A Newport officer was on the 'Amazing Race,' now he's helping bring the competition here

The Newport Police Department is hosting its own, Newport-sized scale of the Amazing Race competition, complete with stops at some of the city’s most iconic locations. Furthermore, not only did they get help from community partners to host the event, but they even have a guy on the inside to advise them: Former "Amazing Race" contestant Newport Police Capt. Mike Naylor .

“It was one of the best experiences of my life and I think doing that in the great city of Newport will be a great experience,” Naylor said.

The "Amazing Race" is a reality competition show during which teams of two contestants travel to distant locations across the globe and perform mental and physical challenges, progressively getting eliminated with each leg of the race until one team completes the final leg. It has been on the air since 2001, and the most recent 36th season was what inspired Officer Brittany Ripke to recreate the game show in her city.

“One of our partners and I discussed doing the Newport Amazing Race as a fundraiser and hosting it in the city, so getting a bunch of different organizations and partnerships and creating the Amazing Race like the show,” Ripke said. “I’m so excited, I wish I was (participating in) it.”

Like the show, Newport’s Amazing Race will have teams of two deduce clues to discover the location of each leg of the journey, bringing them to eight yet-to-be-disclosed Newport destinations where they will be faced with physical or mental challenges. As examples, Ripke listed challenges from former Amazing Race competitions, such as eating challenges or kicking a soccer ball into a goal, to keep the actual events for Newport’s race a secret.

While they don’t have the standard $1 million prize to give out, there are Newport-based prizes for first and second place, including a one-night stay at Forty 1° North, passes to the Newport County Preservation Society museums, Bohdi Spa passes, dinner at a Newport restaurant, and more.

“We’re definitely highlighting a bunch of what Newport has to offer and major sights and entities in Newport, so it’s a great collaboration,” Ripke said.

The event is meant to be a fundraiser for the Newport Police Department’s community policing division and the free public programming it provides, such as after school programs for children and self-defense classes and line dancing for adults. The proceeds from the $150 entrance fee for contestants will go toward this programming.

“We love to get out there and just involve ourselves in the community and build up that rapport with those children and make those impressions that will last throughout life,” Ripke said. ”It’s important for me to get out in the community and do these programs not just as a police officer but as a person, and we build those connections and they feel more comfortable talking to me too.”

Real-life experience inspires competition

Naylor, who had actually participated in the reality show back in 2010, gave the department advice on how the competition was run behind the scenes, including advice on roadblocks to throw at competitors and making sure the challenges were playtested before the competitors had to take them on. Naylor and his teammate Louie Stravato, a fellow police detective, won three of the legs and completed 11, finishing the competition in fourth place.

“I gave them the inside scoop on the Amazing Race and some ideas for some events, which I can’t tell you about because they’re secret, and logistically how they would work,” Naylor said. “They went out and spent a whole day doing this, because you have to do it first…so you might have seen them walking around the city on a hot Saturday morning doing these events. It’s pretty good work.”

Another piece of advice Naylor gave to the department that he also used to encourage people to participate was the physicality of the challenges. While there are physical challenges, and it’s called a “race,” it won’t be as strenuous as it sounds.

“A lot of times it's logistical, it's planning and figuring out clues on how to get to the next place, not necessarily speed and fastness, so anyone can do it,” Naylor said. “You don’t have to be physically super fit to do it. Sometimes the smarter person beats everybody else out.”

How to enter

The Police Department already has teams signed up to participate and is looking for six more to join. The application period ends on Aug. 12, and those interested can sign up via the form on the department’s Facebook page. The competition itself will start on Sept. 29 at Newport Police Department at 8 a.m., and Ripke estimates it will take around three or four hours to complete.

This article originally appeared on Newport Daily News: A Newport officer was on the 'Amazing Race,' now he's helping bring the competition here