The Amazing Race 26 is the twenty-sixth season of the American reality competition show The Amazing Race. Hosted by Phil Keoghan, it featured eleven teams of dating couples (six existing couples and five blind date teams who met for the first time at the start of the race) competing in a race around the world to win US$1,000,000. This season visited five continents and nine countries and traveled over during twelve legs. Starting in Castaic, California, racers traveled through Japan, Thailand, Germany, France, Monaco, Namibia, the Netherlands, and Peru before returning to the United States and finishing in Dallas. Elements of the show that returned for this season include the Blind Double U-Turn. The season premiered on CBS with a special 90-minute episode on February 25, 2015, and concluded on May 15, 2015.
All three of the final teams were couples matched up as blind dates at the start of the race. Laura Pierson and Tyler Adams were the winners of this season, while Jelani Roy and Jenny Wu finished in second place, and Hayley Keel and Blair Townsend finished in third place.
Production Development and filming
Filming for this season began on November 12, 2014 at Castaic Lake. After 25 days of filming, the season concluded in Dallas, Texas on December 6.
This season covered , five continents, and nine countries, including a first-time visit to Monaco. On some legs, teams could receive special Date Night rewards, which were inserted randomly in clue envelopes. These allowed the lucky team an opportunity to participate in a romantic activity during the Pit Stop.
For the second season in a row, four teams competed in the final leg. However, host Phil Keoghan eliminated one team in the middle of the final leg, leaving only three teams to race to the finish line.
Casting Big Brother 16 HouseGuest Donny Thompson was contacted to compete with his then-girlfriend Kristine Bartley, but the latter declined. Erika Kirk also auditioned for this season with her then-boyfriend JT Massey.
Marketing Travelocity and Ford continued their sponsorships with The Amazing Race. Fitbit became a new sponsor this season. Each team member received Fitbit devices, which were used in one of the tasks in the tenth leg. This was also the last season to have Ford as a sponsor for the show.
Contestants
The cast included a pair of dating Olympians: short-track speed skater Aly Dudek and bobsledder Steven Langton; as well as New Kids on the Block singer Jonathan Knight.
At the Pit Stop of the third leg, Matt Cucolo proposed to Ashley Gordon, who accepted.
ContestantsAgeRelationshipHometownStatus 57Dating for 4 Years McCall, IdahoEliminated 1st(in Tokyo, Japan) 49 Scottsdale, Arizona 25Dating for 10 YearsTuskegee, AlabamaEliminated 2nd(in Nagano, Japan) 26 41Dating for 7 YearsNew York City, New YorkEliminated 3rd(in Bangkok, Thailand) 46 23Blind Dating Sunnyvale, CaliforniaEliminated 4th(in Schliersee, Germany) 24 Butler, Kentucky 26Blind Dating Tampa, FloridaEliminated 5th(in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, France) 27 Las Vegas, Nevada 24Dating for 7 Months Milwaukee, WisconsinEliminated 6th(in Erongo Region, Namibia) 31 Boston, Massachusetts 30Dating for 3 Years (Legs 1–3)Engaged (Legs 3–10)Scarsdale, New YorkEliminated 7th(in Otuzco, Peru) 28 26Dating for 8 Months Traverse City, MichiganEliminated 8th(in Burleson, Texas) 29 Kalkaska, Michigan 28Blind Dating Saint Petersburg, FloridaThird place 31 Amelia Island, Florida 32Blind Dating New York City, New YorkRunners-up 32 Los Angeles, California 29Blind Dating Los Angeles, CaliforniaWinners 26 Santa Monica, California Future appearances In June 2015, Jackie Ibarra and Jeff Weldon were revealed as additional contestants on the seventeenth season of Big Brother by host Phil Keoghan.
Results The following teams are listed with their placements in each leg. 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, and had to perform a Speed Bump task in the following leg. An italicized and underlined placement indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a Pit Stop, but there was no rest period at the Pit Stop and all teams were instructed to continue racing. There was no required Speed Bump task in the next leg. A indicates that the team used an Express Pass on that leg to bypass one of their tasks. A indicates that the team used the U-Turn and a indicates the team on the receiving end of the U-Turn. +Team placement (by leg) Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Laura & Tyler3rd2nd4th4th6th6th2nd1st1st4th3rd1st Jelani & Jenny1st1st3rd7th4th5th4th4th3rd2nd2nd2nd Hayley & Blair8th9th2nd2nd5th1st3rd3rd2nd1st1st3rd Mike & Rochelle7th8th1st6th7th3rd5th5th4th3rd4th Matt & Ashley9th7th6th8th2nd4th1st2nd Aly & Steve4th3rd5th3rd1st2nd Jeff & Jackie2nd6th8th5th3rd Bergen & Kurt6th5th7th1st Harley & Jonathan5th4th Libby & C.J.10th Jeff & Lyda Notes
Race summary
Leg 1 (United States → Japan)
Episode 1: "Great Way to Start a Relationship" (February 25, 2015) Prize: Express Pass (awarded to Jelani & Jenny) Eliminated: Jeff & Lyda Locations Castaic, California (Castaic Lake) (Starting Line) Los Angeles → Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (Kanda Myojin) Tokyo (Shinjuku Central Park Nakanosakaue Chicken Tavern) Tokyo (Wakaba Higashi Park) Tokyo (Akihabara UDX Building) Episode summary At Castaic Lake, six dating couples and five blind date couples, who met for the first time at the starting line, began the race. Teams had to complete a mud run obstacle course on the lake shore and grab a ring, which contained airplane tickets to their first destination: Tokyo, Japan. The first eight teams were booked on the first flight and the last three teams were booked on the second flight, which departed 45 minutes later. Once there, teams had to travel to Kanda Myojin, where they found their next clue. This season's first Detour was a choice between Syncing Steps or Samurai Sake. In Syncing Steps, teams had to travel to Shinjuku Central Park and learn a series of synchronized robotic dance moves with members of World Order in order to receive their next clue. In Samurai Sake, teams had to travel to Nakanosakaue Chicken Tavern, where they were shown ten bottles of sake. One team member had to take an order from a pair of samurai, while the other team member had to find the correct bottle from a large display. When the correct sake bottle was presented, teams made a toast with the samurai before receiving their next clue. After the Detour, teams had to travel to Wakaba Higashi Park in order to find their next clue, which instructed them to search in the vicinity of the Akihabara UDX building for a parking space in order to find the Pit Stop. Additional note This leg featured a Blind Double U-Turn. Mike & Rochelle chose to use the U-Turn on Jeff & Lyda, while Jeff & Lyda chose to use the U-Turn on Jeff & Jackie. However, Jeff & Jackie had already passed the U-Turn by this point and were therefore unaffected.
