The Amazing Race is back! Well, it’ll be back in less than a month; the premiere date is Wednesday, February 25th. But CBS has revealed the cast and two of the twists for this season, so we’ll have somewhat of an idea of what to expect. The major twist this season is that it’s the dating season; every team is comprised of a dating couple. However, five of the couples didn’t meet until the starting line, making TAR season 26 a giant blind date for them. The other twist is the Date Night Pass – on each leg, one team will pull a clue that includes the Date Night Pass, allowing them to participate in a romantic activity together. Since teams rarely have much time to explore the beautiful locations they visit, this should be a nice break from the hectic pace of the race.
First, we have the six dating couples:
Up first are Aly Dudek and Steve Langton, who have been dating for seven months. Aly and Steve met competing for the USA at the Sochi olympics, although they competed in different sports. Aly is a short track speed skater, as well as a spokeswoman for a worldwide nutritional company; Steve is a member of the USA national bobsled team. Both Aly and Steve said that it will be key to communicate well throughout the race, as they had some problems with that in the beginning of their relationship. I think Aly and Steve will be a very strong team on the race, because not only are they very athletic, but they’ve also traveled a lot.
Next are CJ Harris and Lebya Simpson, who have been
dating for ten years. They’ve known each other for fifteen years, and are running the race with the hopes that it will show CJ whether or not he should propose. I’m not sure how much TAR can show CJ that he doesn’t already know about Lebya after dating her for that long, but whatever. Lebya is a medical support assistant, while CJ works with information technology. CJ seems a little conceited, considering the biggest challenge he thinks they’ll face on the race is Lebya not listening to him, even though he’s usually right. Lebya thinks they could have some problems because CJ always thinks she is trying to be mean even when she has no malicious intent. I’m predicting that CJ and Lebya will have a lot of fights this season.
Harley Rodriquez and Jonathan Knight have been dating for seven years. Harley is a group fitness trainer, while Jonathan is a member of the pop group New Kids On The Block. Both Harley and Jonathan say that they are indecisive, which could hurt them if they are constantly switching detours or second guessing their decisions. There wasn’t really anything in their interview that made Harley and Jonathan stand out to me, but hopefully their personalities will be more interesting on the show.
Jeff Magee and Lyda Grawn have been dating for 4 years, although they met 20
years ago. They first met at Southwest – where Jeff is a pilot and Lyda is a flight attendant – but Lyda was married. They did a crew change four years ago, and Jeff asked Lyda out. Jeff and Lyda both say they need to work on letting each other speak. I think Lyda and Jeff seem very interesting and smart – Jeff built his own plane, even though it took him 10 years! I look forward to getting to know Lyda and Jeff better, and I hope they do well on the race.
Matt Cucolo and Ashley Gordon have known each other for ten years, but have been dating for three years. They are both hairstylists that met because Matt was dating Ashley’s roommate. From their interview, it seems like Matt and Ashley will have a lot of problems dealing with each other on the race. According to Matt, Ashley always has to be right and often doesn’t pay attention/listen to him. Ashley says that Matt has poor listening skills, and that they often argue about irrelevant things. I’m guessing that the producers will have a lot of footage of Ashley and Matt fighting to air in case the show isn’t exciting enough.
Rochelle Nevedal and Mike Dombrowski are the final dating couple, and 
they’ve been together for eight months. Rochelle has an eight year old son, is a contract engineer, and the co-owner of a small roller derby league. Mike is a pro wrestling promoter and a truck stop manager. Rochelle and Mike met when she was going around town to prepare for a roller derby bout and she stopped at his truck stop. Rochelle hopes that the race will show her whether she and Mike have a serious future, because she doesn’t want to waste time on someone she can’t depend on. Mike hopes that Rochelle learns to listen to him better, because although she says that he has good advice, she doesn’t always follow it. I look forward to watching Rochelle and Mike this season; I think they’ll both be good competitors, as well as good teammates.
