On Amazing Race, how do the contestants get money to pay for tickets, taxis, etc.?
—Gail, Florida With money given to them by the producers at the beginning of each leg. You must be zoning out at the beginning of each episode, because when teams read the first clue as each episode begins, they always say something like, “You have $58 for this leg of the race.” Sometimes teams get a small amount of cash; other times, it’s a significantly larger amount. But that cash, which is nearly always issued in U.S. dollars, is enough to get them through all tasks and to the next pit stop. It must cover bus tickets, food, taxi rides, admission, and anything else they’ll need. Teams must budget; if they’re required to get from point A to B, and they opt to take a taxi instead of a bus, they might find themselves running out of money later. The only exceptions are airline tickets, which are purchased with a credit card issued by the producers to each team. That card may not be used for anything except airline tickets. (By the way, teams have to purchase four tickets, not two : thei
