The Amazing Race: Season 14 Starts Sunday February 15

On Thursday I was caught by surprise with Survivor already back on the air. Seems like it was just yesterday that Bob won the million on Survivor: Gabon. It was Bob who won, wasn't it?

And now this morning I learn that tomorrow at 8pm Eastern, 7pm Central a new The Amazing Race starts up. I'm starting to have TV overload. I don't know if I could manage it without than newfangled miracle worker known as a DVR. I'm amazed that this is now the 14th running of The Amazing Race. It is so popular in other countries and consistently wins Emmy Awards, that I guess CBS thinks it's a good idea to keep The Amazing Race running.

Way back in 2004 a former friend of mine and I decided to try out for The Amazing Race. But first she had to get in shape and lose a lot of weight. Now, 5 years later, The Amazing Race is still running strong, while my former friend has doubled, maybe tripled in size. I need a new racing partner. I'm taking applications.

Looking at the racers it would appear that once again we have no alpha male pairs of the sort that too often dominated earlier races. There are 2 male pairing, one a dad and son, the other pair may have been alpha males in their prime, but this pair of brother are in the half century old zone.

I do not remember, in past Amazing Races, knowing where the Pit Stops were and what countries would be raced through, prior to the race starting.

But, according to the CBS Amazing Race website, the race starts in Los Angeles, goes to Stechelberg, Switzerland, then Salzburg, Austria, Bran, Romania, Novosibirsk, Russian, south to Jaipur, India (ugh, India), then to Phuket, Thailand (didn't that place get wiped out by the Tsunami?), north to Bangkok, Thailand (been there, done that), further north to Gublin, China, followed by 2 Pit Stops in Beijing, before making a mad dash back to the good ol' United States of America for a finish on Maui in Hawaii.

Of all the countries in this new race, I don't recollect The Amazing Race running to Romania before. The other countries I believe we have been to. I think they always throw India into the mix, due to India reliably providing a good dose of extreme culture shock that can be both disgusting and highly entertaining. Let's hope this time it leans toward the entertaining side of the scale more than the disgusting.