Chip and Kim McAllister: the darlings of The Amazing Race reality TV series win $1 million and a personal race against disaster

Ebony, Dec, 2004

OVER 12 million television viewers watched Kim and Chip McAllister win $1 million on The Amazing Race, the popular CBS reality show.

The only African-American couple in the race, they covered 72,000 miles, six continents and 11 countries.

The victory endeared the McAllisters to millions of fans and helped the couple to win a personal race against disaster. For at the time of their victory, the couple, unknown to the television audience, was on the edge of a financial disaster.

"The last two years have been the worst two years up until this point," says Chip, 46, a former actor who played a youthful Muhammad Ali in the movie The Greatest. "It was 14 months of starvation and three months of our home being in foreclosure."

Before the bad times, the McAllisters were living the American Dream, operating a profitable Internet business and occupying a beautiful home with their three children, just 30 minutes away from L.A.

Then disaster struck. A business development went wrong and plunged the couple into serious financial debt, according to Chip, who says he never lost sight of his priorities--God, marriage and children.

One day Chip came home and announced that he and Kim were going to enter The Amazing Race. The couple's children, ages 23, 19 and 17, stayed with Chip's mom and joined millions of viewers who tuned in weekly to watch their parents hike, snorkel scale, paddle and jettison in such places as the Philippines, India, Egypt and Argentina. Only three couples remained during the climactic finale, which ended in Dallas, where Chip and Kim were declared the victors.

The couple has been married for 20 years and dated for five years before getting married. Chip recalls that he saw his future wife doing "the Freak" on the dance floor and wearing Jordache jeans. Kim, 44, is still youthful-looking and was the strategist during their Amazing Race adventure.

"It's been awesome" Kim says of their experience. "We never argued during the race. We knew that we couldn't display any antagonistic feelings toward each other--not for one moment."

The hit show has made them celebrities, with talk of a book deal and perhaps even their very own talk show covering a topic that both love to discuss--how to be part of a successful marriage.

"Now everywhere we go, people congratulate us ...," Chip says. "They tell us how we have helped their marriage. That's what we are. We are advocates for a happy marriage."

The couple is thankful not only for the money, but also for the hope it brings to their lives.

"The $1 million was a springboard to our financial success," Chip says. "The favor we got is worth $10 million."