THE AMAZING RACE:
Season 5
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Bonds will be forged, tested, and strained, as eleven teams of two, joined by family or relationship, follow a path of twists and turns in a frenetic race around the world for $1,000,000.

Who will be the first to cross the finish line? 

For more information and current standings, visit GSNN's Race Passport.

Recaps by Chris Wolvie, GSNN


FACT FILE:
Host:
Phil Keoghan
Creator: Bertram van Munster, Elise Doganieri
EP: Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman, Bertram van Munster
Packager: Jerry Bruckheimer TV, Worldrace Productions, Amazing Race Productions, Touchstone TV
Airs: Tuesdays at 10:00pm ET on CBS


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"You Just Made Me a Millionaire" - September 21

PIT STOP: LAGON ISLAND BEACH, PHILIPPINES

So... one last PIT STOP, once last chance to sleep and eat well and... aw, y'know, let's just get to the final leg, all right?

At 3:16am, the Dating Models open up their clue, starting the final leg of the Amazing Race:

ROUTE INFO:
Make your way to the city of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, (over 8000 miles away). Travel by marked boat to El Nido pier and get on a charter flight to Manila. Once at the International Airport, fly to Calgary. Take a taxi to Lookout Mountain (80 miles from the airport). Once you arrive at Sunshine Village Ski Resort, take the gondola up, then put on the provided gear and hike 1000 feet up, following the marked path, to the top of the mountain. Your next clue is on the lookout pedestal at the top. You have $630 for this final leg of the Race.

They REALLY want to win and are trusting in the will of God to pull them through. (Again, I feel His Mightiness wouldn't get involved with material gains... but whatever nails their cross... or... whatever.) They quickly get to the pier and await the bus ride to the airport.

26 minutes later, Chip & Kim depart the PIT STOP, staying focused and in synch. They're already winners, according to them... but they'd rather be winners with a 7-digit paycheck. Six minutes behind them is Colin & Christie, confident that the "strongest team" will win (that being them). Both the Married Parents and Team Type A arrive at the pier and sign up, meaning that everyone is on the same charter flight to...

MANILA, PHILIPPINES

The next morning, all three take the hour-long flight back to the Filipino capital (and, yes, this will be the LAST time I say the word "Filipino") and the international airport. And it turns out that they are all booked on the same flight across the Pacific. It's a three-way Race again as they travel 8000 miles to...

CALGARY, ALBERTA, CANADA

From the warm South Pacific to the freezing Canadian Rockies in a matter of a half-a-day. The three teams run through the terminal to find taxis to Lookout Mountain. Team Type A grabs one first and FINALLY get back into the lead. Right behind them are the Dating Models, then the Married Parents.

Colin & Christie get to the ski resort... and Brandon & Nicole are right behind them. They more or less take adjacent gondolas. Chip & Kim, for some odd reason, were not prepared for how cold Calgary would be and had to put on warmer clothing in the cab. They arrive a far clip behind the others, but take the gondola up nonetheless.

Team Type A gets their gear on and start the steep hike up the mountain course. Colin takes note of what little oxygen can be had at this great height... and Christie is ALREADY thinking she can't do it. Meanwhile, right behind them are the Dating Models. Nicole likewise gets tired from the hike, slowing Brandon down and giving Colin & Christie a chance to make some ground. Brandon tries to tell Nicole to picture Jesus waiting for her at the top of the mountain, and this motivates Nicole somewhat. Inevitably, Colin lets Christie hold on to his ski pole and half-pull her up the mountain.

As they near the top, the Married Parents arrive at the bottom and start THEIR climb. Colin & Christie reach the top first and Colin retrieves the next clue:

ROUTE INFO:
Congratulations, you have made it to the top of the Continental Divide! Make your way to the base of the Olympic Cauldron in the Olympic Park (80 miles away) to find the next clue.

Team Type A starts the slow trek down the mountain while Brandon & Nicole reach the top and get the clue themselves. Colin & Christie pass Chip & Kim...and Colin is laughing and doing flips right in front of them. Oddly, it's CHIP having the troubles getting up the mountain without stopping, not Kim. In fact, Kim has a LONG lead on Chip and has to wait for him as they near the top.

