The Amazing Race 8 (Courtesy Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Amazing Race 8 (also known as The Amazing Race: Family Edition) is the eighth installment of the 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 ten 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. Filming ran from July 7, 2005 to July 31, 2005. The show premiered on Tuesday, September 27, 2005 and concluded on December 13, 2005.

Siblings Nick, Alex, Megan, and Tommy Linz were the winners of this Race. At 19 and 21 years of age respectively, Tommy and Megan became the youngest male and female to win the race (Starr Spangler of Season 13 later equalled Megan's record).

A DVD set of this season was released on October 23, 2012, via Amazon.com's CreateSpace program.

Production

Development and filming

The eighth season of The Amazing Race spanned a total of . 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. The new countries of the race were Panama and Costa Rica. Filming took place on July 7"31, 2005.

Route Markers were colored yellow and white with black lining, similar to the yellow & white Route Markers of Season 1 (and in contrast to the yellow & red of all other seasons). As with Season 7, the winners of the race were revealed in an online betting scandal well before the airing of the final episode.

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.

During Leg 1, Renee Rogers fell at the starting line and suffered a concussion. The Rogers family did not realize the severity of the injury until they had gone to a hospital after being eliminated from the race the next leg.

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.

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. They 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.

During 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 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.

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.

In an RFF Radio podcast interview with Wally Bransen, he said that the Linzes 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.

Cast

In March 2005, host Phil Keoghan toured major cities in the United States (Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Denver, Albuquerque, Phoenix, and Los Angeles) to scout contestants for the race. Final casting interviews took place in Las Vegas.

The full list of families participated the race (with their relationships), listed in alphabetical order:

• Aiello " Tony, Kevin, Matt and David; father- and sons-in-law
  • Kevin, Matt, and David are all married to Tony's daughters
• Black " Reggie, Kim, Kenneth and Austin; father, mother, and sons
• Bransen " Walter "Wally", Elizabeth "Beth", Lauren and Lindsay; father and daughters
• Gaghan " Bill, Tammy, Billy and Carissa; father, mother, son, and daughter
• Godlewski " Michelle, Sharon, Christine and Tricia; sisters
• Linz " Nick, Alex, Megan and Tommy; brothers and sister
• Paolo " Tony, Marion, DJ and Brian; father, mother, and sons
• Rogers " Denny, Renee, Brittney and Brock; father, mother, daughter, and son
• Schroeder " Mark, Char, Stassi and Hunter; father, step-mother, daughter, and son
  • Stassi and Hunter are Mark's children by previous marriage
• Weaver " Linda, Rebecca, Rachel and Rolly; widowed mother, daughters, and son

Kevin and Drew from season 1 made a cameo appearance during the first leg of the race, handing out clues for teams in New York at a frank stand.

According to Wally Bransen, an 11th Family (Flanders) were supposed to be on the race but were axed at the last minute. The cause for this remains unknown.

Linda Weaver's husband, Roy, was killed in an accident when he was run over by a race car at Daytona International Speedway in 2004. She 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.

Billy and Carissa Gaghan wrote introductions for "My Ox is Broken", a book about the Amazing Race.

Stassi Schroeder later appeared in Queen Bees and she later finished 7th place.

Results

Template:Main 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 broadcast on television due to inclusion or exclusion of some data. Placements are listed in finishing order:

Family	Relationship	Position (by leg)													Roadblocks performed
		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		11
Linz Family	Siblings	9th	2nd	2nd	3rd	4th	2nd	3rd	2nd	1st	3rd	2nd	2nd	1st	Nick 5, Alex 4, Megan 2, Tommy 3
Bransen Family	Dad and Daughters	7th	6th	1st	1st	3rd	3rd		4th	2nd	1st	1st	1st	2nd	Wally 4, Beth 5, Lauren 3, Lindsay 2
Weaver Family	Widow and Kids	3rd	1st	5th	5th	2nd	5th	2nd	3rd		2nd	3rd	3rd	3rd	Linda 2, Rebecca 3, Rachel 2, Rolly 6
Godlewski Family	Sisters	1st	3rd	4th	4th		4th	1st	1st	3rd	4th				Michelle 4, Sharon 5, Christine 2, Tricia 1
Paolo Family	Dad, Mom and Kids	6th	8th	6th	2nd	1st	1st	4th							Tony 1, Marion 1, DJ 2, Brian 2
Gaghan Family	Dad, Mom and Kids	2nd	7th	7th	6th	5th									Bill 2, Tammy 2, Billy 1, Carissa 0
Schroeder Family	Dad, Step-Mom and Kids	5th	4th	3rd											Mark 2, Char 0, Stassi 1, Hunter 0
Aiello Family	Father and Sons-in-law	8th	5th												Tony 0, Kevin 0, Matt 1, David 2
Rogers Family	Dad, Mom and Kids	4th													Denny 0, Renee 0, Brittney 1, Brock 0
Black Family	Dad, Mom and Kids														Reggie 0, Kim 0, Kenneth 0, Austin 0

