The 2025 Amazing Race was hosted by Chris Lindley, who has also hosted it for the past few years. It took place on September 3, the first Wednesday of September. The race started at 9 a.m. and ended at 10 a.m., lasting exactly one hour.
The totals were calculated from the events your homeroom completed, with some tasks giving more points than others, depending on their difficulty.
There was a total of 12 events, two of which were longer trivia and clue problems.
The top five homerooms this year were: Dittmer with 635 points, Key with 630 points, Dillard with 535 points, Parks with 460 points, and Reckelhoff with 455 points.
The events included: Movie Poster, Pizza! Pizza!, Puzzle Mania, Homeroom Relay, Staff Collage, America 250 Chalk Art, 21 or Bust, Let’s Go Team!, Keep It Up!, America 250 Songfest, and the two trivia and clue problems, These Hallowed Halls 2025 Clues and Teacher Trivia.
The class winners for the race, which will influence the class cup, were juniors with an average score of 457.5, seniors with an average score of 413, freshmen with an average score of 301.75, sophomores with an average score of 293.25, eighth graders with an average score of 288.75, and seventh graders with an average score of 253.75.
The race is different every year, and with the change comes new competition. Lindley and his committee are tasked each year with devising new contests.
“Once again, I think students and staff had a great time as they were challenged by some new events, as well as enjoying some events we used last year, but added new twists to. I try to include various events that play on the strengths of different students, so homerooms can use that in their strategizing. As always, we saw the employability skills at work, such as problem-solving, collaboration, decision-making, initiative, and time management. My committee and I plan our half-days to build a sense of fun and adventure at PHS because we believe in creating a school where students enjoy being here, but we also use these events to offer opportunities to practice these employability skills that we know are transferable to any job. This is why we usually have a debriefing survey we ask for after each event. I do believe that students not only look forward to these monthly events but also that they are learning more than they might imagine. If that is happening, then I count the half-days as a success,” said Lindley.
This year, the winning homeroom was Neil Dittmer’s.
“My homeroom was determined to win after finishing in the top three last year. They did a good job of putting together a plan of attack and executing the plan,” said Dittmer.
The event is held each year to reinforce the IDOE Workforce Skills, including collaboration and teamwork.
