February
17 'The Amazing Race': 'The outcome for us is a surprise every time'

Q. Are the non-elimination legs predetermined BEFORE the race starts? If not, how much in advance do producers know a non-elimination leg is coming up? — Penny
A. ED: The non-elimination legs are determined months in advance — before they even go on the road. Everything that happens on the road has been laid out before. The main reason is because it’s a race for a million dollars, a competition reality program. We can’t sit there and say "Oh, we’re really concerned that that team is going to get eliminated. Let’s make this a non-elimination leg." No, everything is thought out way, way before we go on the road.
BvM: Yes, it’s laid out that way.
ED: Signed off by CBS legal. You can’t change those things. It’s a great question.
BvM: It’s a great question and a lot of people ask it because they think "Are these guys manipulating this stuff?" No, this is laid out before and we go with it as it rolls.
ED: Even if we don’t like the outcome.
BvM: The outcome for us is a surprise every time. Let’s keep it that way.

See video - part one for more

Penny, I will contact you by email to deliver your prize to you. Thanks and congratulations! — KL

Q. What has been the toughest "hiccup" during filming that you’ve had to work around? — Amy
A. BvM: In the very beginning there was a degree of paranoia that the press would reveal who was the winner of a certain leg. Now that everyone, and this sounds really pompous, but everyone knows who we are. So we have to live with the exposure that we have and we actually like it and we use it to our advantage. We are grateful that a global audience watches but with that comes that everyone sees what we do.
ED: Weather really affects how the contestants run through the route. In season one we were in Tunisia and we had a major sandstorm at Pit Stop, where it just wasn’t safe to be sleeping there overnight.
BvM: It had wiped out our base camp.
ED: So we packed up the camp, the camels, the big 4-wheel drive and we moved everybody from that location, at 2 o’clock in the morning, to a hotel because the whole camp was being blown away. So those are what I call the hiccups. But because we lay it out so much in advance, we check the weather, we know when the sun rises and when the sun sets, we check everything.

See video - parts two and three for more

Q. Which have been your favorite tasks, and how do you guys come up with them? Do you "test" them out beforehand, and have any ended up going badly awry? — PC
A. BvM: We never, ever change any. One of my favorites was the one we did in Taiwan where we had these people on the teeter-totter with the car going back and forth and they had to drive through the water with the mask on. It’s very humorous. It’s safe, it’s funny. But that teeter-totter was a little funky. The challenges are born out of a lot of jetlag maybe. We are very possessive of the challenges (the two of us) create. We don’t let anyone near them.
ED: And we have very different ways of thinking. Bertram will come up with something and I’m like "What?" But I think it’s a good mix for the show. One of my favorite challenges was in, I think it was Vietnam, where they had to plow In a muddy field with a big ox. Oh, it was the Philippines. They had to plow for a clue and the contestant was getting so frustrated and he said "My ox is broken!" I’m always surprised. We have these ideas and what the contestants do with them is off the chart. You can’t imagine.

See video - part six for more

(Mike White bungee jumps in Sunday's episode.)

Q. What do the locals think of the tasks. — Kathy
A. BvM: They find it very amusing.
ED: What we like to show is the local doing this task, very simply, and then our contestants (try it) and they get so frustrated and the local is on the side just laughing hysterically because they can’t even believe that they can’t do it.

See video - part six for more

Q. What does Phil do when he’s just waiting around for teams to arrive at the pit stops? — PC
A. ED: He’s shooting some of his stand-ups, where he talks about other things in the show. He’s getting calls about how far away the teams are. But before that he’s on the road shooting the Detour locations and the Roadblock locations, and he’s racing to get to the Pit Stop. So he’s busy all day.
BvM: He has work to do but he also likes to be in the gym (laughs).

See video - part six for more

Q. Were you as surprised and annoyed as I was that Phil was not nominated in the inaugural reality show host Emmy category after the show’s streak of wins in the reality show category? — Kathy
A. BvM: Yes, I do have an opinion about it. I think Phil is really fantastic for our show. There’s no question about it. He brings a spirit and he’s the face of the show in many ways. He’s a terrific friend, and a professional. But the jobs the other guys are doing is different from what Phil does. The other guys are kind of the guiding lights of their shows. They move people through the show, they do a lot of talking; they talk, from one end of the show to the other. That task is, of course, very different from what Phil does. It also has to do with what is reality and what is not reality. We believe our show is "true reality" because we turn people loose and we don’t know what the outcome is.
ED: We have one of the hardest shows to produce so every job on the show we feel is really difficult and done quite well. So from Phil being the host to us creating the show and producing it… you know, he should have been nominated; he really should have.
NOTE: Bertram also laughed that after seeing the Emmys, it’s probably a good thing for Phil that he wasn’t part of that reality-host-nominees-as-Emmy-hosts experiment. If you’ve forgotten how truly awful the Emmys were, here is my review of the show.

