History Characters / TheAmazingRace9

Cancer survivor and her husband. They frequently [[FailedASpotCheck missed things in plain sight]], but after a slow start, they managed to hang on for two-thirds of the season as a middle of the pack team, mostly because they were the only team on the season with any ability to navigate. They are the oldest team in the series to win a leg without a Fast Forward, and Phil was noticeably shocked when they arrived first in Oman. However, their luck ran out in the following leg when the cab they called ahead for didn't show up at the Fremantle Ferry, and they finished 5th.

Dentist and his wife/assistant from Mississippi, Lake was known for his loud, aggressive, often abusive behavior. He would eventually break down when they got lost looking for the Pit Stop in Greece, landing them 6th.

* ChewingTheScenery: Lake.

* GlobalIgnorance: Lake thinking they spoke Spanish in Brazil.

* {{Jerkass}}: Lake.

* TheMasochismTango: Reached its climax in their last leg, with Lake's "Shut up, bitch!"

Dating nerd couple. They had a pleasant relationship to the point that Dave immediately regretted the one fight they had. They ended in 7th place after there was no full equalizer in leg 5, and they were unable to catch up with the other teams. They were one of the 15 teams selected by Phil to come back for All-Stars, though they did not make the cut.

* [[ThisIsACompetition This Is A Race]]: They started quoting this during the episode after the snafu with the cab sharing in Moscow.
* RealityShowGenreBlindness: They shared a cab with Joseph & Monica in Moscow.

Long distance dating couple. They generally kept to themselves, out of the friendships and drama building between the other teams. They survived almost being eliminated several times due to other teams' mistakes, keeping a somewhat positive attitude and avoiding fighting for the good majority of the race. In the finale they had trouble finding the hidden clue at the Clear Creek Historical Park in the finale, dropping behind the other teams and finishing 3rd..

Long distance dating couple. They generally kept to themselves, out of the friendships and drama building between the other teams. They survived almost being eliminated several times due to other teams' mistakes, keeping a somewhat positive attitude and avoiding fighting for the good majority of the race. They finished 3rd when they had trouble finding the hidden clue at the Clear Creek Historical Park in the finale.

* NoSenseOfDirection: This is what left them completely unable to compete with the top two teams in the final legs, as they would constantly have to stop and ask for directions.

* {{Pixellation}}: Ray flicked off Yolanda while crossing the Rio–Antirrio bridge.
* SassyBlackWoman: Yolanda.

Best friends, they were obsessed with the girls of the world, including fellow team Danielle & Dani, and flirted with these women constantly. They dominated the first two-thirds of the season, hitting six of the first nine mats in 1st place[[note]]They had five official leg wins, and were the first team to check in at the midpoint of the double leg, back when double legs were considered one long leg instead of two separate ones[[/note]], and were the first team to put up a finishing average better than 2.00[[note]]Their 1.69 is still the best finishing average in the U.S. series, and they trail only [[Characters/TheAmazingRaceAsia2 Marc & Rovilson's]] 1.46 in the whole franchise[[/note]]. Though they managed to get out to a lead in the finale, Eric stumbled at the Final Roadblock, unable to remember order of the countries they had visited, and they ended up 2nd.

While the two as a team were not asked back for All-Stars, Eric was asked back on the condition that he race with Danielle (from Danielle & Dani), with whom he had started dating after the season.

* BornLucky: A majority of their six 1st place finishes (including both parts of the Super Leg) were due to luck, either because other teams got delayed by airport/plane snafus[[note]]They were on the second flight in the first leg, but the first one got delayed[[/note]], or because of [[LuckBasedMission "needle in a haystack"]] tasks (the nesting doll Detour in the first part of leg 3, both the Roaming Gnome Roadblock and bottle breaking Detours in the second part of leg 3, and the plate breaking Fast Forward in leg 6). They were also able to cruise along at the front of the pack during the longest stretch of Race without an equalizer outside of [[Characters/TheAmazingRace1 Season 1]]. Prior to leg 5, B.J. & Tyler talked about how much dumb luck they had been getting, but they also said dumb luck eventually runs out...
* BackstabBackfire: In the process of cancelling B.J. & Tyler's and Ray & Yolanda's cabs in Australia, they ended up cancelling their own as well.
* CallItKarma: They said it was Karma that their cab didn't show up when they cancelled the other teams'.
* CasanovaWannabe: Oh so badly. They flirted with every woman they came across.

