The Amazing Race 4 is the fourth season of the American reality competition show The Amazing Race. Hosted by Phil Keoghan, it featured twelve teams of two, each with a pre-existing relationship, competing in a race around the world. This season visited four continents and nine countries, traveling approximately over thirteen legs. Filming took place from January 18 to February 14, 2003. Starting in Los Angeles, racers traveled through Italy, Austria, France, the Netherlands, India, Malaysia, South Korea, and Australia, before returning to the United States, traveling through Hawaii, and finishing in Phoenix. The season premiered on CBS on May 29, 2003, and concluded on August 21, 2003.
Married couple Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt were the winners of the season, while engaged couple Jon Corso and Kelly Parks finished in second place, and best friends David Dean and Jeff Strand finished in third place.
Format
The Amazing Race is a reality television show created by Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri, and hosted by Phil Keoghan. The series follows teams of two competing in a race around the world. Each leg of the race requires teams to deduce clues, navigate foreign environments, interact with locals, perform physical and mental challenges, and travel on a limited budget provided by the show. At each stop during the leg, teams receive clues inside sealed envelopes, which fall into one of these categories: Route Info: These are simple instructions that teams must follow before they can receive their next clue. Detour: A Detour is a choice between two tasks. Teams may choose either task and switch tasks if they find one option too difficult. There is usually one Detour present on each leg. Roadblock: A Roadblock is a task that only one team member can complete. Teams must choose which member will complete the task based on a brief clue they receive before fully learning the details of the task. There is usually one Roadblock present on each leg. Fast Forward: A Fast Forward is a task that only one team may complete, which allows that team to skip all remaining tasks on the leg and go directly to the next Pit Stop. Teams may only claim one Fast Forward during the entire race. Most teams who arrive last at the Pit Stop of each leg are progressively eliminated, while the first team to arrive at the finish line in the final episode wins the grand prize of US$1,000,000.
Production
The fourth season of The Amazing Race spanned across four continents and nine countries, two of which were new to the series: the Netherlands and South Korea. Casting for this season began in August 2002. Filming for the show began on January 18, 2003, and finished on February 14.
Contestants
The cast of The Amazing Race 4 included twelve teams. Monica Ambrose and Sheree Buchanan were married to Ashley Ambrose and Ray Buchanan, respectively, who both played for the Atlanta Falcons the season before the television series was filmed. When this season was filmed and broadcast, same-sex marriage had not yet been legalized in the United States. Reichen and Chip were never legally married, although they were married in a religious ceremony. CBS decided for the purpose of the show to respect the fact that they recognized themselves as a married couple. Not long after the season ended, Reichen revealed that he and Chip had separated. ContestantsAgeRelationshipHometownStatus 49Married ParentsLouisville, KentuckyEliminated 1st(in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy) 40 25DatingSioux Falls, South DakotaEliminated 2nd(in Venice, Italy) 28 32Friends & DatingHermosa Beach, CaliforniaEliminated 3rd(in Gmunden, Austria) 39 Los Angeles, California 47Father & Son Santa Barbara, CaliforniaEliminated 4th(in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France) 21 Los Angeles, California 46Air Traffic ControllersChicago, IllinoisEliminated 5th(in Muiden, Netherlands) 43 29NFL Wives & MomsDuluth, GeorgiaEliminated 6th(in Mumbai, India) 31 30Friends & ModelsMiami, FloridaEliminated 7th(in Alleppey, India) 33 29Dating 12 Years & VirginsChattanooga, TennesseeEliminated 8th(in Sepilok, Malaysia) 28 40Best Friends & ClownsLong Island, New YorkEliminated 9th(in Mooloolaba, Australia) 34 32Best FriendsLos Angeles, CaliforniaThird place 37 30EngagedMiami, FloridaRunners-up 28 28MarriedLos Angeles, CaliforniaWinners 36 Future appearances In 2005, Reichen Lehmkuhl appeared on a "Reality All-Stars" episode of Fear Factor. Reichen also appeared as part of the cast of The A-List: New York in 2011. Monica and Sheree, now both divorced, appeared on Atlanta Exes in 2014.
Results The following teams are listed with their placements in each episode. Placements are listed in finishing order. A placement with a dagger () indicates that the team was eliminated. An placement with a double-dagger () indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a Pit Stop in a non-elimination leg. A indicates that the team won the Fast Forward. +Team placement (by leg) Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Reichen & Chip 9th 2nd 3rd 5th 4th 2nd 5th 2nd 1st 2nd 3rd 2nd 1st Kelly & Jon 6th 3rd 8th 7th 3rd 3rd 3rd 4th 1st 2nd 2nd David & Jeff 10th 5th 7th 6th 6th 1st 1st 4th 3rd 1st 1st 3rd Jon & Al 7th 6th 6th 2nd 2nd 6th 2nd 1st 2nd 3rd Millie & Chuck 1st 8th 5th 2nd 1st 4th 4th 3rd Tian & Jaree 11th 4th 4th 1st 7th 5th Monica & Sheree 4th 10th 2nd 4th 5th Steve & Dave 5th 1st 9th 8th Steve & Josh 1st 9th 1st Russell & Cindy 8th 7th Amanda & Chris 1st Debra & Steve Notes
Race summary
Leg 1 (United States → Italy)
Episode 1: "Cheaters Never Win... and They Cheated!" (May 29, 2003) Prize: A trip to Hawaii (awarded to Amanda and Chris; Millie and Chuck; and Steve and Josh) Eliminated: Debra and Steve Locations Los Angeles, California (Dodger Stadium) (Starting Line) Los Angeles → Milan, Italy Milan (Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II) Milan (Piazza Fontana) → Cortina d'Ampezzo (Church of St. Filippo and Giacomo) Colle Santa Lucia (Passo Giau) Cortina d'Ampezzo (Cinque Torri) Cortina d'Ampezzo (Hotel Lajadira) Episode summary Teams set off from Dodger Stadium with instructions to fly to Milan, Italy, on one of three flights. Once there, teams had to travel to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, where they had to search the complex for tickets on one of three charter buses leaving the next day for an unknown destination (Cortina d'Ampezzo in the Dolomite Mountains). Once at the Church of St. Filippo and Giacomo, teams found their next clue, which directed them to the Cinque Torri. There, teams had to ride a chairlift to the top and find their next clue on the mountain. This season's first Fast Forward required one team to travel to Passo Giau, put on snowshoes, and trek to the top of a snowy hill. Monica and Sheree won the Fast Forward. This season's first Detour was a choice between Search or Rescue. In Search, teams would have used a locator beacon to find a beeper hidden in the snow with a set of keys for a snowmobile that they could have driven to their next clue. In Rescue, teams crossed a traditional alpine rescue bridge of four steel cables. They then had to use a zipline to travel across the ravine to their next clue. All teams chose Rescue. After the Detour, teams had to ride the chairlift back down the mountain and then travel to the Pit Stop: the Hotel Lajadira.