• A team placement indicates that the team was eliminated.
• An team placement indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a pit stop in a non-elimination leg of the race. The teams were forced to relinquish all of their money and belongings (except for passports and the clothes on their back) for the remainder of the race. In addition, they were not allotted money for the next leg.
• A indicates that the team won a Fast Forward clue. If placed next to a leg number, this indicates that the Fast Forward was available for that leg but not used.
• A indicates that the team chose to use the Yield; indicates the team who received it; around a leg number indicates a leg where the Yield was available but not used.
• Italicized results indicate the position of the team at the midpoint of a two-episode leg.
• Underlined results indicate the position of the team at the midpoint of a two-hour final leg.

1. ^ An additional task in Leg 4 was presented to teams as a Roadblock but was aired as a miscellaneous task. This roadblock tally is not included for this leg even though every team was shown having a particular member performing it.
2. ^ Leg 10 was double-length, with two Detours and two Roadblocks, and shown over two episodes. The placements listed in the first column reflect the order teams arrived at the leg's halfway point
3. ^ Leg 11 was also double-length, with two Detours and two Roadblocks; this leg, however, was shown over a single two-hour episode.
4. ^ The Weaver Family was not shown performing the Roadblock on air, as the Linz and Bransen Families had already crossed the Finish Line. The interview after the race with the family revealed that Rebecca was the team member who did the Roadblock.
5. ^ The Bransen Family won "The Final Amazing Challenge" task shown on the CBS website after the end of the race.

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" " Stassi Schroeder
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

Prizes

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

• Leg 1 " $20,000 cash
• Leg 2 " Trip to the Fairmont Southampton, Bermuda provided by Travelocity
• Leg 3 " Gasoline for life for each team member from BP and ARCO.
• Leg 4 " Universal Orlando Resort package at Orlando, Florida provided by Travelocity
• Leg 5 " Gamboa Rainforest Resort package at the Panama Canal, Panama provided by Travelocity
• Leg 6 " Individual "wild rides" with a choice of a Segway HT, a Vespa, a jet ski or an all-terrain vehicle, courtesy of the Wild Bean Cafe at BP.
• Leg 7 " Trip to Belize from Travelocity
• Leg 8 " A Jay-Flight 27 B.H. Travel Trailer compliments of Jayco.
• Leg 9 " Trip for four to the Teton Mountain Lodge in Jackson Hole, Wyoming provided by Travelocity.
• Leg 10 " A new 2006 full-size Buick Lucerne luxury sedan.
• Leg 11 " $1,000,000
• Final Amazing Challenge " A GMC Yukon XL SUV

Race summary

Leg 1 (New York → New Jersey → Pennsylvania)

Airdate: September 27, 2005

• New York City, New York , United States (Empire"Fulton Ferry State Park) (Starting Line)
• New York City (SoHo " Eastern Mountain Sports)
• New York City (Hot Dog Stand on East 91st Street)
• Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania (Washington Crossing State Park) and Titusville, New Jersey (Washington Crossing Historic Park)
• Philadelphia (Fairmount Park " Belmont Plateau) (Overnight Rest)
• Mount Joy (Brubaker Family Farm)
• Lancaster (Rohrer Family Farm)

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. In Buggy It, teams must transport a traditional Amish buggy along a course with two members riding in it.

Additional tasks

• At Eastern Mountain Sports, teams had to pick up camping gear for the rest of the race.
• At 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 to get their next clue.
• At Fairmount Park, teams had to take an eagle scout and pitch tents to receive one of three departure times for the next day.