* DickDastardlyStopsToCheat: At the beginning of leg 9, they tried to cancel the other teams' cabs by masquerading as Ray and Tyler on the phone. This backfired when they realized their own cab was canceled as well. WordOfGod says their own cab getting cancelled is the only reason they avoided getting a penalty for sabotaging the other teams, as they were the ones who suffered most from it.

* MistakenIdentity: When the clue in Shibuya Crossing told them to find UsefulNotes/{{Hachiko}}, they asked some nearby women where to find it. The women naturally pointed them in the direction of the statue, where they found the man holding their next clue. For some reason, they thought the man is Hachiko, and wondered how the women knew who Hachiko was.
* [[ReadTheFreakingManual Read The Freaking Clue]]: Eric claimed this was the secret to their success early in the race: just being idiots reading their clues.

After the failed experiment that was the [[Characters/TheAmazingRaceFamilyEdition Family Edition]], a preview for the Race's 9th season promised a much-needed return to form. However, the season started off very slowly, partially thanks to two teams dominating the season from the very beginning (in both placements and, by extension, screen time). The overly predictable nature of the season, with those two teams winning 11 of the 13 legs, the over-reliance on [[LuckBasedMission "Needle in a Haystack" tasks]], and having two of the most popular teams going out early failed to recapture the momentum that stalled with Family Edition, and the season garnered even worse ratings. However, the season itself did earn many fans, especially since it contains one of the most popular teams to run the race, and started the trend of FinalExamFinale tasks appearing more regularly.

University friends, Tyler was a filmmaker who first came to prominence with his documentary ''Kintaro Walks Japan'', which he made to impress his Japanese girlfriend. They were very wacky and outgoing, and became one of the most popular teams to ever run the race due to their comedic antics. They dominated the season along with Eric & Jeremy, though to a lesser degree, as they went through a slump in the middle of the season in which they barely escaped elimination three times. Upon arriving in Colorado during the finale, they fell behind Eric & Jeremy during the initial string of cab rides. However, B.J. was able to pass Eric during the [[FinalExamFinale final flags Roadblock]], winning them the Race. Though they were never in consideration for [[Characters/TheAmazingRace11 All-Stars]], to the surprise of many[[note]]Bertram van Munster said he felt their story had been played out, and Phil said he felt [[Characters/TheAmazingRace7 Uchenna & Joyce]] were the more popular winners.[[/note]], the show spent years trying to find another team that could recreate the overwhelming audience response that B.J. & Tyler received.

* {{Blackmail}}: According to Joseph & Monica, they threatened to Yield the couple unless they gave them money after their first non-elimination save. [=MoJo=] did not come through with the money, and so they got Yielded.

** They paid tribute to Linda & Karen's iconic Bowling Moms T-Shirts from Season 5[[note]]In response, Linda & Karen wore shirts saying "B.J." and "Tyler" to that season's finale party[[/note]].
** B.J. quoted, "It's on like Donkey Kong," in their pre-Final 3 speech, quoting [[Characters/TheAmazingRace1 Frank]] and [[Characters/TheAmazingRace5 Chip]].
* CallItKarma: They were both believers in this sort of Karma.

* TheGlomp: B.J. grabbed and kissed Phil on the cheek when they avoided elimination in Greece.
* [[GranolaGirl Granola Guys]]

* LargeHam: Mainly Tyler.