Back at the bottom gondola stop, Team Type A get a cab almost immediately. The Dating Models are right behind them in a cab of their own. As they take off, the Married Parents reach the summit, get the clue and head down. They have quite a bit of catching up to do... starting with finding a cab.

OLYMPIC PARK, CALGARY, ALBERTA, CANADA

At the site of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games, where the Jamaican Bobsled team and British ski-jumper Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards showed that Europeans aren't the ONLY ones who can make the Games, Colin & Christie arrive at dusk. They find the cauldron which was first lit 14 years before to start the Games and also two arrowed signs marked "Slide" and "Ride". It doesn't take a genius to figure out that this is the final:

DETOUR: Slide or Ride?
SLIDE: Follow the marked path to the luge track and do a two-person luge ride (where speeds up to 40 mph) in under 34 seconds (the accepted competitive time for amateurs). If you don't finish the run in less than 34 seconds, you must try again. When you succeed, you'll get your next clue.
RIDE: Head for the top of the nearby hill and then use mountain bikes to head DOWN the mountain through a series of gates. You must complete the course in 3 minutes or less to obtain your next clue. Otherwise, you'll have to do the course over again.

Christie wants to RIDE, but Colin explains how wickedly hard it will be to bike down snow and ice... so they decide to SLIDE instead. Right behind them is Brandon & Nicole who, at first, decide to SLIDE. But, when Brandon shows Nicole how close RIDE was, she argues about it but they turn around to try RIDE instead.

At the top of the hill, the Dating Models get on their bikes... but Nicole's feet can't touch the snow. At just about the same time, Colin lies on top of Christie... on a toboggan made for the 2-man events. They get pushed off onto the track... at just about the same time that Brandon & Nicole start THEIR run. It's a fast and smooth ride for Team Type A... but not so much for the Dating Models. They fail to make it down the hill in time (4:32)... but Colin & Christie's time is 30.92 seconds, MORE than enough to get them their next clue:

ROUTE INFO:
It's time to fly to your Final Destination City: Dallas, Texas, back in the USA (3000 miles away)! Once you land there, head for the Ft. Worth Stockyards and find your clue amid the cattle pens.

To say that Team Type A isn't excited to head back to their native state is an understatement, they rush to the airport... while Brandon & Nicole try the bike run once more (this time with a lower seat on Nicole's bike). But no sooner do they start than Nicole starts to cry. She sobs and tosses the bike down, saying through the tears that she just can't DO this! Brandon carries Nicole down the course as they decide to do SLIDE instead.

At the airport they had just left that morning, Colin & Christie try to find the first flight out so they can win this Race hands down. The PROBLEM is...no ticket counters or agents are open at this late hour. So they call American Airlines (since they've won so many vacations from them) and find out that the quickest flight to Dallas is Flight 848, leaving at 7:08am.

While they try to find a plane out, the Dating Crybabies... er, Models get on the luge (Brandon on top) and slide down. No telling if Nicole was crying down the track...but at least they made it in 30.41 seconds (even FASTER than Team Type A) and earned the trip to Dallas. In the taxi, Brandon says he was to blame and Nicole says that's not WHOLLY true. Brandon likes Nicole a lot... but isn't sure they're made to be lifemates yet.

When Brandon & Nicole started the run, the Married Parents arrived at the DETOUR and chose SLIDE immediately. As Brandon & Nicole were finding a taxi to the airport, Chip got on top of Kim and they take off... and... they wipe out on the first turn. On their SECOND attempt, they zigzag all over the track and fall again. After figuring out where they went wrong, they try once again. It's CLOSE... but they cleared it by 1.01 seconds! They get their clue and, quietly, catch a cab, thinking there was NO way they could catch up now.

Brandon & Nicole arrive at the airport as the ticket counters open up.  They go to a Delta counter and ask about the earliest flight to Dallas out of the airport. They are told American flight 848... the same on Colin & Christie got on. They make reservations to get on the flight... while Team Type A head for the hotel to relax in the lobby and try to make sure a cab is waiting for them in Dallas. Chip & Kim arrive thinking they've blown their chance.

