Amazing Race Ideas for Team Building

November 29th, 4:24 pm

Amazing Race Ideas for Team Building

Amazing Race is an adventurous game adapted from the famous reality TV show—The Amazing Race—where teams drive or fly to new destinations to complete physical, mental, eating, cultural, and other challenges in competition with other teams. The first team to complete the final checkpoint wins. The game is well known for its fierceness as contestants strive to reach first to the end of the race to avoid elimination.

When used in a team-building setting, Amazing Race aims at gathering the team in one location to have fun while competing to win the challenge. This highly interactive game maintains its fast-paced environment while emphasizing fun, not just winning the competition. It allows the team to follow clues and complete checkpoint challenges. However, this game has been adapted to allow other race and relay games, which a team can play together as part of the Amazing Race game.

Read more for great Amazing Race ideas and fun race activities for your next team-building event. Here we share:

  • Amazing Race activities for team building
  • Amazing Race challenges for team building
  • Amazing Race ideas for team building
  • DIY Amazing Race ideas for team building

Why Use Amazing Race for Team Building

The Amazing Race game is successful at creating a sense of togetherness and building incredible morale in teams. As one of the most recently sought team-building games, Amazing Race brings in a ton of fun for the team. The mix of team engagement, adventure, and different themes appeals to many team members of all ages, interests, and abilities. But that only happens if the game is done right. Here are some insanely fun ideas to try out for your team.

20 Amazing Race Team Building Games

Bonus: Amazing Cyberspace Race

The Amazing Race has been adapted for virtual teams through the Amazing Cyberspace Race. This virtual version of the game aims at connecting distant teams and satisfying their travel bug.

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Without travelling, virtual teams explore famous cities, complete challenges, and answer location questions to win points.

Try Amazing Cyberspace Race with an expert master for a stellar experience for your remote team.

Scavenger Hunt

Also called the treasure hunt, the scavenger hunt is one of the greatest challenges in the Amazing Race game. Here, the team uses clues to find items in the designated location. The team members have to work together during the hunt to navigate a custom-designed route to find the hidden items. By doing so, the teammates engage in the fun of a high-energy hunt.

We also have some exciting Scavenger Hunt games you can try out for your in-office and virtual team.

Photo Proof Challenge

Amazing Race Ideas

Like the scavenger hunt game, the photo proof task challenges the team to look for a specific item, such as a city clock or a phone booth, or just about anything in a designated location. The only difference is they have to take a photograph at a specific time. This challenge puts the planning and strategy of the team to the test.

Obstacle Race

Amazing Race Ideas

Obstacle racing involves overcoming substantial physical challenges. Often, these races combine trail runs and mud and require both mental and physical effort. Obstacles may include climbing over walls, crossing high bridges, crawling under mesh wire, or carrying heavy loads. This game trains teamwork and strategy development in a team. It also trains and tests strength, endurance, and speed.

Find out in-person Amazing Race Game in SF Bay Area.

Pyramid Ball Puzzle

This is one of the coolest and most fun ideas for Amazing Race. The challenge involves a bunch of ping-pong balls from which the team must try to find the one that has a certain number on them. Using these numbers, they have to figure out the code to the lock that opens the box. Once they open the box, they’ll get the clue to the next challenge or further instruction to keep playing.

Unexpected Detour

Amazing Race Ideas

The team faces a choice between engaging in two challenges, both of which have pros and cons. They have to decide which challenge to participate in—a choice that isn’t easy for them to make. For instance, the team may find a detour to walk a different hidden path. They may choose to take the detour to search out for more clues or not.

Necking the Balloon Challenge

Have the team members of each group stand in a line. The first person is to hold a balloon under their chin or any other item such as an orange. The team members, each their turn, will pass the object down the line to the last person without it touching the hands. Like other line race games, the first team to pass the item down the line wins.

Discover the Palooza Challenge in SF

Jigsaw Puzzle

A jigsaw puzzle is growing in popularity for Amazing Race team-building events because of its ability to challenge the mental strength of teams. It’s a challenge that requires the team to assemble oddly shaped interlocking pieces into one tile. The mosaiced puzzle pieces have a portion of the picture on one side. When assembled, the puzzle pieces should form one complete picture.

This task is highly challenging and entertaining at the same time for team members. The beauty of this game is how satisfying it is to see a complete picture. Putting the jigsaw puzzle as a team challenges the participant’s observation skills, creativity, and concentration. As part of the Amazing Race, you want to divide the team into smaller groups for every member to take part.

These and more challenges are part of the Minute to Win Challnges.

Sponge Race

Amazing Race Ideas

Few Amazing Race activities match the sponge race in the fun it creates and how much it engages all team members. The team players are to try to carry water from one full bucket of water at the starting point to an empty bucket at the end of the line. Starting at the same time, two teams will have a set time to complete the game. The team that has the most water in the finish-line buckets wins. The sponge race tests the team’s strategy and fast-acting.

Eating Challenge

Eating challenges can make a memorable Amazing Race. Each team member is challenged to eat a strange combination of a certain amount of food or snacks. The team has to pass this challenge to proceed to the next or lose points.