* NoSenseOfDirection: Drove one hour in the wrong direction in Greece, but stayed in the race due to Lake & Michelle getting even more lost.
* [[ReadTheFreakingManual Read the Freaking Clue]]: Along with Ray & Yolanda and Lake & Michelle, they got off their train early in Corinth, Greece instead of taking it all the way to the Isthmos station, and got a 15-minute penalty.
* RevengeBeforeReason: Yielding Monica & Joseph (for not giving them money after they had been hit with the mugging penalty the previous leg and suspicions of cancelling their cab earlier in that leg) instead of Eric & Jeremy, who had won the majority of the legs at that point.
* SitcomArchnemesis: Joseph & Monica.
* SpotlightStealingSquad: Their wacky hijinks and interactions with most of the other teams were the main focus of the season. It wasn't too bad at the beginning, but after the eliminations of Wanda & Desiree and Lori & Dave, the majority of the extra airtime now available went to them.
* TookALevelInJerkass: Post-Race. Along with [[Characters/TheAmazingRace5 Chip & Kim]], they openly complained when they did not get invited back for All-Stars, released a video mocking the teams they felt were "lesser choices," called themselves the most popular team to ever run the race, and the "most winningest winners ever to win." It was that kind of behavior that put into question whether their rivalry with Joseph & Monica was as one sided as it looked.

* CatchPhrase: Possibly the most catchphrase-heavy racers ever, with their power word "T-TOW!" and "Frat Boys!!!" featuring most prominently.

* ShockingElimination: As they initially seemed like a team that could keep up with the dominating B.J. & Tyler and Eric & Jeremy.

Best friends, they were obsessed with the girls of the world, including fellow team Danielle & Dani, and flirted with these women constantly. They dominated the first two-thirds of the season, hitting six of the first nine mats in 1st place[[note]]They had five official leg wins, and were the first team to check in at the midpoint of the double leg, back when double legs were considered one long leg instead of two separate ones[[/note]], and were the first team to put up a finishing average better than 2.00[[note]]Their 1.69 is still the best finishing average in the U.S. series, and they trail only [[Characters/TheAmazinfRaceAsia2 Marc & Rovilson's]] 1.46 in the whole franchise[[/note]]. Though they managed to get out to a lead in the finale, Eric stumbled at the Final Roadblock, unable to remember order of the countries they had visited, and they ended up 2nd.

Best friends, they were obsessed with the girls of the world, including fellow team Danielle & Dani, and flirted with these women constantly. They dominated the first two-thirds of the season, hitting six of the first nine mats in 1st place[[note]]They had five official leg wins, and were the first team to check in at the midpoint of the double leg, back when double legs were considered one long leg instead of two separate ones[[/note]], and were the first team to put up a finishing average better than 2.00[[note]]Their 1.69 is still the best finishing average in the U.S. series, and they trail only [[Characters/TheAmazinfRaceAsia2 Marc & Rovilson's]] 1.42 in the whole franchise[[/note]]. Though they managed to get out to a lead in the finale, Eric stumbled at the Final Roadblock, unable to remember order of the countries they had visited, and they ended up 2nd.

Best friends, and the more obvious Alpha Male team of the season, they were obsessed with the girls of the world, including fellow team Danielle & Dani, and flirted with these women constantly. They dominated the season, setting the record for the best overall finishing average of any team[[note]]which only [[Characters/TheAmazingRace20 Dave & Rachel]] have come close to since then[[/note]] and hit six of the first nine mats in 1st place[[note]]They had five official leg wins, and were the first team to check in at the midpoint of the double leg, back when double legs were considered one long leg instead of two separate ones[[/note]]. Though they managed to get out to a lead in the finale, Eric stumbled at the Final Roadblock, unable to remember order of the countries they had visited, and they ended up 2nd.

* PortmanteauCoupleName: They even wore "Mo" and "Jo" shirts to emphasize this.

