Where Are the Amazing Race Season 4 Cast Members Now?
The Amazing Race Season 4 made history in 2003 when Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt became the first openly gay couple to win a major US network reality competition, only to split just months after their win aired. The season also featured a famously volatile engaged couple, a pair of 12-year dating virgins, and two circus clowns, making it one of the most memorable casts in the show's run.
Source: Getty Images
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Key takeaways
- Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt won the $1 million prize but confirmed their split in October 2003, just weeks after the finale aired on August 21, 2003.
- Kelly Parks and Jon Corso, the runners-up, did eventually marry; Kelly later used the surname Parks-Corso.
- Millie Smith and Chuck Shankles, the season's most-talked-about duo, were together 12 years going into the race; their relationship status afterwards is unconfirmed.
- Amanda Adams and Christopher Garry broke up after the race, despite finishing leg 1 in first place.
- The season aired on CBS from May 29 to August 21, 2003, and visited nine countries across four continents.
Season 4 cast summary
Team | Relationship | Hometown | Finish |
Reichen Lehmkuhl & Chip Arndt | Married (commitment ceremony) | Beverly Hills, CA | Winners |
Kelly Parks & Jon Corso | Engaged | Miami, FL | 2nd place |
David Dean & Jeff Strand | Best friends | Los Angeles, CA | 3rd place |
Jon Weiss & Al Rios | Best friends & clowns | Long Island, NY | 4th place |
Millie Smith & Chuck Shankles | Dating 12 years | Chattanooga, TN | 5th place |
Tian Kitchen & Jaree Poteet | Friends & models | Miami, FL | 6th place |
Monica Ambrose & Sheree Buchanan | NFL wives | Duluth, GA | 7th place |
Steve Meitz & Dave Cottingham | Air traffic controllers | Chicago, IL | 8th place |
Steve Cottingham & Josh Cottingham | Father & son | Santa Barbara, CA | 9th place |
Russell Brown & Cindy Duck | Friends | Los Angeles, CA | 10th place |
Amanda Adams & Chris Garry | Dating | Sioux Falls, SD | 11th place |
Debra Carmody & Steve Carmody | Married | — | 12th place |
Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt: winners
Source: Getty Images
- Full names: Richard Allen "Reichen" Lehmkuhl; Willis Chapman "Chip" Arndt Jr.
- Date of birth: December 26, 1973 (Reichen); October 2, 1966 (Chip)
- Nationality: American
- Profession: CEO/businessman (Reichen); business consultant and LGBTQ activist (Chip)
- Season finish: Winners: $1 million prize
- Still together? No, split in late September/October 2003
Richard Allen "Reichen" Lehmkuhl and Willis Chapman "Chip" Arndt Jr. were the official winners of The Amazing Race 4. When the season was filmed and broadcast, same-sex marriage had not yet been legalised in the United States.
The couple had met in 1999 while Reichen was still in the United States Air Force and held a commitment ceremony on February 2, 2002, but were not legally married, having asked CBS to identify them as a married couple.
Reichen and Chip were the first openly gay couple to win a reality show contest. Their victory came with a twist: though they won, taking home the top prize didn't bode well for their relationship. Reichen was much too flirty for Chip's taste, which was a factor when the couple split before their season even finished airing.
After Season 4 finished airing, Lehmkuhl confirmed in an interview with Metro Weekly that he and Arndt had ended their relationship, saying,
(We've) been trying since we got back from the race to get along and work things out, and it just wasn't happening... So we're both now single, officially.
Reichen later dated NSYNC pop singer Lance Bass from 2006 to 2007 and has since worked as CEO of LeaseLock. Chip is now an American business consultant and LGBTQ activist; his professional background spans finance and media consulting, including founding Arndt Strategies in 2002 to advise on financing and projects in film, music, and multimedia.
Kelly Parks and Jon Corso: runners-up
Source: Getty Images
- Full names: Kelly Parks (later Parks-Corso); Jonathan "Jon" Corso
- Nationality: American
- Profession: Model/sales representative (Kelly); real estate (Jon)
- Season finish: 2nd place
- Still together? Yes, they married after the show
Engaged couple Jon Corso and Kelly Parks finished in second place in Season 4. Kelly and Jon regularly found themselves bickering over who was right in certain situations and emerged as villains with their cattiness and name-calling, particularly towards Millie and Chuck.
Kelly Parks and Jonathan Corso did eventually marry; court documents filed years later referred to them as "married models Kelly Parks-Corso and Jonathan Corso." Jon went on to work in real estate, with a profile listed at Coldwell Banker Homes in Miami Beach.