Here are the ten single racers who have been paired up for the most intense blind date ever:
Bergen Olsen is a human resources project manager at a tech start up in the Silicon Valley. He’s looking for a guy that has a good personality, a good sense of humor, and makes him feel special and loved. Bergen’s three turn offs are smoking/bad breath, poor personal hygiene, and a bad kisser. Bergen seems to have a great personality, as he describes himself as a mix between Ellen Degeneres, Oprah, and Melissa McCarthy. If that’s true, I can’t wait to watch him on the race! Bergen’s teammate, Kurt Jordan Belcher, is a pageant consultant from Butler, KY. Kurt has never been in a relationship before, which he says is because he’s very picky. Kurt is looking for a man that is family oriented, funny, and has his life together. He refuses to date someone who is controlling or lazy; he wants someone that’s loving and a hard worker.
Blair Townsend is a physician from Florida who is taking some time off 
from surgery residency to serve as an active duty doctor in the Navy. Blair is very active – his favorite hobbies are ironman competitions, sailing, scuba diving and golf. Blair is not only incredibly smart and athletic, he seems to have a great sense of humor too, if his answer to the question “what famous person reminds you of yourself?” is any indication. Blair’s response was, “If Ryan Gosling had a miracle baby with Brad Pitt then that child was tutored by Stephen Hawking, mentored by the late Maya Angelou, and trained by Bruce Jenner in his prime…I would be that person.” As for Blair’s partner, Hayley Keel is an ER/trauma registered nurse from Florida. Hayley is also extremely athletic – she enjoys anything active, such as biking, paddle boarding, working out. She also likes to cook, travel, and explore new places. I think that Blair and Hayley have the makings of a TAR power couple.
Jackie Ibarra is a professional dancer from Las Vegas. She is most proud of becoming a Miami Heat Dancer, because she competed against 300 women for a spot on the team. Jackie seems a little high maintenance, as one of her deal breakers is if someone doesn’t take care of his appearance/body. Aside from that, nothing in her interview really makes Jackie stand out to me. Jackie’s partner is Jeffrey Weldon, an account executive from Tampa, Florida. One of his favorite hobbies is fitness, so he at least meets Jackie’s requirement in that department. Jeffry is looking for a woman with a great sense of humor, a drive for success, and a beautiful face (actually, he and Jackie may be perfect for each other). I get that appearance is what people generally base their first impressions on – and Jeffery seems to be joking a little – but most people probably wouldn’t list that as one of their relationship deal breakers, especially because everyone has a different view on what they find attractive.
Jelani Roy is a lawyer with an equity interest in an internet startup, and he is also a sports agent. He
is looking for a woman that is pretty, laid back and fun. To be completely honest, Jelani’s interview seems pretty boring. All of his answers seem generic, not to mention extremely brief. Hopefully he’s more interesting on the race. Jelani’s teammate is Jenny Wu, who is both a lawyer and a beauty blogger. Jenny has only had one significant relationship; she dated her high school sweetheart for ten years before getting married, and they recently got a divorce. Jenny is most proud of coming to terms with what she wants in life, and overcoming her fear of being alone. Jenny is looking for someone who has great bantering skills, a quick wit, and a resemblance to her celebrity crush, Leonardo DiCaprio (wouldn’t we all like that?). Jenny seems very intriguing – she clearly has many interests, as she is both a lawyer and a beauty blogger, and she has the unique goal of visiting Turks and Caicos because she wants to catch a lobster with her bare hands! I look forward to watching Jenny this season.
Tyler Adams is part of a team that develops mobile apps, and they just released their first app, HORSE. Tyler won Startup Week LA this year, which prompted him to quit his job and begin starting his own business. His one deal breaker is a pessimistic outlook, because he thinks that life is too short, so you have to enjoy it. As if I didn’t like Tyler enough already, it turns out that his celebrity crush is Taylor Swift. I’m just going to come out and say it – his partner is one lucky girl! Laura Pierson is a talent booker for a daily television morning show. Laura enjoys cooking, going on adventures, yoga, DIY crafts, and anything involving fashion. She wants to swim with sharks in South Africa, visit the beautiful beaches in Bali, and go to the United Arab Emirates to see the view from the tallest building in the world, and to ride a camel in the desert. I think Tyler and Laura seem like a great match!
Of the dating couples, my favorites so far are Aly & Steve, Jeff & Lyda, and Rochelle & Mike. I think these teams seem to really love each other, and they also have interesting personalities. As far as the single racers, the ones that stand out to me right now are Bergen, Blair, Jenny, and Tyler. I’m very excited to see this season of The Amazing Race, and I look forward to discovering more of the twists as the season progresses. Let me know who your favorite team is in the comments below!
