The Amazing Race 7 is the seventh installment of the popular reality television show, The Amazing Race. This installment premiered on March 1, 2005.

Filming began on November 20, 2004 and finished on December 17, 2004.

In this edition of the race, a change was made to the non-elimination leg penalty. In addition to being stripped of all their money and receiving no allowance for the next leg of the race, teams were forced to surrender all of their possessions, except for their passports and the clothes they were wearing, for the remainder of the race. In outtakes, available on the CBS website, Gretchen revealed that she was also allowed to keep her tampons. They were also no longer allowed to beg for money prior to the start of the next leg (after the next leg started, they can beg for money). The racers could also receive or buy clothing or toiletries from other teams.

Results

The following teams participated in the Race, listed in most recent finishing order:

• Red means the team was eliminated.
• Blue means the team was the last to arrive at the Pit Stop in a non-elimination leg of the race. The team was not eliminated and was forced to surrender all their money and possessions (except for their passports and clothes they were wearing) for the remainder of the race. The team did not receive any money at the beginning of the next leg and were not permitted to acquire money before the start of the next leg.
• Green means the team won the Fast Forward clue.
• A yellow > means that team chose to use the Yield; < indicates the team who received it.
• *Leg 8 was double-length with two Detours and two Roadblocks. The users of the Fast Forward received it after the midpoint, and thus were only permitted to skip the second set of challenges.

Trivia

• This edition featured the first mother/son team.
• Three reality show alumni were part of this race. Engaged couple Amber Brkich and Rob Mariano both appeared on Survivor. Brian appeared on a Christmas episode of Fear Factor.
• Brian appeared in a Heineken commercial with Jennifer Aniston. [1]
• This season featured several prizes, given to the winners of certain legs, that had never before been featured on the show: on the first leg, $10,000 went to each teammate (for a total of $20,000) for the winning team; on the fifth leg, a Toyota RAV4 went to each teammate. Previously, only vacations and cameras had been offered in this manner.
• Travelocity replaced previous show regular sponsors American Airlines Vacations and Royal Caribbean Cruises.
• The third leg featured a difficult Roadblock in which players had to eat four pounds of meat and organs. An unprecedented four players actually quit the food eating task: Rob, Meredith, Deanna, and Patrick. Although it was not shown on television, Patrick quit the Roadblock but later decided to complete it.
• The potential winners were listed as such in an online betting scandal. [2][3]
• Uchenna and Joyce were originally scheduled to appear on Season 6. They were sequestered in Santa Monica, California at the beginning of that race, but were cut at the last minute before the race began in Chicago.
• A cameraman suffered a broken leg when Brian and Greg's Land Rover flipped as they were driving from the Roadblock to the Detour on the sixth leg of the race.
• Sections of host Phil Keoghan's monologue have now been cut due to time constraints. For example, he no longer mentions that Pit Stops allow teams "to eat, sleep, and mingle with other contestants," or that each member may only complete a maximum of six roadblocks during the entire race.
• Host Phil Keoghan greeted teams at a race mat halfway through Leg 8 to hand them their next clue, marking the first time in the history of The Amazing Race that teams have stepped on a mat marker to be handed their next clue. Previously, teams only received route information stored in boxes or from locals after completing a task.
• The Leg 8 Fast Forward returned to the concept of a Fast Forward from Season 5 - an Indian good-luck ritual, where both team members must shave their heads - but this time, it was completed; the sole team to try in Season 5 balked at the task once they discovered it.

Race locations

Leg 1 (USA-Peru)

• Long Beach, California, USA (Starting Point)
• Los Angeles International Airport.
• Lima, Peru (Plaza de Armas)
• Ancón
• Cuzco
• Huambutio
• Pisac
• Cuzco (Convento de La Merced )

Leg 2 (Peru-Chile)

• Arequipa
• Santiago, Chile (Virgin Mary statue on Cerro San Cristóbal )
• Santiago (Neptune fountain on Cerro Santa Lucía )

Leg 3 (Chile-Argentina)

• Puente Viejo , Argentina ("old bridge")
• Mendoza (Camping Suizo) (Estancia San Isidro)

Leg 4 (Argentina)

• Lunlunta (cabaña La Guatana gaucho ranch)
• Buenos Aires (English Clock Tower at Plaza de la Fuerza Aerea )
• Tigre (docks)
• Vicente Casares (La Martina Polo Ranch)

Leg 5 (Argentina-South Africa)

• Johannesburg, South Africa (Tunnels or Tribes)
• Soweto (Baragwanath Market)
• Soweto (Orlando Children's Home)
• Soweto (Ngakane Street )

Leg 6 (South Africa-Botswana)

• Krugersdorp (Rhino & Lion Game Reserve)
• Gaborone, Botswana
• Francistown (Giant Aardvark)
• Xau Xarra
• Makgadikgadi Pans [4]

Leg 7 (Botswana)

• Sankuyo village
• Khwai River
• Khwai River Lodge[5]

Leg 8 (Botswana-India)

• Lucknow, India (Bara Imambara)
• Lucknow (Steel Emporium)
• Lucknow (Aishbagh Gas Station)
• Lucknow (Rooftop of Charbaugh Multiflats) (Leg midpoint; teams are told there is no Pit Stop and must continue)
• Lucknow (Lucknow Train Station)
• Jodhpur (Train Station)
• Jodhpur (Sardar Market)
• Jodhpur (Deora Krishi Farm)
• Jodhpur (Jaswant Thada)

External links

• Official site
• TARFlies Times (Season 7)