The Models and Team Type A decide to pack up most of their belongings into boxes and check them all the way to Dallas, so as not to be weighed down during the sprint for the FINISH LINE. While they do that, Kim gets on the phone with the Double-As to find out about flights. And that's when they find something rather interesting: Flight 848 has been delayed! Until 9:50am, no less! This is EXCELLENT for the Married Parents; they can find a flight which arrives SOONER than the delayed flight! Chip is on the phone with United, which has a flight that goes through Denver that gets into Dallas at 1:06pm... TWO HOURS before the American flight arrives!

As they go to the hotel to rest up for the final day, they once again promise not to tell EITHER team about how they got screwed. Brandon and Colin are convinced, when Chip & Kim enter the lounge, that all three teams are on the same flight. And Chip's smile would envy ANY Cheshire cat's!

While the Models and Team Type A sleep, the Married Parents depart for the ticket counter. The next team is Brandon & Nicole... who are the first to find that THEIR flight is delayed. And the WORSE news is the 6:55am flight that Chip & Kim are on is oversold! Chip & Kim get informed about this when THEY show up... and they are equally bummed.

At 6am, Chip & Kim head for the gate to await boarding, thinking that this would be the break of the entire Race. Meanwhile, the other two teams are QUITE pessimistic about THEIR chances. Brandon even says, "We're done! We're absolutely done!" They're able to get an American Airline flight from Denver to Dallas which will arrive at 1:24pm... but the PROBLEM is getting to DENVER. So they get put on standby for the United flight... and start to pray.

The ticket agent for United tries to bump people to get the four Racers on the same flight. After some tense moments, she confirms that they can join the Married Parents to Denver. Team Type A and the Dating Models learn they're on standby on the flight from Denver to Dallas... but Colin has already booked them on the American flight.  Team Type A checks in both boxes of unneeded goods at American, grab the tickets for them and the Dating Models and, when the boarding call is made, all three board the same flight to Denver... but will they all be on the same flight to the FINISH LINE?

DENVER, COLORADO, USA

At the mile-high city, Team Type A and the Dating Models find out something as they run to the United gate: since they checked their bags on AMERICAN, they're not ALLOWED to get on the United flight! Despite the pleading and moaning and complaining, there's nothing that can be done; Chip & Kim WILL arrive at Dallas before the others. Distraught, they race to catch the United flight that they're booked on, which is scheduled to arrive 18 minutes later than the Married Parents' flight.

10:15am United Flight: Married Parents
10:32am American Flight: Team Type A and Dating Models

DALLAS, TEXAS, USA

At 1:06pm, Chip & Kim land at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport. 10 minutes later, the other teams land. Chip & Kim get a taxi to take them to the stockyards... and Colin & Christie have THEIR driver all ready when THEY leave the terminal... leaving Brandon & Nicole high and dry... and in last.

FT. WORTH STOCKYARDS, FT. WORTH, TEXAS, USA

At the stockyards, the Married Parents find large pictures of the last three teams, a clue in a glass container... and a clue in the usual Route Box:

ROUTE INFO:
The final clue is inside the glass case under your picture. To open the case, you'll need to find the key. Here's how you go about it:

Take the key in the box under your picture and then work your way through the giant maze before you. When you find a lock box with your name on it and a lock with the number "1" on it, unlock it and withdraw a picture (of the Olympic Cauldron in Calgary). Bring it back here and put it below your picture. Then go into the maze again and find the lock boxes with the number "2" on the locks. Unlock your box to recover ANOTHER key. This key will open the glass case to your next clue.

(TRIVIA: This is the same place that 'USA's Cannonball Run 2001' held
one of its events.)

Chip & Kim grab the key and start to wind through the maze... and get lost. They run into all sorts of "Wrong Way" and "Are You Lost?" signs before finally reaching a lock-box... which has a "2" on the lock... dang! They keep winding their way through the maze...

...which gives Colin & Christie and their driver - who must have been a reject from the "Crazy Taxi" video game series - to drive willy-nilly across the Dallas-Ft. Worth expressway with very little regard for public safety. Brandon & Nicole's driver is a little more cautious, but that doesn't stop the two lovebirds from yelling at him to speed up. But whereas Team Type A's driver is more than happy to break the speed limit (not to mention the sound barrier), the Dating Models' driver says he's going to obey the laws.

