve already decided to jump into a challenging and competitive recreation, so there’s a parallel between that and jumping into the Race.
David and Connor - (Father & son) Dad’s an outdoorsman and son’s a professional cyclist. Conner’s a big Amazing Race fan. They seem smart and personable, too, so I’m thinking they’ll go far.
Idries and Jamil - (Black twins) Idries and Jamil are two twin brothers, mid-30s, physically fit, and they’re both doctors. Plus Indries loves to travel, and Jamil has been in the Army. So experience plus smarts plus stamina plus having a great intra-team chemistry…how can this team possibly not win? Well, they do admit that they’re each a little headstrong, so I can imagine them continuing down the wrong path far beyond any reasonable point. And, as Jamil points out, they are similar enough to have the same strengths and the same weaknesses. But if they don’t do something dumb, I expect them to be around in the final three.
Cruisin’ with Earl - or, drivin’ on the shoulder, takin’ shortcuts, and generally kickin’ butt.
No one yet.