See video - part one for more

Q. What have been some of the most memorable Pit Stops for you behind the scenes? — LJ
A. BvM: Memorable Pit Stops are the Taj Mahal; the pyramids of Giza. We went to Auschwitz and lit candles on the railroad tracks. These are the different locations that I’m very proud of. It’s not all fun and games. We did try to get people to think a little bit. We did go to Senegal and the door of no return where thousands of slaves were brought over to America and we laid flowers and we made people think. To me this is very important that we go through life and stop every once in a while for 15 or 30 seconds and think about how fortunate we are and how lucky we are. So we like to put these elements in the show. And a lot of (contestants) don’t realize because they’re in a hurry and they’re thinking about a million bucks, but I like it.
ED: Season one we had a great pit stop in the first episode. In Africa. We had the contestants around a big fire and they were dancing and we had locals playing music. It was really wonderful and they got to be really submerged into the culture. I like when we have a Pit Stop where we have something going on, but more and more, we try to keep those quieted down because we don’t want the contestants talking too much; we don’t want them to become too friendly.

See video - part four for more

Q. Do you think an all-girl team will ever win? — Amy
A. ED: Yes!
BvM: Yes, I hope so!
ED: Please. Are you out there?
BvM: Please do it. It’s not up to us, it’s up to you guys.
ED: I don’t know what it is. You know what? We’ve had an all-girl team win the Asian version. That should inspire our American contestants. It can happen.

See video - part five for more

Q. Is there any chance of ever going back to a 13-leg season? — Anthony
A. ED: Sure. Why not? Right now I think the format works really well with 11 or 12 legs because we started doing research, again, and we found that people didn’t love the non-elimination legs. So ultimately that’s why we cut it down — to have more eliminations. Because people want to see what’s going to happen at the end. It’s a little bit of a downer sometimes (when a team is safe). So I don’t know that we’ll ever add more cast because it’s a lot to travel with the amount we do now.
BvM: Elise is right, it’s a tremendous downer. Because (the contestants) start to figure out things among themselves. They think they know what’s going on. We, of course, know that they don’t. And CBS is fine with (11 legs).

See video - part four for more

Q. Is the Intersection coming back, or has it had its run? — Don
A. BvM: We don’t know yet. That’s the kind of stuff that in our "war room" we always talk about.

See video - part five for more

Q. What has been the most challenging country to film in? — Don
A. ED: I think in the earlier seasons when we first started doing the show, a lot of countries were challenges. Luckily Bertram had set up a network of little satellite office in a some of these countries so we started with those. But now that the show has gained a lot of popularity, countries really want us to come (film there). So at the beginning it was hard. People didn’t understand why we wanted to race through the streets and make bricks and put sidewalks in and plant trees and build houses with people and do all these crazy things the locals do. It got a little bit easier.
BvM: The other aspect of that was also we had to hire people who had very little experience in something like this. I’ve done this my whole life. We had to get staffing. The people that were most knowledable about doing the show and just really did it, and are still with me, were the cameramen; the cameramen and the sound men. These were the guys — because they’re streetwise and they were running around — they were actually with us, the experienced team, and knew how to get us out of a bind. And we had to really educate a huge staff on how to do this kind of stuff. But we’ve gotten better and better and better and better as a result. A lot of people were very worried to do a true reality television show. You have to give our producers the confidence and say "You can do this, don’t worry about it. Let it go. I’ll take the responsibility and the liability."

See video - part one for more

Q. So it’s gotten easier?
A. BvM: In a way… but now we’re picking countries that are more complicated — such as Russia.
ED: We kept thinking as the seasons went on "Well the show will get easier, you have it all down," but you still have to put in the same amount of work every season. So, although we know what we’re doing and we have a system now, you still have to go through every step. There’s still permits, there’s still insurance, there’s still casting, (BvM adds: there’s legal), scouting locations. Everything still happens so it still takes months and months to put the show together.
BvM: But we’re passionate about it. Very.