Egg Spoon Race

For this classy favorite, you’ll need two teams. Each player gets a hard boiled or plastic egg (or raw egg if you’re willing to make some mess) and a spoon. Starting simultaneously, each team member must carry their egg on the spoon from the starting line and back. They will then pass the egg to their colleague to play their turn. You can opt to use a raw egg, and the teams have to try to keep it from breaking for the duration of the race.

Cup and Plate Stack Race

You’ll need a pile of cups and plates that the team will stack up for this activity. Facing away from the middle of the circle, a team member will run to the centre where the plates and cups are and stack them up. The next person in line will run and continue stacking. The competing team can use their ball to knock down the stacked items to derail the other team. The strategy is to either knock down the other team’s stack or focus on staking their own. The first team to stack up all items wins.

Classic Sack Race

Amazing Race Ideas

Sack races are a popular challenge in Amazing Race games. While the original game used burlap sacks, large pillowcases work wonders well. To get started, have the team stand in a sack and hop down to a designated location. They may proceed to another task or hop back to their team’s line. The winning team is the one that gets all players to complete this race first.

You should organize one Sack Race around Bay Area if you're around.

Tin Towers

Want a challenge to challenge your team with a time limit attached to it? Tin Tower is a sure candidate. The team has to create a tower that’s more than 1m high with a 10m roll of Aluminium Foil in 4 minutes. Of course, the tin tower should stand on its own and be the most outstanding. Although this challenge sounds easy, it challenges most team members; it requires fast creative thinking to create a freestanding tower in that short time.

Locked Challenges

Amazing Race Ideas

The Amazing Race challenge can involve a locked roadblock such as chains. The team is tasked with unchaining the locks to find a way to the next challenge. Locks can be chains they need to open, or they find a way through the locked chains.

Roadblock Challenge

Roadblocks can be physically and mentally challenging for many teams. They force the team to collaborate to find clues and pass the roadblock. In doing so, they apply critical thinking and various attempts. They teach the team to push through, not give up, and think critically.

Pro tip: The experience gets better when you host the game with a facilitator!.

Pass the Water Cup Race

Amazing Race Ideas

Like the sponge water race, the water cup game aims to have the team fill an empty bucket from a full bucket at the finish line. This time, cups that have holes at the bottom are used. The team players will run across the start and finish lines filling their pocked cups and emptying in the empty bucket.

Pop the Balloon Challenge

Each team member needs an inflated balloon to play. The team will line up in a row, and at a distance, there’s a chair. The team member will race at a time to the chair and pop the balloon by sitting on it. The first team to pop all their balloons wins.

Pass the Balloon

Amazing Race Ideas

To play this game, you first want to inflate a few balloons for each group or team. The goal is to pass the balloon down the row where the team members are lined up by gripping the balloon between the knees, no hands allowed. If the balloon falls, the player has to pick it up without using their hands. If the balloon pops, the team has to start all over again from the start. All team members have to take a turn; the first team to pass the balloon through wins.

Carry the Load Challenge

Amazing Race Ideas

This challenge requires the team to carry some load across a difficult road. This can be a hill or a muddy road. The team creatively gets the load across with some preset condition—perhaps in the same state as was, without damage, or getting it dirty. The team gets creative with the provided items such as carriers, logs, or any other items.

Three-Legged Race

It’s interesting to see the team cooperate closely to get a task done. The three-legged game in Amazing Race forces cooperation between team members. The host has to pick the first pair of teammates or allow them to choose a partner. With each pair standing side by side, use a scarf or a piece of fabric to bind their inside legs together to create a third leg. They have to run from the starting to the endpoint.

The game forces the pair to cooperate and communicate on how to make it to the finish line. To make the game even more challenging, have the players carry something small like a bucket of water as they race.

Discover more Games and Amazing Races.

FAQs

What are some Amazing Race challenges?

Some of the most fun Amazing Race challenges are cryptic puzzles, detours, competitions, and construction tasks. These activities challenge the team to work together to critically think of possible solutions fast.

How do you create an Amazing Race event?

The Amazing Race game requires a significant amount of planning and preparation. With a highly experienced facilitator, the game will be an adventure packed with challenges and teamwork—the perfect recipe for company team-building. If you’re thinking of DIY Amazing Race ideas for team building, you want to focus more on all team members having fun rather than winning the prize. Remember, an improperly planned Amazing Race game can cause strained relationships from tight deadlines, tough runs, and tight deadlines. Rather than the winners being based on the fittest or fastest, make it more about what they do and how well they followed the rules.

How do you play the Amazing Race game?

The Amazing Race game starts with an opening ceremony by the awesome facilitator who gives a brief introduction to the team. This is followed by an explanation of the tasks the team should complete, the checkpoints, and clues. Once handed the map, the team will follow the clues to complete the game. Each checkpoint contains challenges, competitions, and detours, and construction tasks. After all the teams have made it to the final checkpoints, the host will hold a closing ceremony. Here the winners are revealed. But beyond the wins, new relationships are formed while your team has enjoyed a fun and successful day.

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