Leg 2 (Pennsylvania → Washington, D.C. → Virginia)

Airdate: October 4, 2005

• York (Haines Shoe House)
• Washington, D.C. (United States Capitol " Reflecting Pool)
• Washington, D.C. (Third Street)
• Washington, D.C. (Tidal Basin)
• Middleburg, Virginia (Welbourne Manor)

In this leg's Roadblock, one team member had 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 they had found one of the spies and they exchanged their briefcases with the spy's briefcase to receive their next clue. In this leg's Detour, teams choose between 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 wounded soldiers to a tent. Heat of the Night had racers take a keg of kerosene to a table. Once there, they had to fill 20 oil lamps 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.
• At Third Street, teams had to search for a limousine where an unseen contact would give them a briefcase which they would take to Tidal Basin.

Leg 3 (Virginia → South Carolina → Alabama)

Airdate: October 11, 2005

• Dulles (Washington Dulles International Airport) to Charleston, South Carolina (Charleston International Airport)
• Charleston (The Battery)
• Charleston (Wando Shrimp Co.) or Ridgeville (Ridgeville Mud Run)
• Charleston (Charleston Visitor Center) to Huntsville, Alabama
• Huntsville (U.S. Space & Rocket Center " Edward O. Buckbee Hangar)
• Huntsville (U.S. Space & Rocket Center " Rocket Park " Saturn V)
• Huntsville (U.S. Space & Rocket Center " Space Shuttle Pathfinder)

In this leg's Detour, the team choices were Forrest Gump or Muddy Waters. In Forrest Gump, teams had to drive to Wando Shrimp Co. and hop onto a shrimp boat. Then, they use their hands to de-head of shrimp to receive their next clue. In Muddy Waters, teams had drive to Ridgeville and find Ridgeville Mud Run. Then, teams drove a 4X4 SUV through an obstacle course to a gulley filled with mud. They had to make one complete round course before receiving their next clue. If they got stuck, they would have to wait to be towed out. Once towed out, they would have to restart the course. In this leg's Roadblock, two members from each team rode a centrifuge at 3.2g. If the teams enjoy the 3.2g and they would get their next clue.

Additional task

• At Charleston Visitor Center, teams had to sign-up a charter bus. The first bus depart at 3:00 pm and the second bus two hours later and they would travel to a mystery destination.
• Upon arriving at Rocket Park, teams need to enter the space mission and search for the computers, log on onto their AOL account to receive the video clue from Phil.

Leg 4 (Alabama → Mississippi → Louisiana)

Airdate: October 18, 2005

• Anniston (World's Largest Office Chair)
• Talladega (International Motorsports Hall of Fame)
• Talladega (Talladega Superspeedway)
• Hattiesburg, Mississippi (Southern Colonel Mobile Homes) (Overnight Rest)
• Richland (BP station)
• Madisonville, Louisiana (Fairview-Riverside State Park)
• New Orleans (French Quarter " Preservation Hall)

In the Roadblock, teams had to climb to the top of the World's Largest Office Chair, although this was aired as an additional task. In this leg's Detour, teams choose between Work or Play. In Work, teams used a two-person handsaw to cut slices off a log in diameter. Once they cut four slices of it, a log sawyer would give them their clue. In Play, teams made their way to a riverboat where they played a game of "21" against a professional dealer. To win a round, the hand of each team member needed to total more than the dealer's hand, or the dealer must bust (the dealer's hand goes over 21). When the team won three rounds, a dealer would earn their clue.

Additional tasks

• At the Talladega Superspeedway, teams had to choose a bike then complete one lap around the Superspeedway. Once they completed a ride, a race official would give them their next clue.
• Upon arrival at Southern Colonel Mobile Homes, teams had to search through the thirty-seven mobile homes for one of three departure times (leaving 20 minutes apart) for the next day. The teams then had to "rough it" in the mobile home where they found their time.
• At the BP station, teams had to solve the riddle "What is the Pelican State?" to discover the next destination, Louisiana.