* RelationshipUpgrade: Post-Race, they gotten marry.

* MistakenIdentity: When the clue in Shibuya Crossing told them to find {{Hachiko}}, they asked some nearby women where to find it. The women naturally pointed them in the direction of the statue, where they found the man holding their next clue. For some reason, they thought the man is Hachiko, and wondered how the women knew who Hachiko was.

Elderly couple, with Fran being a cancer survivor. They frequently [[FailedASpotCheck missed things in plain sight]], but persevered late into the season, mostly because they were the only team on the season with any ability to navigate. They are the oldest team to win a leg without a Fast Forward, with Phil being noticeably shocked when they arrived first in Oman. However, their luck ran out in the next leg when the cab they called didn't show up at the Fremantle Ferry, and they finished 5th.

* [[BadassGrandpa Badass]] [[NeverMessWithGranny Grandparents]]: They are the oldest team to ever win a leg, and not a cupcake leg either, as the Roadblock involved searching through a bunch of holes for a bag of meat ''in the middle of the desert''. On the next leg, they complained that the race was ruining their sex life. Granted, they, like [[Characters/TheAmazingRace7 Gretchen & Meredith]], don't look too impressive next to racers like [[Characters/TheAmazingRace12 Donald]] and [[Characters/TheAmazingRace19 Bill & Cathi]], but this was before the proliferation of the {{Metagame}}.
* BaldOfAwesome
* FailedASpotCheck: In the first leg, they spent over half an hour looking for the cluebox, passing it up multiple times, sometimes even coming within arm's length of the box, with the cameraman pointing it out every time. When they found it, Fran thought someone moved it. They almost did the same thing in Italy, but much less time was lost in that case. Barry also [[WatchOutForThatTree backed his car into the lone tree in a parking lot in Greece]] at one point.

* GoshDangItToHeck: "Daggummit."
* IdiotBall: Made a series of mistakes at the Munich airport that dropped them out of the lead pack with B.J. & Tyler and Eric & Jeremy. Though they were the first team to think of booking tickets to Palermo online, they couldn't get the website to switch to English, allowing B.J. & Tyler to scoop out the tickets from under them. They then didn't stick around at the counter like Eric & Jeremy, and therefore missed out on standby tickets. They found a later flight, but just blindly booked the tickets, while three other teams found a faster connecting flight in Rome (including Fran & Barry, who talked to the same exact woman they did), putting them on the last flight with Danielle & Dani and Ray & Yolanda.

* TheLoad: Michelle. She second-guessed every one of Lake's decisions, and refused to take a diving Roadblock in fear she might have to do it naked.
* MasochismTango: Reached its climax in their last leg, with Lake's "Shut up, bitch!"

* NoSenseOfDirection
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Lake's real name is never mentioned on the show.
* [[ReadTheFreakingManual Read the Freaking Clue]]: In the first leg they pulled off the highway to call ahead and reserve tickets on the first flight. Doubles as RealityShowGenreBlindness as teams are never allowed to call ahead to reserve tickets in the first leg.

Blonde friends team. As the season's dumb blonde team, they constantly made bone-headed mistakes that almost had them eliminated. They have the distinction of being the only direct victims of the Yield in the series (since no other team was eliminated on the same leg they got Yielded) when Dani subsequently struggled with the statue Roadblock, allowing Ray to pass them, and finished 8th. Still, they flirted with Eric & Jeremy, which was enough for the producers to consider pairing Danielle with Eric in All-Stars.

* MsFanservice: Though many people found Yolanda and Desiree more attractive.

Latina mother/daughter pair. They started off strong by finishing 3rd in the first leg, but were hit hard by Killer Fatigue during the double-leg, leading them to get terribly lost in Germany, and were then narrowly beaten out by Danielle & Dani at the needle-in-a-haystack gnome Roadblock, finishing 9th.