David Dean and Jeff Strand: third place
Source: UGC
- Full names: David Dean; Jeff Strand
- Nationality: American
- Profession: Best friends, based in Los Angeles, CA
- Season finish: 3rd place
Best friends David Dean and Jeff Strand finished in third place in Season 4. The Los Angeles-based pair were considered a dark-horse team, winning legs 7 and 11 outright and finishing first on leg 12 before narrowly missing the podium in the finale. Little verified public information about their lives post-race is available.
Jon Weiss and Al Rios: fourth place
Source: UGC
- Full names: Jon Weiss; Al Rios
- Nationality: American
- Profession: Circus clowns, Long Island, NY
- Season finish: 4th place
Jon and Al were introduced on the show as circus clowns from Long Island, New York. The fan-favourite team were known for performing for locals at pit stops and were widely regarded as the most likeable pair of the season. They were eliminated in Leg 11, at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, South Korea.
Millie Smith and Chuck Shankles: fifth place
Source: Getty Images
- Full names: Millie Smith; Chuck Shankles
- Nationality: American
- Profession: Educator/traveller (Millie); personal trainer (Chuck)
- Location: Chattanooga, Tennessee
- Season finish: 5th place
- Still together? Unclear, together at the time of elimination in 2003
Millie Smith and Chuck Shankles raced as a "Dating 12 Years/Virgins" team on The Amazing Race 4. Despite being together for over a decade, Millie and Chuck encountered several "compatibility issues" during the race, stemming from Millie's aggressive, competitive nature clashing with Chuck's slower, more deliberate approach.
The couple from Chattanooga, Tennessee, were still very much together after 12 years of dating at the time of their post-elimination interview.
Millie holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts from Bryan College in Dayton, Tennessee, and her passion for teaching took her to Taiwan, where she taught English, as well as to Israel and Russia. Chuck obtained a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science from the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga.
Amanda Adams and Chris Garry: eleventh place
Source: UGC
- Full names: Amanda Adams; Christopher "Chris" Garry
- Nationality: American
- Profession: Medical technician (Amanda); freelance graphic designer (Chris)
- Location: Sioux Falls, South Dakota
- Season finish: 11th place (eliminated leg 2)
- Still together? No, broke up after the race
Amanda Adams and Christopher "Chris" Garry raced as a dating team on The Amazing Race 4. Amanda and Chris ran a flawless first leg, tying for first place, but difficulty navigating Venice in leg 2 left them near the back of the pack at the Roadblock, and Chris struggled in the detail-orientated task, dropping them to last and resulting in their elimination in 11th place.
The couple came from Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Amanda worked as a medical technician, and Chris was a freelance graphic designer. Amanda and Chris broke up sometime after the race.
FAQs
Are Reichen and Chip from Amazing Race 4 still together?
The relationship between The Amazing Race 4 winners Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt officially came to an end in late September 2003. Reichen told Metro Weekly that because of CBS' six-month delay in airing the show, "we only had each other for six months as a sounding board," putting a lot of stress on both of them. They have remained on friendly terms since.
Were Reichen and Chip actually legally married?
The couple had a commitment ceremony on February 2, 2002, but were not legally married; same-sex marriage was not recognised anywhere in the US at the time. They had asked CBS to identify them as a married couple. They were the first openly gay couple to win a reality show contest, at a time when gay marriage was not legal in any US state.
Are Kelly and Jon from Amazing Race 4 still together?
Kelly Parks and Jon Corso raced as an engaged couple on The Amazing Race 4. They did go on to marry; court filings later identified them as "married models Kelly Parks-Corso and Jonathan Corso," confirming the wedding took place after the show.
Are Amanda and Chris from Amazing Race Season 4 still together?
Amanda and Chris broke up sometime after the race. The dating pair came from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and were one of the earliest eliminations of the season, going home in just the second leg. No verified public information about their current lives is available.
What happened to Millie Smith after Amazing Race 4?
Millie holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts from Bryan College in Dayton, Tennessee, and has pursued teaching and cultural exploration, travelling to Taiwan, Israel, and Russia. Millie and Chuck were still together as of their post-elimination interview in 2003, but no reliable reporting on their relationship status after that point has been published.
We also highlighted facts about The Amazing Race Season 5 couples and where their relationships stand today. The article examines winners Chip and Kim McAllister, runners-up Colin Guinn and Christie Woods, third-place finishers Brandon Davidson and Nicole O’Brian, and internet daters Bob Barron and Joyce Nicolo.
Chip and Kim remain married and have built a real estate business, while Colin and Christie returned years later to win the competition they once narrowly missed. The contrasting outcomes reveal how reality television fame shaped the couples’ relationships long after the race ended.
Source: Legit.ng
