This Season’s Cast Includes a Heavy Metal Rocker, a Double Amputee Professional Snowboarder, a World Champion Lumberjack, “The Fabulous Beekman Boys” and Chippendales Dancers

 

In a Series First, This Season’s Teams Have the Opportunity to Win the Largest Grand Prize Ever, $2 Million Dollars  

 

Click Here to Meet the Cast

 

CHEAT TWEET: The #AmazingRace returns 9/30 w/ Chippendales dancers, a heavy metal rocker, a double amputee, & the biggest twist ever http://bit.ly/TtFnpM 

 

CBS announced today the 11 teams that will travel the world on a global adventure for the new season of THE AMAZING RACE, premiering Sunday, Sept. 30 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.  Emmy Award nominee Phil Keoghan is the host.

 

THE AMAZING RACE has won the Emmy Award for “Outstanding Reality-Competition Program” eight times in the past nine years.  

 

This season, which marks the 21st race around the world for the series, will introduce a new twist to the game that will raise the stakes for the entire season. If the Team that wins the first leg of the season can outrace the other 10 Teams and win the final leg of the Race, they will double their money and win a $2 million grand prize instead of $1 million.  

 

Teams will travel through three continents, nine countries and cover more than 25,000 miles, where they’ll be faced with a 10-story rappel in Los Angeles, frying an egg on their heads in Indonesia, working as “rat collectors” in Bangladesh and revisiting one of the Race’s most infamous Roadblocks in the Netherlands in this season’s “Switchback.”

 

This season’s cast includes a pair of Chippendales dancers, married monster truckers, a world champion lumberjack, a double amputee professional snowboarder and Josh Kilmer-Purcell and Brent Ridge (“The Fabulous Beekman Boys”).

Following are the 11 teams, listed in no particular order:

 

Name: Natalie Anderson

Age: 26

Hometown: Edgewater, N.J.

Current occupation: Physical Therapy Student

 

Name: Nadiya Anderson

Age: 26

Hometown: Edgewater, N.J.

Current occupation: Project Coordinator at Bridge2Peace

 

 

Connection: Twin Sisters

 

 

Name: Josh Kilmer-Purcell

Age: 43

Hometown: Sharon Springs, N.Y.

Current occupation: Goat Farmer/Advertising Executive/Author

 

Name: Brent Ridge

Age: 38

Hometown: Sharon Springs, N.Y.

Current occupation: Chief Executive Officer of Beekman 1802

 

Connection: Goat Farmers/Life Partners

 

 

Name: Rob French

Age: 46

Hometown: Boston, Ga.

Current occupation: Professional Monster Truck Driver

 

Name: Kelley Carrington-French

Age: 50

Hometown: Boston, Ga.

Current occupation: Professional Monster Truck Driver

 

Connection: Married Monster Truckers

_________________________________________________________________________

Name: Trey Wier

Age: 23

Hometown: Austin, Texas

Current occupation: Land Consultant/Former College Athlete

 

 

Name: Alexis “Lexi” Beerman

Age: 22

Hometown: Dripping Springs, Texas

Current occupation: Clothing Designer

 

Connection: Dating

 

Name: James LoMenzo

Age: 53

Hometown: Burbank, Calif.

Current occupation: Professional Musician/

Former Band Member of White Lion and Megadeth

 

Name: Mark “Abba” Abbattista

Age: 45

Hometown: Denver, Colo.

Current occupation: Entertainment Lawyer

 

Connection: Friends

 

Name: Abbie Ginsberg

Age: 31

Hometown: Encinitas, Calif.

Current occupation: Dance Instructor/ Choreographer

 

Name: Ryan Danz

Age: 35

Hometown: San Diego, Calif.

Current occupation: Financial Service Company Owner

 

Connection: Dating Divorcees

 

________________________________________________________________________

Name: Jaymes Vaughan

Age: 30

Hometown: Las Vegas, Nev.

Current occupation: Chippendales MC

 

Name: James Davis

Age: 27

Hometown: Las Vegas, Nev.

Current occupation: Chippendales Dancer

 

Connection: Chippendales Dancers/Best Friends

 

 

_________________________________________________________________________

 

Name: Rob Scheer

Age: 52

Hometown: Ketchikan, Alaska

Current occupation: Lumberjack and Entrepreneur

 

Name: Sheila Castle

Age: 44

Hometown: Pigeon Forge, Tenn.

Current occupation: Retail Manager

 

Connection: Engaged

 

 

Name: Caitlin King

Age: 24

Hometown: Atlanta, Ga.

Current occupation: Special Ed Teacher

 

Name: Brittany Fletcher

Age: 25

Hometown: Chicago, Ill.

Current occupation: Medical Device Sales

 

Connection: Best Friends

 

_________________________________________________________________________

 

Name: Gary Wojnar

Age: 52

Hometown: Livonia, Mich.

Current occupation: Substitute Teacher

 

Name: Will Chiola

Age: 53

Hometown: Dearborn Heights, Mich.

Current occupation: Substitute Teacher

 

Connection: Best Friends/Substitute Teachers

 

 

_________________________________________________________________________

Name: Amy Purdy   

Age: 32

Hometown: Summit County, Colo.

Current occupation: Motivational Speaker/Snowboarder

(Amy is a double amputee)

 

Name: Daniel Gale

Age: 36

Hometown: Summit County, Colo. 

Current occupation: Executive Director

 

Connection: Dating On and Off

 

 

THE AMAZING RACE sends 11 teams on a trek around the world.  Each Team is comprised of two people who have a pre-existing relationship with one another.  At every destination, each Team competes in a series of challenges — some mental and some physical — and when the tasks have been completed, they learn their next destination.  Teams who are farthest behind will gradually be eliminated as the contest progresses, with the first team to arrive at the final destination winning at least $1 million.

 

Jerry Bruckheimer, Bertram van Munster, Jonathan Littman, Elise Doganieri and Mark Vertullo are the executive producers for Jerry Bruckheimer Television and Earthview Inc. in association with ABC Studios and Amazing Race Productions.  THE AMAZING RACE was created by Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri.

 

Photos are available on www.cbspressexpress.com

 

Website: www.cbs.com/primetime/amazing_race/

 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/amazingrace

 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/amazingrace_cbs

 

CBS Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/CBSTweet

 

*   *   *

 

Press Contacts:

Mitch Graham  818-655-1592  mitch.graham@cbs.com

Steven Feldman  212-975-7931  steven.feldman2@cbs.com

 

Photo Contacts:

Rudi Simpson  818-655-1545  rudi.simpson@cbs.com

Kathleen Prutting 212-975-8533  kprutting@cbs.com