Leg 2 (Italy)
Episode 2: "It Doesn't Say Anything About First Come First Served... and We're Bigger" (June 5, 2003) Eliminated: Amanda and Chris Locations Cortina d'Ampezzo (Hotel Lajadira) Cortina d'Ampezzo (Trampolino Olimpico) Calalzo di Cadore Ponte nelle Alpi → Venice Venice (Ponte delle Guglie → Campo Querini Stampalia) Venice (Campo San Vio) Venice (Palazzo da Mosto) Venice (Venetian Lagoon – Citta di Padova) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams traveled to the Trampolino Olimpico. There, they rode an inflatable snow raft down the hill to receive their next clue, which instructed them to travel by train to Venice. Once there, teams had to find their next clue at the Ponte delle Guglie. This leg's Detour was a choice between Waterway or Pathway. In Waterway, teams had to travel by gondola, using only a map to guide their gondolier, to the Campo Querini Stampalia, where they found their next clue. In Pathway, teams had to travel by foot through the city's streets and bridges to the same plaza, but without a map, although they could ask for directions. This leg's Fast Forward required one team to go to Campo San Vio and join a troupe of actors performing street theater known as commedia dell'arte until the Fast Forward award appeared in the skit. Steve and Dave won the Fast Forward. After the Detour, teams had to travel to the Palazzo da Mosto and wait for a masquerade ball to begin before receiving their next clue. In this season's first Roadblock, one team member had to choose a picture of a Venetian mask, enter the Palazzo da Mosto, and search the rooms filled with masked revelers to find the one wearing the same mask shown in their photo, who gave them their next clue. If they chose incorrectly, the reveler took the photo and walked away, and the racer had to go back outside to wait to receive another photo, since only four contestants could enter the palace at a time. After the Roadblock, teams had to check in at the Pit Stop: the Citta di Padova, moored at the Venetian Lagoon.
Leg 3 (Italy → Austria)
Episode 3: "I Wasn't Even Going to Touch You Until You Slammed My Head Backwards" (June 12, 2003) Eliminated: Russell and Cindy Locations Venice (Laguna Veneta – Citta di Padova) Venice → Vienna, Austria Vienna (Vienna Sewers – Intersection of Friedrichstraße & Operngasse → Heumarkt) Vienna (Stadtpark) Vienna (Schönbrunn Palace) Vienna (Mozart House Beethoven House) Vienna (Donauturm) Vienna → Gmunden Gmunden (Schloss Ort) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams were instructed to travel by train to Vienna, Austria. Once there, they had to enter the city's sewers at the intersection of Friedrichstraße and Operngasse and follow a path to the Johann Strauss II monument at the Stadtpark, where they found their next clue. Teams then had to flag down a horse-drawn carriage called a fiacre and grab the ticket hanging on the carriage for one of three departure times. Teams then directed their fiacre to Schönbrunn Palace, where they found their next clue. This leg's Fast Forward required one team to enter the ballroom at Schönbrunn Palace, where each team member had to carry a tray full of champagne glasses across the room and through the crowd without spilling any of the drinks. Steve and Josh won the Fast Forward. This leg's Detour was a choice between Mozart or Beethoven. In Mozart, teams had to carry a string bass to the well-known house where Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote The Marriage of Figaro to receive their next clue. In Beethoven, teams had to carry a portfolio of sheet music to a lesser-known house where Ludwig van Beethoven wrote The Heiligenstadt Testaments to receive their next clue. After the Detour, teams had to travel to the Donauturm, where they found their next clue. In this leg's Roadblock, one team member had to perform a bungee jump off the Donauturm to receive their next clue. After the Roadblock, teams had to travel by train to Gmunden and then on foot to the Pit Stop: Schloss Ort. Additional note The bungee jump at the Donauturm was later featured as a Switchback and Fast Forward in season 23, but due to high winds, the Fast Forward was unavailable, and no teams chose to wait for weather conditions to improve.
Leg 4 (Austria → France)
Episode 4: "Check Your Tires Because... Oh God, You Never Know What'll Happen!" (June 19, 2003) Eliminated: Steve and Josh Locations Gmunden (Schloss Ort) Gmunden → Salzburg Munich, Germany Salzburg Munich → Paris, France Paris → Le Mans Le Mans (Circuit de la Sarthe – Circuit Bugatti) Marseille (Phare de Sainte Marie) Aix-en-Provence (Musée de Tapisseries)