The 11 teams from the Amazing Race got their start in Times Square in New York and headed off to Flushing Meadows Park, the same place where Season 1 concluded 25 years ago. New this year, is a save pass that allows the winners from the first leg to save themselves from being eliminated up until the ninth leg of the race. Once the teams arrived at Flushing Meadows parks, they found instructions to fly to St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Adam and Bethany, a couple from Hawaii were in first place at this point. You might remember Bethany as the young woman who was bitten by a shark at the age of 13.

Only five teams were allowed on the first flight leaving John F. Kennedy Airport in New York. Adam and Bethany, #soulsurfers,  lost their lead early, because they stood in the wrong counter at the airport. That brought dating couple, and college sweethearts, Te Jay and Tim to the lead as  first team on the first flight.  Dennis and Isabelle, #TheDatingCouple, Bethany and Adam, #SoulSurfers, Misti and Jim, #TheDentists, and Kym and Alli, #TheCyclists were all on the first flight. They had a 40 minute advantage over the other teams.

The Amazing Race S25

Photo Courtesy of CBS

The Amazing Race teams on the second flight were Amy and Maya #SweetScientists, Shelley and Nici, MomDaughter, Lisa and Michelle, #MiamiRealtors, Brooke and Robbie, #TheWrestlers, Michael and Scott, #TheFirefighters, and Keith and Whitney, #TeamNashville.

All of the teams flew to St. Thomas where they had to get to Vendors Plaza and take a Sea Plane to their next location in St. Thomas. The Sea Plane was incredible, because it flew at a low altitude and the view was amazing.

Team Miami Realtors played dirty early on. They snatched the pen for the sign up sheet to take the Sea Plane from the Firefighters, so the Firefighters were last on the list.

Once at their location, the teams had to climb up and  jump from a two story rock into the Caribbean.  Their next clue was underwater. Te Jay and Tim were in first place, followed by Bethany and Adam at this point, and both two teams completed the challenge before he rest of the group, so they took Blackbeard’s ship to a beach for their next challenge.

Next, the Amazing Race teams found themselves digging for a treasure chest, buried in the sand. The treasure chest contained the location for the pit stop. By the way, did you know that some people believe that Blackbeard’s treasure is buried somewhere in or near St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands? Anyway, what was the tricky part of this challenge? They used old fashioned liquid compasses to help them find the spot to dig.

Jim stood out as a clever racer. He was able to figure out the compass quickly. Apparently, the dentist also had a high score on his MCAT exam, and his second half, Misti said that he was one of the smartest person she knew. Other teams came to Jim for help. All of them, except Jim seemed to struggle. The Miami Realtors said that they use a GPS in the real word, so of course Lisa, #miamirealtors, had difficulties with the compass. Didn’t they know that they wouldn’t be using a GPS on the Amazing Race? That’s part of the fun.

After they found the clue, they went straight to the Pit Stop Fort Christiansvaern. Michael and Scott, the firefighters who had the pen swiped from them, were in last place at this point. So, it looked like there was going to be a battle between them and Brooke and Robbie to see if they would make it through.

Amazing Race S25 First Teams to the Pit Stop

Misti and Jim were in first place  to the Pit Stop. Jim’s smart thinking helped make them victorious. Tim and Te Jay made it to the pit stop second. and Kym and Ali were team number 3. Brooke and Robbie were team 4. Adam and Bethany were team 5.  Amy and Maya were team 6. Dennis and Isabelle were team number 7.  Shelley and Nic were number 8.  

Struggling Already?

Keith and Whitney dug for that treasure chest on the beach for over three hours. Keith was exhausted and said “I dug this whole area, so what do I do?” He was maybe a foot away from the chest.  Lisa dug for the #MiamiRealtors team, and she felt that the treasure chest just wasn’t where she was digging. She was right! The treasure chest was near her.  It was within a couple of feet from her.

Scott was also close to the chest after three hours, but he was digging away in the wrong spot. Keith and Whitney decided to take the four hour penalty for not being able to find the chest and decided to get the other teams to do the same, so they told the other teams their plans. So, the group collectively agreed to go for the penalty and make a run for the pit stop together. That turned the race into a foot race between three teams: Keith and Whitney, Lisa and Michelle, and Michael and Scott.  

Lisa and Michelle had the nerve to be salty when the firefighters pushed them out of the way when they were trying to get in the cab to get to Fort Christianvaern. Keith and Whitney were in the cab first, and made it to the Pit Stop first out of this group. The firefighters, Michael and Scott were second and so the Miami Realtors, Lisa and Michelle were last to the Pit Stop and were eliminated from the Amazing Race. In episode two of the Amazing Race 25 it looks like Nici and Shelley raced to the finish against Dennis and Isabelle.