Leg 5 (Louisiana → Panama)

Airdate: October 25, 2005

• New Orleans (Louis Armstrong International Airport) to Panama City, Panama (Tocumen International Airport)
• Panama City to Gamboa (Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute's Gamboa Field Station)
• Barro Colorado Island (Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute)
  • Balboa (Pier 12, Panama Canal)
• Panama City (Casco Viejo or El Parque Metropolitan)
• Panama City (Estadio Juan Demostenes Arosemena )
• Panama City (Miraflores Locks)

In the Race's only aired Fast Forward, team members had to find a crane at the Pacific side of Panama Canal – Pier 14. Once there, the family must split into pairs and each pair would perform on tandem bungee jump above sea level. When all members completed the drop, they would win the Fast Forward. In this leg's Detour, teams had to choose between Rhythm or Coos. In Rhythm, teams required to travel at Casco Viejo. They visited several locations to collect four musical instruments – saxophone (in Teatro Nacional de Panamá), trumpet (in Escuela Simón Bolívar), conga drum (in Casa Góngora) and trombone (Instituto Nacional de Cultura). Once they retrieved all the instruments, they delivered them by foot to Take Five Jazz and Wine where a band leader would hand their next clue. In Coos, teams travel to El Parque Metropolitan and use binoculars and search within the rainforest canopy for wooden replicas of five local bird species. They had to circle the correct bird species discovered on a chart on the provided bird identification card. When all five were circled, they presented the card to the bird expert to get their next clue. However, if they circled the wrong birds, they would repeat the task until getting it right. In this leg's Roadblock, one team member to had to play baseball. They stepped onto a plate and get a base hit or home run of a championship local little leaguer. Each player would get a maximum of 3 pitches to turned it back. If they don't get the hit, they went to the end of the line. When they finally got on base, the umpire would get their next clue.

Additional note

• While during the leg, teams traveled by Red Devil Bus (also known as ).

Additional task

• At Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, teams had to search a man named Ricardo Diaz, who would give their next clue.

Leg 6 (Panama → Costa Rica)

Airdate: November 1, 2005

• Panama City (Terminal Nacional de Trasporte) to San Jose, Costa Rica (Tica Bus Terminal)
• San Jose (Parqueo Publico Adrian)
• Poás Volcano National Park, Alajuela
• Alajuela (Doka Estate)
• Jaco, Puntarenas (Roca Loca Surf Shop)
• Quepos (Rainmaker Park in Manuel Antonio National Park or Frutas Selectas del Tropico)
• Quepos (Malecon)

In this leg's Roadblock, one team member from each team searched through of coffee beans to find the one red colored bean. Once found, the plantation manager would give them their next clue. In this leg's Detour, teams had to choose between Relic or Ripe. In Relic, teams travel to a nearby rainforest and traverse six road bridges while searching for four Mayan relics. After delivering each of these relics to the archaeologist, they would receive the next clue. In Ripe, teams travelled to Frutas Selectas del Tropico (a banana plantation) where they were to gather 15 bushels of bananas and load them on hanging tracks. Then using a local pulling system, they hauled them to the distribution center and the foreman would give their next clue.

Leg 7 (Costa Rica → Arizona)

Airdate: November 8, 2005

• Quepos (Playa Maracas)
• Grecia, Alajuela (La Iglesia de Metal)
• Sarchí (Taller Eloy Alfaro) or Grecia (Ingenio La Argentina and Fabrica Nacional de Licores)
• Alajuela (Juan Santamaría International Airport) to Phoenix, Arizona , USA (Sky Harbor International Airport)
• Chandler (Bondurant School of High Performance Driving)
• Fountain Hills (Fort McDowell Adventures)

In this leg's Detour, teams had to choose between Brush or Barrel. In Brush, teams had travel to Taller Eloy Alfaro in Sarchí and painted two cartwheels. Once there, they must choose two of these harshly painted cartwheels, then they followed the pattern on a painted section to finish decorating the wheel. When the artist approved their work, they would receive their clue. In Barrel, teams travel to Ingenio La Argentina (a Sugarcane factory) and had to load a tractor with a of harvested sugarcane. Then, they transported them to a rum factory of Fabrica Nacional de Licores. After delivering the cane, they searched a warehouse to find a hidden marked barrel rack among dozens of rum barrels which contained their clue. In this leg's Roadblock, one team member drove 50 laps in a Superkart to get their next clue.