The season's Team Gay, they suffered from two bad cab drivers and constant bickering, which led to them going out first in 11th place.

Best friends, and the more obvious Alpha Male team of the season, they were obsessed with the girls of the world, including fellow team Danielle & Dani, and flirted with these women constantly. They dominated the season, setting the record for the best overall finishing average of any team[[note]]which only [[Characters/TheAmazingRace20 Dave & Rachel]] have come close to since then[[/note]] and hit six of the first nine mats in 1st place[[note]]They had five official leg wins, and were the first team to check in at the midpoint of the double leg, back when double legs were considered one long leg instead of two separate ones[[/note]]. Though they managed to get out to a lead in the finale, Eric stumbled at the Final Roadblock, unable to remember the flags of the countries they visited, and they ended up 2nd.

While the two as a team were not asked back for All-Stars, Eric was asked back on the condition that he race with Danielle (from Danielle & Dani), with whom he had flirted with.

* BornLucky: A majority of their six 1st place finishes (including both parts of the Super Leg) were due to luck, either because other teams got delayed by airport/plane snafus, or because of [[LuckBasedMission "needle in a haystack"]] tasks (the nesting doll Detour in the first part of leg 3, both the Roaming Gnome Roadblock and bottle breaking Detours in the second part of leg 3, and the plate breaking Fast Forward in leg 6). They were also able to cruise along at the front of the pack during the longest stretch of Race without an equalizer outside of [[Characters/TheAmazingRace1 Season 1]]. Prior to leg 5, B.J. & Tyler talked about how much dumb luck they had been getting, but they also said dumb luck eventually runs out...

* CasanovaWannabe
* CurbStompBattle: They only finished below 2nd once, and if it weren't for mixing up the flags in the final challenge...

* DumbBlond: Jeremy. Needless to say, Eric was the brains of the outfit.

* HaveIMentionedIAmHeterosexualToday: Barely a scene goes by without them mentioning the ladies. Seriously, you could probably make a drinking game out of it.

* MrFanservice

* RealityShowGenreBlindness: They shared a cab with Danielle & Dani in Moscow.

* UnskilledButStrong: Jeremy more so than Eric.

Athletic African-American dating couple. They generally kept to themselves, out of the friendships and drama building between the other teams. They survived almost being eliminated several times due to other teams' mistakes, keeping a somewhat positive attitude and avoiding fighting for the good majority of the race. They finished 3rd when they had trouble finding the hidden clue at the Clear Creek Historical Park in the finale.

* FailedASpotCheck: They continued to argue after their Yield timer run out, standing there longer than they had to.

University friends, Tyler was a filmmaker who first came to prominence with his documentary ''Kintaro Walks Japan'', which he made to impress his Japanese girlfriend. They were very wacky and outgoing, and became one of the most popular teams to ever run the race due to their comedic antics. They dominated the season along with Eric & Jeremy, though to a lesser degree, as they went through a slump in the middle of the season in which they barely escaped elimination three times. Upon arriving in Colorado during the finale, they fell behind Eric & Jeremy. However, B.J. was able to pass Eric during the [[FinalExamFinale final flags Roadblock]], winning them the Race. Though they were never in consideration for [[Characters/TheAmazingRace11 All-Stars]], to the surprise of many[[note]]Bertram van Munster said he felt their story had been played out, and Phil said he felt [[Characters/TheAmazingRace7 Uchenna & Joyce]] were the more popular winners.[[/note]], the show spent years trying to find another team that could recreate the overwhelming audience response that B.J. & Tyler received.

* BadLiar: When confronted by Monica at the mat in Darwin, Australia, saying that they had been spreading rumors about her and Eric to cause friction, Tyler stammered for a few seconds before B.J. said, "There were no mind games."
* BatmanGambit: They decided to needle Joseph about the flirting between Eric and Monica in order to cause friction in their alliance.