See video - part one for more

Q. The show seems to have a strong fascination with India . But my question is, why does it seem like the show keeps visiting the most poverty-stricken parts of the country while focusing more on the chaotic, over-crowded, "cows-on-the-roads" aspect of India rather than try exploiting the richness of its extremely diverse culture and heritage to the fullest? For a change, why don’t you film legs in the more developed cities like Bangalore and Cochin or the more culturally important places like Varanasi and the temples of Khajuraho? — Vikshant
A. BvM: I am the biggest fan of India. I love India. I’ve been going there most of my adult life. I’ve made tremendous effort and tremendous investment filming there. I have a very long-term, very great relationship with the various governments that give me permits. I love Calcutta. I thought it was a beautiful city. We have been all over Kerala province, which includes Cochin, which is gorgeous. We have been to Rajastan several times, which is one of the spectacular places with the most beautiful people in India. And of course we’ve been to Mumbai also and that’s a city people should be very proud of. And New Delhi. We haven’t been to Bangalore. We were going to Bangalore not so long ago (but) they had a big hotel explosion and that’s why, for safety reasons, we didn’t go there. We have been to Chennai; outside Chennai. If this person watches the show and sees the whole thing, it’s not about poverty-striken (areas), it’s about Indian daily life that we like to integrate into the show. Our show is also more of an urban show. And if you go to Mumbai, which is a fantastic, thriving city or you go to Chennai or Calcutta, it’s fascinating. I think it’s fascinating.
ED: The population is so great and part of the show is that we really want contestants to interact with locals. It’s a wonderful place for people to go. Like Bertram said, it’s one of our favorite places to go, I love India and we have great friends in India, people we’ve worked with almost every season. We like to show everything. We show everything of everywhere. We don’t like to hold back on anything.

See video - part five for more

Q. When casting All-Stars, what exactly were you going for in the cast? Was it intentionally set up to be like a regular season cast in terms of relationships, or did it just happen that way? Who were some of the teams that were seriously considered and just missed the cut? — Anthony
A. BvM: Personally, I’m not crazy about All-Stars, but that’s a personal thing. Because what we find out is that a lot of them consider themselves stars because they’re recognized in the supermarket. Now they start to tell us how they used to do it and "why did we change it this time?" They reason why we changed it in every race is to keep people off-guard, of course. That’s part of the trick. Some people are really fantastic about it, some people were a little prima donna-ish. When you do reality television, I like real people, that you’ve never seen before, that you pluck out of life, from all walks of life. To me that’s fascinating. I think maybe the viewers like it better too. I wasn’t crazy about it (the all-star season).
ED: When way we cast the all-star version was based on who we thought were the biggest characters and also the most popular with the fans. We did a lot of research on who people wanted to see come back. We’re very involved with the fans; we’re very close to the people who run TARCON, which is a fan group.
BvM: They’re fantastic.
ED: I asked them who they liked. CBS, of course, had their say who they liked. It was a collaborative effort and I think we came up with everyone’s favorites. We wanted 20 (teams) but of course you have to narrow it down at some point. I was really happy with (who we chose.)
BvM: At that point we had well over 200 contestants and we had to narrow that down to 22. It’s not that easy. When we cast this show, we really love all the people that we cast. We love them; that’s why we cast them. So if you have over 200 people that you love, it’s not that the other guys are our favorite children but, as Elise said, we had to go through the research and that’s how it came about. And an awful lot of people weren’t available, etc. A lot of people (from the first season) were six years older. Six years later you’re a different person.
ED: And a lot of people that were on the show originally were single and now them got married and they have children and it’s just a different.
BvM: There were a lot of people — the football moms — a lot of people we’d have loved to have.
ED: Soccer moms!
BvM: Sorry! That’s the Dutch thing in me coming out even though I’ve lived all of my adult life in America.

See video - part two for more

Q. Any chance of another all stars series? — Amy
A. ED: I think Bertram said it the best. We love seeing new people and fresh faces. I don’t know if we get a lot out of the All-Stars. It’s nice to have them at events and see them again but I don’t know if it really works again for "The Amazing Race."
BvM: And if you see the new cast of season 14, then you say "My God, they did it again." The cast is amazing. (Season 14 cast pictured.)
ED: There’s something really great about someone who’s never run the race before. Even if they’ve watched the show they think they know the show. But once they’re on the road, they’re shocked. So there’s that freshness about it and excitement, and sadness, and craziness and sleeplessness. They’ve seen every episode and they think they know what to expect but it’s very different when you’re out there.
BvM: The other thing is when people have done it once before they know what to say and what not to say; they give each other signals. They start manipulating their own reality. Which is also not good.

See video - part two for more

Q. Will you ever have an international version? Where each team comes from a different country. This would be interesting in how each group would deal with situations based on their background. — Dan
A. BvM: That has been brought up many times. With all the languages, it (would be) difficult. But it has been on the radar and maybe one time we’ll do it.

See video - part five for more

Q. I wonder why you don’t switch up the game more. I think it would make it more interesting to team up couples of complete strangers and watch that dynamic unfold — ie: a ultra conservative with a tree hugging liberal or a chain smoker with a health nut. Or perhaps find couples from Match.com or Harmony and let that relationship unfold. — Clark
A. BvM: We feel very strongly that they always have to be people who know each other very well because our show has to be up and running immediately. If two people don’t know each other then they’re feeling each other out and it may take two or three episodes before they are ready to have a real relationship. And that just wouldn’t work for us.