Additional task

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

Leg 8 (Arizona)

Airdate: November 8, 2005

• Mesa (Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport " Fighter Combat International)
• Grand Canyon (Lipan Point)
• Page (Glen Canyon Dam)
• Page (Antelope Point " Lake Powell)

In this leg's Roadblock, one team member had to fly in a fighter plane and following the pilot's direction, pilot the plane to perform a 360 degree loop in the air. Once the loop was completed, they would land and get their next clue. In this leg's Detour, teams had to choose between choices in Horseshoe Bend along Colorado River were Bearing or Bailing. Both detours are travel on a motorized raft. In Bearing, teams had to choose five color coded cards to a unique compass coordinate. Then, they used a compass to follow the coordinate to the next card and to located three locations on three different islands in a same color coded card in each island, and they exchanged them into a clue. In Bailing, teams had to pour water into a boat until it submerged. Then, using only their hands and tools provided, they had bail water out of the boat to lighten it enough to carry onshore. Once the boat had been carried across a line in the sand, they would receive their next clue.

Leg 9 (Arizona → Utah)

Airdate: November 22, 2005

• Monument Valley, Utah (John Ford's Point)
• Arches National Park (Elephant Butte)
• Moab (Gemini Bridges)
• Green River (Green River State Park) (Overnight Rest)
• Heber City (970 Little Sweden Rd.)
• Park City (Utah Olympic Park)
• Salt Lake City (Rooftop of City Library)

In this leg's Detour, teams had a choice between Ride Down or Drop Down. Both Detours traveled to Bull Canyon. In Ride Down, teams chose bikes and rode a course down into the mountain. In Drop Down, teams completed a two-stage rappel down into a same mountain. Once at the bottom, they had to follow the marked path. At the end of both Detours, they could get their next clue. In this leg's Roadblock, one team member had to put on skis, rode a ramp and did a ski jump into the Olympic pool to get their next clue.

Additional tasks

• At the Elephant Butte, teams must choose two team members on each two teams and had to fly by helicopter to the summit of Elephant Butte to retrieve their clue.
• At Green River State Park, teams would be stay for the night and they would receive departure times 15 minutes apart.
• At Heber City, teams had to find Bart the Bear, who had their next clue in his mouth.

Leg 10 (Utah → Wyoming → Montana)

Airdate: November 29, 2005

• Park City (Park City High School)
• Heber City (Heber Valley Railway)
• Bonneville Salt Flats (Tree of Utah)
• Garden City (Bear Lake Rendezvous Beach) (Overnight Rest)
• Big Piney, Wyoming (Dunham Ranch)
• Yellowstone National Park (Old Faithful)
• Moran (Pinto Ranch " 15200 Highway 287)

Airdate: December 6, 2005

• Dubois (Turtle Ranch) (Overnight Rest)
• Dubois (Open Plateau)
• Cody (Irma Hotel)
• Red Lodge, Montana (Red Lodge Mountain Golf Course " Tenth Tee)
• Absarokee (Larry Arnold's Green Meadow Ranch)

In the leg's first Detour, teams had to choose between Spike It or Steam It. In Spike It, teams used old-time materials and tools to complete a section of railway track. In Steam It, teams used buckets to fill the tender of an old-time steam locomotive with nearly of coal. In both Detours, teams would need to hire a railway engineer to approve their work before receiving their next clue. In the leg's first Roadblock, two team members mount horses and took six cattle from a holding pen and herd down into into a corral. Once it completed, the cowboy would get their next clue.

In the leg's second Detour, teams had to choose between Pioneer Spirit or Native Tradition. In Pioneer Spirit, teams had to attach four wheels to a covered wagon, hook up a team of horses, and drive along a course. In Native Tradition, teams had to use a materials and traditional tools provided to build a teepee. In the leg's second Roadblock, two team members chose a colored flags and attached them into Buick Lucerne golf cart. Then, they drove to the golf course while searched for colored balls on the same colors of a golf cart they picked. Once the task completed, the golf pro would receive their next clue.

Additional tasks

• At the High School park, teams had to help inflate a hot air balloon. There, they can get on board for scenic ride across the Utah countryside. Upon landing, teams would receive their next clue.
• 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 with the fireman at Yellowstone.
• After finished the second Detour, teams instructed the clue ("Do you know the hotel named after Buffalo Bill's daughter?") " refers to Irma, and they instructed to Irma Hotel. Upon the entering of that hotel, teams had to dress in period clothing, then take a picture with Buffalo Bill.