Leg 2 (Japan)
Episode 2: "I Got the Smartest Dude" (February 27, 2015) Prize: Fitbit watches and a fitness package for each team member, plus a personal chef, cooking lessons, and either a one-year gym membership or a year of fresh grocery delivery (awarded to Jelani & Jenny) Date Night Reward: A trip to a Japanese hot spring (awarded to Harley & Jonathan) Eliminated: Libby & C.J. Locations Tokyo (Akihabara UDX Building) Tokyo → Nagano Nagano (Matsushiro Castle) Nagano (Nishi-guchi Zenkō-ji) Nagano (Takesan Donabe Restaurant M-Wave Olympic Arena) Nagano (Patio Daimon) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams had to ride a bullet train to Nagano and travel to Matsushiro Castle, where they found their next clue. In this season's first Roadblock, one team member had to solve a traditional puzzle box called a yosegi, which contained the password they needed in order to receive their next clue. After the Roadblock, teams had to travel to Nishi-guchi Zenkō-ji in order to receive their next clue. This leg's Detour was a Blind Detour, where teams only learned about the task that they chose once they arrived at its location. It was a choice between Share or Chair. In Share, teams traveled to the Takesan Donabe Restaurant and had to feed each other a bowl of noodles using only a pair of chopsticks while sitting in front of a large fan in order to receive their next clue. In Chair, teams traveled to the M-Wave Olympic Arena. One team member had to sit on a chair mounted on a sled while their partner pushed the chair around a speed skating track for one lap, after which they switched places for a second lap. Teams had to finish both laps within a combined time of 3:55 minutes in order to receive their next clue. After the Detour, teams had to check in at the Pit Stop: the Patio Daimon.
Leg 3 (Japan → Thailand)
Episode 3: "#MurphysLaw" (March 6, 2015) Prize: A trip for two to Prague, Czech Republic (awarded to Mike & Rochelle) Date Night Reward: A romantic evening on the beach (awarded to Bergen & Kurt, who gifted it to Matt & Ashley) Locations Nagano (Patio Daimon) Nagano → Tokyo Tokyo → Phuket, Thailand Kathu (Patong Beach – Bangla Road) Kathu (Patong Beach Bed and Breakfast) Mueang Phuket (Baan Teelanka) Kathu (Phuket Wake Park Flying Hanuman) Kathu (Patong Beach – My Way Cabaret) Mueang Phuket (Sri Panwa Phuket – Baba Nest Rooftop Bar) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams were instructed to return by train to Tokyo and then fly to Phuket, Thailand. Once there, teams had to travel to Bangla Road and search for a street hawker with selfie sticks. Each selfie stick had one of three departure times the next morning, when teams had to travel to the Patong Beach Bed and Breakfast in Kathu, where they found their next clue. They were then directed to the Baan Teelanka (the "Upside Down House"), where teams had to search for their next clue hanging upside-down from a toilet. This leg's Detour was a choice between Ski or Tree. In Ski, teams traveled to Phuket Wake Park, where each member had to ride one lap of the wave pool on a wakeboard in order to receive their next clue. In Tree, teams traveled to Flying Hanuman, where they dressed as waiters and had to deliver a full meal intact to customers via zipline in order to receive their next clue. After the Detour, teams had to travel to the My Way Cabaret in order to find their next clue. There, they had to don showgirl costumes and then perform a dance before an audience to the satisfaction of the manager in order to receive their next clue, which directed them to the Pit Stop: the Baba Nest Rooftop Bar at Sri Panwa Phuket. Additional notes This was a non-elimination leg. Matt proposed to Ashley at the Pit Stop and she accepted. Bergen & Kurt, who had won the Date Night Reward, gifted it to Matt & Ashley in congratulations.
Leg 4 (Thailand)
Episode 4: "The Great Amazing Nasty Race" (March 13, 2015) Prize: A trip for two to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (awarded to Bergen & Kurt) Date Night Reward: A romantic evening on a water boat at Chao Phraya River (awarded to Laura & Tyler) Eliminated: Harley & Jonathan Locations Kathu (Patong Beach) Phuket → Bangkok Bangkok (Wat Yannawa) Bangkok (Snooker Club & Caturday Café Wat Klang Food Market & Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen) Bangkok (Pathumwan Siang Gong) Bangkok (Wat Ratchanatdaram – Maha Chetsadabodin Pavilion Court) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams were instructed to fly to Bangkok, Thailand. Once there, teams had to travel to Wat Yannawa in order to find their next clue. For their Speed Bump, Harley & Jonathan had to assemble a traditional Thai grasshopper out of river reeds before they could continue racing.