See video - part six for more

Q. I’ve noticed that in recent seasons the show has sort of shifted from portraying the relationships between team members (as well as between other teams) and more into little "sound bites" rapidly shifting from one team to another and not really getting to know them besides these little one-liners. Was this a conscience decision or just a natural progression? — Anthony
A. BvM: This person has a point. We have changed it. You’ll have more story (this season). There is some truth to that. And we have changed it.

See video - part five for more

(Sunday's cheese challenge pictured above.)

Q. Included with the music soundtrack are the audio cues like the gong and chimes for when someone made an error, buzz noise for a stupid comment or misreading a clue. We’re smart viewers. We don’t need to be shown 30 times that they made a wrong turn or what they are saying is incorrect. — Don
A. BvM: He’s a smart viewer. He’s 100 percent right. And that’s the reason why we’re changing it. We have the power to change it and we are.

See video - part six for more

Q. Will you please switch up the music soundtrack on the show? The same music has been used year after year and makes the show feel old and the episode like a rerun. — Don
A. BvM: We are doing just that. He has a very good point.

See video - part six for more

Q. I realize that the show is great the way it is, but I must echo some of the others in saying that a few small changes would be welcome. After a while many of the seasons began to blend in. While I certainly don’t like the idea of matching two random people together, sometimes the casting relies on too many of the same types — the bickering couple who needs to figure out whether or not they’re meant for each other; the hippies; the nerdy/unfit male team; and God knows when the last season was where we didn’t have two blonde girls racing together. In the early seasons, even if we had teams similar to past ones, the overall mix was something new. — Anthony
A. ED: There are only so many types of people in this world and we’ve pretty much covered every category. The other thing we’ve found is that these people may seem like the happiest couple on earth when we’re casting but we get out on the road and they’re screaming at each other. We’re sometimes shocked at who they become, or who they secretly are. Sometimes in order to get on the show they may show us a different personality. Once it’s narrowed down we meet in person about 30 teams of two and we narrow it down from there.
BvM: They may be very enthusiastic, very funny when you meet them but sometimes they get on the road and they say "I don’t want to do this anymore."
ED: I like the couples who say "We’re going to find out if we’re going to stay together or not." And they think it’s going to be some sort of fabulous honeymoon. It’s completely the opposite.
BVM: They think they’re going to visit the Tower of Pisa or have dinner in restaurants.
ED: Instead they’re sleeping in their raincoats on a park bench and complaining. And I’m wondering "Did you actually watch the show before you signed up?"

See video - part six for more

Q. Is there even a slight possibility that we’ll get to see a crossover in the future with TARs meeting in one city or having Phil switch mats with TAR Asia’s Allan Wu from TAR Asia for a leg? LJ
A. BvM: No, I don’t think that’s going to happen. Messing with that stuff wouldn’t really work out because a lot of people don’t know who Allan is in this part of the world.
ED: A fun thing that happens sometimes is that we’ll be filming the original TAR and our Asian version will be running at the same time things will go up on the Internet and people think they see us running around with the American crew when it’s really the Asian race running at the exact same time in different locations around the world. So that’s kind of neat.

See video - parts four and five for more

Q. Do you have any idea whether there would be any more seasons of the popular Asian version? I’ve just turned 21 (the minimum eligibility for trying out on the show) and was hoping to try out for the show with my friend. We’d be extremely disappointed if it got cancelled now after having to wait for so long to become eligible. — Vikshant
A. BvM: Yes, we are producing Amazing Race 4 there, which is in the works now.

See video - part five for more

Q. Regarding broadcasting in high-definition, you’ve (Bertram) previously stated that "I don’t think it’s a priority." With the digital transition looming, phasing out of CRTs in favor of LCDs, and the continuous rise in high-def TV sales, do you foresee "Amazing Race" to ever be shown in high-definition in the future? — Taylor
A. BvM: There’s no reason we shouldn’t do it but right now the equipment is a little cumbersome for us. The battery packs on these cameras are very, very heavy. We have human beings who have to shoot the show 7 days a week, 24 hours a day so there’s a technical aspect. If you’re in one location filming, that’s much easier of course. But we are racing around the world — 40,000 miles in 21 days, shooting 12 (episodes), so there’s a practical aspect to it. And I’d like to mention we are the only reality show that has one two Emmys for cinematography in a reality show and it was unrelated to the HD part.
ED: Bertram has a very good point, Just think, when you see a contestant running, that there is a cameraman running right alongside with a 40-pound camera on his back. I wish we could do a behind the scenes because people would just be sitting there with their mouths open watching how these guys do it.

See video - part six for more

Q. Is there a chance of all the past seasons being released on DVD ? Amazon.com’s burn-on-demand program is a perfect fit for Amazing Race; please look into it! — Anthony
A. BvM: It’s a good question. I’m not that involved with DVD sales and that kind of stuff. We have an occasional meeting about the subject but it’s not really in our corner to decide.

See video - part one for more

And here are all the videos. Enjoy.