** They paid tribute to Linda & Karen's iconic Bowling Moms T-Shirts from Season 5 (In response, Linda & Karen wore shirts saying "B.J." and "Tyler" to that season's finale party).

* FanDisservice: Upon losing his shoes and pants after their second non-elimination, B.J. received a pair of skintight purple nightmare pants from Yolanda.

* NiceHat: B.J.'s cowboy hat, and the frog hat he wore in Greece, and the top hat he picked up in Darwin, Australia.

* NoSenseOfDirection: Drove 1 hour in the wrong direction in Greece, but stayed in the race due to Lake & Michelle getting even more lost.

* TookALevelInJerkass: Post-Race. Along with [[Characters/TheAmazingRace5 Chip & Kim]], they openly complained when they did not get invited back for All-Stars, released a video mocking the teams they felt were "lesser choices," called themselves the most popular team to ever run the race, and the "most winningest winners ever to win." Bertram van Munster himself said they were not invited back because their story had been played out. It was that kind of behavior that put into question whether their rivalry with Joseph & Monica was as one sided as it looked.

Best friends, and the more obvious alpha-male team of the season. They were obsessed with the girls of the world, including fellow team Danielle & Dani. They set the record for the best overall finishing average of any team and (unofficially) tied [[Characters/TheAmazingRace5 Colin & Christie's]] record of six leg wins, only to be beat out by B.J. & Tyler when Eric stumbled at the Final Roadblock, unable to remember the flags of the countries they visited, and ended up 2nd.

While the two as a team were not asked back for All-Stars, Eric was asked back on the condition that he race with Danielle (from Danielle & Dani), with whom he had flirted with through the race.

University friends, with Tyler being a filmmaker who first came to prominence with his documentary ''Kintaro Walks Japan''. Very wacky and outgoing, they made their presence known throughout the various countries they visited. They became one of the most popular teams to ever run the race due to their comedic antics, but to the fans that found them unfunny instead, they were ''really'' hated. They exchanged first place with Eric & Jeremy throughout the race, eventually beating them at the final flags Roadblock to win the million.

University friends, with Tyler being a filmmaker who first came to prominence with his documentary ''Kintaro Walks Japan''. Very wacky and outgoing, they made their presence known throughout the various countries they visited. They became one of the most popular teams to run the race due to their comedic antics, but to the fans that found them unfunny instead, they were ''really'' hated. They exchanged first place with Eric & Jeremy throughout the race, eventually beating them at the final flags Roadblock to win the million.

After the failed experiment that was the [[Characters/TheAmazingRaceFamilyEdition Family Edition]], a preview for the Race's 9th season promised a much-needed return to form. The cast featured a quirky cavalcade of characters, with a goofy and very self-aware atmosphere. However, thanks to two teams dominating the entire season (in both placements and, by extension, screen time), it was seen as slightly predictable, even with the odd upset here and there. In the larger picture, the slow start to the season, the over-reliance on [[LuckBasedMission "Needle in a Haystack" tasks]], and having two of the most popular teams going out early failed to recapture the momentum that stalled with Family Edition, and the show garnered its worst ratings post [[Characters/TheAmazingRace5 Season 5]] (with even the Family Edition and [[Characters/TheAmazingRace2 Season 2]] pulling in better ratings). However, the season itself did earn many fans, especially since it contains one of the most popular teams to run the race, and started the trend of FinalExamFinale tasks appearing more regularly.

* JustFriends

* {{Pixelation}}: Ray flicked off Yolanda while crossing the Rio–Antirrio bridge.

* BreakoutCharacter: They displaced Ray & Yolanda on the Season 9 DVD cover despite finishing 7th.

* ProudToBeAGeek: hey constantly referred to themselves as "Nerds in Love".

* TheGoodGuysAlwaysWin

* DumbMuscle: They were even called this by B.J. & Tyler.

* MyNameIsNotDurwood: For some reason, Yolanda kept calling them "Frank & Barry"