It was around 9:50 a.m. when two sets of competitors jogged up to The Elms, only to be met with a locked gate. While the mansion was designated as the final stop before the finish line of the city's first "Newport Amazing Race," the department thought it would take at least an hour longer for anyone to make it there, and the Preservation Society of Newport County doesn't open the doors to the mansion museum until 10 a.m.
"This is insane. … [They are early by] Like, an hour," Officer Brittany Ripke said earlier as she watched another activity. "Everyone seems to be having such a good time. They're so excited and I can see in their faces what an amazing experience this is."
Ripke, a longtime fan of the original "Amazing Race" reality television show, organized the localized Amazing Race-style competition as a fundraiser for the Newport Police Department Community Policing Division's community programs. With 12 teams of two entering and a legion of community organizations volunteering their time, space and personnel for the event, the department raised about $3,600. Local businesses donated items, vouchers and experiences to be given away as the final prize.
"It's been a great collaboration with all the different organizations in Newport to come together and have this awesome event," Chief Ryan Duffy said .
Now Connor Williams has a great story to tell to his new friends in California. He just accepted a teaching job in San Francisco and decided to make "Newport Amazing Race" his last goodbye to Aquidneck Island, as his flight was set to leave the following day.
"It feels great," Connor Williams said. "It was so much fun to race around Newport. I was kind of surprised to get first, but yeah, it was fun. It was kind of a race to the end."
Close on their heels were friends Sydney Bartman and Kevin Agostinucci, who finished just minutes after the Williamses. Bartman said she signed them up after learning about the competition from her fiancé, Officer Brian Rayner. Behind them were Middletown residents Julie and Peter McHenry; Newport Fire Department Capt. Allan Gray and his wife, Amy; wife-and-husband team Amber Virgin and Kenny Howley; and adventuring buddies Stephanie Rosenthal and Gina Santaniello, all of whom completed the competition within a half-hour of the first-place team.
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