Leg 11 (Montana → Canada → New York)

Airdate: December 13, 2005

• Billings (Billings Logan International Airport) to Montreal, Quebec , Canada (Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport)
• Montréal (Square-Victoria Metro Station " Centre CDP Capital Passageway, Underground City)
• Montréal (Macdonald Campus or Morgan Arboretum)
• Montréal (Expo 67 " American pavilion)
• Montréal (Trapezium " La Porte J)
• Montréal (Stade Olympique)
• Montréal (St-Hubert Airport) to Toronto, Ontario (Toronto City Centre Airport)
• Toronto (CN Tower)
• Toronto (Polson Pier)
• Toronto (Kajama in Toronto Harbour or Bata Shoe Museum)
• Queenston (Queenston Boat Ramp " Whirlpool Jet Boat Tours)
• Lewiston, New York , USA (Joseph Davis State Environmental Park)

In this leg's Detour of the first half, teams had a choice between Slide It or Roll It. In Slide It, teams traveled to Macdonald Campus to participate a sport of curling. Each team member glide a granite stone down the ice and to the house target. Once team member gets a stone into the house or touches a house with a total of 4 targets, they would receive their next clue. In Log it, teams traveled to Morgan Arboretum and to use lumberjack tools to roll four wooden logs along within course and in order to receive their next clue from the lumberjack. In the leg's Roadblock of the first half, one team member to successfully complete a flying trapeze maneuver known as a catch in order to receive their clue.

In this leg's Detour of the second half, teams had a choice between Ship or Shoe. In Ship, teams sailed across Toronto Harbour to Kajama through Queen's Quay. One team member climbed at the top of the mast and retrieve a nautical flag. Once they retrieved the flag, they would receive their next clue. In Shoe, teams traveled to Bata Shoe Museum where they would choose a pair of shoes and search through 100 standing women to a woman with a fit of pairing shoes had chosen. In the race's final Roadblock, one team member had to use 71 giant jigsaw puzzle and would complete a map of Central and North America (excluding West Indies). Once the puzzle was completed, teams were allowed to go to the Finish Line.

After the race ended, CBS hosted "The Final Amazing Challenge" on the official website, where the second and third place teams competed for a GMC Yukon. By using the map completed in the final Roadblock, the Weaver and Bransen Families ran out to one of twelve clue boxes at a time, picking up cutouts representing tasks they performed on the Race. They then had to place the cutout on the map, and then go back to get another cutout. The first team to have all twelve cutouts in the right locations on the map won.

Additional tasks

• At Stade Olympique, 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 to the stadium.
• Upon entering at Stade Olympique, teams had to search through 56,000 stadium seats for one of three charter flight departure times for the mystery destination, five minutes apart.
• At the CN Tower, teams had to take an elevator to the observation deck. On the deck, they would need a binoculars to search through the city streets for the next clue standby near route marker.
• At the Jet Boat Tours, teams had to choose a jet boat from the boat ramp, took a ride up on Niagara Gorge. Teams got their next clue from the buoy. Teams were instructed by the clue to take their same jet boat across the border to Lewiston, New York, their final destination city.

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 chronically late and lost in a foreign land. Seeing parents yell at their children in exotic New Jersey? Not so fun". 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." 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. Creators Bert Van Munster and Jonathan Littman doubt that the family format will be revived in the future.

Ratings

Canadian ratings

Order	Episode	Viewers (millions)	Rank
1	"Go, Mommy, Go! We Can Beat Them!"	2.62	#5
2	"How Do We Know We Aren't Going to Get Shot?"	2.34	#4
3	"I Don't Kiss, I Make Out"	2.30	#4
4	"Think Like An Office Chair"	2.65	#5
5	"We're Getting Out of the Country, Girls"	2.14	#5
6	"I'm Sick of Doing Stuff I Can't Do"	2.14	#5
7	"You Look Ridiculous"	2.12	#8
8	"How's That Face Feel?"	2.20	#7
9	"Don't Talk To Me Like I Was An Animal Or Something"	1.97	#9
10	"The Family Christmas Card"	2.25	#5
11	"25 Days, 50 Cities, And More Than 600 Consecutive Hours Together as a Family"	2.66	#1

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