Back at the maze, the Married Parents FINALLY find the right lock-box and get the picture. It's a bit of a chore getting out, but they manage to put the picture where it belongs. Knowing where the second lock-box is (relatively, anyway), they find it, get the key and race out of the maze to unlock the final clue:

ROUTE INFO
FINISH LINE!: It's almost over! Make your way to downtown Dallas, get to Crow Lake Park and run for the FINISH LINE! First one there gets ONE MILLION DOLLARS!

Their taxi is waiting for them and they take off... just as Team Type A pulls in! Chip & Kim can relax just a bit... but not much. They still have to head back to Dallas... in rush hour traffic... with a very smart team right on their heels.

Colin & Christie head into the maze, with Colin's suggestion that they keep following the left side of the walls, even through the dead-ends. They easily find lock-box #1, and then retrace their steps to put the picture in place. As they make their way back, Brandon & Nicole make their way IN... and they bump into each other in the process. After Team Type A gets their picture on, they remain as quiet as possible as to not give the Dating Models any idea where they are. They easily find lock-box #2, leave the maze, get the clue and rejoin their crazy driver.

Traffic is murder on the expressway... and the Married Parents are smack in the middle of it. Team Type A's cabbie (named Earl) is told to do whatever it takes to get them to the park ASAP. And he obliges... by driving on the shoulder and laying on the horn. Meanwhile, Brandon Nicole get lost in the maze... and are essentially out of the running.

FINISH LINE!: CROW LAKE PARK, DALLAS, TEXAS

Just over 1300 miles as the plane flies from the STARTING LINE, your host Phil Keoghan stands on a large red mat with the show's logo on it. He anxiously awaits the arrival of the winners.

A taxi pulls up... and, out of it pop...

CHIP & KIM!

As they see the FINISH LINE, they tell the driver, "You made me a millionaire!" And, of course, there's the line of former teams cheering them the last few thousand feet: Dennis & Erika (Team Once Engaged, 11th place), Alison & Donny (Off-and-On Daters, 10th place), Jim & Marsha (Team Wounded Knee, 9th place), Bob & Joyce (Team Net-Widowers, 8th place), Marshall & Lance (Team Pizza Brothers, 7th place [quit]), Charla & Mirna (Team Hi-Lo, 6th place), Kami & Karli (Team Twins, 5th place) and Linda & Karen (Team Bowling Moms, 4th place). Chip & Kim hit the large red finish line and Phil says those magic words:

"Six continents, 11 countries, 72,000 miles... Chip & Kim, you are the
OFFICIAL WINNERS of the Amazing Race! Congratulations, you have won
the one million dollars!!"

After the hugs from Phil and the other teams, the host asks Chip how special his wife is. Chip replies it was great having his "soulmate" and "best friend" along for the ride... and that they can tell their kids they can accomplish anything. Kim was happy to just get the time to travel and meet new people (like the other teams)... but, of course, the money ain't too shabby, either.

Just then, over a hill comes Team Type A... who suddenly realize that all of Earl's wild driving wasn't enough since they were coming from a whole different direction. Phil says to them, "Colin & Christie, you're team number two. But you were one of THE most competitive teams ever." Colin says that he loves Christie so much and THAT'S important. He also says something NOBODY thought they would here from him: that Chip & Kim DESERVED to win 'cause "they ran an awesome Race". Christie doesn't say a word. She just hugs the winners in congratulations... and all is forgiven.

Oh, wait... isn't there THREE teams? Less than an hour later, the Dating Models arrive in las... er, third, Nicole going piggy-back on Brandon's back like they've done so many times during the Race. Phil proclaims, "Brandon & Nicole, you're team number three." Nicole has fallen more in love with Brandon during the Race... and Brandon feels the best is yet to come. After that, all the teams hug each other, as if all the animosity gathered during the Race has melted away.

OK, everybody, gather together for the final group shot! Now applaud!  Phil, raise Chip's hand in victory! And...CUT! That's a wrap, everybody! See ya for Amazing Race 6!

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